Road Trip from Home: Virtual Field Trips

Written by Carly Hallman

Are you interested in doing a lot of exploring, but don’t often have the opportunity? Let’s face it; parents don’t always have the time to take the family on long field trips. Some destinations, such as other countries throughout the world, may take weeks and can be very expensive. When you can’t go globe-trotting, sometimes you have to get creative and let your mind do the exploring. This is where virtual field trips become a great alternative. These are fun and wonderful websites that will show you different parts of the world, famous landmarks, beautiful works of art, historic marvels, science adventures and so much more!

Museums and Landmarks

• Museums and Exhibits – Tours of museums and exhibits such as the National Gallery of Art and Ancient Greek Artifacts.
• Natural History – The Museum of Natural History 360° tour allows you to go wherever you wish with the click of a button.
• The Largest Cave in the World – A wondrous cave in Vietnam that includes almost anything you can imagine!
• The National Aquarium – Explore one of the best aquariums in the country in this interactive self-guided tour.
• The San Diego Zoo – An interactive site featuring videos, games and activities.
• Mount Everest – Explore and learn about what it’s like to scale the highest peak in the world.
• The Giant’s Causeway – A unique rock formation found in Ireland, this 360° experience is controlled by you.
• The Sistine Chapel – Leonardo Da Vinci’s masterpiece cannot be photographed, but you may take a virtual tour here.

Historic Marvels

• Egyptian Pyramid Tour – The pyramids of Egypt are some of the most famous monuments in the world.
• The Secrets of Easter Island – Here’s your chance to explore the remains of a lost civilization.
• History of Music – How did different types of music form? This site explains interactively and creatively.
• The United States Constitution – Learn about what is considered the most important document this country has ever written.
• Ellis Island – Learn about the original destination of many immigrants coming to the United States.
• Machu Picchu – Explore the mysterious ancient ruin of Machu Picchu deep in the mountains of Peru.
• The White House Virtual Tour – Tour The White House by clicking through the rooms you wish to visit.
• The Lincoln Memorial – Tour the memorial to this highly regarded President who presided during the Civil War.
• The Acropolis – This tour provides a 360° view of the famous historic site from ancient Greece.

Science Adventures

• Fun with Geography – Play through different parts of the world while you try to guess where you are.
• Learn About Farms and Livestock – This resource offers a lot to learn about all forms of agriculture and livestock from crops to sheep.
• Discovery Education Virtual Field Trips – Promising amazing places and remarkable experiences, Discovery Education has many different tours available.
• Farm Food Virtual Tours – Learn how things are made, and how animals are raised.
• The Virtual Rainforest – A visual experience that shows up close the abundant life of the largest rainforest in the world.
• Great Lakes Virtual Field Trip – Learn about the science, diversity, and ecology of these large freshwater lakes.
• Slime in Space – This video field trip shows how slime acts in space. Watch astronauts play ping pong with it!
• Virtual Planetarium – View the night sky as seen from a planetarium and learn about the stars.
• Cities from Around the World – Click on the images on the map to see city skylines from all over the world.
• The Manhattan Project Field Trip – Learn about how the most powerful weapon in the world is made.
• Reach the World – This virtual field trip helps you learn what it’s like to live in other parts of the world.
• The Virtual Museum of Galileo – Learn from one of the greatest scientific minds in this virtual museum.
• Virtual Nature – Virtual field trips focusing on a variety of plants and botany. Carnivorous plants are included!
• NASA Space Center Houston – An interactive, 360° experience where you control what you are viewing.

Another alternative to virtual vacations is to take road trips and explore what’s around you within driving distance. In the event that the car hits a bump and breaks down along the way, know that there are many different lending options available to help your trip stay on track; don’t let financial emergencies get in the way of your family’s memories.