Before COVID, my family and I used to travel every chance that we could. I am super lucky to have been able to see so many amazing places around the world, and one of the things that I miss most about life before the pandemic was easily and safely traveling to new cities. As much as I love late-night drives with my best friend (seriously, nothing beats blasting music and singing at the top of your lungs while driving with no real destination), the suburbs of St. Louis are admittedly not the most exciting place to explore. The last few months have been rather boring for me as I wait alongside the rest of the world and hope that things will return to some kind of normal and allow me to continue my past jet-setting ways in the future.
As I was scrolling through my TikTok For You Page a few weeks ago, I saw a girl upload a website recommendation for people like me who missed traveling and were sick of seeing the streets of their hometown. Within just a few days, I was hooked. The site is called “Drive and Listen,” and essentially allows you to virtually drive through the streets of different cities across the world. The continued stream of these drives places you directly in a car and gives you a straight-on view of skyscrapers, local destinations, and other cars while playing music in the background to make you feel like you are on a real road trip. From Hawaii to Zurich to Tokyo to Warsaw, you can pick anywhere and take a virtual drive for as long as you want to stay. I have found myself using the site when I am doing my makeup or editing papers to give me something interesting to look at, and there is something so calming about it.
The list of cities available is constantly changing, so you will never get bored while browsing the site. The videos are recorded by actual drivers, and while you are following along their streams you can even send a small donation to a driver to buy him or her a coffee! Overall, this site is perfect for those moments when you want an escape but can’t actually go anywhere.
If you like driving or traveling, you should definitely check out “Drive and Listen” the next time that you find yourself bored!