By Katheryn Rivas

One of the wonders of the Internet is that it can bring the world to you instead of your needing to find the time and money to explore the traditional way. The following virtual tours bring opportunities to explore cities, famous landmarks and buildings, museums, college campuses, and even outer space. You can learn how things are made, explore the human body or that of a life-sized whale, and visit ball parks and theme parks. There is even a section of incredible virtual tours that Google Earth has compiled that shares the world in a whole new way.

Cities

From historic cities hundreds of years old to newer cities, these tours take you all around the world.

Pompeii, Italy. Explore the ruins of this famous Italian city.

Ancient Rome in 3D on Google Earth. Find out here how you can take a look at ancient Rome.

Virtual Tour of the Forbidden City. Download the software that will allow you to take a 3D tour of the imperial palace in China in the 15th century.

Historic Centre of Prague. Use Google Maps to take a 360-degree panoramic tour of the historic center of Prague.

Historic Centre of San Gimignano. Go to Italy and explore this city that was once an important connection for travelers making a pilgrimage to Rome.

Historic Centre of Siena. Explore this ancient Italian city that still embodies the spirit of a medieval city.

Historic Centre of Urbino. Once a huge draw for artists of the 15th and 16th centuries, this city in Italy still retains the Renaissance feel it had then.

Historic Centre of Cesky Krumlov. Visit this town in the Czech Republic for an example of a medieval town of central Europe.

Historic City of Toledo. This Spanish city was once home to citizens of three major religions and reflects that culture today.

Historic Walled Town of Cuenca. Take a look at this outstanding example of a fortified city from the medieval times.

Old City of Salamanca. Explore one of the oldest universities in Europe when you take this tour.

Old Town of Avila with its Extra-Muros Churches. View the amazing stone fortifications and the Gothic cathedral in this Spanish town.

Old Town of Caceres. The architecture here reflects the battles between the Christians and the Moors that took place here.

Old Town of Segovia and its Aquaduct. Featuring a well-preserved Roman aquaduct built around AD 50, this city offers plenty of amazing sites.

Santiago de Compostela (Old Town). Take a look at these ancient buildings of the city that were built in the 11th century.

Ephesus. Tour this ancient Turkish town that reflects ancient Roman times.

Colonial Williamsburg. Get a street overview of colonial Williamsburg, then click on certain features to learn more about each of them.

Oslo. Go to Oslo where you can explore the Nobel Peace Center, the Viking Ship Museum, and several landmarks of the city.

Berlin. Visit some of the magnificent churches in Berlin, but don't forget to see the Berlin Wall, too.

Tour San Francisco. This site provides a combination of photos and 360-degree panoramas of the major highlights throughout the city.



Famous Landmarks and Buildings

Take these tours to visit the Taj Mahal and the Palace of Versailles in the same day.

Explore the Taj Mahal. Take a virtual look around the grounds and inside the Taj Mahal.

Stonehenge. Google Maps presents this virtual tour of Stonehenge.

Holy Trinity Column in Olomouc. Visit this stunning monument in the Czech Republic.

Mill Network at Kinderdijk-Elshout. The famous windmills of the Netherlands are just one element in the entire network of water handling–all of which can be seen here.

Paris, Banks of the Seine. No need to travel to Paris to see the romantic banks of the Seine that cut through the city. Take this virtual tour instead.

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Explore the grounds of this famous site just outside of London.

New 7Wonders. This site is taking votes right now to determine the new seven wonders of the world. They have many virtual tours posted in order to help voters decide. Examples include Machu Picchu, Easter Island, the Statue of Liberty, and the pyramids of Giza.

Mount St. Helens. Get a 360-degree view of this famous volcano, including a comparison of 2003 and 2006.

Supreme Court Tour. Select a room, including select justices' chambers, and get a 360 view of each.

US Capitol Virtual Tour. Tour the United States Capitol building here to learn about homeland security and legal studies.

The Little Mermaid. Go to Copenhagen and see the famous statue sculpted by Edvard Erichsen that commemorates the story written by Hans Christian Andersen.

Vatican. Take a tour of the grounds and the cathedral at the Vatican, which can broaden your knowledge of Christian studies.

Pisa. Look from the top as well as take a peek inside this famous leaning tower.

Palace of Versailles Go to France with Google Maps to take a tour of this famous French palace.

Mount Vernon Virtual Mansion Tour. View the estates and gardens of George Washington on this tour.



Museums

Take a peek inside these museums to learn about history, read ancient books, or view some of the most revered works of art available.

College Campuses

Whether you are looking for a future school or just appreciate the beauty of the grounds surrounding institutes of higher learning, take these tours to do both. You can also take a closer look at online schools in your state on our website.

Outer Space

These virtual tours offer a glimpse at a world far beyond the everyday existence.

Touring Mars with Google Earth. See what it's like on Mars with this virtual tour.

Arounder Moon. Take a virtual tour of the Earth's moon here.

A Virtual Journey into the Universe. Click through the planets in the solar system to learn about each. Note that this tour is a bit dated and still considers Pluto a planet.



How Things are Made

Learn how cars, chocolate, guitars, and more are made with these tours.

Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Kentucky. Take a virtual tour of this automobile plant to see how these cars come into being.

Discover Hershey: Making Chocolate. This video tour takes you virtually through the chocolate-making process at one of the most famous chocolatiers in America.

How People Make Things. From Mister Roger's Neighborhood, these six videos take you into the factories where these items are made, including crayons, fortune cookies, and guitars.

Ocean Spray's Live Bog Cam. While not technically a tour, this link takes you to a live camera showing an actual cranberry bog.



Humans and Animals

Find out about cardiovascular disease or take a look at the body of a life-sized whale here.

Vital Signs: Understanding Cardiovascular Disease. Take part in this virtual exhibit courtesy of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute that explores cardiovascular disease.

Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society Virtual Whale. Examine a life-sized whale on this virtual tour under the sea.



Ball Parks

Visit a few of the baseball fields where some of the top teams play.

Wrigley Field. Tour the new Wrigley Field in Chicago.

Great American Ball Park. Go to Cincinnati to see where the Reds play their games.

Target Field. This ball park is soon to open. Get a sneak preview here.

Progressive Field. Get 12 different 360-degree views of several aspects of the home of the Cleveland Indians.

Nationals Park. Check out this field that opened in 2008.



Theme Parks

Explore Disney World, Disney parks in other locations, Legoland, and more with these theme park tours.

Google Earth Virtual Tours

Google Earth has an outstanding collection of virtual tours that are not to be missed. Take a look at this list for a sampling of what's available.