This week I’ve decided to put online travel to the test. It’s something I’ve never thought of myself doing, but lo and behold, I’ve officially graduated from backpacker to armchair traveller.

Malta’s flight ban has been extended for another month, and I need some novelty to spice up my carbon-copy days. So when I found out about virtual tours through a contact on social media, I was overwhelmed by the amount of interesting content that’s available.

I spent my entire afternoon clicking my way through some of the world’s wonders. From the Eiffel Tower to the Taj Mahal, there is so much to explore.

I made an itinerary of contrasting destinations I would visit, sat comfortably with a pair of headphones and scrolled my way around the globe. 

My first stop: The Great Wall of China. I land feet-first above the steep steps in Jinshanling on a clear day, just in time for sunset. The cursors on the interactive screen guide me through different parts of the ancient structure which is presented in 360° panoramas.

The view from the tower on Jinshanling, The Great Wall of China.

I imagine the satisfaction I would feel if I had managed the climb in real-life, shoulders burnt and knees wobbling with the effort.

I click the ‘arrow’ and I am carried on to one of the 70 towers located in this section of the wall.

I learn that The Great Wall of China is actually a series of different walls built by many emperors during different periods in China’s history: Jinshanling belongs to the Ming Dynasty, built in the 14th century. This is one of the highest points of the wall, which zigzags for 10.5 kilometres to Simatai.

Half an hour later, I’m in Australia. Onboard OceanX's marine research vessel the Alucia with natural historian David Attenborough. I dive into the Great Barrier Reef in the company of Attenborough’s soothing voice. He says we’re in one of the most biodiverse and complex ecosystems on the planet. The reef is home to 1500 species of fish, 600 coral species and 30 different whale and dolphin species; during this expedition, we see, hear, and learn all there is to it. 

I spent my entire afternoon clicking my way through some of the world’s wonders. From the Eiffel Tower to the Taj Mahal, there is so much to explore

We interact with Minke whales, look through the eyes of the mantis shrimp and learn why the clownfish and the anemone have such a special bond.

Scrolling through vibrant photographs, videos and time lapses, the interactive platform is divided into five chapters, each focussing on a different aspect of the reef: its inhabitants, its threats, research efforts aimed at saving the reef and ways we can get involved. There are hours of content to digest and ultimately the experience stresses the importance of conservation, reminding us that we’re only visitors in their world. 

At around 3.30pm, I join another 6.2K viewers in an interactive live-stream from the African wilderness. Inside the Djumi National Park, northeast of South Africa, we’re sat at the back of a jeep, transported around in the scorching heat. A herd of elephants appears to be having lunch.

I zoom in to get a closer look. We observe the confident baby elephant as it warbles away from its mother to inspect our jeep. Our guide is giggling at this unprecedented behaviour and takes a question from one of the children watching: “Can elephants jump?”

A confident baby elephant inspects a jeep in South Africa.

“Elephants are very heavy animals,” our female guide replies, “they’re not designed to jump!”

The khaki-green jeep’s wheels crunch against the dirt road as we make our way through the bushes.

The tour is very interactive, and we’re asked to keep an eye out for leopards, lions, cheetah, hippos… We come across one of the most inquisitive animals in the wild: the giraffe. With its long neck towering over bushes, it leans in to pick at leaves with its tongue. 

At the end of the safari, I’m back in Europe, and my final stop is the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. Large crowds have always discouraged me from visiting museums, so I decided to find out what I was missing.

Vincent Van Gogh is actually one of my favourite painters. I’ve always been drawn towards his fluid style, his work appearing as if in motion. I click my way through the museum exploring the various phases of the artist's life. 

From his days in Paris to Antwerp, the difference in mood is evident in the different areas within the museum. My curser falls on his famous sunflower painting, which was completed in the late 19th century during his time in Arles. This piece was considered innovative because all he used was a single colour, three shades of yellow.  Clicking around does get a bit tedious, so I checked myself out of the museum. But before logging off, I was compelled to visit somewhere closer to home. And with a leisurely scroll in our historic cave museum, Għar Dalam, my virtual odyssey came to an end. 

David Attenborough’s interactive reef platform is best experienced on a tablet or desktop computer.

It wasn’t quite like the Jules Verne classic Around the World in 80 Days but if we consider travel as an escape to a world beyond our own, my virtual exploration was enough to accomplish just that. It’s comforting to let the mind wander beyond this mundane routine and compulsive handwashing, and learn something new; to envision being elsewhere when travel can only dwell in our collective past and not present memories.

Thanks to modern technology, I learned more about The Great Wall of China, joined a wildlife safari in South Africa, dived into the Great Barrier Reef and toured the Van Gogh Museum from my living room, in a single afternoon.

Note: You can discover any virtual tour online by searching: <name of landmark> + virtual tour. 

Van Gogh’s still-life portrait uses only three shades of yellow (Arles, 1888-1889).