With the United States government’s releasing of guidelines for the return to normalcy into three phases, it does not seem likely that travel, as it has been known, will return anytime soon. With the summer months approaching, months that are traditionally the time for vacations, perhaps families can take virtual trips as a diversion from their separation from society and the monotony of day-to-day living. Here are some suggestions for virtual family trips:

Hershey, Pennsylvania

The home of America’s first mass-produced milk chocolate bar (Nestlé produced the first milk-chocolate bar 25 years before Hershey’s) offers a virtual visit. There are several virtual trips, a few of which are virtual rides on any or all 15 calm to wild roller coaster rides, including the new and thrilling Candymonium.

WildEarth Kids Sessions

Students at home with their parents can take a virtual action tour if they join safariLIVE. They can virtually visit some of the famed wildlife areas, interact with experts, and drive through the African wilderness if they enter. There are virtual tours seen from the back of a jeep of famed wildlife areas through the wilderness where they will see elephants, gazelles, lions, and tigers.

Australia

Families can experience unique events with iconic personalities of the country acting as hosts. There is a fantastic tour of the Great Barrier Reef and sightings of Great White sharks. Students can visit the Outback with its unusual animals and the Sydney Opera House. A virtual ride on a ferry is also fun. The beautiful South Bank Parklands has gardens and a rainforest walk.

France

This beautiful country has a wide variety of places to visit. Paris is an excellent start for a virtual visit to the top of the Eiffel Tower for a panoramic view of the City of Lights. There are virtual tours of the Louvre art museum and the Chateau (castle) Versailles, where the Kings Louis XIV, XV, and XVI resided. The ornate mirrored hall is the site of the Treaty of Versailles after World War II. A virtual tour takes students to the second-highest mountain in Europe, Mont Blanc, and other famous French destinations such as Provence and its fields of flowers from which French perfume is made.

London, England

The virtual tour can move across the English Channel to London, where visitors can see the historic structures (Buckingham Palace, Westminster Bridge on the Thames). The trips to the English countryside are beautiful. Some activities include the Rosewood Explorer club that provides tips on how to build an indoor fort.