12 virtual tours to help kids beat boredom from animals cams at Indy zoo to the Mars rover
Parents hear it all the time — in the car, at home, or stuck inside the grocery store: "I'm bored." What do you do when it's too wet or too hot to go outside and you can't drop everything and take the kids to Disney World?
There are ways to keep your children occupied this summer that don't involve binge-watching TV or video games. All you need is a working internet connection, and you can stimulate their curiosity and make the best use of that screen time.
Check out some of these virtual tours and webcams:
Animals cams
Macaques, macaws, penguins and tigers. You can keep up with the animals at the Indianapolis Zoo at its live webcam feed. Link: indianapoliszoo.com/webcams/
Want to know how the beluga whales, piranhas, and underwater puffins are getting along? Check out these live cams at the Georgia Zoo. Link: georgiaaquarium.org/webcam/beluga-whale-webcam/
The Monterey Bay Aquarium features live cameras on many aquatic animals, like jellyfish, sharks, and sea lions. Link: montereybayaquarium.org/animals/live-cams
Art Galleries
Travel online to Paris, France and take a tour of The Louvre to see famous works of art. Link: louvre.fr/en/visites-en-ligne
Tour the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC. Link: artsandculture.google.com/partner/national-gallery-of-art-washington-dc
Visit Amsterdam's Van Gogh Museum at this link: https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/van-gogh-museum
Indiana trains: From a dinosaur adventure to a murder mystery, check out these rides across Indiana
Museums
Dinosaur skeletons, fossils and more! Kids can tour the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History online. Link: naturalhistory.si.edu/visit/virtual-tour
National Parks
From mud volcanoes to mammoth hot springs, Yellowstone National Park offers virtual tours of some of its main attractions. Link: nps.gov/yell/learn/photosmultimedia/virtualtours.htm
You can "fly" over an active volcano in Hawaii and go inside the Nahuku lava tube. Link: artsandculture.withgoogle.com/en-us/national-parks-service/hawaii-volcanoes/nahuku-lava-tube-tour
Space
Take a virtual tour of the red planet as recorded by NASA's Curiosity rover. A 360 digital mode is available. Link: accessmars.withgoogle.com/
World Sites
The Great Wall of China stretches more than 3,000 miles. Take a virtual tour here: thechinaguide.com/destination/great-wall-of-china
Your children can travel back in time and view The Pyramids of Giza from the comfort of their room. Link: google.com/maps/about/behind-the-scenes/streetview/treks/pyramids-of-giza/
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: 12 virtual tours parents can use to beat summertime boredom
