Vintage

How to fly with Armchair Vacations

Start at the Armchair Vacations Website.

Start by going to the Armchair Vacations website.  It's also helpful if you first have Google Earth installed before you start.  It's not required.  You can also take tours with Google Maps, but Google Earth Tours are animated.  Instructions can be found at the "Getting Started" section on the main page or you can just go to following link: Download Google Earth

Problems or Questions?  Check the Preflight Guide or go to the Help Section .

Select a Tour.

Go to the Browse Tours section. You can select a tour from many categories. You can also choose a tour from, Most Popular, Highest Rated, or Latest Tour.

The Tour Launching Page.

Once you have selected a tour, you'll be taken to the tour launching page. In addition to a description and image, you see an itinerary that lists all of the tour stops. Clicking on any of these allows you jump to that stop.

To start the tour, you have a choice.  If you have Google Earth Installed, click the Start Button on the Left. The start button on the right is for Google Maps. You can play through a Google Map Tour just using you web browser - just hit the "Next" button.  The rest of this tutorial is for those who have Google Earth and wish tour with it.

The First Stop.

After clicking on start, Google Earth will automatically start and be taken to the first stop. The first stop will be marked by an Armchair Vacation Icon, a red armchair with wings, in the middle of the screen.

Note: On some systems Google Earth does not start up automatically. If this is the case you'll have to start Google Earth first and then restart the tour.

One last thing, starting a tour downloads a special file to your computer. In some rare cases, your computer won't know what to do with it. Just select Google Earth as the application to open it.

The Mini Armchair Vacations Browser.

To continue the tour, Double Click on the red armchair icon. This will open up a mini Armchair Vacations web page within Google Earth. It's also known as a Balloon Window.

The Balloon Window will usually have an image and a description of the tour stop. At the top of page you'll see the tour navigation buttons. The Next button is the most import one for now. Click the Next Button to move on to the next tour stop.

The Next Stop.

The Next Button will automatically send Google Earth to the next stop. Running the tour from here is easy because you repeat the earlier steps. Double click on the armchair icon to open the Balloon Window. Then Click on the Next button to go to the next stop. Repeat this process until you get to the end of the tour.

The Other Navigation Buttons.

The other navigation buttons:

The Prev. button allows you to run the tour backwards.

The Find Again button has been added for those who like to go for a stroll. You might occasionally find other things to see beyond the current stop, and may loose your place. Click Find Again to set Google Earth back at the current stop.

Finishing the Tour.

Now you've finished the tour. why not take another one? You might think about becoming a member an making you're own tour. It's pretty easy and totally free.

Touring with Google Maps.

Perhaps your computer can't run Google Earth or perhaps you don't wish to install it. You can still enjoy an Armchair Vacations Tour by clicking the right Start button at tour launch page. This will run the tour with your web browser. The tour runs faster this way although you will miss out the nice views and animations provided by Google Earth.