Are virtual tours as good as the real thing?

‘Armchair’ tours to places like the Vatican and the Louvre with licensed guides are both educational and inspiring, writes Charu Suri

(Charu Suri)

While most of the tourism industry has ground to a halt in light of the Covid-19 pandemic, some companies have found a silver lining with virtual tours.

Sean Finelli, co-founder and chief executive of The Tour Guy, which has offices in the United Kingdom, launched the company’s first virtual tour about a week ago.

“We didn’t even advertise, and the day after we launched it, we had several bookings,” he said, adding that the inexpensive nature of the tours attracted customers. Most cost €15 (£13.14) for an hour-long tour, and there are 11 options currently, including the exploring the Colosseum, “visiting” the Vatican and Sistine Chapel, learning about the Catacombs in Paris, the Uffizi in Florence and the Louvre in Paris.