Son Doong is in the top 10 most beautiful virtual tours in the world
The Guardian Newspaper introduces visitors to explore the world's largest cave in Vietnam, during the days at home because of Covid-19.
Here are 10 "virtual reality" tours, conducted at the natural wonders of the world, for visitors who want to explore but cannot move in the epidemic.
Son Doong Cave, Vietnam
This is the largest cave in the world, belonging to Phong Nha - Ke Bang National Park, Quang Binh Province. The cave was first discovered by scientists in 2009, after a local resident, Ho Khanh, discovered it in 1991 and lost it many years later.
Son Doong 360 is a project implemented by National Geographic, aiming to save the most pristine images of the cave through "virtual reality", before tourism developed. The journey is made up of 360-degree images and natural sound effects, taking visitors through a light-filled cave, admiring the 70-meter-high foot of Stalactite stalactite and giant primeval forests. Through high quality photos, you can explore every detail of the cave's geology and flora.
The 360 images in the virtual tour of Son Doong. Photo: National Geographic.
Zhangjiajie National Park, China
The park's sandstone columns were the inspiration for the Hallelujah mountain range in the first 3D movie Avatar, directed by James Cameron. The unique shape of stone columns is created by physical erosion from water, ice, tree roots and foliage.
Virtual reality footage from above helps you admire towering rocks, some taller than 1,000 meters. The national park also has an ancient temple, built in 870; Bailong skyscraper and the tallest glass bottom bridge in the world. Located among 300 m high mountains, the diameter is one of the popular tourist attractions crowded. However, crowds do not appear in the video.
Mount Everest
This is the highest mountain in the world, with the peak between Nepal and China, called Sagarmatha in Nepal and Chomolungma in Tibet. Through the interactive 3D map, you can see the 8,848 m peak and other peaks in the Himalayas, stretching west to Parkistan and east to Bhutan.
Switching the view from another mountain peak, you can see the Imja River and mountain villages. There is also a campsite to the south, which attracts around 35,000 visitors each year.
Aurora
The aurora borealis is a natural phenomenon, created by the earth's magnetic field, when interacting with charged particles from the sun. This phenomenon can be seen from the northern high latitude countries such as Russia, Scandinavian countries, Iceland, Greenland and Canada.
The Lights over Lapland project, Norway will take visitors on a 5-minute journey, through 360-degree footage. The virtual journey begins at the Icehotel ice hotel, in Abisko National Park, northern Sweden. On the sleigh, you'll travel across Tornetrask Lake and arctic birch forests, before reaching a cozy wooden hut at the foot of Mount Noulja.
The videos then show green trails as they dance in the night sky. The project includes 360-degree images with views from different parts of the world such as Iceland, Norway, Godafoss waterfall in Yamal and Russia's Barents coast.
Aurora photos were recorded from Lake Torassieppi, Finland. Photo: Antti Pietkainen.
Giants Causeway, Ireland
This area on the Atlantic coast of Antrim district is made up of over 40,000 basalt pillars interwoven with many shapes, mainly hexagonal. Locals have the legend that the beach is a rocky road, built to Scotland by giants. In fact, they were formed by lava flowing into the sea, when volcanoes erupted between 50 and 60 million years ago.
The Irish Natural Heritage Conservation Foundation, created virtual tours, with views from the Aird Snout cape and Port Noffer Bay at different times of the day. There is also sweeping views from above to explore other places like the Carrick A Rede trail and rope bridge.
Ambrym volcano, Vanuatu
Virtual tours are carried out inside the world's most active volcanoes, just a few meters from the boiling lava lake 1,200 degrees Celsius. The film tells the story of explorers Ulla Lohmann, Sebastian Hoffman, and Thomas Boyer, to the third floor of Benbow, one of the main vents of the Ambrym volcano. The film chronicles the preparation of the expedition, to the campsite, the edge of the jungle, the plains filled with ash and ravines, just 60 meters from the lava stream.
You can watch a movie longer than 25 minutes, called Spitting Distance - The Descent Into a Raging Volcano.
Namib Desert, Namibia
The desert stretches over 80,000 square kilometers in Namib-Naukluft National Park, southern Africa. Some of the largest sand dunes are in the Sossusvlei area, which has a pink-orange sandy mountain range. The virtual reality tour includes a variety of 360-degree images that take visitors to the same sand dunes, Deadvlei white land, arid salt pans with black acacia trees and the night sky view.
Yosemite National Park, USA
This is a park with a variety of natural landscapes, located in the mountains of Sierra Nevada, California. It is home to more than 400 species of animals, including about 500 American black bears, rare hares and mastiff bats in threatened status. El Capitan monolithic granite tower, 900 m high is one of the park's most outstanding attractions. American climber Lynn Hill was the first person to climb a mountain without supporting equipment in 1993.
You can see 360-degree images of a national park called Virtual Yosemite, along with vivid sound effects in Nevada waterfall and Ahwahnee meadow.
Grand Canyon, USA
This is the second natural wonder of the land of flag flowers in the list. The Grand Canyon stretches 445 km, the widest area 28 km and the depth of 1,857 m. In the steep cliffs are about 40 layers of sediment and the rocks were formed about 2 billion years ago.
You can "walk" on the canyons through Google as Street View Trek. This is one of the longest routes in the park, zig zag from the Colorado River to the southern rim. The view allows users to zoom in, zoom out or click on points of interest to see more information. Another project carried out in the canyon is AirPano, with lots of high-resolution 360-degree images, for a panoramic view of Red Rocks.
Perito Moreno Glacier, Argentina
Perito Moreno, stretching 250 km2 in Los Glaciares National Park, is one of the few glaciers that are less affected by climate change. The 2018 Wilderness: an immersive 360 ° journey into Patagon video tour of the Guardian, conducted in 2018, helps viewers explore the park's diverse landscapes, through turquoise rapids and plains.
Photo: Charming Travel Destinations.