It’s tough for our inner travel bug to deal with travel restrictions. While you might not be able travel as much, you can still enjoy virtual visits to many popular destinations.
The Dalia Lama is noted for saying “Once a year, go someplace you’ve never been before”. That “somewhere” can simply be a change of virtual scenery.
To help you get started here are 16 virtual visits in North America you can enjoy from home:
Kansas City, Kansas
We truly love Kansas City, Kansas. It’s a destination near and dear to our hearts. While we may not be able to visit this lovely location right now, we’re delighted to find out they have virtual tours!
You can explore from the comfort of your couch. It’s a great way to escape for awhile and to plan for your visit down the road.
Virtual tours are available for all types of attractions in Kansas City. Two of our favorites are the Moon Marble Store and the Strawberry Hill Ethnic Museum. Watch them all HERE.
In addition to virtual tours, you can also discover Kansas City through audio tours. At any time, from any location, use your cell phone to listen to the fascinating details of historic sites and attractions.
Involve your children in your fun, virtual journey and keep them entertained, too, with plenty of downloadable activity sheets and coloring pages. Visit Kansas City, KS has an “Explore and Learn” page chock full of fun puzzles and coloring sheets. Great for adults, too! We particularly love the Community College Mural coloring page depicting the beautiful Wyandot Mural.
Zoo America, Hershey, Pennsylvania
Through daily Facebook Live sessions, parents and children engage with experiences that include a behind-the-scenes
Houston Zoo, Houston, Texas
The Houston Zoo shares information about the animals in its care – and how the community can help save threatened animals in the wild – through its social media channels, especially during “Houston Zoo Live,” Monday-Friday at 11 a.m. CT.
St. Louis Aquarium, St. Louis, Missouri
The St. Louis Aquarium hosts breakfast sessions with some of its animals. Fans are encouraged to dine virtually with sloths, river otters, and more during live weekly sessions on the aquarium’s Facebook page. Later in the day, the conversation continues as the aquarium posts an activity for fans to continue the fun and learning from home.
Looking for something more relaxing? The “QuaranStream” Live on Facebook, Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from
Santa Rosa, California
Check out the gnarly waves at one of the best beaches in Sonoma County: Doran Beach in Bodega Bay.
Watch a movie filmed in Sonoma County: So many classic Hollywood movies to choose from! They include American Graffiti, The Birds, Shadow of a Doubt, Peggy Sue Got Married, Pollyanna, Cheaper by the Dozen, and Scream, just to name a few.
Visit the Museum of Sonoma County’s Engagement Series of activities, including a cool virtual escape room.
Hike (virtually) through the Mayacamas Mountains in beautiful Sugarloaf Ridge State Park in Kenwood. To get you in the mood, before you start your hike check out this highlight reel featuring the creatures of Sugarloaf Ridge.
Bonus: Sonoma County – Wine!
Before you come to enjoy Sonoma County’ finest, Francis Ford Coppola Winery offers several short educational wine videos, including wine tasting tips with associate winemaker, Francoise Cordesse, as well as wine hacks that include how to decode a wine label at the grocery store and a fun feature called “What’s in My Wine?”
Gatorland, Kissimmee, Florida
Airing live every day at 10 a.m. ET on Gatorland’s
Escapology – multiple locations
Escapology, the live escape game attraction, has created #DailyDistinction
Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, Florida
From lessons on rocketry to creating rockets at home from recycled materials, Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex provides content for kids on its Facebook page, Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 9:30 a.m. ET. Programming for middle and high-school age students begins at 1 p.m. ET. In addition, downloadable activity sheets and experiments can be found online.
Canada’s Wonderland, Vaughn, Ontario, Canada
Since there’s nothing quite like the feeling of riding a thrilling roller coaster, Canada’s Wonderland has created 34 point-of-view videos to help families feel like they are really there. They are then encouraged to make their own video, pretending they are riding the coasters. Submitted videos may be shared by the park on its social channels.
Hersheypark, Hershey, Pennsylvania
The sweetest park on earth has created downloadable coloring pages for kids at home, and is adding point-of-view videos from their rides and attractions for families to experience from home.
Carowinds, Charlotte, North Carolina
Carowinds has created a virtual stroll through the park fans can take from home. Point-of-view videos throughout the entire park allow guests to feel like they are riding the roller coasters and strolling through the park.
Georgia Aquarium, Atlanta, Georgia
Known for its educational content, the Georgia Aquarium now has a dedicated, comprehensive landing page for remote learning. Unique content includes nine webcams of the aquarium’s most popular animals. This includes whale sharks, penguins, beluga whales, rescued sea otters and many more.
Educational videos focus on what it takes to run one of the largest aquariums in the world. Live feeds provide an exclusive behind-the-scenes look, lunch time topics, animals at play and animal training sessions. The aquarium’s educational content is great for parents with kids of all ages. Also includes a video series and downloadable curriculum materials.
OdySea Aquarium, Scottsdale, Arizona
The OdySea Aquarium has created an “oceanic adventure from home” for its fans. Along with a virtual classroom, the aquarium’s live webcams give guests the chance to see what the animals are up to at any given time.
San Diego Zoo, San Diego, California
A dedicated website and YouTube channel for kids are just two examples of the many ways the San Diego Zoo is communicating with its audience. Live webcams allow people to peek in on the habitats of pandas, burrowing owls, elephants, polar bears, koalas, giraffes, tigers, condors and more. Supplemental – and downloadable – educational curriculums provide additional information about the zoo’s incredible menagerie.
Ripley’s Aquariums – multiple locations
The new Ripley’s Aquariums at Home program has a full schedule of live Facebook events, Story Time Live!, arts and crafts, downloadable educational material and more.
Urban Air Adventure Parks – multiple locations
Urban Air Adventure Parks use Facebook Live sessions to provide cooking tips for kids from their corporate chef. There’s also virtual scavenger hunts inside the parks and other engaging activities.
