May 18th, 2012 by ElizaP

Virtually everyone knows about Google Earth, and its amazing views of just about every location around the world. If armchair travel is one of your hobbies, then you shouldn’t be doing it without this beautiful and interesting addition.

Panoramio
Owned by Google, Panoramio is an online photography community. It already exists as a layer on Google Earth and Google Maps, but has to be turned on in order to see the photos contributed. This resource adds another facet of discovery to the armchair traveler, who can view photos taken by residents or tourists, which gives a new perspective on places to see. This new perspective can also reveal lesser-known destinations that can be added to the itinerary of a trip.

Accessing Panoramio
A Google ID is all it takes to begin using Panoramio. Once signed in, you can enter a location if you know the name of the place you want to explore. Or, you can simply view the map of the world, and click on a random location. Either way, you will be able to view photos of places only, and not personal photos like you might find elsewhere. Users can zoom in nearly to street level to see photos, and clicking on a photo will reveal its location or building name.