If you are tired of lounging on the couch while binging your favorite Netflix series or scrolling through TikTok, you are definitely not alone. The boredom can be overwhelming and mind-numbing, but there are ways to use this free time to access the virtual world and expand your knowledge. One entertaining way to do this is to take advantage of the hundreds of free virtual tours currently being offered by places like amusement parks, zoos, and museums.
Some museums are independently displaying online tours. Google Arts & Culture has teamed up with more than 2,500 museums and galleries to help offer virtual tours in the midst of this dreary time. Most tours can be easily accessed through Google’s “street view.” While this is especially fun for children, teens and adults can learn a lot from these tours as well and perhaps gain some cultural insight from the comfort of their couch. Here are some amazing highlights from around the world that you can dive into this quarantine.
- Guggenheim Museum, New York
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Scroll around the famous corkscrew design of the Guggenheim which features Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, as well as Modern and Contemporary Art.
- National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Seoul
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The Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, MMCA, expands through four different cities in Korea. MMCA Seoul has six floors displaying contemporary art from Korea and around the globe.
- Pergamon Museum, Berlin
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One of Germany’s largest museums, the Pergamon is known for its exhibitions of ancient monumental buildings from around the world, including the Pergamon Altar, the Ishtar Gate of Babylon, and the Market Gate of Miletus.
- Musée d’Orsay, Paris
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One of the largest art museums in Europe, this museum includes French art from 1848-1914, highlighting artists such as Monet, Cézanne, and Gauguin.
- Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam
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The Van Gogh Museum features over 200 paintings, 500 drawings, and 750 letters written by the fascinating artist.
- MASP, São Paulo
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Tour Brazil’s first modern art museum with its unique curation of pieces dangling in midair.
- Louvre, Paris
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One of Paris’ most famous museums, the Louvre, is displaying Egyptian antiquities and other exhibits virtually.
- National Museum of Anthropology, Mexico City
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At the center of this museum is a pond that is surrounded by 23 rooms exhibiting Mayan civilization artefacts and more.
- J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
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One of the best museums on the west coast of the United States, the Getty features an abundance of creative pieces from a variety of eras and has a fantastic sculpture plaza and garden terrace.
- The British Museum, London
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The British Museum has a diverse collection of art pieces and houses the Rosetta Stone, as well as the original statue from Easter Island. It also has an amazing roof constructed of glass and steel.
If you are looking for more recommendations, explore the entire collection of Google’s museum tours here. Through granting a unique mental escape from hunkering down at home, hopefully these museum tours can satisfy your inner jetsetter while providing a glimmer of much needed inspiration during quarantine.