What it's Like to Take a Virtual Tour

Looking back at the summer of 2019, it feels like an entirely different world. People were moving. We were crossing oceans and borders without trepidation. Hopefully the summer of 2021 will feel the same, but for now, most of us are staying safe and sticking close to home.

But that doesn't mean we can't find creative ways to connect with people around the globe - like the local guides you would have met if you'd traveled as planned! Today our London guide Simon joins us to give a first person account of what it's like to lead a virtual tour in 2020.

Learning to Love the Virtual

I've got to be honest, I wasn't sure about virtual tours either at first. But then I heard a neuroscience person say that we have the same reaction to an online face as a real one. So I decided to give it a go. The first tour was a couple of weeks ago – and it was a lot of fun!

Even though we were on the other side of the Atlantic, we connected. In fact, we were all over; the Bostonian who booked the tour thought it would be a great idea to use the tour to connect with old friends. So we had New Yorkers, Mid-Westers and even someone here in the UK who was just a few hours drive away from me.

Of course it's never going to be the same as being here in person. But we did get to explore some of the off-the-beaten-track corners of East London (my favourite thing, in my favourite part of London, my own neighbourhood) and they had some great questions for me. I got a little insight into your lockdown experiences and we all got to share some of the stuff that makes East London such an exciting destination.

It was quite canny of her to use the experience to bring old friends together and also get a little fix of the London that she misses. But that's what the technology is for. Aren't a lot of us re-evaluating our priorities right now? So if you need a little London in your life, why not use it as an opportunity to reconnect with friends and family too? Take a virtual tour together and get a little of that travel buzz without even leaving your home?

The reason I love my job so much is because I enjoy making connection. I think that's reflected in the reviews I get. All business is people business, but this one particularly. 2020 is a strange old year, alright. But with the tech we have now, we've never had such an opportunity to be in each other's houses. So let's use it? Let's stay connected.

You can take a virtual tour in 20 different countries around the world! Check out all the options here: Search Virtual Tours.