There’s no doubt that we’ve all been stuck at home for weeks now, whether we like it or not. With the weather getting nicer, the feeling of wanting to hit the open road is just getting stronger. But although we are itching to take a road trip, there’s nowhere to go: no parks open, no movie theaters open, no restaurants open, no museums open, at least not most places.
Many businesses are recreating their business model to take advantage of customers that are online only now. Restaurants are retooling their menus to be more amenable to takeout only, or else they are offering meal “kits” for a DIY cooking at home experience. Fitness studios are offering Zoom classes. Wineries are shipping out home tasting packages with printed tasting notes and videos, to watch as if the recipients were attending a real tasting event.
AirBnB is no different. The company has been hit hard by the fact that everyone is staying home. To respond, AirBnB hosts are now organizing virtual experiences. These include learning to collage with an artist in Barcelona, learning magic from a magician in England, or learning to bake with a mom in San Francisco.
AirBnB is certainly not the only company offering virtual experiences, but they have a variety an the prices are reasonable. For instance, if your thing is up close and personal with animals, meet wooly sheep on a farm in New Zealand from $13 a person for an hour, or virtually visit an animal sanctuary in Sonoma from $25 per person for an hour.
If you have a skill, you can sign up to be a host of an experience.
I’m more of the type to want to sit in a comfortable lounge chair on a patio watching the sun set over the water, but that wasn’t an option in the experiences I saw. Maybe I just need a webcam for that! Then again . . . I have always wanted to learn how to cook cactus leaves. What virtual experiences would you want to do?
Vanessa Salvia is a long-time freelance writer and editor. Read her journalistic work at vanessasalvia.com, and learn more about her editing and content creation services at sagemediaandmarketing.com.