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How to Make a Virtual Tour

Last Updated: February 9, 2024 Tested

This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Jack Lloyd . Jack Lloyd is a Technology Writer and Editor for wikiHow. He has over two years of experience writing and editing technology-related articles. He is technology enthusiast and an English teacher. The wikiHow Tech Team also followed the article's instructions and verified that they work. This article has been viewed 186,114 times. Learn more...

This wikiHow teaches you how to shoot and edit a 360-degree tour of a house. While you'll need a camera capable of shooting 360-degree panoramas, you can use a free website to piece together, host, and publish your video.

Recording Your Tour

• You'll also need a tripod for the camera.

• If you end up installing an app on your smartphone, you may have to pair your phone with the camera via Bluetooth. Some cameras can also pair via Wi-Fi.

• Keep in mind that you may have to take multiple shots within a few feet of each other if you plan on transitioning through a doorway. [1] X Research source
• The service you'll use to piece together your footage allows a maximum of 25 photos.

• The photos can usually be found in a "DCIM" folder on the camera or its SD card.
• If you're using the camera's SD card, you may have to place the SD card in a USB adapter and then plug the adapter into one of your computer's USB ports.

Creating Your Tour

• Enter an email address in the "Email" text box.
• Enter a password in the "Password" text box.
• Re-enter your password in the "Password confirmation" text box.
• Click Create account .
• Enter your email address and password, then click login .

• Click Upload panoramas under either the "Spherical" or "Cylindrical" heading.
• You can upload a maximum of 25 photos at 20 megabytes apiece.
• Click Open .
• Wait for the photos to finish uploading.

• Click once the panorama.
• Click an indicator shape (this is what a user will click to move to the next scene).
• Click the "Select type of hotspot" text box, then click Transition in the drop-down menu.
• Click the next scene's panorama in the "Select the destination panorama" section.
• Scroll down and click Save .

Publishing the Tour

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How to Create a 360 Virtual Tour

Creating a 360 virtual tour is a simple yet powerful step towards enhancing your business or selling a home.

In this guide, we will explore the benefits of 360 virtual tours, discuss the importance of staging, and provide step-by-step instructions on how to create impressive virtual tours. Whether you are a real estate agency or an entrepreneur looking for a lucrative business opportunity, this guide will equip you with the knowledge you need to leverage the potential of 360 virtual tours.

To further enhance your understanding and expertise in the world of creating 360 virtual tours, it is highly recommended to delve into a wealth of knowledge available on this subject. By exploring these topics below, you can gain valuable insights and acquire the skills necessary to take your virtual tours to the next level.

Benefits of 360 Virtual Tours

Let's explore the key advantages:

Enhanced Visual Experience:

360 virtual tours provide an immersive and interactive visual experience, allowing potential buyers or clients to explore properties or businesses from the comfort of their homes.

Broadened Reach:

With virtual tours, you can attract long-distance buyers or clients who may find it challenging to visit properties in person. This expands your reach and saves time by narrowing down potential leads to those genuinely interested.

Time and Cost Savings:

Virtual tours eliminate the need for numerous in-person property visits, saving both real estate agents and potential buyers valuable time and resources. It streamlines the process and allows you to focus on more qualified leads.

Staging Homes for Success:

What is the role of staging in creating a compelling virtual tour? Staging plays a crucial role in making properties look visually appealing and inviting to potential buyers.

How to Stage a Home?

Before showing a home in any capacity whether in-person or a 360 virtual tour it is important to take several aspects into account. Cleaning is the easiest way to achieve a more visually pleasing space. Furnishing and remodeling can be expensive, but decluttering and clearing the space is a free option; a simple step towards reaching buyers. 

Here's how to stage a home effectively:

A visually pleasing space starts with thorough cleaning. Decluttering and clearing the space are cost-effective options that instantly enhance the visual appeal. For those wanting to spend more money on staging, an option is to hire an interior designer and refurnish.

Furniture and Design:

Consider hiring an interior designer who specializes in home staging, or take a DIY approach by arranging furniture in a way that creates a sense of space and allows potential buyers to envision themselves living in the home. When doing so, the goal is not to make the home personalized. The purpose of design is to impact potential buyers or to create space buyers see themselves living. An interior designer specializes in home staging, however, staging can be done easily for free. 

Creating a 360 Virtual Tour

360 virtual tours are easy to create and extremely beneficial in selling a home or property. Learning how to create a 360 virtual tour not only enhances the likelihood of selling a home but can make you a unique asset. How can you create a captivating 360 virtual tour? Follow these steps:

The first and most significant step is staging the home. When doing so, make sure to declutter and clean. Take care of any noticeable flaws such as painting and fixing any damage. Right before creating the tour, double-check that everything is in place, all drawers are closed, and nothing is left on the floors.

Lighting makes all the difference when creating the most successful and aesthetically pleasing virtual tour. Before capturing the panorama, turn all the lights on in the home. Make sure to take advantage of natural lighting as well; natural lighting is perfect in creating a bright and inviting home. Walk through the home and open all the blinds to access as much natural light as possible. 

Place a 360 Camera on a 360 panoramic camera stand. When placing the camera on the stand make sure the camera is firmly screwed in and the camera stand is stable. A great 360 camera for creating 360 tours is a 360 Insta 1x camera. The 1x is the older model, the newer models may have better features depending on budget. 

Camera placement is crucial for the outcome. The rule of thumb is to set the camera stand to 5 ft. If the camera stand is too high or too low the shot will not be ideal. The camera must also be placed at the same height for every shot, including other rooms in the tour. Make sure to always place the camera in the center of the room for the best results. 

Check camera settings, every camera is different, but the goal is to make sure the camera settings are on panorama so that the camera takes a shot of the whole room. On the 360 Insta camera, the setting will be called “optimal 360 tours.” Most cameras will have the option to delay the camera from capturing the panorama, use that setting to make sure there is time to exit the room. 

Unlocking the Virtual Tour Experience: Discover More Essential Insights

We believe that in order to become an expert in any field, it's crucial to lay a solid foundation by mastering the basics. We understand that delving into a new topic can sometimes feel overwhelming, especially when faced with unfamiliar key terms and jargon. But fear not! We are here to guide you and expand your knowledge of key terms in the exciting world of 360 virtual tours.

Understanding these essential key terms is the first step towards gaining confidence and expertise in creating immersive virtual experiences. And the good news is, with the help of CloudPano, even first-time users can easily grasp these concepts.

360 Photo: Step into a World of Immersive Imagery with CloudPano

Imagine being transported to a breathtaking landscape, surrounded by the sights and sounds of a captivating scene. A 360 photo makes this possible by capturing a complete view of a location or environment in all directions.

What it is: With CloudPano, a cutting-edge platform, you can effortlessly capture, upload, and showcase your own 360 photos. These photos allow viewers to explore and interact with the image, providing a truly immersive experience that goes beyond traditional photography.

How it works: By leveraging the power of CloudPano, you can easily create stunning 360 photos using compatible devices. Once captured, you can upload them to the platform, where they are seamlessly integrated into a user-friendly interface.

Benefits and applications: Whether you're a travel enthusiast, a real estate agent, or a business owner, 360 photos offer a unique way to engage your audience. With CloudPano, you can showcase your property, destination, or products in a compelling and interactive manner, leaving a lasting impression on your viewers.

360 Scene: Unveiling the Power of Virtual Spaces with CloudPano

Picture yourself stepping into a virtual world where you can explore any location or space from the comfort of your own device. A 360 scene brings this possibility to life by digitally representing a place or environment captured from all angles using a 360 camera. CloudPano empowers you to create captivating and interactive 360 scenes by seamlessly stitching together multiple 360 photos or videos. This comprehensive virtual experience allows users to immerse themselves in a location as if they were physically present. Using CloudPano's intuitive tools and advanced technology, you can effortlessly create dynamic 360 scenes. By strategically placing cameras and capturing various perspectives, you can craft a seamless and immersive virtual space.

Benefits and applications: From showcasing architectural designs to creating virtual tours of museums or historical sites, 360 scenes offer endless possibilities. With CloudPano, you can transport your audience to any place and provide them with an unforgettable virtual journey.

Hotspot: Guiding Your Virtual Explorations with CloudPano's Interactive Hotspots

Close your eyes and imagine yourself wandering through a virtual environment, seamlessly navigating between different scenes or points of interest. Hotspots make this exploration possible by serving as interactive elements that guide users within a virtual tour.

What it is: With CloudPano, you can effortlessly create and customize hotspots, enhancing the interactivity and navigation of your virtual tours. These hotspots act as signposts, allowing viewers to seamlessly transition from one scene to another, uncovering new areas of interest along the way. CloudPano's user-friendly interface empowers you to easily add and customize hotspots within your virtual tours. You can define the destinations, set the appearance and behavior of each hotspot, and provide informative tooltips to enrich the user experience. Whether you're showcasing a real estate property, a tourist destination, or an educational exhibit, hotspots play a crucial role in guiding your viewers' exploration. With CloudPano, you can ensure a seamless and engaging virtual tour experience for your audience.

Logo: Enhancing Your Virtual Tours with Customized Branding on CloudPano

Imagine introducing your audience to a virtual tour that not only showcases your offering but also reinforces your brand identity. A logo serves as a visual symbol that represents your brand, and CloudPano allows you to seamlessly incorporate it into your virtual tours. With CloudPano, you have the ability to add your own logo to your virtual tours, ensuring brand consistency and recognition throughout the entire experience. By customizing the placement and appearance of your logo, you can strengthen your brand presence within the virtual environment.

How it works: CloudPano's intuitive platform makes it effortless to add your logo to your virtual tours. Simply upload your logo image, select the desired placement within the interface, and adjust its size and transparency to achieve the desired effect. Adding your logo to virtual tours helps establish your brand as a reliable and recognizable presence. Whether you're a real estate agent, a travel agency, or a business owner, incorporating your logo through CloudPano elevates your virtual tour's professionalism and reinforces your unique identity.

Micro Features: Elevating User Experience with CloudPano's Customizable Tools

Imagine having a set of finely tuned tools that enhance the overall user experience within a virtual tour. Micro features, such as customizable icons, tooltips, and navigation controls, add a layer of sophistication and interactivity to the CloudPano platform.

What they are: CloudPano not only provides a range of powerful features for creating virtual tours but also offers micro features that make a significant impact on user engagement. These small yet impactful functionalities enable users to navigate, explore, and interact seamlessly within the virtual environment.

How they work: With CloudPano's user-friendly interface, you can easily customize icons, tooltips, and navigation controls. Tailor them to match your branding, adjust their behavior, and provide informative tooltips to guide and engage your audience throughout the virtual tour.

Benefits and applications: The thoughtful inclusion of micro features within your virtual tours elevates the overall user experience. By leveraging CloudPano's customizable tools, you can create a highly engaging and interactive environment that captivates your audience and leaves a lasting impression.

How to Create a 360 Virtual Tour from your Phone

Creating a professional virtual tour does not require expensive equipment or hardware. Like most things, creating a 3D virtual tour can be done on a phone. With a simple app download, selling a home can be made quicker and easier.

The CloudPano mobile app is free to download and intuitive for users. Utilizing the app makes creating a 3D virtual tour accessible, without having to buy a 360 camera or a camera stand. 

How to Create a 360 Virtual Tour with CloudPano App:

Download the CloudPano app.  

If further instruction is needed the top right corner of the app has step-by-step directions on how to use the app. The app is very simple to use, and with practice, great results will follow. 

When creating a 360 virtual tour on the app the camera must be vertical, fortunately, the app will notify if the camera is not vertical. Similar to using a camera and camera stand, it is best to aim for the same height in every room. Again, the rule of thumb is 5ft. The best way to achieve consistent height is by creating a reference point such as shoulder height.

The fourth step is fairly simple, just tap anywhere to start.

Take notice of the Yin and Yang symbol. The Yin and Yang should be separated, Slowly turn the camera, until the Yin and Yang are connected. Pause briefly once the Yin and Yang meet then continue turning until the whole room is captured. On another note, there is a light that will turn green if everything is running smoothly. 

The panorama will automatically save to your camera roll and move on to the next room until complete.

Virtual Tour: Unlocking Immersive Experiences with CloudPano's Multimedia Presentations

Imagine transporting your audience to a simulated or real-world environment, allowing them to explore and interact remotely. CloudPano specializes in creating virtual tours that combine 360-degree images, videos, and interactive elements, unlocking immersive experiences for viewers.

What it is: A virtual tour is a multimedia presentation that replicates the feeling of being physically present in a specific location. CloudPano's expertise lies in curating virtual tours that engage users by providing them with a comprehensive and interactive exploration of the environment.

How it works: With CloudPano's platform, you can create virtual tours by seamlessly integrating 360-degree images, videos, and interactive elements. By connecting scenes, adding hotspots, and customizing the tour's flow, you transport your audience into an immersive virtual experience.

Benefits and applications: Virtual tours have diverse applications across industries such as real estate, tourism, education, and entertainment. Whether you're showcasing properties, promoting destinations, or providing educational experiences, CloudPano's virtual tour capabilities enable you to captivate and engage your audience in a unique and immersive way.

Add Scenes: Crafting Immersive Journeys with CloudPano's Scene Integration

Imagine guiding your audience through a captivating virtual journey, seamlessly transitioning between different areas or points of interest. CloudPano's scene integration feature empowers you to create virtual tours with multiple scenes, allowing users to navigate and explore each viewpoint. CloudPano's platform enables you to easily add scenes to your virtual tours, providing users with a rich and immersive experience. By connecting scenes with hotspots, you create a seamless transition between different areas, fostering a sense of discovery and engagement. Within CloudPano's intuitive interface, you can effortlessly add scenes to your virtual tour. By capturing multiple viewpoints using 360-degree images or videos, you can curate a compelling narrative and guide your audience through an interactive exploration of your chosen environment.

Benefits and applications: Adding scenes to your virtual tours enhances the storytelling potential and user engagement. Whether you're showcasing a real estate property, an architectural masterpiece, or a tourist destination, CloudPano's scene integration empowers you to craft immersive journeys that captivate and inspire your audience.

Floor Plans: Unlocking Spatial Understanding within Virtual Tours with CloudPano

CloudPano offers more than just stunning 360-degree visual content in virtual tours. It allows users to incorporate interactive floor plans, enhancing spatial understanding. By seamlessly transitioning between the immersive visuals and detailed floor plans, viewers can gain comprehensive knowledge of the space's layout and organization. This unique feature enriches the virtual experience, providing practical insights and educational opportunities. Explore, understand, and appreciate spaces like never before with CloudPano's fusion of visuals and interactive floor plans.

What they are: Floor plans are 2D representations of a space, providing a bird's-eye view of the layout, dimensions, and flow. CloudPano allows you to seamlessly integrate floor plans within your virtual tours, enabling viewers to navigate and comprehend the space's spatial arrangement. Within CloudPano's platform, you can easily import and incorporate floor plans into your virtual tours. By placing interactive hotspots on the floor plans, users can explore different areas of the space, gaining a deeper understanding of its structure and functionality. Including floor plans within virtual tours is especially valuable in real estate, architecture, or event planning. By providing viewers with a visual representation of the space's layout, CloudPano's floor plan integration enhances their understanding and facilitates decision-making.

Watermark: Preserving Your Brand's Identity with CloudPano's Watermarking Feature

With CloudPano's watermarking feature, you can confidently share your virtual tours, knowing that your content is protected and tied to your brand. By adding visible overlays or marks, CloudPano ensures that your ownership, branding, or copyright information is prominently displayed, giving you peace of mind and maintaining the integrity of your content. Watermarks are essential elements in protecting your intellectual property. CloudPano's platform provides the capability to add watermarks to your virtual tours, ensuring that your content remains secure and associated with your brand. With CloudPano's intuitive interface, you can easily upload and position watermarks within your virtual tours. Whether it's your logo, copyright notice, or branding elements, the watermarking feature allows you to visually assert ownership and protect your virtual tour content.

Watermarks add a layer of professionalism and security to your virtual tours. Whether you're a photographer, a real estate agent, or a business showcasing your products or services, CloudPano's watermarking feature ensures your content is attributed to your brand, safeguarding its integrity and preventing unauthorized use.

Editor: Unleashing Creativity and Customization with CloudPano's Web-Based Editor

Imagine having complete control over the customization and fine-tuning of your virtual tours, creating an engaging and personalized experience for your audience. CloudPano's comprehensive web-based editor equips you with intuitive controls to craft and shape your virtual tours to perfection.

What it is: CloudPano's editor is a powerful tool that allows you to customize and fine-tune every aspect of your virtual tours. From adjusting scenes to adding hotspots, embedding media, and applying various customization options, the editor empowers you to unleash your creativity and create captivating virtual experiences.

How it works: Within CloudPano's platform, the web-based editor provides an intuitive interface where you can make real-time modifications to your virtual tours. With easy-to-use controls, you can customize scenes, add interactive hotspots, embed images or videos, and tailor the tour's overall look and feel.

Benefits and applications: CloudPano's editor is ideal for anyone seeking complete creative control over their virtual tours. Whether you're a professional photographer, a marketer, or a business owner, the editor's versatility and customization options enable you to create visually stunning and engaging virtual experiences.

Beyond the Surface: Unveiling Deeper Meaning of Virtual Tours

New Window: Seamlessly Integrate Your Virtual Tours with CloudPano's New Window Feature

Imagine browsing a website and stumbling upon a captivating virtual tour. With the new window feature offered by CloudPano, you can seamlessly embed your virtual tours within websites or launch them in a separate browser window or tab, allowing for an immersive and uninterrupted experience.

What it is: CloudPano empowers you to integrate your virtual tours into your online presence effortlessly. By opening the tours in a new window, you provide a seamless transition from your website to the immersive virtual environment, enhancing user engagement and exploration.

How it works: With CloudPano's intuitive platform, you can easily generate an embed code or link that opens your virtual tour in a new window. This ensures that your audience can fully immerse themselves in the experience while maintaining a seamless connection to your website.

Benefits and applications: Whether you're a real estate agent showcasing properties, a travel agency presenting destinations, or a business highlighting your space, the new window feature allows for a captivating and uninterrupted exploration of your virtual tours, seamlessly integrated into your online presence.

Video Call: Exploring the Boundaries of Virtual Communication with CloudPano

Imagine the ability to communicate with others in real-time, seeing and hearing them as if you were physically present. While CloudPano primarily focuses on creating immersive virtual tours, it does not currently offer built-in video calling functionality. Video calls have revolutionized the way we connect and collaborate, bringing people closer regardless of their physical location. Although CloudPano's primary focus is on creating captivating virtual tours, it doesn't currently provide native video calling features within its platform.

Alternative solutions: To facilitate real-time communication alongside your virtual tours, you can integrate popular video calling platforms like Zoom or Microsoft Teams. By including links or buttons within your virtual tours, you can seamlessly transition between the immersive environment and live video calls. While CloudPano doesn't offer native video calling, you can leverage external video calling solutions to enhance your virtual tour experience. This integration enables you to engage with clients, collaborate with team members, or provide interactive guided tours, fostering a deeper connection and understanding.

Infospot: Unveiling Hidden Gems within Your Virtual Tours using CloudPano's Interactive Infospots

Imagine exploring a virtual tour and coming across an interactive element that reveals valuable information and enriches your understanding of a specific point of interest. Infospots within CloudPano's virtual tours bring this possibility to life. Infospots are interactive elements placed within a virtual tour that provide additional context, information, or details about a specific feature or point of interest.

CloudPano allows you to easily add infospots, enhancing the overall engagement and educational value of your tours. Within CloudPano's intuitive interface, you can position and customize infospots to highlight key features, showcase product details, or provide relevant information. By clicking or interacting with these spots, users gain access to supplementary content, enriching their virtual tour experience. Infospots serve as powerful tools to engage your audience, offer educational value, and encourage exploration within your virtual tours. Whether you're showcasing historical landmarks, guiding museum visitors, or providing detailed product information, infospots create a dynamic and interactive environment.

Share Accounts: Collaborate and Empower Your Team with CloudPano's Share Account Feature

Imagine working on a virtual tour project with multiple team members or clients, each having their designated level of access and contribution. CloudPano's share account feature makes collaborative and streamlined project management a reality.

CloudPano enables you to create and share access to virtual tours by setting up multiple user accounts. This feature allows you to grant different levels of permission to team members or clients, empowering them to view, edit, or manage specific projects or tours. Within CloudPano's platform, you can easily invite team members or clients to collaborate by assigning them specific roles and permissions. This ensures that each stakeholder has the appropriate level of access and can contribute effectively to the project.

Benefits and applications: The share account feature simplifies collaboration and project management within CloudPano. Whether you're working with a team of photographers, designers, or clients, this feature streamlines communication, enhances productivity, and enables seamless coordination on virtual tour projects.

Capture 360 Photo: Unleash Your Creativity with CloudPano's Effortless 360 Photo Integration

Imagine capturing stunning 360 photos and seamlessly incorporating them into your virtual tours or using them as standalone visual assets. CloudPano's user-friendly interface empowers you to unleash your creativity and bring your vision to life. CloudPano provides a seamless integration for capturing and uploading 360 photos directly from compatible cameras or mobile devices. These photos can then be effortlessly integrated into virtual tours, enhancing the immersive experience and captivating your audience.

How it works: With CloudPano, you can easily import and integrate your 360 photos into your virtual tours. The intuitive platform allows you to upload your photos, arrange them within the tour, and create a cohesive narrative that takes your audience on a captivating visual journey. Whether you're a professional photographer, a real estate agent, or a business owner, CloudPano's 360 photo integration offers endless possibilities. From showcasing properties to creating virtual travel experiences, the ability to capture and incorporate 360 photos enriches your virtual tour content, captivating and engaging your audience.

Why CloudPano is the Best Tour Software?

Creating 360 virtual tours provides numerous opportunities for real estate. 3D virtual tours save real estate agents from spending hours on end taking potential buyers to different homes.  Virtual tours eliminate homes clients are uninterested in purchasing and only show homes eligible for purchase. 

360 virtual tours are not only beneficial for narrowing houses down to purchase but an avenue to reach long-distance buyers. Shopping for long-distance moves can be difficult, and in-person tours are hardly an option without major spending. 

CloudPano is a software that makes creating 360 virtual tours look professional all while being user-friendly and intuitive. 

Floor Plan Hot Spots : With this feature, you can create interactive hot spots on a 2D floor plan. Hot spots act as clickable areas that provide additional information or navigation options within the virtual tour, allowing viewers to explore specific points of interest in the property.

2D Floor Plan : The CloudPano app enables you to include a 2D floor plan in your virtual tour. This feature gives viewers a bird's-eye view of the property layout and helps them navigate through different rooms or areas of the space.

3D Dollhouse : The 3D Dollhouse feature allows viewers to visualize the property from various angles and perspectives. It provides a comprehensive view of the entire property, enabling a better understanding of the spatial layout.

Thumbnail Tours : Thumbnail tours provide a convenient way for viewers to navigate through multiple virtual tours. They are a collection of small preview images that represent different sections or rooms within the property. By clicking on a thumbnail, viewers can jump directly to that specific area of the virtual tour.

Live Chat Call : This feature allows you to engage with potential buyers or clients in real-time during their virtual tour experience. Viewers can communicate with you through live chat, asking questions or seeking additional information about the property.

VR Mode : Virtual Reality (VR) mode provides an immersive experience for viewers by enabling them to explore the virtual tour using VR headsets . This feature enhances the sense of presence and allows for a more interactive and engaging tour experience.

Capture Leads : The CloudPano app offers lead capture forms that you can integrate into your virtual tours. This enables you to collect valuable contact information from potential buyers or clients, facilitating follow-up communication and conversion opportunities.

Google Street View : CloudPano allows you to integrate your virtual tours with Google Street View. By linking your tours to the Google Street View platform, you can expand the visibility of your virtual tours and reach a wider audience.

Integration with Realtor.com : CloudPano provides seamless integration with Realtor.com, a popular online platform for real estate listings. This integration allows you to showcase your virtual tours directly on Realtor.com listings, increasing exposure for your properties.

Connects to Zillow : CloudPano also offers integration with Zillow, another widely used real estate platform. By connecting your virtual tours to Zillow listings, you can attract more potential buyers and provide them with an immersive tour experience.

Customize Themes : The app provides various customizable themes for your virtual tours. You can choose from different styles and designs to match the branding or aesthetics of your business or property.

Team Editing : CloudPano allows multiple team members to collaborate on virtual tour creation. This feature enables efficient teamwork and streamlines the process of creating and editing tours, especially in a collaborative work environment.

Referral Programs : CloudPano offers referral programs that allow you to earn rewards or benefits by referring others to use the platform. These programs incentivize users to share the benefits of CloudPano with their network and expand its user base.

Access to a Private Facebook Group : As a CloudPano subscriber, you gain access to a private Facebook group. This community provides a platform for sharing ideas, tips, and experiences with other users, fostering collaboration and learning within the CloudPano community.

These features provided by the CloudPano subscription enhance the functionality and customization options for your virtual tours, empowering you to create engaging and professional experiences for your audience.

Visit CloudPano.com and embark on your journey towards creating captivating virtual tours that leave a lasting impression.

360 Virtual Tours With CloudPano.com. Get Started Today.

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• By: C S Sultan Last updated on: April 19, 2024 51 mins read

How To Create Virtual Tour – A Complete Guide [2024]

Technology has excelled to a great extent today. Several new inventions and advanced technologies such as virtual reality, machine learning, artificial intelligence, etc are booming in world influence every day.

Today we will focus on a single form of virtual reality, known as the virtual tour.

Throughout this guide you will learn all about the following:

What Is Virtual Reality?

What is a virtual tour.

• List Of Businesses That Can Benefit From Using Virtual Tour .
• Tools And Activities Required To Create A Virtual Tour .
• How To Create A Virtual Tour On Your Own?
• How To Capture 360 Panoramic Images .
• How Your Business Can Benefit From Virtual Tours .

Once you complete this guide, you won’t rely on anyone for creating virtual tours.

You’ll be able to create complete virtual tours on your own, at the lowest cost.

So let’s dive into it.

Virtual Reality is a computerized environment or projection that you can experience visually.

You can observe, listen to, and interact with this environment.

Over the years, virtual reality has increased its influence in tons of businesses to create better interactions with their customers.

By the year 2025, the total size of the global Virtual Reality market will be valued at more than 22 billion US dollars .

Businesses such as Real Estate, Hotels & Resorts, Restaurants, Universities, Schools & Colleges, Super shops, Antique shops, Art Galleries, Showrooms, Museums, etc can engage with more prospects using virtual tours.

Read along to learn about how businesses can benefit from virtual tours (your business might be one of them).

Along with VR technology many VR devices such as VR boxes, Virtual Game Spaces, Virtual Simulation and training devices, and many more devices are being created day by day.

IDtechEx estimates that, in 2023, the revenue from only the VR headset sales will be more than $9 billion .

**To learn more about types of VR in detail click here .

Since you got an idea about virtual reality and its different formats, we’ll move to our main objective today – virtual tours.

A virtual tour is a form of semi-immersive VR technology that allows you to experience a certain location remotely.

The concept is, representing a real place in a virtual platform.

It allows you to explore that place as if you are actually there.

Usually, a virtual tour is created by transforming a 360 seamless panoramic image into a realistic Equirectangular 3D space.

You will be able to rotate the screen 360 degrees in all directions. Plus you will be able to move from one panoramic image to another.

**There are other forms of panorama images used to create virtual tours such as Cube Map, little planet, or Fish Eye. But we will be discussing the most efficient one, the Equirectangular virtual tour.

Recently, virtual tours gained huge popularity in several businesses due to the high engagement potential with prospects.

The latest forms of virtual tours are more advanced and attractive. You will find a scene gallery, click-to-view information tags, background music , Gyroscope support, some even support VR boxes, and many more. Proper platform development can also significantly enhance these virtual tours.

As you read along, you will learn how you can create virtual tours on your own.

Let us look at the advantages of using a virtual tour for most businesses.

Advantages Of Using A Virtual Tour On Your Website

Now, virtual tours are more beneficial to businesses that rely on highlighting their location to attract prospects.

So, seemingly, Real Estate Firms, Hotels, Museums, Universities, Schools and Colleges, Amusement Parks, Fancy Restaurants, and most other such businesses can use virtual tours to attract more potential prospects.

Yes, using high-quality images is not a bad idea, but a virtual tour can have a greater connection with the viewer since they feel personalized and engaged as they take the tour.

Here are some of the benefits you can expect for your business using a virtual tour.

1. Instant Engagement

The use of a virtual tour is still very new and people visiting your site will be instantly hooked.

The fact is, people are already well-accustomed to looking at flat images or videos. A virtual tour will be something new and interesting to all viewers.

The main reason a virtual tour is more effective is because the viewers are in full control of the tour.

Flat images can only create an imaginative visual which might not be accurate. And videos can only be watched with no control. We have to watch the place from the angle of the cameraman.

In a virtual tour, viewers can move and look around from any angle or direction. They can go from one scene to another easily and can take their time to inspect the location.

Once they take the tour, they will have a more accurate visual of the actual location.

Thus, even if someone was not willing to make a purchase during a website visit, a virtual tour might grab his attention and possibly turn him into a potential buyer.

Realtors and hotel owners will be benefited the most in this case, compared to most other businesses.

However, anything unique, that’s interesting and exciting, can always get you better results no matter what business you run.

2. Give A Better Visual To Prospects

The main concept of a virtual tour is to give a realistic vision of a place. And almost any business can use virtual tours to give a more informed visual to the prospects.

Previously, the most advanced remote tours were video tours.

However, the problem with video tours is that you can only watch from the point of view or angle of the cameraman.

You have no way to inspect from another angle.

Also, as I mentioned earlier, flat images can create an imaginative visual which might not be accurate.

So here’s the main issue. Through videos or images, people can visualize in their minds and this creates a certain assumptive expectation of how the place will look when visited in person.

Now, when a person visits, if it does not match his imagination, he will lose interest almost immediately.

A virtual tour rather creates a near-perfect visual of the place.

A person taking a virtual tour will develop an expectation that very much matches the place in reality.

Thus creating more potential prospects.

So whether it is a hotel, an amusement park, a school, or any form of business, a virtual tour can generate more potential prospects.

3. Help Prospects To Take A Decision

As we just read, a virtual tour gives a better visual of the location.

Almost every detail can be inspected through a virtual tour and the close resemblance to the actual location makes it a great instrument of choice.

Let me explain.

Let’s say you’re searching online for good restaurants in your area. You found three restaurants that have good reviews based on the taste of their food.

But which one you’ll choose to visit?

Let’s assume all three of these restaurants have virtual tours on their site. Once you take a virtual tour of each of them, you will be able to understand which one has the environment that you were looking for.

The decorations and the seating arrangements would be more clear and you could choose your preferred restaurant.

Similarly, on a real estate website, people will be able to take tours of various houses in a location. This will let them choose the ones that they feel are suitable.

Almost all businesses can use virtual tours to influence prospects’ choices.

4. Avoid Unnecessary Visits And Rejection

Using a huge number of photos is a common practice for realtors.

However, no matter how many images you use, it’s not possible to have a clear idea of the property structure and planning.

You may see each individual room and each important location clearly but don’t know how the spots are connected and how to move around inside the property.

Plus the latest photo editors can even transform a dull place to look stunning.

There is a high possibility that most people, willing to visit the location, might end up being disappointed since they had better or lower expectations.

At the same time, if you are giving a live tour to people during every visit, then you will be wasting a lot of time and effort since there is a high rejection rate.

The main reason is, as I explained earlier, failure to meet expectations.

A virtual tour will allow viewers to carefully inspect the property and decide if it’s suitable for them.

As a result, calls to visit will mostly come from prospects who are already interested and satisfied with the location, i.e., more potential prospects and fewer rejections.

According to a report, using 360-degree virtual tours in the real estate industry will reduce the number of wasted viewings by 40% .

That’s a substantial amount of time and money you can save.

5. Technological Advantage Over Competitors

Even though virtual tour is a relatively new term for a lot of people, it already has become a key marketing strategy for industries like real estate, hospitality business, museums, etc.

However, almost every business has the scope to utilize virtual tours as a part of its marketing strategy.

This is actually an advantage for your business if you have not used virtual tours on a large scale.

For example, if you own a super shop, you can create a virtual tour that will let visitors get a tour of the shop remotely.

They will be able to see the various sections and types of goods you have. Plus, they will notice how organized and clean your super shop is.

Many viewers might choose to take a visit after noticing a certain section on your super shop, expecting to meet the quality they require.

Other super shops that don’t have a virtual tour on their site will not get this added advantage to convert an online visitor to a live prospect.

Similarly, if you own a hotel, then a virtual tour will give you an added advantage over other hotels in your area.

People visiting your site will be able to get a virtual experience remotely, compared to other hotels that rely on just images and videos.

If your hotel is well-decorated and affordable, most people will probably prefer your hotel to others after taking a virtual tour.

As you can see, every business can be ahead of its competitors through a virtual tour. You will achieve more trust from prospects, and gain a good reputation for reliability and up-to-date technology.

These are 5 major advantages that almost all businesses can enjoy despite the niche.

There could be more advantages such as being more cost-effective compared to creating virtual video tours (due to hiring expert camera crews), and more efficient and effective towards prospects.

List Of Businesses That Can Benefit From Virtual Tours

Here’s a list of business that can benefit from using virtual tours:

• Real Estate
• Hotels & Resorts
• Restaurants
• Art Gallery
• Fashion House
• Wedding Venues
• Conference Halls
• Car Showrooms
• Aquarium Shops
• Antique Shops
• Shopping Malls
• Super Shops
• Movie Theatres
• Home/Interior Decors
• Historic Locations
• Travel/Tourism Industry
• Gym/Fitness Centers
• Universities, Schools & Colleges
• Virtual Learning Centers
• Research Facilities
• Production House
• Corporate Office
• Virtual Gaming Zones
• Indoor Gaming Zones/Clubs
• Handcraft/Furniture Shops
• Theme/Amusement Park
• Airports & Airlines
• Orchids & Flower Gardens
• Natural/Safari Parks

Later in this article, we will also learn how each of these businesses can take advantage of using virtual tours. You will get niche-specific information on how you can use virtual tours to get more prospects.

If your business is on this list, then you will find this guide very helpful. And if you didn’t use virtual tours yet, then it’s time you start thinking about using them.

How To Create Virtual Tour

To create a virtual tour we will need two specific things. In the case of an Equirectangular virtual tour, the main ingredients are:

• Seamless 360 panoramic images, and
• A Virtual Tour Creator Tool.

What Is A Panoramic Image?

A panoramic image is different from the usual photographs. They are usually very wide and the pictures are taken in different ways for different types of panoramic images.

However, the specialty of a panoramic image is that it has metadata injected which includes directions, dimensions, and pitch and yaw coordinates. That’s what makes them special and can be manipulated into great virtual outputs.

Seamless 360 Panoramic Image

A seamless panoramic image is taken in a special way. The idea is to take several images from different angles, and then stitch them into a seamless panoramic image.

A seamless 360 panoramic image looks different from your ordinary flat image. Once processed using a virtual tour creator , it becomes an Equirectangular virtual tour.

Here is an example:

A 360-Degree Panorama Image

Converted To A Basic Virtual Tour

Once you have seamless 360 panoramic images, you can now easily create amazing virtual tours using a virtual tour creator. In the example above, we used WPVR which is currently the best virtual tour creator for WordPress.

A Virtual Tour Creator – WPVR

Creating a virtual tour sounds like a difficult task, but in reality, it is pretty simple as long as you are using the right tool.

**Careful with production companies. Many will claim that video tours are virtual tours, but that’s not true. Yes, there are virtual video tours, but they are not ideal for complete control and inspections. Plus they cost more to produce.

There are many tools and services that can help you convert your 360 panoramic images into a virtual tour.

However, today we will give a guide on how to create a virtual tour for your WordPress site.

WPVR  is currently the best virtual tour creator available in WordPress due to its simple and easy interface and quality output.

Here’s a step-by-step guide on how you can generate a quality virtual tour using WPVR easily, on your own.

Step-by-Step Guide To Create Virtual Tour Using WPVR

You can get the free version of  WPVR from the WordPress repository .

You can get  WPVR Pro from our website.

First, let us look at how you can create a virtual tour using the free version. Then we will discuss some of its Pro features that you can use to make the virtual tour more attractive.

To create a 360° virtual tour from your WordPress dashboard, follow 9 simple steps:

• Step 1 – Install and Activate WPVR
• Step 2 – Create a Virtual Tour
• Step 3 – Configure General Settings
• Step 4 – Set Up Scenes
• Step 5 – Use Hotspot Efficiently

Step 6 – Publish The Tour and Collect Tour ID

Step 7 – place the virtual tour on your website, step 8 – enjoy the benefits of using a virtual tour.

Now let us get a detailed guide for every step.

Step 1 – Install And Activate WPVR

Go to your WordPress Dashboard > Plugin > Add New .

Search for WPVR and you will find a blue icon of the plugin as shown in the image below:

Click on “ Install ” and then “ Activate ” the plugin.

Once the plugin is activated, you will see on your Dashboard that a new menu called “ WP VR ” is added.

Under WP VR, you will get these options:

• Get Started : Which provides you with all documents and tutorials you require.
• Tours : Which will contain the virtual tours you already created.
• Add New Tour : This will let you create a new tour.

Step 2 – Create A Virtual Tour

Go to Dashboard > WP VR > Add New Tour .

A new blank tour will be created for you. Name the tour under Title.

For a virtual tour, you will need to set the proper settings of the first three tabs.

Step 3 – Configure General Settings

Go to the General > Basic Settings tab and you will see the following options:

Set A Tour Preview Image: When you keep Autoload option “Off”, there is a netted placeholder visible. However. you can replace that by uploading a Preview image.

Simply click on the “UPLOAD” button and add a media image. (You should use a flat image for this, rather than a 360 panoramic image)

Or you can provide a link to the image. (Make sure if your site is SSL certified i.e. “https”, then the image link should also have “https”.)

Once you upload the image, a thumbnail will appear above the upload button.

This means the preview image was uploaded successfully.

Now once you Preview the tour (or view the tour on a live page), if the Autoload option is “Off”, you will see that this image is in place of the tour until you click on it.

And if the Autoload option is “On”, then this image will be there until the tour loads.

Now, the tour preview image won’t appear on the tour, if you’ve turned on the Autoload option.

Tour Autoload: If the autoload is turned on, the panorama you upload will load automatically. Otherwise, it will load on-click.

Basic Control Buttons: Turning it “On” will view the on-screen control button, such as zoom in/out and full-screen mode.

Scene Fade Duration: The scene fade duration can be added in milliseconds for the transition between two scenes.

According to this image, the scene fade duration is set to 1000 milliseconds i.e. 1 second. Hence there will be a 1-second fading effect to transit from one scene to another.

Auto Rotation: Turning it “On” will show three more fields for you to add an auto-rotation feature to your virtual tour.

• Rotation Speed and Direction .
• Resume Auto Rotation After .
• Stop Auto Rotation After .

The  Rotation Speed and Direction  are to set the speed of auto rotation on your tour.

We suggest you keep this speed within the range of -20 to 20, or else the rotation will probably be too fast.

A negative number will rotate the tour anti-clockwise and a positive number will make it rotate clockwise.

The  Resume Auto Rotation After  lets you set a time, in milliseconds, so that if you stop the rotation, then after this amount of time, it will start rotating again.

According to the image above, it is set to 2000 milliseconds, i.e., 2 seconds.

The  Stop Auto Rotation After  lets you set a time after which the tour will stop auto-rotating.

However, this will not work if you input the value on Auto Rotation Inactive Delay. According to the image above, it is set to 2000 milliseconds, i.e., 2 seconds.

These are all the options in the General settings. Configure the settings as you require.

Now to set up a scene.

Step 4 – Set Up Scenes

Basically, every single panorama you want to include in your Virtual tour is a scene. Go to the Scenes tab and you get the following options:

Set as default: If you select “Yes” then the current scene will be the default scene to be viewed at first when the virtual tour is loaded. (FYI: The first scene is considered the default scene naturally.

If you want another scene to be the default scene, then mark that scene as “Yes” for Set as default.

Scene ID: Scene ID is the initialization of a scene. You need to assign a unique scene ID to every scene you wish to upload.

You can later use this Scene ID to assign a scene as the Target Scene under Hotspot, i.e. clicking on the hotspot will take you to this scene. You will get a guide to this under the “HotSpot” section. 

Scene Type: The scene type is set as ‘equirectangular’ by default. It means that it will view the Equirectangular format of the scene.

Scene Upload: Here, click on the “ UPLOAD ” button and upload a 360-degree panoramic image to use it as your current scene.

This will mean that the image is uploaded as the current scene image.

FYI: Most mobile devices have restrictions on the resolution; they can support a maximum of 4096 px by 2048 px.

Hence, we suggest you use a panoramic image within these dimensions for the virtual tour to be responsive on all devices. (However, the plugin works with any resolution. You can upload high resolution images if you just want to view the tour on PC).

Preview: Once you have uploaded the image, you can now click on the  Preview button.

You will get a  Tour Preview  of the tour just beside the Scene Settings .

Every time you make changes to any settings, you can click on the  Preview  button to see the changes taking effect on the tour preview.

**The Tour Preview has a scene gallery below. You can double-click on a thumbnail there to go to any scene in the tour preview.

To add a second scene, on top, click on the “+” button.

And a new blank scene will be added.

To switch between scenes, click on the icons above. The currently viewed scene will be marked blue.

To delete a scene, you can simply go to the scene, then click on the “Trash Bin” icon and the scene will be deleted.

That’s it with the basics of Scene Settings .

Now, add Hotspots to make the tour more meaningful and engaging.

Step 5 – Use Hotspot Efficiently 

For an active scene, you can add multiple hotspots. With this option, you can link any of your scenes with other scenes.

Also, you can add images, links, or video information via this option.

While on a Scene , go to the HotSpot tab and you get the hotspots you added for that particular Scene.

To add a hotspot for another scene, first, go to the Scene tab, select the desired Scene , then go to the Hotspot tab to view its respective Hotspots.

For a hotspot of a scene, initially, you will get the following options:

HotSpot ID: You have to provide a unique Hotspot ID for every hotspot you create in a scene.

Pitch And Yaw: The Pitch and Yaw are the coordinates required to define the point where the Hotspot will be placed.

You will be able to collect these from the Preview Tour .

Previously you set up the scene and clicked on Preview. The Preview Tour will be still there.

Scroll down to the Preview Tour and click on the point on the tour, where you want to place the Hotspot. You will see that the pitch and yaw coordinates will appear below the Preview Tour.

You can copy the Pitch and Yaw and input them in the required fields.

Or, you can click on the arrow button (beside the Pitch and Paw coordinates under the Tour preview) to automatically collect and place Pitch and Yaw values in the Pitch and Yaw fields for a Hotspot.

Once you are done setting up the hotspot, click on the  Preview  button, and a hotspot icon will appear in the current scene on the spot from where you collected the coordinates of the Pitch and Yaw.

HotSpot Type : There are two types of hotspots available:

It comes as “ Info ” by default and you will view these fields:

• On Click Content.
• On Hover Content.

URL: Provide the URL of a website, so clicking on the hotspot will take you to that website on a new tab. 

On Click Content: Here you can add content to your hotspot so that clicking on the hotspot will display a pop-up window over the tour with the content you entered. (You can use HTML tags to make it more compelling.)

Here’s an example:

You can also add images using the <img src> tag or add a video using the <iframe> snippet of the video to display them when the hotspot is clicked.

On Hover Content: Here you can add content to your hotspot so that if you just hover your mouse on the hotspot, the content will appear.

You can also add images using the <img src> tag or add a video using the <iframe> snippet of the video to display them when you hover the mouse on the hotspot.

Now, let’s look at the Scene type hotspot.

A scene-type hotspot is used to connect two scenes, i.e., clicking on the hotspot will transmit you to another scene (assigned here).

If you change the hotspot style to Scene , then you will view these fields:

• On Hover Content.
• Select Target Scene from the List .
• Target Scene ID .

Select Target Scene from the List: For every Scene you create, their Scene IDs get listed here for you to choose from. Whichever you choose will be the scene where the hotspot will take you.

Target Scene ID: 

This field shows you the Id of the Scene that you selected from the Target Scene from the List .

**When you choose a hotspot to be Scene type , the hotspot icon on the tour will change to a small Arrow.

Hotspot Custom Icon Class: This field is there to allow you to implement customizations of the hotspot content.

Here you can apply customization to the hotspot icon. You may use any icon of your own choice. Let me give you an example.

To customize your hotspot icon, go to your  Appearance > Editor . Choose the style sheet of your current theme, or you may go to  Appearance > Customize > Additional CSS .

Here, create a class and under the class, add your custom style CSS code for customization. Click Save. For example:

Here I set the class name as “custom-icon” but you can give any name you want. Then set the height and width of the image (ideally 26px by 26px for icons). Then provide the image URL. You can add a border radius if you want the icon to be circular.

Here’s how my one looks:

Then Publish.

Now go to your tour and input the class name “custom-icon” on the “Hotspot custom icon class” field for the hotspot you wish this icon to apply on.

Then update the tour. This icon won’t show at the back end, but it will appear on the front-end. Hence, embed the tour on a page and preview it to see the result.

To add a second hotspot, click on the “+” button above and a new blank hotspot will be added.

To remove a hotspot, simply click on the trash icon and the hotspot will be deleted.

That’s it, that’s all you need to know about setting up a hotspot for now.

Now utilize Steps 3, 4, and 5 to add more scenes and set up a virtual tour. Once done, move to the next step.

Publish The Tour: Once you have successfully set the settings for General settings, Scene settings, and Hotspots settings, click on the Publish button on the top right side of the page.

Once you publish, that button will change to Update.

Collect Tour ID: On the tour setting pages, you will see a box named Using This Tour where the shortcode and the Tour ID is provided. You will need the Tour ID to embed your virtual tour on the website.

You can also get the Tour ID from the tours section.

All the tours you have created will be stored under Dashboard > WPVR > Tours .

From here you can collect the Shortcode or tour ID.

Placing the virtual tour on your website depends on the page editor you use.

Gutenberg block editor: For the Gutenberg block editor, the plugin creates a WPVR block under the common blocks of Gutenberg.

Go to a post or a page and click on add block icon (the + icon) and select block type as “WPVR”. And a block will be added as shown in the following image:

Once Block is added, click on the Settings icon on the top-right corner of the page and select the Block menu for the toolbar of the WPVR block.

Here, you can see that you need to provide “Id”, “Width”, “Height”, and “Radius”.

For the ID, click on None, and you will get a list of all the published virtual tours you have created.

Identify your desired page. You can see it is there in the form “Tour Name: Tour ID.” So if I have named the tour Demo1 and its ID was “508”, then I will have to choose “Demo1: 808”.

Then input your desired width, height, and radius and you will see that the block has been updated.

Now, you can preview or publish the page and you will see that the virtual tour is presented on your page for your audience.

Elementor page builder: If you use the Elementor Page builder, the plugin creates a Wpvr widget under the general widgets of Elementor.

Edit a post or page using Elementor. Drag and drop the Wpvr widget to whichever section you want. It will add the widget and you will be required to provide “Id”, “Width”, “Height” and “Radius”.

Input the tour ID of the virtual tour you created. Then set the height, width, and radius as you desire ( and remember to add “px” after the dimensions).

Then you will get a live preview of the tour.

Now, you can publish the page, and you will see that a virtual tour has been added to the page for your audience to take a tour.

Classic editor: For Classic Editor, copy and paste the shortcode of your virtual tour. You can add height, width, radius, or any designs you want within the shortcode.

Preview or Publish the page to find the virtual tour added.

Other page editors (such as Visual Composer): For page builders such as Beaver Builder, Visual Composer, etc, you need to use an “HTML” block (such as Raw HTML block) and input the shortcode there.

Now that you know how to create, set up, and present the virtual tour on your website. The next thing to do is to sit and see your audience getting excited, visitors becoming dedicated prospects, and prospects turning into customers.

As you can see, it is super easy to create a virtual tour for your WordPress site. Go ahead and start using virtual tours ASAP.

In a later section, I will discuss how many business niches can use and benefit from using virtual tours . You will definitely be able to relate.

Anyways, now most of us are not familiar with panoramic images since they cannot be taken without a few equipment and methods. And as you saw in the last section, in order to create a virtual tour, you will need to use a Seamless 360 Panoramic Image.

Now, let us look at how you can capture 360 panoramic images on your own.

Capturing A Seamless 360 Panoramic Image

• Using Digital 360 Degree Camera (Recommended)
• Using Standard DSLR
• Using A Smart Phone

Digital 360 Degree Cameras are the best for this case. They are easy to use, less hassle, and cost-effective.

However, I will give you a proper guide to follow all the 3 methods with suggestions on the equipment required, and tips and directions to successfully create 360 Panoramic Images.

1. Using Digital 360 Degree Cameras

There are certain cameras available just for 360-degree photography. These are digital cameras that usually have multiple built-in Fisheye lenses that cover a complete 360 degrees in one go.

Here is a list of some of the  best 360 Degree Digital Cameras .

Here, we will give a brief guide on using the Ricoh Theta V to take seamless 360 panoramic images.

Let us look at the tools required.

Equipment Required:

1. ricoh theta v.

A  Ricoh Theta V is a slim camera with two Fisheye lenses in opposite directions. Each lens captures a complete 180 degrees both horizontally and vertically.

The main advantage of this camera is that it has an auto-stitching function, i.e., once you take a photo, the output will automatically be a 360 panoramic image. You do not need to do any manual stitching or take multiple images.

A Monopod is a camera that has 1 extendable leg, fixable at specific heights. Since the Ricoh Theta covers a complete 360 degrees, a tripod would be obstructive with its 3 legs. A Monopod will not appear in the image at all.

Here’s a list of monopods you can check out.

However, you will need a 3-leg locking base to be attached at the bottom for it to stand tall.

It is a small 3-legged stand that lays flat, while the Monopod is connected on top. Its 3 legs give the support required for the Monopod to stand.

3. Ricoh Theta V App

Whether you call it an advantage or not, you can control the Ricoh Theta capture using your smartphone through the Ricoh Theta V App .

Simply connect the camera to your phone through Bluetooth and then you can get the image preview on your phone through the Ricoh Theta V app. Hence, you can carefully analyze if you have placed the camera in the right spot for the best light and location exposure.

The app gives you features to control white balance, ISO, bracketing, and shutter timer.

The main reason to use the app is to be able to take photos remotely. Since the 360 camera covers all directions in one go, you clicking manually would mean that you would be on the image.

With the help of the app, you can set the devices up, go to the next room and use the app to capture the image.

Tips And Directions To Use

• Place the Monopod on the stand and attach the camera to it. Place the devices at a point near the center of the room.
• Toggle the Monopod to place the camera at a height similar to the height of an average person’s eyes or shoulder. This will create a more realistic effect when creating a virtual tour.
• Connect the phone app to the camera , and go on live view mode. Here, it will show the image in a 360 Equirectangular format, to see if you have adjusted all the settings correctly and if the image looks good.
• During the day, it is advised to keep the ISO between 200-400 based on the surrounding light. At night you should lower the ISO to 100 or below to get less noise in the image.
• Enable the “noise reduction” option from the app to improve image quality.
• Go outside the room and prepare to shoot the image.
• Turn the live view mode “off” since it can causes a shutter lag if turned “on”.
• Capture the photo which will be saved either on your phone’s photo gallery or in the memory card of the camera.

The device automatically does the stitching and processing so you do not have to do any extra hard work.

That’s it! You now have a seamless 360 panoramic image. You can upload this image to WPVR and create a stunning virtual tour.

2. Using DSLR To Capture 360 Panoramic Images

DSLRs are usually used for professional photography and can capture high-quality images. However, it is quite difficult to capture 360 panoramic images using a DSLR.

You will need to capture several images to cover complete 360 degrees in all directions, and then do some editing to achieve a proper 360 panoramic image.

Here’s a brief guide to help you out.

1. A Quality DSLR Body

Use a DSLR body with high dpi that has a bracketing feature.

**Bracketing refers to taking a certain photo multiple times at different exposures and then merging them together to form a photo with a balanced exposure.

You can take a look at  Nikon D810 ,  Canon EOS 5d Mark IV ,  Sony Alpha A7R2 , or  Panasonic Lumix G6 when considering buying a DSLR body.

2. A Fisheye Lens

You will need a Fisheye lens to capture wider images, in order to complete the process with fewer photographs taken.

Here’s a  list of Canon Fisheye lens you can take a look at.

3. A Panohead

A Panohead/Nodalhead is a piece of equipment to that you attach your camera to. You can then can set the camera to rotate at fixed horizontal angles using the Panohead rings. This will ensure you cover a complete 360 degrees horizontally, without overlapping.

You can learn more about Panoheads here .

4. A Ball head (optional)

If you are willing to capture images on an uneven or unbalanced ground location, then you may use a Ball head to balance your camera on a proper horizontal axis.

Here’s a  list of good ball heads you can look at.

5. A Tripod

A tripod is a camera stand with 3 legs that are extendable and fixable to specific heights. It has a horizontal 360 spinnable top section, with a handle, on which the ball head or the Panohead (in case you don’t use a ball head) is attached.

The Panohead ring will help to control the angles you can spin the camera.

Here are some of the  best tripods out there .

• Chose a time of the day when there is suitable light from all directions to take photographs. If you’re shooting at night, make sure you have proper lighting all around.
• Set up the equipment and place it in the center of the room.
• Make sure to create a no Parallex point. Here’s a video to help you understand .
• Toggle the tripod to place the camera at a height similar to the height of an average person’s eyes or shoulder.
• Put the camera in full manual mode
• Keep a decent shutter speed; 1/10th or 1/20th is ideal at daytime
• Set apparture to about F11, and ISO to around 640 or more
• Set manual white balance to 4000Kelvin
• Set bracketing to 3 exposure levels at a difference of 2 levels between them.
• Apply auto timer to capture these bracketing images, maybe within 3-5seconds.

FYI: Photography completely depends on the light, and these settings might not give the best output at different light exposures. Hence, you need to toggle settings based on the amount of light available.

Now to take pictures.

Capturing Necessary Images Using DSLR

Now, you need to take a number of photographs depending on the width your Fisheye lens can cover.

Let’s take an example:

• Set your Panohead to rotate 60 degrees.
• Take 6 bracketed photographs by rotating the camera to 60 degrees after each capture.
• Set the camera upwards and take 2 photographs by rotating the camera 180 degrees after the 1st shot.
• Set the camera downwards and take 2 photographs by rotating the camera 180 degrees after the 1st shot.
• Separate the DSLR body from rest of the equipment and take a handheld photo of the center of the room where the tripod was placed earlier.

Stitching The Photos

Now that you have the required images, you have to stitch them into a seamless 360 panoramic image.

You can manually do it using Photoshop.  Here’s a beginner’s tutorial .

Once you do it, you need to make sure you inject metadata to make it into a complete 360 degree panorama. You can use the tool  Xifer to do it.

However, this is not necessary to have metadata when you use WPVR since the plugin does not need metadata to work.

You may also use tools such as PhotoMerge , PhotoStitcher , Stitcher V4 , etc.

Once stitched, a seamless 360 panoramic image is created. You can then upload it to WPVR to convert it into a Virtual Tour.

3. 360-Degree Photos With Your Smartphone

Even if you don’t have any DSLR, Lenses, or specialized 360 cameras, you can take a 360 seamless panorama picture with your smartphone.

Here’s a step-by-step guide to using a smartphone to take 360 panoramic images .

Four Steps Guide To Capture 360 Panoramas With Smartphone

Whether you use an Android device or an IOS device, the process is the same.

Step 1 – Download The App

The Google Street View app lets you easily take 360 photos with your Android smartphone. It is the most stable 360-degree photography app for smartphones to date.

Download the  Google Street View For Android or  Google Street View For IOS and the  Google Camera app from the Playstore/Appstore.

Step 2 – Set Up The App

The app will give you some welcome tips and then take you to the homepage. In the bottom-right corner, there is a camera option. 

Choose the camera option, and a menu will appear. You have to choose the third option to take 360 photos.

Step 3 – Take The Pictures

You will be taken to the camera screen and the app will give you guidance for the capture process. Hold the phone close to you, choose a suitable position, and stand up still.

Once you click on the start button, you will have a hollow circle in the center of your screen. And some orange circles will start appearing in different directions.

Move the phone, match the center circle with an orange circle, and click the snap button. That orange circle will turn blue/green and will disappear, while a photo is captured.

Another orange circle will appear in a different direction. Move the phone to the next orange circle to do the same. Keep doing it until all the orange spots are captured.

The app is designed so that once you have snapped all the orange circles, a full 360 view was captured.

Once done, the app will take you to the homepage again.

Step 4 – Image Output

At this point, the app is already stitching the photos together to make a 360 image. You will be able to see the progress of stitching on a loading bar.

After stitching is complete, you will find the 360-degree image saved in your photo gallery. You can then use this photo to upload it on WPVR and create a virtual tour.

**Please note that the latest update of the Google Camera App has some major back-end changes, due to which it might not be compatible with many Android devices.

There you go, now you know what is virtual reality, what is a virtual tour , how to create a virtual tour, what a seamless 360 panoramic image is, and how to capture 360 panoramic images on your own.

Now, you can simply choose a method to take a 360 panoramic image, upload it on the virtual tour creator ( WPVR ) and present it on your website to engage with your audience with more authority and opportunity for conversion.

How Your Business Can Benefit From Virtual Tours

Previously, I have listed a number of businesses that can benefit from using virtual tours on their websites.

If your business was part of that list, then you already know that virtual tours are ideal for your business.

Around 67% of the people online want virtual tours to be implemented on more businesses.

Every business can have a virtual tour on its website. However, some businesses can dramatically increase revenue by implementing a virtual tour on their site.

Now let us look at the major benefits of using a virtual tour on your site, focusing on the major niches.

Find out how a virtual tour can positively impact your business.

1. Real Estate

People visiting real estate sites are mostly looking to buy properties or houses within the next 2-3 months. However, the main issue is indecisiveness.

Though prospects mostly look for houses in specific locations and within a suitable price range, they find it difficult to choose among multiple properties that match their requirements.

One of the reasons for this is that they are visualizing how the house looks based on flat images. They are not able to understand if the structure of the house is suitable for them since they are visualizing in their imagination.

End result? They tend to physically visit several properties before choosing one that resembles their imagination and requirements.

Here, you are losing a lot of time while giving them the live tour, and effort by pitching to prospects who might end up buying from other realtors (yes, people will talk with several realtors when searching for a house).

A virtual tour can ensure that the prospects you are dealing with are already interested to buy.

The visit is just for credibility. People will be able to remotely visit the place and explore.

They will be able to view the place from every angle and eventually develop a genuine interest in a property that suits their requirements .

Hence, they will call you for a visit, with the intent to buy.

Rather than taking several live tours of many properties , they will only wish to visit a few which they might end up purchasing, thanks to the remote virtual tour.

2. Hotel & Resorts

Tourists, travelers, or international businessmen tend to look for suitable hotels to lodge at when going to distant locations. So, it is natural for them to browse through the websites of hotels available at the location they are visiting.

You can take steps to attract as many prospects as possible through your website. A simple virtual tour can take you a long way.

Here’s the idea. People always look for hotels that are both affordable and comfortable to stay at. Most people tend to browse through photos of rooms when choosing. Why not give them a better visual with a virtual tour?

Create virtual tours for each room available for lodging and place them on your website. Try to add a virtual tour of your reception, hall room, bar, and dining area on your home page.

These will act as big attractions, especially for foreigners. A quality virtual tour will mean that people will be able to understand the quality and beauty of your hotel, and will probably consider calling in for reservations immediately, rather than looking into more hotels.

For Resorts, you should create a broad virtual tour, highlighting all of your special facilities such as swimming pools, beach areas, parks, ballrooms, spas, and other specialties besides the lodging and basic entertainment.

Virtual tours will definitely get prospects excited and influence more site visitors to convert into interested prospects.

3. Restaurants

Having a restaurant means a lot of competition since currently, it is among to top business niches. 

People love to try out restaurants with good food, as well as well interior design.

Whether it’s a fancy restaurant or a classic restaurant, they have their own set of admirers.

Now, food quality is the most important thing. If you get good ratings about your food from customers, more people will probably take a visit soon. 

However, the second most important aspect is the interior.

Nowadays, prospects tend to visit the websites of several restaurants before choosing to visit one.

There, they not only look at the menus but also look at the gallery of your restaurant photos to understand if it is a suitable place to visit.

A better way to catch their attention is by allowing them to take a virtual tour of your restaurant from home.

They will be able to see the seating arrangement, spaciousness, decoration, quality, and overall interior arrangement. This will inspire them to choose your restaurant over others.

Let’s say you are a burger joint. A group of teenagers is willing to eat burgers in your area. So they will visit the websites of several burger joints in your area before choosing one.

You can stand out by displaying your amazing interior decorations besides your delicious food, through a virtual tour.

Through this remote tour, they might realize that the seating arrangements are comfortable and the decorations are great for taking selfies with friends.

Thus, they will end up visiting your place. Your next task is to impress them with the food.

For a fancy or theme-based restaurant, a virtual tour is more lucrative since you will be able to highlight your specialty to remote prospects on your website.

This will raise more awareness and influence more people to visit your restaurant.

4. Wedding Venues

A wedding is among the most important milestones that a person achieves in life. And it is natural for anyone to wish to have a wedding ceremony like no other. The wedding venue plays an important role in making the wedding a memorable one.

Usually, fiances choose the wedding venue together. They tend to browse through the websites of several wedding venues and shortlist a few that they feel are perfect for their wedding.

A virtual tour can make your wedding venue the ideal one. Let the couple take a remote visit and experience how grand the venue is.

The venue entrance, the stage, the dining halls, the chandeliers, the photo session room, and all the specialties of your venue can be highlighted easily through a virtual tour.

Send the couple into a world of imagination so that they can feel their walk in the venue, and the bride walking down the carpet towards the priest and her fiance, ready to get married; the tossing of the bouquet and toasts from friends and family.

This little journey within the venue will help them set their future and choose your venue to be the ideal venue that will mark their togetherness in days to come.

Hence, a virtual tour on your website is only the right thing to do.

5. Universities, Schools & Colleges

Though newly implemented in many, a lot of universities, schools, and colleges achieved greater student reach by creating virtual tours of their institutions.

Whether you run a large institution or a small one, students and their parents are more concerned about quality dorms and attractive campuses, after quality education.

While they visit your website to find out about the courses you offer, you can also present a virtual tour of your campus to give them a remote experience of being part of the institution.

Let them take a stroll around your faculty buildings, sports facilities, dorms, research labs, fitness centers, etc, and understand the quality you offer besides education.

This is very important for international students. They will be moving to a new location, therefore, the quality environment and surroundings are among their main concerns and priorities.

Plus, the virtual tour will act as a symbol of credibility, highlighting your ability to accommodate students with high quality, while within your premises.

6. Travel/Tourism Industry

If you are promoting holiday or travel packages, then getting more prospects depends a lot on the locations you are taking them to, besides the price.

People are often reluctant to purchase travel packages since they have doubts about the quality of their journey. You may easily gain their trust by using a virtual tour.

You can include virtual tours for several iconic locations that your travel package will cover. You may also highlight great tourist resorts or historic places that your travel package will take travelers to.

The idea is to give viewers a glimpse of the attractive zones that the tour will include remotely through a virtual tour. Let them inspect, in full control, the amazing locations they will be able to visit.

This will not only create more excitement but also influence onlookers into interested prospects.

7. Gym / Fitness Centers

People tend to choose a gym or fitness center based on the various types of equipment and fitness machines available there. Plus, it also depends on the quality of the Equipment.

You can use virtual tours to attract people online and gain credibility for your fitness center. Create a quality virtual tour, covering every section of your center. And on each section, leave click bubbles beside the machines which will give information about the machine model and quality.

At the same time, create short videos of the fitness trainer of the center, training and demonstrating the use of every piece of fitness equipment.

Leave a hotspot on each piece of fitness equipment available within the virtual tour, to be clicked to watch the relevant video.

This will not only highlight the equipment but also demonstrate the expertise of the fitness trainer, thus inspiring more people to join your fitness center.

8. Shopping Mall

Shopping is among the favorite activities of most women and some men. However, it often gets difficult to find the right shops in an ideal shopping mall.

There are tons of shops selling various products and services. Although every shopping mall provides a directions map on every floor, it often gets difficult to look for any desired shop only by interpreting the map.

For a large mall, people often run around in circles while messing up the directions. This is frustrating to customers and often limits them to purchase items.

Whether you are part of the ownership of a shopping mall or a shop owner at a mall, you could guide more prospects in the right direction through a virtual tour on your site.

On the tour, a person will be able to follow directions as if in person and eventually reach their desired shops.

Since it’s a realistic visualization, the directions will be much easier to remember. Then when the prospect visits the mall, it will not take long to find his/her desired shop.

As a shop owner, this could help you drive more customers and not lose potential ones to competitors.

People with the internet on their phones can access your website while in the mall, hence they won’t need to use the flat map, rather they can get a realistic guide on their mobile.

As you can see, it is really beneficial to add a virtual tour on the website of either the shopping mall or any particular shop, to provide better navigation for prospects.

People often love to visit museums due to the incredible historical display of various tools, items, and reminisces of the past.

But the problem is, due to visual entertainment available on mobile phones or computers, most people do not try to seek out how great a visit to a museum might be.

Most museums are facing  a decline in visitors over time. However, this can be changed by using virtual tours.

Create a virtual tour for a certain section of your museum. Let’s assume this section contains items from World War II. Within the virtual tour, you can place clickable information bubbles for people to get historic information about any particular item.

This will create a good amount of interest among site visitors. The key is to create curiosity among viewers so that they feel like they need to visit other sections of your museum to learn more.  

You can also offer a paid virtual tour for the rest of the sections. This will allow people overseas to take a tour of your museum remotely.

You will see a rise in visitors and also let people from overseas appreciate your museum.

10. Art Gallery

Do you draw and contribute to exhibit art galleries? Or do you have an art gallery of your own?

Then you probably know how excited people are about art when they visit an art gallery. Not only that, several collectors tend to visit and often purchase works of art with great value. 

However, when it comes to online business, art galleries are often underrated. Why not? Most art galleries do not make much out of their website.

Let me tell you why. It’s because owners tend to flood their websites with individual pictures of their art. With so much art to look at, how long will a person browse through the collection?

Eventually, people only check the first few and then leave if nothing amazes them among the early collection.

But this means that they are avoiding pictures that are in a later queue. It is possible that one of those photos could have been the one to connect with them.

This can be drastically changed with a virtual tour. Create a virtual tour of your gallery and let art enthusiasts take a remote tour. This will be similar to a live visit and viewers will be able to walk around the gallery while observing your artwork.

You can leave little click bubbles beside every piece of art so that viewers can click to view the piece of art as a pop-up image, or on a new tab.

Provide a unique ID for every piece of art so that prospects can order online or request a visit to view the piece of art.

That’s how effective a virtual tour can be. Go ahead and attract more prospects to buy your art online.

So far, I’ve explained the benefits of using virtual tours in 10 different business niches. If your business niche was not among these 10 businesses, then don’t get disappointed.

Read the following article to learn about the benefits of virtual tours for all 32 niches mentioned in this article.

So, after reading this article, you should have a good knowledge of virtual reality, virtual tours and their benefits, and what you need to create virtual tours .

You have also learned how you can create a virtual tour and include it on your WordPress site using WPVR.

And you got a detailed guide on how to take 360 panoramic images on your own and use them to create virtual tours .

Finally, we discussed how different businesses can benefit from virtual tours.

Now, you should be able to create your own virtual tours without any expert assistance. Hence, why waste any more time?

Go ahead and start using virtual tours to take your business to the next level. Engage and connect with your prospects from your website, and see them turn into valuable customers.

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About author.

A professional in digital marketing with a passion for WordPress. Loves to discuss about marketing tactics and advanced business strategies. Follow him on twitter @SultanRoyal1

11 Comments

Virtual Reality has been used in different industries nowadays. As the power of technology arises, VR has become a trend in the Real Estate Industry, Gaming, Concerts, Hospitality and more! I won’t be surprised if it’s going to be used in the Educational Institutions in the future!

Excellent sharing and very nicely explain – How To Create Virtual Tour. Keep it up!!

Thanks. I am glad if this article was helpful.

Sultan, thanks a lot for this guide it´s very helpful.

Thanks. I am glad you found it helpful.

awesome piece

Wow, thɑt’s ᴡhat Ӏ was searching for, wһat a stuff! existing heгe at thіѕ web site, thanks admin of this web page.

We’re glad that you found this guide helpful.

Dear Sultan, thanks so much for this guide, it was very helpful. i need more about “virtual tour making” in term of museums> thanks in advance

Hi, I am glad you found it useful. We will try to create sample Museum tours to let you view how it could be. Thanks.

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Real Estate | How To

How to Create a Virtual Tour for Real Estate in 10 Steps

Published July 3, 2023

Published Jul 3, 2023

REVIEWED BY: Gina Baker

WRITTEN BY: Kaylee Strozyk

This article is part of a larger series on Real Estate Lead Generation and Marketing .

1. Determine the Best Type of Virtual Tour to Offer

2. choose the right equipment, 3. select virtual tour software, 4. plan the shots for your virtual tour.

• 5. Clean & Stage Each Room

6. Level the Tripod

7. take test shots, 8. take all photos on your image shot list, 9. compose your virtual tour, 10. share your virtual tour.

• Statistics & Benefits of Creating a Virtual Tour

Bottom Line

Virtual tours allow prospective buyers to interact with a home and look at features in detail without being on-site. This can greatly increase the reach of your listings, so it’s essential for agents to know how to create them. To create a virtual home tour, start by deciding the type of virtual tour you’d like to create, choosing your equipment, and planning your shots before taking your photos. Additional details like leveling the tripod, staging each room, and using virtual tour software are also vital to creating a virtual tour.

Many real estate agents avoid creating virtual tours because of the assumed time, effort, and expenses. However, companies like Asteroom remove those obstacles by offering affordable and easy-to-use software, as well as a simple 3D tour kit for creating high-resolution virtual tours right from your smartphone. The kit provides tools to turn your smartphone into a 360-degree camera to create tours in 15 minutes. Start creating virtual tours with Asteroom today.

Visit Asteroom

Here are 10 steps on how to create a virtual tour for real estate in greater detail:

“Virtual tour” is an umbrella term used to describe a few different types of interactive property photos or videos. These include video walk-throughs, 3D virtual tours, and interactive 360-degree virtual tours. However, it’s important to know that a slideshow of listing photos set to music is not a virtual tour since it does not recreate the experience of being inside or walking through a property. True virtual tours have some element of interaction for viewers so they have a clear understanding of what it’s like to visit the property in person.

The three main types of virtual tours include the following:

Walk-through

A video tour or walk-through is exactly what it sounds like—a video showing the home as the agent or photographer walks through the property, or in other words, a guided walk-through of a property. Video tours are the least interactive virtual tour option, but they are the easiest to create using anything, from smartphones to highly sophisticated digital video equipment.

Video tours can be created in 10 to 15 minutes by walking around the home with your smartphone or a camera, like this example from Nava Realty Group:

Real estate video walk-through (Source: YouTube )

Video tours are one of the easiest ways to add an engaging and unique element to your property listings, but that’s only the beginning. In fact, video is the most engaging type of social media content, with 66% of users saying that short-form video is even more engaging than long-form. Therefore, make sure you take advantage of the marketing power of video.

3D Virtual Tour

3D virtual tours are not videos but are interactive experiences that allow users to click through 3D images and experience what it is like to move through the property. They are created by taking multiple photos of each space with a panoramic camera lens, then using virtual tour software to stitch the images together. The result is an interactive experience that allows viewers to more clearly understand the floor plan, view spaces from different angles, turn around, and back up in each room to see details.

Because this type of virtual tour is created from static images and not from video, the flow from room to room can feel jumpy, like looking at something in Google Street View. However, they provide considerable value to potential buyers because they can virtually “walk” through the property at their own speed and look at spaces in detail.

Clickable virtual tour (Source: Zillow )

Another affordable way to easily create a 3D home tour is with the Zillow 3D Home Tours . It’s a free app that works with 360-degree cameras and smartphones to capture panoramas and generate an interactive home tour. The tour can then be shared on the MLS, the Zillow listing, social media, and your website. Try the app today.

Visit Zillow

Interactive 360-degree Virtual Tour

360-degree tours offer an immersive, true-to-life experience of walking through a home, similar to wearing a virtual reality (VR) headset. Of course, learning how to make a 360-degree tour requires more specialized equipment and software than the other types of virtual tours, but the result will help you and your listings stand out from the competition.

Sample residential 3D tour from Matterport (Source: Matterport 3D tour example )

360-degree virtual tours, like 3D tours, require you to set your camera in the center of the room. Then, you must activate your 360-degree camera, and it will rotate to take a high-resolution, 360-degree photo of its surroundings. Each photo is then uploaded to special software, where text, links, and other interactive multimedia content can be added to the photos—creating a highly dynamic experience for the viewer.

One of the reasons that some agents avoid learning how to make virtual tours is that they are confused or intimidated by the equipment necessary to create them. In reality, the growth of virtual reality (VR) and 360-degree photography has increased the number and type of equipment options available. In fact, some virtual tour kits are extremely affordable and user-friendly, showing you how to do a virtual tour by using your smartphone or a DSLR camera.

Many real estate photographers and professionals agree that the best way to create a virtual walk-through is by using a DSLR rig. A “rig” basically means adding equipment accessories to your DSLR to create a virtual tour. When you’re figuring out how to create 360-degree virtual tours with a DSLR camera rig, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of equipment and accessory options. However, the basics will always include:

• DSLR camera: A few great DSLR options for creating virtual tours are the Sony a7R series , Sony a6000 , or Nikon D3500 .
• Fisheye lens: This type of lens allows you to get the widest angle. Before selecting one, research cropped, circular, and diagonal fisheye lenses.
• Tripod and/or monopod: A tripod sits on a surface and holds your camera steady, while a monopod has only one leg, and is used for shooting smooth 360-degree videos.
• Panoramic tripod head: In addition to a tripod that holds your camera steady, virtual tours and 360-degree photos will require a tripod head for panoramic photos. Evaluate whether you need a manual or automatic tripod head.
• Carry case: While this may seem like an optional piece of equipment, it’s necessary to keep your equipment safe, secure, and easy to transport around the property.

On the other hand, advanced 360-degree cameras provide higher quality photography and videography with more extensive tools, features, and accessories.

Here are a few of the top virtual tour cameras on the market:

In addition to having the correct equipment, having good quality software is essential for learning how to make a virtual walk-through. There are a variety of software programs at every price point, and they help you create different types of tours.

Make sure you research your equipment and software options to ensure that all of your purchases work together effectively. Read through reviews, compare prices and features, and search for examples of photos taken with each type of camera to help you decide on the best fit for your needs.

To start, check out the following four top virtual tour software programs:

As you learn how to create a virtual tour, you’ll find that it requires more planning and preparation than still photos. Those who are successful in real estate know how to develop systems to improve their listing process and overall success.

Start by making a list of every room in the house that should be included in the virtual tour walk-through. Before the shoot, walk through the home, find the center of each room, and make sure your camera will be able to capture and highlight the features of each room from that vantage point.

Matterport 3D dollhouse (Source: Matterport )

If the center doesn’t work, find a place where your camera will pick up the most detail and mark the spot with a piece of tape. Don’t forget that every space matters to a potential buyer, so it’s important to include rooms like bathrooms, walk-in closets, and mudrooms in your virtual tour. Creating a shot list ahead of time can help make sure you don’t leave anything out.

Download our free virtual tour shot checklist to get started:

FILE TO DOWNLOAD OR INTEGRATE

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5. clean & stage each room.

With your virtual tour plan in hand, make sure the home is physically prepared for the photo shoot. At a minimum, remove anything that stands in the way of the lens or anything that might be distracting or look like clutter. In addition, consider using additional home staging tips like depersonalizing, removing excess or mismatched furniture, or even adding a new coat of paint.

Living room before and after virtual staging with BoxBrownie (Source: Facebook )

For the best results, consider in-person home staging or using a virtual staging company . Staging a home has an enormous impact on the buyer’s perspective, especially in virtual home tours where they are likely to zoom in on photos and actively search around each room.

Top virtual staging companies, like BoxBrownie, create highly realistic images for an affordable price with an incredibly fast turnaround. Virtual staging with BoxBrownie enables you to produce the most efficient and effective strategy, driving maximum traffic to your listings.

Visit Box Brownie

As you learn how to make virtual walk-throughs, there are certain steps you must remember to take for every shot. Making sure your tripod is level will only take a few seconds, but it’s essential for any image, video, 360-degree, or panoramic photo you’ll take. In real estate photography , having clear lines and angles is absolutely essential. Don’t try to create panoramic or 360-degree images without a level place to put your camera.

If your tripod does not come with a built-in bubble level, simply download a leveling tool on your smartphone, like Bubble Level for iPhone or iHandy Level . Level the tripod by adjusting the legs until the bubble is centered between the lines.

At the beginning of your shoot, test each shot on your image list. As you learn how to make a virtual tour that generates leads , you’ll notice specific details that need to be adjusted, like lighting, the camera angle, or oddly placed decor.

Real estate photoshoot with Matterport camera (Source: Mantle Realty )

If you notice something distracting in the shot, move the camera or stage the items in the room accordingly. Keep an eye on any mirrors, glass, or windows, making sure you and your camera do not appear as a reflection in the pictures. If you do, pick a different place to stand and operate the camera remotely.

With a thorough shot list and the correct camera settings, you’ll be ready to move through each room on the property to take pictures. Find the spot you planned in each room, set up your tripod, and take pictures. Check each image on the camera screen before moving the tripod, retake shots as needed, and confirm you have all the images you need before moving on to the next room. It’s better to have too many photos than too few.

Once you have all of the correct shots of the property, it’s time to create the virtual tour with your software. Regardless of what equipment and tools you need, the process of how to make a 3D tour will generally follow these three steps:

• Upload Images to Software
• Add Extra Features
• Consider Outsourcing the Virtual Tour

Uploading images to virtual tour software (Source: EyeSpy360 )

Start by uploading your images into your software program. If it’s your first time creating a virtual tour, the software may teach you how to make a virtual tour through step-by-step prompts. Go through the steps of adding static or panoramic images, and the software will stitch static images together for 3D virtual tours and assemble the panoramic photos for 360-degree tours.

Virtual tour creator (Source: iStaging )

Most software programs include additional features to improve your tour and enhance the viewer’s experience. These can include audio descriptions, interactive links (also called hotspots), music, or text. Depending on your software choice, click on settings or the edit button to get a choice of extra features to add to your virtual tour. Viewers will be able to back up, zoom, or change directions automatically with their mouse when the virtual tour is complete.

Virtual tour freelancers (Source: Fiverr )

Virtual tour software providers have made the process very simple, but that doesn’t mean every agent has the knack for editing videos or learning high-tech software programs. Many new real estate agents attempt to do everything themselves, but there are many cases when outsourcing is the most efficient way to create a virtual reality tour, 3D tour, or floor plan.

It’s easy to find a professional freelancer to help make a virtual tour on Fiverr. Just search for a virtual tour freelancer and browse through hundreds of profiles, examples, and reviews. Before beginning your project, you can even contact freelancers to ask questions and agree on a price. See who’s available on Fiverr today.

Visit Fiverr

Once you’ve finished creating your virtual tour, take every opportunity to advertise it on your listing. Many virtual tour software programs provide a link or HTML code to embed the tour on websites, emails, or social media. In fact, it’s best to develop a system for sharing and promoting your tour and add that to your marketing or open house checklist .

Here are some of the best places to share your tour for maximum reach:

• On your IDX website
• Single-property websites
• Zillow listing
• Email campaign
• Social media
• Real estate newsletter

Virtual tour with real estate logo (Source: Ricoh360 Tours )

Statistics & Benefits of Creating a Virtual Tour

Although there are many tools on the market to make the process of creating a virtual tour easier, the reality is that it requires additional time, money, and attention to complete. It’s important for you to evaluate whether or not this is a crucial element of your real estate listing marketing plan .

However, there are a few major benefits to creating and publishing VR tours:

• Fewer wasted appointments: Although it’s great to have a large pool of interested buyers, it’s extremely frustrating when you spend time scheduling and managing showing appointments for buyers who aren’t interested in purchasing the listing. Virtual tours help many buyers self-eliminate, and studies show that they can reduce wasted viewings by about 40% .
• Appeal to a wider audience: You may be surprised at the number of potential buyers who are moving from out of state or are unable to visit properties for other reasons. Since virtual tours provide a more realistic view of the home, you may receive offers without even having to schedule a showing. In fact, almost 90% of prospective buyers stated they are more interested in a property with a 3D tour that allows them to take digital measurements of rooms. Additionally, 55% of buyers said they would be willing to purchase a home sight unseen if it had a virtual tour.
• Give your listing a competitive edge: Zillow listings with a virtual tour receive an average of 68% more views . If you want to attract the largest number of potential buyers, virtual tours are an incredible strategy.
• Generate more listing leads: In a study by Matterport , 83% of Millennials and 94% of GenZers stated they would prefer to work with an agent who offered virtual tours.

Virtual tours provide potential buyers with a unique, fun, and engaging tool to view a property online. There are a few different types of virtual tours that can help your real estate listings generate significantly more interest and increase the sale price. With the right equipment, software, and strategy, learning how to make a virtual tour can be relatively simple and can make a big impact on your business.

About the Author

Find Kaylee On LinkedIn

Kaylee Strozyk

Kaylee Strozyk is a regular contributor for Fit Small Business, specializing in real estate. She's a freelance SEO copywriter for real estate, B2B, and SaaS companies

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How To Create A Virtual Tour For Real Estate in 2024

Learn how to create an engaging virtual tour for real estate, showcasing properties effectively to captivate potential buyers and enhance listings.

Learn | By Jeff Collier

As an agent hoping to attract prospective clients, you should learn how to create a virtual tour for real estate.

This marketing approach can limit the hassle that comes with normal house tours.

Plus, it significantly saves you time and effort, which real estate agents value greatly!

As a professional photographer, I’m glad to shed some light (pun unintended) on everything related to virtual tours.

I’ll explore their importance for your business and their different types.

Then, I’ll go through step-by-step instructions to help you build a tour that showcases your home’s best features.

• Best Drone for Real Estate Photography
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Table of Contents

What Is a Virtual Tour in Real Estate?

In real estate photography, a virtual tour is a screening of the interior and exterior of a property to showcase its features to potential buyers.

How Does a Virtual Tour Work?

Virtual tours try to mimic traditional home tours by allowing the viewer to interact with elements in the house.

It’ll be like they’re standing in each room, looking at every corner from different perspectives without dealing with the flat view of a normal photo.

Depending on the type of virtual tour, it can either engage you in 360-degree photo-realistic visuals or show you a sequence of videos.

What Does a Virtual Tour Consist of?

Normally, virtual tours consist of several 360-degree or panoramic photos stitched together to create the illusion of walking inside the house.

Most of the time, these visuals are accompanied by background music, on-screen text, or narration.

The tour starts from the house’s entry point, and then the screen pans, rotates, or dollies to show you around each room. Based on the nature of the tour, the viewer can either change the viewing angle themselves or follow a predetermined path.

Why Create a Virtual Real Estate Tour?

According to research, 61% of home buyers chose virtual tours as the best technology for evaluating real estate.

It fared better than accurate listing information (58%) and high-quality images (51%).

But what makes virtual tours everyone’s favorite option?

First, these tours are distance-friendly—perfect for people who want to move from one state to another. Second, many people, especially millennials and GenZers, said they’d rather deal with a real estate agent who had virtual tours of homes.

Plus, creating virtual tours helps you reduce wasted appointments. Only invested buyers will contact you after viewing every part of the listed property.

The 3 Different Types of Virtual Real Estate Tours

Before you whip out your photography equipment, you should decide on the type of virtual tour you’d like to make.

1. Walk-through

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Even though it’s the least interactive form of a virtual tour, don’t underestimate the influence of a walk-through. It’s a guided tour that you (as the real estate agent) record while walking around the house.

This video tour is the easiest and requires simple equipment. You can even use your smartphone camera to film a video showing the property.

2. 3D Virtual Tour

A 3D virtual tour involves taking multiple photos of each interior space with a panoramic lens camera. Afterward, these pictures are stitched together to give the illusion of standing inside each room.

Unlike walk-throughs, these 3D tours give your customers more control over what they see, but they require more work on your part.

3. Interactive 360 Virtual Tour

360° virtual reality tours are the most interactive, allowing viewers a lifelike experience of walking through a house. It’s a lot like wearing a virtual reality (VR) headset.

While they’ll give you a competitive edge, 360-degree virtual tours are the most challenging to make, especially without a background in photography. They require special techniques, equipment, and virtual tour software to produce seamless results.

How to Choose the Best Camera for Virtual Real Estate Tours

Virtual real estate tour cameras must capture the finest interior space details.

On the upside, the market is teeming with cameras designed for this purpose.

However, it can be confusing for real estate agents to find the perfect one for their needs. So, consider the following to make a well-informed decision:

• High-resolution sensors: Go above 4K.
• Advanced features: AI-powered object recognition, live-streaming abilities, slow-mo, timelapse, and shooting standard single-lens photos
• Image-stabilization: Necessary for a smooth viewing experience
• Fisheye lens : To capture wide angles
• Battery life: Your camera shouldn’t die on you while filming.
• Your budget restrictions: Balance good video quality and price.
• 360 capability a bonus: This can speed up the creation of 360 degree virtual tour footage

Editor’s Choice: Insta360 ONE RS 1-INCH 360

If you want an action cam that fits real estate virtual tour projects, the Insta360 ONE RS 1-Inch is one of my favorites.

The virtual Tour Kit includes the camera itself and a Mounting Bracket, a Vertical Battery Base, a Lens Cap, a 114cm Invisible Selfie Stick, an all-purpose Tripod, and a 64GB MicroSD card, giving you all the equipment you need to start creating virtual tours.

Videos are captured in up to 6k, giving you tons of detail and the ability to crop into footage digitally.

FlowState Stabilization means that you can hand hold the camera and walk around the property without any perceivable camera jitters to distract the viewer,

Another much-appreciated aspect is that it takes 21-megapixel 360 photos, giving you excellent quality for your real estate images as well as video.

Plus, you’ll like its low-light processing capabilities, thanks to its dual 1-inch sensors, which help your evening house images come to life.

The ONE RS is compatible with all the top real estate virtual tour software, including Zillow, Matterport, Floorfy, Kuula, 3DVista, Cloudpano, GoThru, OpenSpace, DroneDeploy, and Structionsite.

You can shoot with the Insta360 ONE RS using one of the compatible virtual tour apps and edit and share your content immediately.

How to Choose the Right Virtual Tour Software

As a real estate agent venturing into photography, it might sound like a big deal to select software for a virtual tour.

But don’t fret; the market has loads of options with varying difficulty levels.

You’ll just have to think about these features to find the ideal virtual tour software:

• Compatibility with your equipment
• Type of virtual tour it’s made for
• Video editing tools (beginner-friendly, require some background, or expert use)
• Advanced features (branding, virtual staging, etc.)

4 Best Virtual Tour Apps for Real Estate

Here are my top three recommendations for a smooth virtual tour creation experience:

• Matterport: For maximum control over immersive 360-degree tours and 3D videos
• Asteroom: Offers real estate professionals smartphone compatibility and a user-friendly way to capture virtual tours
• EyeSpy360: A subscription-free program that supports branding and virtual staging

Zillow 3D Home app: Makes 3D tours using your phone only and shares them on Zillow (but not suitable for sharing anywhere else)

Step-By-Step Guide to Creating a Virtual Real Estate Tour

Now, let’s dive into the specifics of making a real estate virtual tour!

Step 1: Get Your Equipment Ready

Based on the type of virtual tour you intend to shoot, decide on the right software, camera, and other accessories.

If you’ll be using your phone, I suggest buying a fisheye lens adapter to help you get wide-angle shots.

You can invest in a full-fledged DSLR camera for a more professional approach, but it might cost you a small fortune. Don’t forget to purchase a rotating tripod for more stability while you shoot 360-degree views of your rooms.

Next, pair your camera with the ideal software from the earlier list. Remember that your choice also depends on your video editing knowledge and how much you want to be involved with the tour creation process.

Step 2: Plan Your Virtual Tour

Plan the shots by following a prospective buyer’s path when checking out the house.

Your route should be logical, starting from the front door, passing through each room, looking inside closets and bathrooms, etc.

You should also mark where you’ll place your camera to take 360-degree photos.

Ideally, it should be in the center of the room, but small spaces or long hallways will require other camera placements.

Step 3: Clean and Stage the Home in Preparation

A crucial part of preparing the house for your photoshoot is cleaning it thoroughly, especially if it’s still lived in.

Pay attention to windows, mirrors, and other reflective surfaces that indicate a home’s cleanliness.

Otherwise, potential buyers might be put off by any cluttered or dusty areas.

Plus, it’s a good idea to stage the home. Home staging means adding and arranging furniture pieces, accessories, or rugs to give each room an appealing look.

Step 4: Do Lighting and Camera Tests

Test your equipment and make any necessary adjustments.

Think about using natural vs. artificial lighting or a mix of both. Do you need extra equipment to illuminate darker rooms? Are some places too bright that you must adjust your camera settings accordingly?

Also, ensure you and the camera don’t appear on reflective surfaces!

Step 5: Take Your Pictures and Upload Them onto the Software

Lastly, start rolling, going from one room to the next until you’ve completed your planned shots.

Then, upload the photos onto the virtual tour software you’ve chosen. Follow the instructions for the specific program, and consider adding interactive links, narration, or text while editing.

Finish by adding the virtual tour to your property listing or sharing it with your clients.

How to Make a 360° (3D) Virtual Real Estate Tour with iPhone/Android

Here’s how you can achieve decent results by making a 360° virtual real estate tour with your smartphone.

Step 1: Use the Google Street View App

After following the instructions from earlier (planning your shots, doing tests, and home staging), download this app from the Play Store or App Store.

• Tap on the camera icon, select “Take Photo Sphere,” then point the camera to the orange dot.
• Take the first photo and repeat the same process until the green box appears.
• Click on the green box, then select the options to share or save your creation.

Step 2: Upload the 360-degree Images to Your Virtual Tour Software

In this step, you’ll use another mobile app to create your virtual tour called My360.

After signing up, create a new tour profile before clicking “+ Spheres.” You’ll then be prompted to upload the photos you’ve taken.

Wait until the upload is over before you close the app.

Step 3: Finish Creating the Tour Using the Desktop Version

I advise switching to the My360 desktop app to give you maximum control over your photo editing experience.

Once you type in your credentials, you’ll find the pictures you’ve uploaded from your smartphone that are waiting for you to use.

Finally, make your virtual reality tour, then attach it to your property listings.

5 Best Practices When Creating a Virtual Real Estate Tour

Want your virtual reality tour to look like it’s been shot by a professional? Consider these practices that promise incredible results!

1. Use a Shot List

Organization is key when you’re in the planning phase, which is why I suggest you make a shot checklist.

This list should involve every room the tour will cover, preferably chronologically.

For example, the first item could be “Exterior and front yard,” followed by “Front door,” followed by “Proch,” and so on, based on your vision.

2. Level Your Tripod

Ensure your tripod is level so the photos you capture don’t come out uneven.

Here, you may use a bubble level indicator, adjust the center column, or tweak the tripod leg height.

3. Take Test Shots

Test shots are essential, helping you make any corrections to your lights, level of detail, photo depth, and other factors.

They’re also time-efficient, reducing the time wasted if you encounter a problem while taking your final shots.

4. Consider Virtual Staging

Several websites (like iStaging) and virtual tour software services offer virtual staging.

This involves editing your panoramic photos to include furniture, accessories, and home decor. For busy real estate agents, this option can be a hassle-free alternative to traditional home staging.

5. Create Both Branded and Unbranded Versions of Your Tours

In digital marketing, branding is everything because it links everything to the business.

So, when posting on public websites, you should brand the tour with your details to leave a lasting effect on the viewers.

Unbranded versions work best in settings where you can’t use branded ones. This sometimes includes sites that promote your house showing.

FAQs About Creating a Virtual Real Estate Tour

What is a virtual tour camera?

A virtual tour camera has a 360-degree lens , capturing a wide view of each room to include all the details within the shot.

How do you make a good virtual tour?

You need suitable equipment, strong virtual tour software, careful planning, and a good understanding of how to show each property in its best light.

Usually, finding the right formula comes with experience.

How can I make a virtual tour for real estate for free?

You may use Google Street View and My360 to make virtual tours without spending money on equipment or software subscriptions.

Can I create a virtual tour for real estate online?

Unfortunately, an online service doesn’t allow you to make a virtual tour without downloading desktop or smartphone software.

How do I create an interactive virtual tour?

You’ll need an app that supports virtual reality, such as iStaging, Kuula, and CloudPano.

What is a branded virtual tour for real estate?

A branded virtual tour includes the real estate professional’s name, listing office, and contact information.

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Jeff Collier is an experienced film photographer who enjoys experimenting with modern digital photography equipment, software and apps. He’s also an ex-world champion triathlete and avid cyclist, clocking hundreds of km each week in the beautiful Tweed Valley of northern NSW, Australia.

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The best virtual tours to explore the world from home

Oct 8, 2020 • 5 min read

The Sistine Chapel is just one wonder offering a virtual museum tour ©Rajesh Gathwala/500px

We live in an age of unprecedented access to digital technology – and with it, brand new ways of exploring the world around us.

While it's not quite the same as seeing, say, the Mona Lisa or Christ the Redeemer in person, some of the world’s most popular and remote destinations have created libraries of online images and video, as well as 360 degree virtual tours that let you virtually explore museums, galleries, world wonders and even national parks.

Here a just a few of the best digital tours that let you wander the world from wherever you may be social distancing.

See the seven wonders of the world

If there’s anything capable of whetting your appetite for world travel, it is the new seven wonders of the world:  the Great Wall of China , the ancient city of Petra , the Taj Mahal , the Colosseum , Machu Picchu , Christ the Redeemer , and Chichen Itza . Thankfully there are impressive virtual tours of each from The New York Times , AirPano , Google , and Panoramas .

With modern technology, you can even see the last standing wonder of the ancient world— The Pyramids of Giza . There are a few other wonders that might not make it into to the top seven but are still worth a digital peek, like the Alhambra , Seville's La Giralda , and even Easter Island.

Best virtual museum tours

In recent years, Google has partnered with over 2,5000 art museums to upload high-resolution versions of millions of pieces of art. Highlights include New York’s MoMA , DC’s National Gallery of Art , Chicago’s Art Institute , the Casa Battl ó, and Amsterdam’s Van Gogh Museum to name a few.

In addition, The Louvre offers a virtual tour , as do The Vatican Museums , many of the Smithsonian Museums , the Russian Museum , the top-rated British Museum , the Minneapolis  Museum of Russian Art , and the Palace Museum in Beijing.

You may not be able to kiss the Blarney Stone right now, but you can tour the Blarney Castle from afar. You can also visit the Museum of Flight,  the Museum of Science, the Museum of Natural History,  the National Women's History Museum  and Boston's History of Science Museum .

While museums are often an inherently visual experience, there's a lot to be learned from archives of past lectures and tours like the ones preserved online by Nashville's Frist Museum , the Hunter Museum of American Art in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the Smithsonian American Art Museum,  the Frick , and others.

You might also like:  Broadway might be closed, but here’s how to stream the best performances from your home

Explore national parks

While travel to National Parks is best avoided for the time being, you don't need to miss out on the scenery. Virtual Yosemite is absolutely stunning and one of the best, replete with audio. Both Yellowstone National Park and Mount Rushmore offer virtual tours as well. 

Google has similar 360 degree audio-visual tours of five select national parks, including Kenai Fjords, Hawai'i Volcanos , Carlsbad Caverns, Bryce Canyon , and Dry Tortugas, as well as 31 more on Google Earth . You can also get an up-close look at almost 4,000 pieces of artwork, artifacts, and other treasures related to the history and culture of the national parks, and view online exhibits .

Digital safaris

Wildlife is a big draw for travelers, whether it's sighting some of the Big Five in Africa, glimpsing whales in North America, or introducing your children to new animals in person on a family safari . But if you're forays into the bush are grounded for now, many zoos and aquariums have created digital access to their habitats.

You can easily watch several live webcams of some of the nation’s greatest zoos and aquariums, including the  San Diego Zoo , Houston Zoo , Zoo Atlanta , the Tennessee Aquarium , and the Georgia Aquarium . Additionally you can see Canadian farm animals doing their thing , or you could watch Stella the Dog jump endlessly into huge piles of Maine leaves.

You may also like:  These nine wildlife web cams offer access to your favorite animals

Virtual hiking

Thanks to panoramic video, you can get a really good idea of what a hike looks like well before you arrive at the trailhead. For example, you can experience all of the following top-rated hikes right now from your computer or tablet:  Bryce Canyon , Grand Canyon , GR20 , Inca Trail , and the death-defying Angel's Landing . For even more great hikes, simply YouTube one of Lonely Planet’s top 10 treks or any other hike that suits your fancy. Bonus points if you follow along during a workout to enhance the realism.

Famous landmarks

You can visit many wonders of nature, including the Amazon Rainforest , Iguazu Falls , the Komodo Islands , or Table Mountain , using virtual tours. Or you can explore the Statue of Liberty , the Sahara Desert , Niagara Falls , or even a guided tour of the Eiffel Tower . For even more virtual tours, search your bucket list of adventures with  AirPano , Google Earth , or YouTube .

Travel to outer space

The moon hasn't made it to Lonely Planet's Best In Travel list (yet!), and even without self-isolation and shelter-in-place measures for COVID-19, many of us may never travel to space. But thanks to technology, now is as good of a time as any to do so virtually. Before blasting off, considering touring some of NASA’s offices first. Then relive the last lunar missions and moon walks in stunning HD. Or take a virtual tour of Mars with the help of Google. 

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The novel coronavirus (Covid-19) is now a global pandemic. Find out what this  means for travelers . 

This article was originally published March 2020 and was last updated October 2020.

This article was first published March 2020 and updated October 2020

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Online Virtual Tours: The 69 BEST to Explore in 2024

You found our list of the best online virtual tours !

Virtual tours are online experiences that enable visitors to experience museums, zoos, national parks, landmarks, and attractions. These tours use methods such as 360 pictures, satellite imagery, virtual reality, or video conferencing to bring famous sites into living rooms or classrooms. The purpose of these tours is to inspire, entertain and educate audiences. These experiences are also called “online tours.”

These tours are popular virtual field trips and can be fun online classroom activities .

This post includes:

• virtual museum tours
• online tours of national parks
• virtual zoo tours

So, here is the list!

List of virtual museum tours

Here is a list of online museum tours that are perfect for both adults and kids. We also have a list of virtual museum scavenger hunt templates for you to use.

1. Smithsonian

The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History offers a self-guided virtual tour of current and past museum exhibits. This experience includes narrated components, accessible via computer or smartphone. The Smithsonian also offers virtual experiences for its other institutions such as the National Portrait Gallery, National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the National Museum of the American Indian.

Visit the Smithsonian .

2. British Museum

The British Museum hosts an online “Museum of the World” that enables visitors to browse exhibits by area of origin, era, and subject matter. For example, you can search the collection by themes like “power and identity” or “art and design.” Each digital exhibit includes a picture, description, audio file, and links to related artifacts.

Visit British Museum .

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3. Auschwitz

This virtual tour of Auschwitz offers a panoramic birds eye view of the camps, Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II Birkenau, along with clickable descriptions of each area. Online visitors can also switch to an illustrated map of the grounds to better understand the scope of the concentration camps. The online tour is available in both English and Polish.

Visit Auschwitz .

4. Anne Frank House

The Anne Frank House welcomes visitors from around the world with digital experiences such as video, virtual reality, 360° photos of the Frank home, and translations of the diary in over 20 languages. Virtual visitors can also browse a pocket gallery by downloading the app.

Visit Anne Frank House .

5. 9/11 Memorial & Museum

The 9/11 Memorial & Museum website has a learn and explore feature which includes live, guide-led panoramic virtual tours of the rebuilt center, interactive videos, and webinar stories. The site also recommends activities to do at home with children to simulate the museum’s activity stations.

Visit 9/11 Memorial & Museum .

6. Vatican Museums

The Vatican Museums provides an online experience consisting of 360° high resolution photos of over a dozen features such as the Sistine Chapel and Raphael’s Rooms. The website also grants web access to archaeological areas, various departments, and a searchable online catalogue.

Visit Vatican Museums .

7. Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien

Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien in Austria hosts a digital museum consisting of an online collection, artist talks and lectures, podcasts and Spotify series, and high resolution images of works and galleries. The museum also has its own app that enables online walk-throughs, including specialty tours for children.

Visit the Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien .

8. National Museum (New Delhi)

New Delhi’s National Museum, often called the National Museum of India, displays the largest collection of art and artifacts in the country. The institution’s Museum at Home web portal consists of dozens of videos depicting sculptures, artifacts, and customs, with accompanying cultural analysis from curators. The site also links to several 360° and 3-D virtual galleries that enable online walk-throughs of the building.

Visit the National Museum (New Delhi) .

9. National Palace Museum & the Forbidden City (Beijing)

The National Palace Museum sits in the heart of Beijing and houses centuries worth of art and history. The museum building is a monument to classic Chinese architecture, as is the surrounding palace complex, the Forbidden City. Virtual visitors can tour works inside the museum and stroll through the outer courtyards by indulging in interactive and immersive virtual and VR tours. Both options give viewers the opportunity to explore the grounds up close without navigating the crowds.

Visit National Palace Museum and the Forbidden City .

10. Pergamonmuseum

Pergamonmuseum in Berlin contains a wealth of art and archaeological treasures, and curators give home viewers a glimpse into the collections through several online exhibits on Google Arts & Culture. The collection includes over 1,000 images of objects made of clay, metal, copper, and gemstone, originating in regions such as Iran, Spain, Turkey, and Germany.

Visit Pergamonmuseum .

11. National Museum of Australia

The National Museum of Australia offers free one hour digital excursions to schools that cannot visit the museum in person. The tours are available on weekdays between 9:30-10:30 am or at other times by request, and accommodate groups of 10 to 30 students. Classes meet with museum staff via Zoom and complete missions based around themes like the fight for indigenous rights. Virtual exhibition gallery tours are also available on occasion.

Visit the National Museum of Australia and check out these Indigenous Peoples Day ideas .

The Louvre virtual tour consists of 360° panoramic views of exhibit halls such as Egyptian Antiquities and the ruins of the Louvre Moat. By downloading a special app, visitors can also experience Mona Lisa in virtual reality. The museum website hosts multimedia online exhibitions of famous works such as Portrait of the Marquise de Pompadour and Psyche Revived by Cupid’s Kiss.

Visit the Louvre .

13. Guggenheim

The Guggenheim museum offers staff facilitated online tours for students ranging from kindergarten to grade 12. Educators can book interactive, real-time tours for classes that engage students and enable question and answer sessions. Tours are no cost for New York City public schools. For other districts the tours are less than $100, and discounted rates are available. Tours have a maximum of 30 participants, meaning groups are sure to receive an intimate experience.

Visit Guggenheim .

14. Musée d’Orsay

The Google Arts tour of the Musée d’Orsay includes background and history on the museum building, as well as images, descriptions, and details of some of the museum’s most famous works. For example, the collection includes Van Gogh’s Self Portrait , James McNeill Whistler’s Whistler’s Mother , and Bartholdi’s Liberty .

Visit Musée d’Orsay .

15. Rijksmuseum

The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam is a Dutch National Museum that hosts an impressive array of art and history. Rijksmuseum’s virtual tour, which includes a Rijksmuseum from home series, consists of high definition pictures, videos, and audio narration that details seminal works inside the museum. The experience also includes interactive components such as a “find the key” challenge and creative tutorials.

Visit Rijksmuseum .

16. Museum of Modern Art

The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City launched a virtual views series which enables website visitors to browse rotating online exhibits. As part of the series, the MoMA site also hosts virtual events with components such as live Q&A sessions with artists and curators, readings and theatrical performances, 3-D renderings, and interactive games.

Visit MoMA .

17. The Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met 360° Project is a collection of six wide-lens videos compatible with both virtual reality systems, or regular computer screens or smartphones. Virtual viewers take a point-of-view tour of museum areas such as the Great Hall, the Met Cloisters, and the Arms and Armor Gallery, set to a soundtrack of instrumental music. The Met website also hosts an Art at Home series that offers up close virtual access and analysis to famous works, as well as videos of conservation projects and instructions for art projects.

Visit the MET .

18. Paul J. Getty Museum

The Google Arts & Culture online tour of the Getty Museum spans dozens of exhibits with thousands of digital artifacts. Pieces span as far back as the eighth century until modern times, with notable pieces including The Virgin Mary with Saints Thomas Aquinas and Paul , Rembrandt Laughing , and Irises .

Visit the Getty Museum .

19. Art Institute of Chicago

The Art Institute of Chicago facilitates online visits consisting of virtual video and audio tours, searchable online collections, digital publications, as well as online lesson plans and art projects. There is even an “Ask an Educator” form that enables parents or teachers to communicate with museum staff who hand-pick resources to assist with lessons planning.

Visit the Art Institute of Chicago .

20. National Gallery of Art (Washington D.C.)

The National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. website hosts digital perspectives, virtual exhibitions, and digital collections. The online experience also includes streamable films visitors can watch online.

Visit the National Gallery of Art .

21. The National Gallery (London)

The National Gallery of London offers immersive virtual tours accessible via smartphone, computer, or virtual reality headset. Through three different remote tours, virtual visitors can explore multiple wings of the museum, 18+ rooms, and 300+ paintings. The Gallery’s robust social media presence promotes further interaction with online art.

Visit The National Gallery .

22. Uffizi Gallery

The Google Arts & Culture Tour of the Uffizi Gallery in Florence explores four online exhibitions and hundreds of pieces of arts and artifacts, many in the Renaissance style. Notable pieces include Birth of Venus by Botecelli, Portraits of the Duke & Duchess of Urbino by Piero Della Francesca, and Madonna of the Goldfinch by Raphael.

Visit Uffizi Gallery .

23. Frida Kahlo Museum

The virtual tour of the Frida Kahlo Museum in Mexico City is one of the most colorful museum tours online. Virtual visitors tour various areas of the grounds in a 360°, up close experience. The colors of the architecture and artifacts are works of art in themselves, and are sure to brighten viewers’ days. The website offers additional resources including downloadable photos, videos, quotes, and even recipes.

Visit Frida Kahlo Museum .

24. Russian Museum

The Virtual Russian Museum is a web portal consisting of several digital resources such as online lectures, virtual 3-D walk through tours of the museum complex with accompanying audio, and a multimedia center. The multimedia component of the virtual branch includes digital content and displays, broadcasts and video conferencing, and interactive web workshops.

Visit Russian Museum .

25. Tokyo National Museum

The Tokyo National Museum contains artworks and antiquities dating back several centuries, and displays over 100 digital images of textiles, clay-ware, ceramics, and similar artifacts on its Google Arts & Culture tour. During this remote museum tour, virtual visitors peruse Asian art and conduct Google Earth walk-throughs of museum galleries.

Visit Tokyo National Museum .

26. National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea

This online tour of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Korea enables web visitors to explore the country’s unique culture and heritage. The tour includes multiple online exhibits, hundreds of pieces of modern artwork, and several floors of the building, including sections of the outdoor sculpture garden.

Visit the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art .

27. MASP – Museu de Arte de São Paulo

The Museu de Arte de São Paulo has an impressive online presence with over 1,000 images of paintings, photographs, and objects in its Google Arts & Culture collection. Online visitors can delve into South American art and culture by exploring online exhibits and browsing through digital collections. The Google App also enables virtual reality tours of the museum via smartphone.

Visit MASP – Museu de Arte de São Paulo .

28. Space Center Houston

Space Center Houston offers free interactive virtual learning experiences like an online Apollo 13 exhibit, video series, and an app that offers mobile tours plus augmented reality and virtual reality experiences. The center also occasionally hosts virtual stargazing camp-outs and suggests at home science experiments and games. Plus, the website is a wealth of online outer space resources.

Visit Space Center Houston .

29. American Museum of Natural History

The American Museum of Natural History suggests several options for virtual visits. These options include virtual field trips, an “inside the museum” high resolution picture tour, guided tours on Facebook live, and an expedition app experience that includes quizzes and exhibit highlights.

Visit American Museum of Natural History .

30. Oxford University’s History of Science Museum

The Oxford History of Science Museum website displays past exhibits so virtual visitors can learn more about concepts such as antibiotics, the human brain, and the Transit of Venus. The format of each online exhibit varies, but most contain, at minimum, sample images and descriptions.

Visit Oxford University’s History of Science Museum .

31. The National Museum of the United States Air Force

The National Museum of the United States Air Force provides digital resources such as 360° photo cockpit tours, podcasts, and videos. The site also supplies lesson plans broken down by grade level, with extras like aircraft coloring pages and word searches.

Visit The National Museum of the United States Air Force .

32. The National Museum of Computing

The National Museum of Computing offers a comprehensive 3D virtual tour of the entire museum, with multiple touch-points explaining the significance of fixtures. The online walk-through enables a point-of-view, clickable dollhouse tour of the entire building, with a wealth of supplemental materials like videos, audio files, and documents. For a fee, the museum also arranges curated virtual tours that form a more personalized experience.

Visit The National Museum of Computing .

33. Boston Museum of Science

Boston’s premier science museum presents a Museum of Science at Home experience consisting of virtual exhibits, daily live streams, podcasts, town halls, and family STEM activities. The museum provides digital programs for both adults and children, with highlights including live social events, an ant colony webcam, and stimulating multimedia content.

Visit the Boston Museum of Science .

34. Glazer Children’s Museum

The Glazer Children’s Museum website hosts virtual experiences such as digital field trips and weekly facilitated live Zoom play sessions. These sessions have educational themes like music and movement or STEM. The site also publishes content designed for anytime learning, such as instructional videos and blog posts that lead visitors through at-home art projects, science experiments, and story-time.

Visit Glazer Children’s Museum .

35. Children’s Museum Houston

The Children’s Museum Houston advertises an ongoing all-time access program. This program provides regular content such as 3-D digital field trips, virtual adventure camps, daily broadcasted project tutorials, webinar workshops, and video call-in shows. The museum also has a free smartphone app for additional at-home adventures.

Visit Children’s Museum Houston .

36. Children’s Museum Indianapolis

Children’s Museum Indianapolis provides a museum at home experience including ongoing virtual events, digital museum programs, follow-along hands-on activities, and virtual birthday parties. The museum also creates holiday-themed downloadable activity bundles and resources for teachers.

Visit Children’s Museum Indianapolis .

37. The Strong National Museum of Play

The Strong museum in Rochester, NY, examines the history of playtime throughout recent history. Its online exhibits follow fun themes such as “Pinball in America”, “The History of Valentines”, and the Oregon Trail computer games. The online collection hosts a staggering 77,000+ images, many of which are designs for games throughout the decades.

Visit The Strong National Museum of Play .

38. Boston Children’s Museum

The Boston Children’s Museum website provides learning resources including weekly activitiy emails, Mad Libs, and links to mini digital museums and interactive apps. This section of the museum’s website has many tools to keep kids occupied for hours.

Visit Boston Children’s Museum .

List of online national park tours

Here is a list of national parks to visit online.

39. Joshua Tree

A virtual tour to Joshua Tree includes video, readable web content, photos and other multimedia. To captivate younger visitors, the park posts digital scavenger hunts, a junior ranger program, and guest speaker series. Educators can schedule virtual field trips with park rangers centered around topics such as plants and animals, rocks and minerals, and weather and erosion.

Visit Joshua Tree .

40. Zion National Park

An online visit to Zion National Park includes virtual hikes and shuttle tours, along with a free app that launches a historical exploration of the region. Web visitors explore the canyons in virtual reality from multiple vantage points, exploring the terrain from the comfort of the couch.

Visit Zion National Park .

41. Yosemite

Virtual Yosemite provides an aerial view of the park with zoomable scenic spots. The remote park tour also features a panoramic index for easy navigation to various locales within the preservation, but visitors can also click through and rotate the views to explore more organically. Virtual Yosemite presents high resolution images of a variety of landscapes, highlighting the geographical diversity of the land.

Visit Yosemite .

42. Bryce Canyon

While not an immersive experience, the Bryce Canyon virtual tour provides pictures and descriptions of locations along the trail so that virtual visitors can imagine hikes and plan future trips. The points of the online tour outline the landscape variety of the canyon, describing sights like Mossy Cave, Swamp Canyon, and Natural Bridge.

Visit Bryce Canyon .

43. Death Valley

This 360° online tour of California’s Death Valley National Park allows visitors to pan around the attraction’s various landscapes, from dunes to craters to canyons. Each spot contains a short description of the geography. The high resolution images create a virtual reality experience that immerses viewers in the environment.

Visit Death Valley .

44. Grand Canyon

This virtual tour of the Grand Canyon consists of 3D satellite images via Google Earth. Virtual visitors can rotate or click through trails, view the canyon from above, and navigate to photos of notable landmarks like Yavapai Point and The Abyss. High resolution pictures enable cyber sightseers to take in the views without the fear of falling.

Visit the Grand Canyon .

45. Redwood National Forest

Redwood National Forest facilitates virtual reality experiences via smartphone or computer, where online visitors take in 360° canopy tours for a panoramic view of the forest. The site also hosts multimedia presentations that include narrated videos, documentaries, songs, and other educational materials.

Visit Redwood National Forest .

46. Hot Springs National Park

Exploring Arkansas’ Hot Springs National Park from home is possible thanks to a collection of photography, suggested readings, and an aerial digital map. The latter presents a birds eye view of the bath house district with clickable panoramic views inside the buildings. These resources enable virtual visitors to learn about the region’s rich cultural past and recent scientific research.

Visit Hot Springs National Park.

47. Gateway Arch

The Gateway Arch in St. Louis provides a series of short pre-recorded videos exploring the history of the region and the exhibitions within the park, along with livestream webcam views from the top of the arch. The park website features historical analysis and photo galleries too, along with a virtual stamp for visitor’s National Park Passport books.

Visit the Gateway Arch.

48. Niagara Falls

This panoramic tour of Niagara Falls presents rotating 360° photos of park vistas such as the Cave of the Winds, Prospect Point, and the river rapids. A short description accompanies each photograph, outlining background information about the scenic spots.

Visit Niagara Falls .

49. Everglades National Park

The Everglades National Park provides a robust selection of virtual experiences. The options include a 24/7 live wildlife webcam, short documentaries and educational videos, audio narrated virtual tours, and an official digital photography collection. The park website offers a free curriculum for distance learning programs as well.

Visit the Everglades .

50. Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park

This online multimedia presentation guides virtual viewers through the islands and volcanoes of Hawaii. The experience includes audio, video, and panoramic photography of volcanic cliffs, caverns, and rainforests. Web visitors can also explore an active volcano by joining a digital helicopter flyover and watching an eruption from the 1950s.

Visit Hawai’i Volcanoes .

51. Table Mountain and Kruger National Park

South Africa has stunning national parks. Discover Africa enables visitors to explore the sights of South Africa via immersive video and interactive panoramic photography accompanied by narration. Virtual visitors choose from five attractions, including Cape Town’s Table Mountain and Northern South Africa’s epic Kruger nature preserve. The digital experience constitutes a virtual safari that lets viewers experience the country’s diverse landscapes.

Visit Table Mountain and Kruger National Park .

52. Mount Everest

This digital rendering allows website visitors to scale the peaks of Mount Everest from behind a screen. The website is a 3D geographic model of the mountain with clickable descriptions for key peaks. While many folks will never climb Everest in person, they can explore the range through this immersive cyber expedition.

Visit Mount Everest .

53. Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park

Phong Nha-Ke Bang in Vietnam contains one of the world’s largest caves alongside lush rainforests. Digital visitors trek through caves, viewing high resolution images and listening to realistic background sounds. The result is an immersive experience that simulates the sensation of navigating the caves in person.

Visit Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park .

54. Zhāngjiājiè National Forest Park

For much of the world, Zhāngjiājiè National Forest Park in China is more recognizable by sight than by name. The park’s steep, wooded cliffs appear in movies like Avatar, and the landscape looks more like a film set than a natural occurrence. Website visitors navigate between explorable panoramic views to the sounds of instrumental music for a simultaneously captivating and calming web experience.

Visit Zhāngjiājiè National Forest Park .

55. Namib Desert

This digital tour of the Namib Desert in Southern Africa gives viewers birds eye perspectives of dunes, parched plains, and rolling mist, plus vast starry skies. The high quality, panoramic images constitute virtual hikes through the vast landscape, without the scorching heat of day or the freezing chill of night.

Visit Namib Desert .

56. Banff National Park

A remote tour of Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada consists of dozens of 360* videos showing scenes like snowy canyons, serene lakes at sunset, and mountainous trails. Though short, the videos enable you to pause and take in the scenery, and watching the playlist gives online visitors the benefit of viewing the park during multiple seasons.

Visit Banff National Park .

57. Cinque Terre

Cinque Terre is a coastal region of Italy renowned for its colorful hillside houses. In this experience, online visitors take a panoramic photo tour of the coastline at various angles and times of days, set to a backdrop of calming music. The site also includes educational descriptions and an additional photo gallery.

Visit Cinque Terre .

List of virtual zoo tours

Here is a list of virtual zoos and aquariums that enable up-close online animal encounters.

58. San Diego Zoo

The San Diego Zoo streams live cams of animals including polar bears, tigers, penguins, baboons, and koalas, and as well as hosting highlight archive footage of past panda cams. For a fee, the zoo also offers virtual programs that enable private online encounters with animals. The website also hosts an online directory of zoo animals and plants so that virtual visitors can learn more about the zoo’s exhibits from home.

Visit the San Diego Zoo .

59. San Antonio Zoo

The San Antonio Zoo arranges online meetings between virtual visitors and animals like hippos, giraffes, and rhinos for $100. For an additional $50 fee, guests can add a question and answer session with a zookeeper. Experiences are available Tuesday through Saturday. The zoo also offers online educational workshops.

Visit the San Antonio Zoo .

60. Houston Zoo

The Houston Zoo website includes a variety of live webcams with stars such as rhinos, gorillas, flamingos, and elephants. Cameras are live between 7AM and 7PM CT. The zoo also advertises live virtual experiences including web conference meet and greets with animals and virtual scavenger hunts. Notable digital offerings include an animal painting experience where guests watch a creature create art and receive a copy in the mail afterwards, and a Cameo video greeting to send to a friend.

Visit the Houston Zoo .

61. Cincinnati Zoo

The Cincinnati Zoo offers a home safari consisting of videos recorded during Facebook Live streams. Website visitors can browse through over 50 animal encounters and learn facts about creatures like red pandas, parrots, zebras, and orangutans. Online modules also include activities such as homemade birdfeeders and balancing exercises so kids can participate more fully in the virtual experience.

Visit the Cincinnati Zoo .

62. Bronx Zoo

The Bronx Zoo streams live between 10AM and 4PM ET, showing off visitor favorites such as sea lions and lemurs. The zoo also books out virtual wild encounters with creatures like cheetahs, alpacas, sloths, and warthogs, for prices ranging from $80 to $150. Each session takes place over Zoom and allows virtual visitors to get up close to animals while asking caretakers questions.

Visit the Bronx Zoo .

63. Alaska Zoo

The Alaska Zoo presents a distance learning experience through its virtual animal encounters and arctic discovery programs. Each session lasts approximately 45 minutes and costs $150. These experiences include interactive presentations and virtual visits with animals such as tigers, gray wolves, polar bears, or seals. A scheduled visit ensures the animals are unlikely to be camera-shy, creating a memorable and intimate online experience for students.

Visit the Alaska Zoo .

64. Singapore Zoo

The Singapore Zoo proposes a variety of e-learning options designed to enrich virtual classrooms. The website modules sort experiences by grade level, making it easy to choose an experience appropriate for your classroom. Students can explore topics such as zoology careers, reptile habitats, and African wildlife.

Visit the Singapore Zoo .

65. Oregon Zoo

The Oregon Zoo offers virtual encounters on platforms such as Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and GoToMeeting. During these sessions, caregivers and animals such as armadillos, giraffes, elephants, sloths, and lemurs join virtual visitors for a 15 minute meet and greet. The two available daily time slots are at 10AM and 2PM PT.

Visit the Oregon Zoo .

66. Monterey Bay Aquarium

The Monterey Bay Aquarium hosts ten live webcams featuring critters such as penguins, jellyfish, sharks, and sea otters. The variety of exhibits means that teachers can switch between streams when a particular camera is not live. The aquarium also facilitates narrated feeding times on certain webcams during weekdays, with the feeding schedule posted on the site.

Visit the Monterey Bay Aquarium .

67. National Aquarium (Baltimore)

The National Aquarium in Baltimore offers an interactive virtual map folks can navigate for an online tour. Virtual visitors can follow the arrows for a walk-through experience, or can click a menu of creatures like dolphins and sharks to instantly view anticipated animals. The aquarium website also hosts three 24/7 webcam livestreams , and offers guided virtual programs too.

Visit the National Aquarium .

68. Georgia Virtual Aquarium

The Georgia Virtual Aquarium allows visitors to book a 10 to 20 minute guided online tour. Participants select a tour, receive viewing instructions via email, then enjoy up-close views of animals with educational insight. Participants get to view oceans, rivers, or sea creatures within an immersive virtual environment.

Visit Georgia Virtual Aquarium .

You may not be able to jet around the world at a moment’s notice. However, you can still visit famous parks, zoos, or museums by taking an engaging, interactive online virtual tour.

These online experiences enable you to stare as long as you like, avoid crowds, learn more about a subject or piece instantly, and enjoy other benefits. Not to mention, at home experiences are a great way to educate and teach children, coworkers, and yourself!

Next, check out our list of virtual family reunion activities and this one with online volunteering ideas .

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FAQ: Virtual Tours

Here are some of the common questions we see about virtual tours of museums, zoos and parks.

What are virtual tours?

Virtual tours are online galleries of famous attractions such as zoos, national parks, and museums. These experiences often consist of online exhibitions, videos, 360 degree and satellite photography, and virtual reality elements. Some tours may also include a facilitated live experience with a guide.

What are the best virtual tours?

The best virtual tours tend to include an interactive element. For example, the tour could be a live experience led by a guide and include trivia, polls, or other forms of engagement. These online tours are the best because they focus on the visitor experience.

How much do virtual tours cost?

Virtual tours are available at a variety of costs, ranging from free to $5 per person, $50 per person and upwards. We recommend starting with some of the free tours to see what your group likes and benefits most from. Then, you can invest in one of the paid options.

How do virtual tours work?

Virtual tours take place on online platforms such as Zoom, Google Street View, or custom software. Users login solo or as a group, and follow along with either a live or automated guide to learn about the tour stops.

Author: Angela Robinson

Marketing Coordinator at teambuilding.com. Team building content expert. Angela has a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing and worked as a community manager with Yelp to plan events for businesses.

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Virtual tours 101: How to create them and what to charge

By Checkfront Marketing

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If you’re a tour operator, chances are you’ve already considered creating a virtual tour for your business. If you haven’t, you should look at the possibilities.

Whether people want to learn about a destination or activity before visiting in person or experience it without traveling, virtual tours help reach potential customers, promote your business, and showcase your product. 

There are various ways that operators can provide virtual tours and experiences. They can host live on Zoom, create mini-tours on TikTok or other social platforms, or they can sell virtual experiences on Amazon Explore.

This blog post will tell you how to make a DIY virtual tour by following a few simple steps. You’ll learn if it is possible to do it for free, how much it costs to make a virtual tour, some of the tools to use for editing and filming, how much to charge for it, and more.

How to create a virtual tour

First, decide what type of tour you want to create. There are two main types: pre-recorded video or panoramic tours and live stream virtual tours.

 Pre-recorded video tours are essentially a video of your tour, and the panoramic ones are a series of still images that the user can click through. Live stream tours are streamed live to the attendees and can be recorded for replays at a later time. 

Why you should go with a DIY virtual tour

There are many benefits to creating a virtual tour instead of hiring a professional company. The main benefit is that it will be much cheaper to do it yourself. 

Creating your own virtual tour will also have complete control over the tour’s content and how it is presented, which can be a great way to get creative and put your personal touch. 

You can even do it for free if you are willing to learn the basics of creating a virtual tour. Additionally, if you create a live stream version, you can interact with attendees in real-time, creating a more personal experience.

How much it costs to make a virtual tour

The cost of making a virtual tour will depend on how complex and detailed you want the tour to be. If you are willing to learn how to do it yourself, the cost can be as low as free. 

However, if you hire a professional company to create the tour, the cost can range from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. Whether you choose to hire someone or DIY, it’s worth the investment as you will increase your business’s online visibility and might even improve your search engine ranking.

What is the best virtual tour software?

There is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question, as the best software for your needs will depend on many factors, including the type you want to create, your budget, and your level of technical expertise.

 Some popular free or low-cost software options include:

• Screenflow A powerful screen recording and video editing software that is popular among YouTubers and podcasters
• Filmora   A popular program that has a free basic version and an advanced version for an affordable annual fee
• Windows Movie Maker A basic video editing software that comes pre-installed on all new Windows computers
• iMovie   A basic video editing software that comes pre-installed on all new Mac computers There are many software options for editing or adding subtitles, both free and paid. 
• Aegisub   A cross-platform, open-source, and free subtitle editor popular among fansubbers. 
• Subtitle Edit Free, open-source software for editing and creating subtitles with support for over 200 formats
• Subtitle Workshop A free subtitle editor with many features 
• Jubler   A free cross-platform editor 

You can also use Instagram or TikTok to add subtitles to social media videos.

How to film virtual tours

It’s time to start planning. Decide what you want to include and map out the route you’ll take. Before you begin filming, it’s helpful to script out what you’ll say. 

To get started, you’ll need a decent phone or a camera and a tripod (or better yet, a two or three-axis gimbal stabilizer) that can hold your device steady.

Plan your locations

You’ll need to decide what’s important to highlight and how best to show it. Keep in mind that you’ll be walking around with your device, so you’ll need to be strategic about where you place your tripod. 

You might also consider using a selfie stick to get different angles. Once you’ve planned your locations, it’s time to create a storyboard to help you plan the shots you need and the order you’ll capture them. 

Create a storyboard

A storyboard is simply a list of the shots you need to film and a brief description of each one. For each shot, you’ll need to decide on framing (wide, medium, or close-up), the angle you’ll film from and how long you want your video to be. 

Before you start filming, you’ll also need to write a script. This will help you plan what you’ll say throughout your video.

Remember to keep your script short and to the point to avoid boring viewers with too much information. Once you have a script you’re happy with, it’s time to start filming your video. Begin by setting up your tripod.

Set up your tripod

A tripod is an essential piece of equipment for making videos. It will help keep your camera steady, allowing you to get smooth, professional-looking footage. First, to set up your tripod, find a level spot to put it on. 

Then extend the legs and tighten the knobs. Next, attach your phone or camera to the tripod. Most tripods have a standard ¼-20 screw mount, so you’ll need to screw your camera into the mount.

Once your camera is attached, take a look at the viewfinder or LCD screen and make sure the shot is framed how you want it to be. 

If it’s not, you can adjust the tripod legs until it is. Finally, make sure your tripod is stable. The last thing you want is your camera to fall over and break. Now it’s time to start shooting your video.

Starting filming 360 videos

To create a 360 video, you’ll need a 360 camera. These special cameras capture a spherical image, giving the viewer the feeling of being surrounded by the scene.

When filming your 360 video, start placing the camera on a level surface and press record. The camera will do the rest.

There are a few things to keep in mind when shooting 360 videos:

• First, because the camera is capturing a sphere of video, you’ll want to make sure there is plenty of room for the camera to capture the scene
• Second, because the viewer will be able to look around the entire scene, you’ll want to make sure that the video is interesting from all angles
• And finally, because 360 video is a relatively new technology, not all devices can play it back

Make sure to check that your target audience will be able to view your video before you shoot it. Remember to enunciate your words and to speak slowly and clearly.

Don’t worry if you make a mistake; you can always start over. Just press the stop button and then the record button again. Once you’ve finished recording, you can review your footage to make sure you captured the type of shot you wanted.

Upload clips 

Once you’ve recorded your 360 video clips, you’ll need to transfer the footage to a computer for editing. The easiest way to do this is to connect the camera to your computer using a USB cable or insert a memory card into a card reader.

Then, with your video editing software, you’ll want to start by importing the video footage and dragging it into your timeline.

You can then edit the video like you would any other video footage. Remember to keep an eye on the edges of the frame, as people will be able to see everything in the scene. 

Add hotspots, narration, and labels

After you’ve organized the video footage on your timeline, you’ll want captions, hotspots, graphics, and narration. Hotspots are markers that you can place on your video. When someone watches your video, they can click on the hotspot and be taken to another video, website, or even a different part of the same video.

Video markers are a great way to add additional information or context. Narration is the process of adding a voiceover which is very helpful for providing more context of information to your audience. Captions are text that you can be overlayed in your video to add names, locations and other pieces of helpful information for the viewer.

Publish video

Once you’re happy with your video, you can publish it by uploading it to a video-sharing site like YouTube or Vimeo, embed it on your website, or anywhere else you want to share it. You can also choose to keep it private and only share it with certain people.

Copy link to share or embed

After publishing your video, share by copying the link and sending it to your audience or by embedding it onto your website or blog.

How much to charge for a virtual tour

The price of a virtual tour will most likely cover a household; not being a “per person” price may require you to be creative when determining your pricing.

A good way to determine how much you may want to charge is to compare your work to the experiences provided on Amazon Explore.

Virtual tour prices can vary greatly, from $5 to $99, depending on the total time, the degree of intricacy of the experience, and the interaction between audience and guide.

Some of the more expensive options involve shipping equipment to guests ahead of time. Depending on the nature of the experience you want to convey, you may also consider providing your digital event for free, especially if you are only looking at having a virtual experience as a promotional vehicle.

In conclusion

If done right and with a little practice, DIY digital tours are a great way to increase revenue and an effective way to build awareness for your brand.

Live streaming your tours can also be an exciting way to share your experiences while on the journey and make your followers feel like they are part of the trip.

They will likely become even more popular in the coming years, especially for destinations and experiences that customers may find difficult to endure or complicated to reach during one journey. Such online immersive experiences are a great way for tour operators to turn clients into lifelong followers. 

Note: This article was written by Places, AI writing support for Tour Operators. If you are looking for additional support for writing content in your tour business, connect with them at Places .

Looking for more helpful tips that make it easier to run your tour business?

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National Museum of Natural History Virtual Tours

Access the tours.

The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History virtual tours allow visitors to take self-guided, room-by-room tours of select exhibits and areas within the museum from their desktop or mobile device. Visitors can also access select collections and research areas at our satellite support and research stations as well as past exhibits no longer on display.

Virtual Tour Tips

• To navigate between adjoining rooms in the tours, click on the blue arrow links on the floor or use the navigation map in the upper right of the presentation screen.
• Look for the camera icon which gives you a close-up view of a particular object or exhibit panel.
• Try zooming in as some of the images are stitched together from individual pictures in order to create very high resolution gigapixel images.

Please note: This tour and these presentations have been tested and should work on all common devices, browsers, and operating systems (using a desktop computer with Windows, Mac, Linux or a mobile device such as an iPhone, iPad, or Android). Functionality and appearance may vary as it will adjust automatically to accommodate the most visitors. While the virtual tour has no advertising, ad blocking software or browser settings that block JavaScript and/or XML may interfere with the functionality of the virtual tour. Please let us know what you think of the tour and how the experience can be improved. Send your feedback to the NMNH Web Team .

Site Credit: Imagery and coding by Loren Ybarrondo

Equipment Used: Professional Nikon digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) camera bodies and lenses. The photography is typically done using rectilinear lenses with minimized distortion and shooting equirectangular panoramas at 22K pixels on the long side.

Software Used: No authoring software is used. The tours are hand-coded in HTML5 and JavaScript using the krpano graphics library.

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Try Before You Fly: How To Experience Each State's Best Attraction Virtually

Posted: July 28, 2023 | Last updated: July 28, 2023

Virtual things to do in America

Alabama: learn something new at Birmingham Zoo

An excellent resource for kids of all ages, but also a fun and educational activity to fill the time with, the Virtual Zoo by Birmingham Zoo offers a selection of videos that take viewers behind the scenes. From a day in the life of a veterinarian to red panda training and sheep weigh-in, the videos offer a chance to learn plenty of fun facts about these animals. All videos are also accompanied by activities and curriculum standards for relevant grade levels. The zoo is a current member of the Association of Zoos & Aquariums ensuring it meets rigorous standards of care and conservation too. 

Alaska: embark on a glacier tour in Kenai Fjords National Park

If you've always dreamed of exploring this remote part of the USA, this is your chance to do it from the comfort of your sofa. Rappel into a crevasse, kayak through icebergs and watch a glacier recede as you get up close and personal with the Kenai Fjords National Park, thanks to a virtual tour created by Google and the National Parks Service.

See more of Alaska's beautiful sights here

Arizona: walk through the Grand Canyon

Undoubtedly, the state's grandest attraction, the Grand Canyon might be out of reach for many, but the National Park Service has teamed up with Virtual Field Trips to allow virtual travelers to explore this remarkable natural wonder. Choose between an unguided exploration and discover unique locations along the Colorado River or learn more about the layers of the canyon.

Check out these stunning images of the world's most incredible canyons

Arkansas: immerse yourself in art at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art

Connecting with art is one thing, but fully stepping into artwork is the stuff of dreams. Or rather, virtual reality. Here at the art museum in Bentonville, you can take a  360-degree view  of each world-class piece, by winding through galleries and soaring over the rooftops. From stunning architecture nestled in 120 acres of Ozark woods to the light spectacles in the Yayoi Kusama's Infinity Mirrored Room, it's sure to inspire you to visit in person.

California: scale El Capitan

California's Yosemite National Park and one of its most famous landmarks, El Capitan, is an incredibly enticing destination, especially for mountain climbers. And now you can scale the impressive mountain all the way to the top too. Join three professionals on an exhilarating virtual journey  to one of the world's most famous summits. 

Colorado: trek the Rocky Mountains National Park

Escape your living room and take in a deep breath of fresh mountain air as you go on a digital trek through the Rocky Mountains. Along your hike, you'll visit top sites such as Milner Pass and Chasm Lake, as well as several scenic overlooks. You'll also be able to walk around each stop along the way and discover the area by yourself. 

Connecticut: look inside Mystic Seaport Museum

If you're into maritime history, you'll find Mystic Seaport Museum's YouTube channel an absolute delight. The videos range from boat building demonstrations to knot tying and learning to read the night sky. However, it's the behind-the-scenes tours you won't want to miss. These videos take visitors inside the museum's non-public areas, including the Watercraft Hall that holds all sorts of maritime-themed artifacts. 

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Delaware: walk through a du Pont mansion with a curator

Located within the former home of Henry Francis du Pont, the Winterthur Museum, Garden and Library is a treasure trove of antiques and artifacts relating to the history and cultural heritage of the United States. Although the museum has reopened, thanks to its dedicated curators you can take a peek inside from the comfort of your sofa. In a series of four-minute Facebook videos , the curators take virtual visitors through the museum and discuss the history of each room and its contents.

Florida: go diving in Dry Tortugas National Park

Imagine yourself on a tropical vacation as you go on a virtual dive through a shipwreck in Dry Tortugas and swim in the third-largest barrier reef in the world. As 99% of the Dry Tortugas National Park is underwater, you'll spend a significant amount of time exploring the seas, but once you're ready to head back on land, you can tour the Civil War-era fortress, Fort Jefferson.

Discover spectacular American castles you never knew existed

Georgia: visit the Georgia Aquarium

A fun and educational activity for the whole family while at home, observing these cute animals in the Georgia Aquarium never gets old. Take your pick from playful California sea lions, funny African penguins or scary piranhas. Don't miss a chance to scroll through the aquarium's animal album and learn more about the creatures too. Georgia Aquarium is a current member of the  Association of Zoos & Aquariums  so you can be sure the animals receive the highest standards of care. 

Hawaii: explore Volcanoes National Park

Another remote US destination, Hawaii and its nature are full of wonder. Get a closer look at the unspoiled beauty of this state as you fly over an active volcano, explore a lava tube and look out across volcanic cliffs in Hawaii's Volcanoes National Park – a once-in-a-lifetime experience even when enjoyed virtually .

See the world's beautiful and terrifying volcanoes caught on camera

Idaho: go on a wild adventure

There's plenty to love about Idaho's natural attractions and Visit Idaho has put together a handy playlist of some of the experiences you can enjoy in the Gem State. There's everything from rafting the Payette River to base jumping, kayaking to Shoshone Falls and even zip-lining through the Snake River Canyon to bring a bit of excitement and adrenalin into your living room.

Illinois: visit The Art Institute of Chicago

One of the oldest and largest art museums in the USA, The Art Institute of Chicago is a treasure trove of incredible exhibits and some of the most significant artworks in the world. Start by exploring the collection virtually , from the iconic American Gothic to Monet's Water Lilies and works by Dalí, Cézanne and Warhol. Then take a video and audio tour of the El Greco special exhibition and browse through a catalog of videos, offering a glimpse into the museum's history.

Indiana: imagine a weekend break at the French Lick Resort

Fancy a spa weekend away? Why not tune into French Lick Resort's virtual tours and imagine you've been whisked away to the West Baden Springs Hotel for the weekend. Start by arriving through the atrium and check-in at the lobby, take a peek inside the library and finally relax at the indoor pool – all are best viewed in full-screen mode. One of America's most historic hotels, once named the eighth wonder of the world, its interiors are chock-full of charming historical detail. 

See more of America's most historic hotels here

Iowa: tour the Museum of Danish America

With several historic Danish settlements in the state, it's little surprise that one of those villages, Elk Horn, is home to the Museum of Danish America. Now open on Tuesday–Saturday, it also offers one of the best and most comprehensive virtual tours in all of America. From the first Danish settlers in the US to LEGO and new Nordic cuisine, it might not be a museum you'd ordinarily visit, but this is a great chance to discover something new.

Kansas: take in beautiful blooms at Botanica

Missing colorful flowers while at home? Worry not as Botanica, The Wichita Gardens and their brilliant employees are determined to bring the blooms to you. Executive Director Marty Miller has filmed a range of videos , showing off the beautiful blooming cherry trees, a walk through the tulips and stunning yellow magnolias among others. There are also video tours of the different parts of the garden as well as a live feed. 

Kentucky: enjoy a visit to Kentucky Derby Museum

Among Kentucky's most famous exports, the Kentucky Derby is one of the most historic horse races in the world and its story is well-documented at the Kentucky Derby Museum. You can now browse through the museum's collection online , alongside videos and expert commentary – a true delight for horse racing fans around the world. 

Louisiana: vacation in New Orleans

While you might have had to cancel that long-awaited trip to New Orleans, there's still a way to  enjoy the Big Easy virtually . Tour some of the city's most famous sites, including the French Market and lively Bourbon Street. There's also a separate tour that's ideal for kids and an exploration of the city's connection with voodoo.

Maine: visit Acadia National Park's most picturesque spots

Start your digital hike of Maine's picturesque Acadia National Park at the top of Precipe Trailhead. You'll then be able to virtually walk around some of the park's most beautiful sections, including Thunder Hole, where waves crash against the rocks with a thunderous boom, and the towering Cadillac Mountain. Finally, head on a calming seaside trek along the wild Ocean Path Trailhead.

Maryland: befriend sea creatures at the National Aquarium

One of Maryland's most popular attractions, it continues to delight people online with its virtual tour . With eight areas to explore, from shark alley to Pacific coral reef, learn more about the individual animals and see their natural habitats recreated. Once you've walked through the aquarium itself, don't miss the live exhibit cams, featuring sharks, colorful reef fish, graceful rays and mysterious jellyfish. The National Aquarium is a current member of the  Association of Zoos & Aquariums  so you can be sure the animals receive the highest standards of care. 

Massachusetts: tour the collection of Museum of Fine Arts

With more than 450,000 works in its collection, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston is one of America's most comprehensive art museums. Thanks to Google Arts & Culture, it's now possible to tour this incredible museum from your living room. You can start by diving deep into the museums digitized collection before virtually heading inside the museum itself . 

Michigan: learn more about the state's history

You can now explore five floors of the Michigan History Museum and learn more about the state's history, from its first people, the Anishinaabe, up to the mid-20th century. The immersive  virtual tour  covers the whole museum and features topics like the Civil War, mining in Michigan and the growth of the car industry in the state. 

Minnesota: tour a historic stately home

Set (virtual) foot inside the stunning Glensheen Historic Estate in Duluth where you can follow the arrows and take a peek inside the luxuriously decorated rooms. To enhance your virtual experience , you can either download the Glensheen app or print out a virtual treasure book to learn more about every room in the historic house as well as its most notable details. 

Take another virtual tour of the world's most enchanting stately homes

Mississippi: go on a virtual river cruise

If you've never been on a river cruise or had planned one for this summer, you can still enjoy a trip virtually thanks to American Cruise Lines. Take in the scenery from the sun deck, stop for a drink in the sky lounge and lay your head to rest in one of the suites. An excellent idea for date nights at the moment, it's easy to imagine you're navigating the Mississippi River rather than sitting on your sofa.

Missouri: tour Kansas City's fountains

Did you know that Kansas City is also known as The City of Fountains? With more than 200 fountains, the city definitely isn't short on watery landmarks. This virtual tour features seven of those, including the grand Henry Wollman Bloch Fountain, designed by the same people who created the iconic Bellagio fountains in Las Vegas, and the playful Children's Fountain. 

Montana: escape to the Glacier National Park

If you're in a desperate need of an escape, there's nowhere better to go (virtually) than Montana's remote Glacier National Park. Thanks to Google Earth , you can imagine yourself kayaking on the stunning Lake McDonald, hiking among towering red cedars and seeing the hard-to-access Bird Woman Falls.

Discover more pictures of America's most stunning lakes

Nebraska: explore the Nebraska State Capitol and Governor's Residence

With two incredible virtual tours on offer of two historic landmarks in the state capital Lincoln, there's plenty to discover. Start with a comprehensive tour of the Capitol building with information boxes presented along the way, then step inside the Governor's Residence and be amazed by its exquisite interiors.

Why not test your gray matter with our fun quiz about American landmarks too?

Nevada: walk through Las Vegas and beyond

Have you always dreamed of visiting Sin City? You don't have to put your travel plans on hold because thanks to Google Earth you can visit this one-of-a-kind destination and surrounding areas virtually. Start by ticking off some of the most famous sights along the Strip, but there's also plenty to see for non-gamblers too as well as family-friendly attractions. Finally, leave the city behind and head to the Red Rock Canyonlands.

Learn all about the history of Sin City told through vintage images

New Hampshire: learn at the Children's Museum of New Hampshire

Stuck for fun things to do with the kids? Embark on a virtual tour of the Children's Museum of New Hampshire and make the most of this resource to support at-home learning. With lots of different topics covered in the museum, from dinosaurs to puzzles, there are also plenty of resources for online learning so staying at home is not only fun but also educational.

New Jersey: join a virtual zoo school

Thanks to the efforts of Cape May County Zoo and its keepers you can learn about a different animal every day at the  virtual zoo school . So far the zoo has featured owls, American bison, cheetahs and African lions among others. The daily videos are posted on its website and on the zoo's Facebook page. As with all the zoos and aquariums featured in our gallery, Cape May County Zoo is a current member of the  Association of Zoos & Aquariums  too.  

New Mexico: tour the Carlsbad Caverns

If tight and dark places are not for you in real life, why not explore them virtually? This tour of Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico gives a glimpse inside the caverns and the incredible formations that cover their ceilings and walls. Then, don a virtual headlamp and trek through a cave after virtually flying with thousands of bats that live here.

New York: go inside the American Museum of Natural History

Not only an exciting but educational activity, this virtual tour of one of the world's top scientific and educational institutions is truly eye-opening. Journey through 45 permanent exhibition halls as you come face to face with a blue whale, marvel at the size of a T-Rex and take a peek at the cross-section of a giant sequoia. There's also a digital version of the museum's collection and three fascinating online exhibits – the one on the museum's dioramas (miniature models) is unmissable.

North Carolina: explore Wilmington and beyond

If a seaside escape is long overdue, head to Wilmington in North Carolina virtually . This immersive 360°-experience offers a bird's eye-view of the city and has several videos touring the city's most notable attractions, including the battleship North Carolina and the Historic Downtown. When you've explored the city, virtually fly over to the Carolina Beach boardwalk or Kure Beach and imagine the sand between your toes.

North Dakota: escape to the Great Plains in Jamestown

Home to the world's largest buffalo monument, Jamestown has plenty of exciting attractions to discover. There's the National Buffalo Museum, of course, and the Frontier Village, capturing what life would've been like for early settlers. Both the 1883 Historic Stutsman Courtroom and Courthouse are fascinating too. If you have a VR headset, you can view this tour in 3D.

Ohio: walk through the history of the US Air Force

This incredibly well-designed virtual tour allows visitors to step through the doors of the National Museum of the United States Air Force and tour the entire museum. There are easy-to-follow arrows to point you in the right direction to the exhibits, from planes used in the Korean War to a decommissioned Air Force One, as well as 'hot spots', where you can watch additional videos and find links to more online resources.

Oklahoma: go inside the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum

Although the museum has reopened, you can still browse through its impressive collection online thanks to Google Arts & Culture. Read through the virtual exhibits first – we particularly love the exhibit about artist Charles M. Russell and the American Rodeo Gallery – then head inside the museum and walk around for yourself. 

Oregon: tour the Oregon State Capitol

Another breathtaking capitol building, the Oregon state Capitol is grand and unrestrained in its décor. Start your exploration at the rotunda where you'll be able to hear more about the State Seal. The accompanying audio guide will lead you to the House and Senate chambers, explaining the work that is done here. Both chambers feature videos of the legislative process in action. 

Pennsylvania: discover the historic sites of the Battle of Gettysburg

One of America's most important historical landmarks, Gettysburg is littered with notable Civil War sites. Thanks to this virtual tour you can follow in the footsteps of Civil War-era soldiers and learn more about such historic places as Culp's Hill, Devil's Den and Little Round Top – the site of an unsuccessful assault by the Confederate troops on the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg. There are information boxes to guide you along the way too. 

Rhode Island: tour the historic mansions of Newport

This seaside city located in Narragansett Bay has a reputation as one of the top New England summer resorts and is famous for its wealth of historic mansions and rich sailing history. Head over to the Newport Mansions website – a preservation society dedicated to protecting the area's architectural history – and you'll find several virtual tours of some of the most luxurious mansions in the area. The ostentatious décor of The Elms is our favorite.

South Carolina: peek inside the Governor's Mansion

The South Carolina Governor's Mansion dates from the 1850s and this exquisite property, the residence of the Palmetto State's First Family since 1869, is packed with treasures including paintings and silverware.  Step inside and virtually walk through the house at your own pace, making sure to pay great attention to the historic detail throughout. 

South Dakota: tour the Mount Rushmore National Memorial

If you've never had a chance to visit South Dakota and Mount Rushmore, this is the perfect opportunity to explore its pathways, lookouts and, of course, the famous stone carvings themselves. This virtual experience allows you to get an extreme close up of the four presidents – George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt and Thomas Jefferson. Their portraits, carved into the Black Hills, are equally as majestic online as they are in real life.

Here are more historic images of America's tourist attractions

Tennessee: visit Nashville

A virtual visit to the Music City comes highly recommended as, thanks to Google Earth , you can now explore this fun city in great detail straight from your living room. Start in Downtown and take in sites like the Tennessee State Capitol and the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, where you even get to go inside. Then explore Nashville's connection to honky-tonk music and virtually walk through Midtown and Southern Nashville, where you'll find a full-scale replica of Greece's Athenian Parthenon.

Texas: see a digital exhibition at Space Center Houston

One of America's best space museums has put together an incredible virtual exhibition on Apollo 13, including videos, historic images and stories from the crew. Learn more about what went wrong on this mission that was later called a "successful failure", discover what the journey home was like for the astronauts and get a closer look at one of the artifacts from Apollo 13. 

Check out these space experiences you don't have to leave Earth for

Utah: explore the night sky in Bryce Canyon

Embark on an exhilarating virtual journey  that spans day and night in Bryce Canyon and you'll discover a lot more than just its stunning red rock formations. While this stone jungle and its hoodoos are fascinating up close and a virtual horseback ride through the canyon comes highly recommended, it's the night sky here that will totally surprise you – you can even see the Milky Way.

Vermont: walk through the Vermont State House

This virtual tour of Vermont State House allows you to explore all of the building's principal chambers. Built in 1833, the State House is the state capitol of Vermont and thanks to a careful restoration project in the early 1980s its stunning Greek Revival exterior and opulent interiors are simply jaw-dropping. 

Virginia: tour George Washington's home at Mount Vernon

The estate owned by the first President of the United States George Washington is now a comprehensive museum, looking at Washington's life and times and also offering a peek at how people lived in the second half of 1700s. This detailed virtual tour takes visitors through the buildings on the estate and allows you to discover the interiors too. Each room has an accompanying fact box and there are several videos to guide you along the way.

Washington: take in the calming scenery at Olympic National Park

A delightful escape to the great outdoors , Washington state's Olympic National Park is full of wonderful scenery to make you forget you're at home. You'll get to take in calming views of Rialto Beach, dotted with rocks and driftwood as well as discover the trails of Hoh Rain Forest and finish your virtual hike with a stop at Marymere Falls.

West Virginia: discover how hand-blown glass is made

Famous for its artistic hand-blown glass, Blenko Glass came to prominence when its work was used for the stained-glass windows of St Patrick's Cathedral in New York City. And although the factory's visitor center in West Virginia has reopened, there's a comprehensive video resource , explaining how the glass is designed and made, and then shaped into a variety of objects. 

Wisconsin: visit the Wisconsin State Capitol

Another stunning state capitol, it would be a shame not to take advantage of this building's virtual tour . Focused on the impressive rotunda, there are plenty of interesting facts to learn along the way about the central mural and other artistic details of this impressive structure in the lakeside city of Madison.

Here are more waterfront cities with beautiful views too

Wyoming: go on a virtual walk through the Upper Geyser Basin

One of the country's most enticing national parks, Yellowstone usually draws in plenty of visitors and it's no different now, only you'll have to walk through the Upper Geyser Basin virtually . Tour the boardwalks and learn more about the park, its wildlife and geology and then take a closer look at some of the most famous of Yellowstone's landmarks, including the Old Faithful. 

Enjoyed these virtual tours? Discover the European museums you can visit from home too

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Billie Eilish Says ‘Hit Me Hard and Soft’ Is a Return to Her Debut Album: ‘I’ve Been Grieving Her’

"This whole process has felt like I'm coming back to the girl that I was," the pop star said.

By Hannah Dailey

Hannah Dailey

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Billie Eilish is coming home to herself. In her new Rolling Stone cover story published Wednesday (April 24), the 22-year-old pop star revealed that her third album, Hit Me Hard and Soft, is a return to the darker sounds and styles she introduced on her debut LP When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?

Billie Eilish to Headline Virtual Fortnite Festival Season 3: Watch the Spooky Trailer

“This whole process has felt like I’m coming back to the girl that I was,” she continued. “I’ve been grieving her. I’ve been looking for her in everything, and it’s almost like she got drowned by the world and the media. I don’t remember when she went away.”

Released in March 2019, Eilish’s debut album spent three weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and spawned her first No. 1 single on the Billboard Hot 100 , “Bad Guy.” Later, the projects won her song, record and album of the year at the 2020 Grammys, where she also picked up best new artist.

Two years later, she followed it up with her sophomore effort, Happier Than Ever , about which she said, “I was with myself so much that I couldn’t see myself objectively anymore … And then I dyed my hair blonde and I immediately was like, ‘Oh, I have no idea who I am.’”

Now, she’s working to resurrect what she refers to as “2019 me.” Finneas, Eilish’s older brother and longtime collaborator, corroborates this. “I feel like this album has some real ghosts in it, and I say that with love,” he told the publication. “There’s ideas on this album that are five years old, and there’s a past to it, which I really like. When Billie talks about the era of When We All Fall Asleep , it was this theatricality and this darkness. What’s the thing that no one is as good at as Billie is? This album was an exploration of what we do best.”

She said from the beginning, however, that she wouldn’t be releasing any singles from the new record, something she touched on again in her new interview. “Every single time an artist I love puts out a single without the context of the album, I’m just already prone to hating on it,” she said. “I really don’t like when things are out of context. This album is like a family: I don’t want one little kid to be in the middle of the room alone.”

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April 22, 2024 - Protests at Columbia and other schools escalate

Matt Egan, Alicia Wallace and Chandelis Duster

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology says it is 'determining next steps'

From CNN's Jillian Sykes

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology issued a statement Monday regarding tents on its campus.

"MIT officials are aware of the tents, and are determining next steps with a focus on ensuring campus is physically safe and fully functioning. MIT Police were on scene throughout the night and will continue to be present."

Robert Kraft says he is willing to support The Kraft Center at the university

From CNN's Chandelis Duster

Robert Kraft, billionaire owner of the NFL’s New England Patriots and backer of Columbia University, on Monday said he is still willing to support The Kraft Center at the school that supports Jewish students, calling it “a haven of safety.”

Kraft, an alumnus of the university, told CNN’s Jake Tapper on “The Lead” that he loves the school and “we have to have accountability.”

“There are both professors and students within the university who say things that I think cross the line and there should be accountability. I believe in free speech. Say whatever you want but pay the consequences. And don't have your face covered. I don't think that should be allowed,” he said.  

“I can’t believe in New York City at Columbia University Jewish students are afraid to go to classes in the United States of America in 2024. It’s amazing to me and horrible,” Kraft also said.

Asked where he drew the line at Columbia University regarding both pro-Palestine and pro-Israel protests and what he finds objectionable, he said “there is a lack of education on the situation” happening in the Middle East. 

“I’m concerned about America and what’s going on in this country. And to keep it open and free for all people of all backgrounds to do as they wish,” he said.

Asked if he has confidence in Columbia University’s president, Minouche Shafik, he said he thinks she is “very well intentioned” and said “we have to look at what goes on with faculty.”

Columbia faculty stage walk-out in solidarity with students

From CNN's John Towfighi

Hundreds of people gathered on Low Plaza Monday afternoon as Columbia University faculty delivered speeches in support of the student protesters who were suspended and arrested Thursday.

Faculty who spoke denounced university president Minouche Shafik’s decision to authorize the New York Police Department to remove protesters from campus and demanded all legal and disciplinary charges be dismissed and expunged from students' records.

Faculty held signs that read, “Hands off our students,” and “End student suspensions now.” Some faculty donned their academic regalia and wore sashes that read, “We support students.”

Speeches were met with cheers and claps from the crowd, as well as chants for Shafik to resign.

Christopher Brown, a professor of history, said, “I’m here because I am so concerned about what is happening at this university, with where we are now and with where we are going. Thursday April 18, 2024, will be remembered as a shameful day in Columbia history.”

“The president’s decision to send riot police to pick up peaceful protesters on our campus was unprecedented, unjustified, disproportionate, divisive and dangerous,” Brown said.

US Rep. Ilhan Omar, whose daughter Isra Hirsi was among the protesters arrested Thursday , posted on X that while she’s glad to see faculty demonstrate in solidarity with students, she wants the protests to focus on Gaza.

"On Thursday, Columbia arrested and suspended its students who were peacefully protesting and have now ignited a nationwide Gaza Solidarity movement. This is more than the students hoped for and I am glad to see this type of solidarity. But to be clear, this about the genocide in Gaza and the attention has to remain on that," Omar wrote.

NYC Mayor condemns "vile" and "disgusting" rhetoric at college campuses

From CNN's Alicia Wallace

New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Monday condemned “vile” and “disgusting” rhetoric being used at campuses such as Columbia University, where students are holding protests over the Israel-Hamas War.

Adams told CNN’s Jake Tapper that he supports First Amendment rights but said law enforcement officials are on the ready if any of that speech goes too far or if there’s an imminent threat to people or property.

"That is one of the fundamental rights we hold dear as Americans: The right to protest," Adams said on CNN's "The Lead." "What we have seen playing out on many of our college campuses, and particularly Columbia University, is hate. We’re seeing vile language being used."

Adams noted that he can feel the "duality of this moment" and how the events of the past six months are weighing heavily on Jewish and Palestinian New Yorkers. He added that the police escorts of Jewish students through campus were reminiscent of the Army soldiers who escorted nine Black students into a high school in Little Rock, Arkansas, nearly 67 years ago.

"There is no place for hate in this city," he said.

New York Police Department officers have a “large presence” surrounding Columbia but have remained off the campus grounds at the request of the school’s administration, NYPD deputy commissioners said earlier on Monday.

Adams told Tapper that the NYPD’s commissioner of legal matter is monitoring the protests for any speech that violates law. Additionally, police officers will take "appropriate action" and go on private property if there’s an "imminent threat."

Protesters gather at The New School in New York City

From CNN's Elisabeth Buchwald

Protesters have gathered at The New School, located near the Chelsea area of the New York City borough of Manhattan.

An encampment of four tents was set up in the lobby of the building that houses auditoriums, a cafeteria and a library. Roughly 75 students, and other people who have The New School IDs, gathered inside the building.

"Disclose, divest, we will not stop, we will not stop, we will not rest," was repeatedly chanted. 

Outside the building, protesters from the school, as well as outsiders, joined in chants from the sidewalk.

There is a stark difference between the inside and outside of Columbia University's campus

From CNN's Ramishah Maruf

There’s a stark difference between the inside of Columbia University's campus and the outside, where there are protesters gathered on the street. 

The encampment is only open to those affiliated with campus. Only those with a Columbia ID can enter the campus gates. Inside the encampment, programs include teach-ins, poetry readings and film screenings. Some students are quietly finishing assignments, while others are painting posters.

Elsewhere around campus, students are eating and completing assignments. Many students take graduation pictures at this time, and some are in graduation gowns walking down Broadway. Risers are set up for an upcoming commencement ceremony.

Other students are holding large American flags underneath Butler Library.

But the students can still hear the tension that is taking place yards away at the university gates. There is a gathering of pro-Palestinian protesters, who in the early afternoon were chanting “I believe that we will win” and “Long Live the Intifada.” There was a smaller group of pro-Israeli protesters, who chanted back “Down with Hamas” and “Victory to Israel.” A line of New York Police officers were monitoring the street.

What it's like inside the Columbia University encampment

The inside of the encampment is quiet – most of the noise comes from protestors outside the gates of Columbia University's campus, who are chanting “I believe that we will win” and “Long live the Intifada."

It was a sunny day on campus, and in one corner, students were painting posters. One person strummed a stringed instrument, and other students are reading books or on their laptops finishing assignments. Others have donated provisions, ranging from a table of snacks to hygiene products. There was also a pile of blankets.

“We’ve just been trying to keep students mobilized and keep pushing for divestment,” Dalia, a first-year student at Columbia College, told CNN. “We are a very mobilized student body and a very unified student body. Hundreds of people have been in and out of the encampment.”

CNN agreed not to publish her surname due to safety concerns.

She said the students at the campus “refuse to be complicit in the genocide, the apartheid, and the occupation of Palestine.”

There are strict community guidelines for the encampment. One rule says not to share names or details of anyone met in camp, and asking for permission before photographing or taking video.

The encampment is filled with dozens and dozens of tents, from students to neighboring Barnard College staff. Today’s encampment program included an Earth Day performance, poetry reading and a Dabka lesson, a traditional dance from the Arab region. Prior program events included dance performances from different cultures.

Democratic House members tour Columbia campus

Democratic Reps. Jared Moskowitz of Florida, Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey, Dan Goldman of New York and Kathy Manning of North Carolina, who are all Jewish, spoke at a news conference Monday after touring Columbia University’s campus. 

"We saw it firsthand as we walked past the encampments on the university's main lawn full of protesters spewing incendiary antisemitic hate and vitriol. Many aren't even Columbia students I've been told. Their campaign of intimidation is sickening and shocking and as the White House said yesterday, ‘echoes the rhetoric of Hamas terrorists,'" Gottheimer said. 

He also criticized Columbia University leadership, saying, “toothless combinations from administrators aren't going to stop the anarchy we’re seeing.”

“The only way to do it is with deeds, not words,” Gottheimer said. “Colleges have a legal obligation under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act to provide students, including Jews and Muslims, a school environment free from discrimination and harassment based on race color or national origin. Yet just feet from here, Jewish students are being verbally and even physically assaulted.”

Gottheimer continued, “To the administrators of Columbia and beyond, here are our demands: Stop the double talk and start acting now. Discipline harassers, restore civility on this campus, encourage peaceful constructive dialogue.”

He also gave a message for students: “While the leadership of Columbia may be failing you, we will not. We will do everything in our power to keep you safe and do everything in Washington we can to make sure that you feel welcome at this university or any university across the United States of America. And Columbia University, if they don't follow through, will pay the price.”

Goldman said he was "encouraged" the Columbia University president issued guidelines about additional security, calling it a "very important first step" and criticized what is happening on campus.

"That is unacceptable for a university, that is unacceptable for an academic institution. There is no question that everyone has a First Amendment right to speak out in this country and that must be preserved," Goldman said. "But a university and all universities have an obligation to maintain the safety and security of their students from all backgrounds."

Manning said university leadership should "do more to keep Jewish students safe and to re-establish an atmosphere in which all students can learn, study and participate safely in campus life."

"Columbia must also move forward with its promised efforts to teach its students and its faculty about the nature and history and dangers of antisemitism. It must ensure that Columbia professors are not encouraging and spreading antisemitism," Manning said.

"I call on the US Department of Education and the US Department of Justice to work with the White House to ensure that all universities take steps necessary to keep Jewish students and faculty safe. I also call on Congress to enact legislation to implement the steps outlined in the US national strategy to counter antisemitism, to address the scourge of antisemitism which is a threat to the foundations of our democracy," she said.

President Joe Biden condemns antisemitism on campus

From CNN's Kevin Liptak

President Joe Biden decried antisemitic protests around college campuses Monday and said his administration was working to combat anti-Jewish hatred.

"I condemn the antisemitic protests, that’s why I’ve set up a program to deal with that," Biden said when questioned about the events at Columbia University in New York.

"I also condemn those who don’t understand what’s going on with the Palestinians," he said, without expanding upon what he meant.

Biden was speaking after an Earth Day event in Prince William Forest Park in Triangle, Virginia.

When asked whether Columbia's president should resign, Biden appeared to mishear: "I didn’t know that. I'll have to find out more," he said.

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