With most of the country with some sort of stay-at-home order, people are finding themselves with a lot more time on their hands to pursue new hobbies. If you’re bored at home and want to find something new to learn, we’ve got some recommendations for hobbies you can try at home.
One of the most inspiring things about books is their way of transporting you to a place and time you might not otherwise be able to experience. We’re highlighting 9 of our favorite international writers who will take you on a journey of a lifetime, entangle fact and fiction.
As travel is put on a temporary pause, what can home-ridden travelers do to scratch that itch? Institutions all around the world are pulling together to give people the resources to learn and explore from home.
Many travelers abroad relish in visiting places where they can learn about the culture of the place they are visiting as well as experiencing iconic works of art, design, and more. Many Museums are making the wonderful decision of making their exhibits accessible online. In a time where we are forced to stay at home, it is an opportune moment to learn and experience spaces around the world that will leave you inspired and moved.
Here are a few of our favorites:
The Louvre is one of the museum lover’s dream galleries to travel to. Through their online tours be able to see the Mona Lisa behind glass, Apollo Slaying the Serpent Python and more!
The Smithsonian has an amazing How to Travel Virtually section with multiple spots all over the world that you can travel virtually,
Explore stories of Van Gogh’s life virtually with the Van Gogh Museum website.
The MOMA has done a beautiful job providing for online art lovers with free courses exploring art. Explore tons of exhibitions and artworks on their Youtube.
The Sistine Chapel can even be viewed in the virtual tour on The Vatican Museum site.
Take the time to see a virtual tour of The Anne Frank House.
Explore the incredible building, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum through a Google Arts and Culture virtual tour.
The London National Gallery has a virtual tour of 18 galleries showcasing over 300 paintings.
Although traveling to see the historic marvels is not allowed at this moment, we can still enrich ourselves with history virtually. Traveler’s everywhere love traveling to historic sites to get a feel for what people long ago may have experienced or felt. Just because we all must stay home during this time, we can still take this moment to learn a little bit more about the history of our world.
Being one of the most acclaimed historic sites in China, at 3,000 miles long,
The Great Wall of China is a great place to explore virtually and learn about this history associated with the beautiful 2,000 year old site.
Virtually visit the incredible Pyramids of Giza using Google Maps traveling back to 5,000 years ago!
If you are a die-hard Indiana Jones you for sure have seen this iconic facade in its films, Petra is one of the great wonders of the world, explore it with Google Maps.
The Temples of Angkor are legendary. They are known to be the single largest religious monument, dating back to approx. 9th – 15th century AD.
If you want to keep doing a deep dive into the history of the world, check out this database of ancient cave paintings.
While visiting national parks in person isn’t advised right now, you can take an online tour thanks to Google Earth’s expansive collection. It’s the perfect opportunity to scout out potential future roadtrips.
Badlands National Park of South Dakota is jagged and desolate, just as the name would suggest.
Arches National Park in Utah features sandstone cliffs and picturesque cutouts in the rock.
Death Valley National Park in Nevada and California is the hottest, driest and lowest national park.
Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona, the aftermath of the Colorado river, is a beautiful red canyon over a mile deep and 277 miles long.
Guadalupe Mountains National Park in Texas has permian fossil reefs and the four highest peaks in the state.
Redwood National Park in California is home to redwood trees that are thousands of years old.
Sequoia National Park of California houses giant sequoia trees, some of the largest and oldest forms of life on Earth.
You can also see the comprehensive list of national parks on Google Earth here.
Have you ever wondered what happens at zoos when the visitors are all gone and the animals are left on their own? The following zoos are giving us a glimpse with their live cams.
The San Diego Zoo has the most options of live cams by far, but our favorite is their penguin cam.
Zoo Atlanta has a panda cam to bring panda joy all around the world.
Those who prefer more aquatic animals will appreciate the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s featured animals. Don’t miss out on the moon jellyfish.
While not a live cam, the National Aquarium does have an interactive tour you can access with multiple education resources.
When it’s time to travel again, we’ll be there to assist you. Until then, enjoy these virtual travel experiences!
As the world deals with the current health crisis, most travel has slowed to a crawl. The majority of leisure plans have been canceled or postponed as major parks have closed and conferences have been postponed. Different states and even countries are restricting travel with mandatory quarantines upon arrival.
Even with the U.S. Department of State recently announcing a Global Level 4: Do Not Travel Health Advisory, some travelers have essential travel that cannot be canceled. If you must pass through an airport or jump on a plane in the next few weeks, the best resources for information on how to travel are the World Health Organization, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the local governing office of the locations you will be departing from and arriving to.
CDC recommendation for essential travel during the COVID-19 include:
To protect yourself as you travel, utilize the same strategies as you would at home:
TSA has temporarily waived their liquids restriction when it comes to hand sanitizer. Now, you can bring in up to 12 ounces in your carry-on luggage. It may also be a good idea to bring disinfectant wipes to make sure the surfaces you’re touching are clean.
Below are some useful resources we have put together for the essential travelers:
A list of countries with restrictions:
CDC full stance on travel:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/travel-in-the-us.html
Stuck abroad? The State Department has put out financial assistance resource plans:
We hope these guidelines and resources help if you find yourself needing to travel. At AirportParkingReservations.com, we’re dedicated to doing our part in creating enjoyable travel experiences. As always, stay healthy and safe.
As you are well aware, the current coronavirus pandemic has created an aggressive disruption in nearly all aspects of everyday life, and most especially in the travel and hospitality industry. Many airlines and other travel companies are reducing their capacity, and the situation is changing with more updates every day.
Throughout this tumultuous time, our priority at ParkSleepFly.com is to take care of our customers. Our company has been serving travelers for more than 15 years. We know our product, we know our customers, and we don’t plan on changing our priorities anytime soon.
As with all other companies in the travel industry, we’ve had an influx of calls and emails regarding travel plans. We appreciate the patience of our customers as we sort things out for each of you.
For those who have questions about our cancellation policies, our help page can clarify many frequently-asked questions. In the current climate, we understand the need for cancellation flexibility. In order to serve our customers best, we have waived our 24-hour period and will be refunding cancellations in full up to the check-in date. We will work with partners that have non-refundable reservations to be flexible during this fluid period as well.
As always, we recommend travelers to make decisions based on information from credible sources such as the World Health Organization. When you decide to travel, rest assured we will be here to support you and your journey.
Until then, wash your hands, avoid touching your face, and cover your mouth when coughing and sneezing.
Carlos Chilin,
General Manager of ParkSleepFly.com
