18 Fascinating Panoramic Shots, Live Webcams & Virtual Tours from Around the World

Most likely, your travel plans for this year have gone out the window. With travel restrictions in place and the hospitality industry only partially reopened, it looks like we won’t be able to disconnect from work anywhere but close to home this year. But, there might still be something you can do to keep your wanderlust in check.

The internet played a central role in keeping the pandemic in check through opportunities presented by working from home and e-commerce. And now, the online world can help you get a glimpse of the art galleries, architectural wonders and natural landmarks you’ve been dying to see — all through 360° pictures and live feeds made available on the world wide web.

So, to help you tour our wonderful world without ever leaving the comfort and safety of your home, we gathered the 18 coolest live feeds, panorama shots and virtual tours from around the world. We then split them into three categories: Nature and Landmarks; Buildings, Skylines and Architecture; and Museums, Theme Parks and Campus Tours.

Nature & Landmarks

1. Airpano

Airpano falls into both this category and Buildings, Skylines and Architecture, because it offers hundreds of 360° photos of stunning natural locations and man-made wonders around the world.

2. Explore Livecams

Explore offers dozens of livestreams of natural scenes and animals. In fact, there’s just about every nature livestream you can imagine — from kitten sanctuaries and owl nests to schools of tropical fish and watering holes in Africa. You can even watch highlights from previous streams.

Elephants drinking from a watering hole

3. Fullscreen 360

Just like Airpano, Fullscreen 360 lets you see dozens of landmarks and cityscapes in stunning, panoramic detail.

Temple of the Emerald Buddha, Bangkok, Thailand

4. The Georgia Aquarium

Aquariums gradually closed due to coronavirus fears, and the lack of visitors even caused some fish to show signs of loneliness. Fortunately, until we’re able to go see marine life up close and personal, we can still visit the animals through the internet: The Georgia Aquarium offers live cams of their aquarium exhibits during normal visiting hours, as well as playback recordings during the night when the animals are asleep.

5. The Giant’s Causeway

The Giant’s Causeway — a stunning rock formation in Northern Ireland that seems almost too perfect to be natural — can be seen in full 360°. For a czomplete experience, the panorama even allows you to listen to the sounds of the Atlantic Ocean as you look around.

6. GlobeGenie

If you still haven’t had enough of wide-angle panoramic shots, GlobeGenie can take you to a random place anywhere on the planet. Just pick the continents you want to include, press Teleport and see where you end up — a scenic overlook in the Rockies, a quaint little town in France, a lonely road in the Australian outback or anywhere in between.

Mont Blanc, France

Buildings, Skylines & Architecture

1. The Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas

You can see the Raiders’ home beginning in 2020 — as well as an overview of Spring Valley, Nev. — on a 24-hour livestream available here.

2. The Eiffel Tower

Even if your travels won’t take you to Paris anytime soon, you can still see the Eiffel Tower through other means. This unmistakable landmark has been the tallest building in the French capital since 1889, and now you can see it through a live webcam that also gives you a great view of central Paris.

The Eiffel Tower, Paris, France

3. The Empire State Building & New York City’s Skyline

Thinking of the constant bustle on the streets below, this live broadcast of the Empire State Building and the surrounding New York City skyline is surprisingly peaceful and motionless, except for the occasional cloud rolling by. You can even zoom in and take a closer look at other Manhattan office buildings in the live feed, such as Hudson Yards and One World Trade Center.

4. The Royal Academy of Arts’ “Sensing Spaces”

Situated in London, the Royal Academy of Arts offers an architecture-themed virtual tour dubbed “Sensing Spaces,” which aims to present two sides of architecture, function and experience.

Statue of painter Joshua Reynolds in front of the Royal Academy of Arts, London, England, United Kingdom

5. The Sagrada Familia

The Basilica de la Sagrada Família — or, as its friends know it, the Sagrada Familia — has been under construction since 1882. Its distinctive style is owed to Antoni Gaudí, the cathedral’s architectural mastermind. You can see the building’s façade that combines Gothic with Art Nouveau, its interior, the view from its spires and the unique grid pattern of Barcelona’s city blocks through this virtual tour.

6. Skyline Webcams

If you can’t decide on a single building or city skyline to visit virtually, Skyline Webcams gives you a wide array of options from around the world.

Museums, Theme Parks & Campus Tours

1. The British Museum’s “The Museum of the World — History Connected”

The British Museum made a unique virtual exhibit featuring hundreds of artifacts, weapons and works of art called “The Museum of the World.” The items are organized by continent, century and type, and selecting an item highlights all related items to demonstrate the progression of history.

British Museum, London, England, United Kingdom

2. College Campus Tours

No matter if you’re researching what college you should apply for, looking to relive your university days or just hoping to explore cool places through the internet, YouVisit has you covered. Its series of virtual tours features a multitude of colleges and universities across the U.S., while also including tours of hotels, casinos and more.

Campus of the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, Calif.

3. Disney Parks

Disney’s theme parks recently began reopening with social distancing measures, but you can also see them at their busiest through Google Street View.

4. The Louvre

Get a glimpse of one of the world’s most famous museums — the Louvre — through a series of virtual exhibits available here. The tours are presented through high-quality pictures and are detailed enough to satisfy any art connoisseur stuck at home.

5. The National Museum of Computing

Here’s one for the computer whizzes. The National Museum of Computing in England offers a 360° virtual tour presenting some of the most important machines in the history of computing.

6. The Vatican’s Virtual Tours

There are countless museums and art galleries in Italy worth visiting, but the Renaissance and Baroque grandeur of the Vatican is certainly a must-see, even if only through the internet. You can even see the world-renowned Sistine Chapel through 360° shots.

Maybe you were awe-struck by a sprawling cityscape, or perhaps you preferred the wild beauty of a nature cam. Either way, we hope this list of cool 360° panoramic photos, live webcams and virtual tours made you feel like you saw a part of the world — even if you never left your couch.