Not all adventures have to involve thrill-seeking activities or jet-setting around the world to faraway places. Believe it or not, it’s still possible to indulge your adventurous side from the comfort of your own sofa.
When most people think of adventure, they think of escapism. But you can still take your mind to a exciting new places without having to be there physically.
So if you’re looking for an adventure that you can go on anytime, anywhere, here are 15 different ideas.
1. Watch NASA at work, and see Earth from space
Modern technology allows us to see places we might never normally be able to gain access to from the comfort of our own homes.
If you’re interested in space and the cosmos, you might be pleased to know that you can watch live round-the-clock footage of NASA Astronauts aboard the ISS. This means you’ll get to see stunning aerial views of Earth from space. It’s really quite breathtaking.
2. Travel the world with your taste buds
If you’re longing for new and interesting experiences, perhaps you could explore some new cultures and flavours by cooking a delicious new dish.
While most of us are familiar with lasagne and linguine, when it comes to foreign cuisine, there are endless flavour-packed dishes out there to try. Plus, with plenty of smells, sounds, and tastes to enjoy throughout, cooking can be a great way to focus your mind on the present moment – and you’ll get a tasty reward at the end!
If you’re interested in travelling the world with your taste buds, why not consider going on a culinary adventure from the comfort of your own kitchen? From authentic tacos to tasty tagines, here are eight mouthwatering meals from around the world to get you inspired…
3. Get stuck into a good book
When you get truly lost in a good book, it can seem as though time is passing around you, without you even realising it. You can be transported to an entirely new world, where you can actually see, smell, and hear the sounds that are being described, and feel the emotions of the book’s characters along with them.
When this happens, we tend to forget about our own surroundings and personal circumstances and immerse ourselves fully in this otherworldly experience. There are few feelings like finding true escapism in a great novel – and the best thing about it is that you can do it anywhere, at any time.
Escapism through reading is something that’s very personal. For example, some people prefer to be transported into the future, or hold the hand of a protagonist as they navigate the trials and tribulations of true love.
If you’re looking for a few ideas for books to read, why not take a look at our articles; 27 of the best must-read novels, 20 of the best history books, and 9 captivating novels by female authors? You might also be interested in joining the Rest Less book club, or attending a short story event.
Some of our own favourite adventure novels included in these lists include The Life of Pi (2001), The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (1979), and Wild (2013).
4. Check in to the puppy playroom
If you’re a dog lover, chances are you’ll love the opportunity to check in on a group of puppies in their playroom. What’s even more fun is that they don’t know that they’re being watched. So when these little pups aren’t napping, you can expect to see a lot of mischief.
Live footage from the puppy playroom is filmed by hidden cameras located in the Warrior Canine Connection (Maryland, USA). This non-profit organisation is responsible for training therapeutic service dogs for war veterans.
Puppies visit the playroom during the day from the age of about four weeks old to be socialised with each other – as well as with staff, volunteers, and military personnel and their families.
If you’re having a bad day and need a bit of cheering up, then footage of these happy, bouncy puppies is sure to put a smile on your face.
5. Explore any country in the world with MapCrunch
If you’re not sure what sort of adventure you’d like to go on, but you know you like exploring, MapCrunch could be a great place to start.
As soon as you land on the website, you’ll be shown a random Google street view of somewhere in the world. You can either choose to explore that area, venturing as far as you want to using the arrows – or you can hit ‘Go!’ in the top right-hand corner and be transported to somewhere else entirely. I hit the button three times and went to Mongolia, Jerusalem, and Brazil!
Or, if you’d prefer to choose where you want to explore, you can visit Google Earth and ‘fly’ to any country of your choice. Here, you can see detailed satellite images and find out more about each place.
6. Go on a quest for knowledge
It’s possible to go on an adventure each time that you open up your mind to new ideas, perspectives or information.
So, if you’ve got a few hours to spare, why not consider choosing a topic – such as a country or an animal – that you know nothing about, and finding out as much as you can about it using the internet, books, or TV shows? Our article, 10 fascinating things to learn about in your spare time, might offer some inspiration.
We also have thousands of online courses on a range of different subjects that you can sink your teeth into if you’re looking for somewhere to start. A routine evening or weekend can quickly be turned into an exciting quest for knowledge – and the best thing is that the adventure of knowledge never stops.
7. Join in with storm chasing
There’s something incredibly fascinating about tornadoes and hurricanes because they show us the immense power of the natural world. Because here in the UK, we typically only see tornadoes and hurricanes on TV – it makes them all the more intriguing.
There are plenty of YouTube videos and TV shows that show recorded footage of tornadoes and hurricanes, but there’s something quite thrilling about the idea of being able to see one live in action. The good news is that Severe Studios is giving people the opportunity to tune into live storm-chasing videos on their website.
Tornadoes and hurricanes can be quite unpredictable, so, unfortunately, it’s hard to tell exactly when storm chasers will go live. But it’s worth checking their website every so often, to see if you can join in with the action. While you wait to catch a live storm, Severe Studios have plenty of archived storm videos for you to indulge in.
Start storm chasing
While you wait to catch a live storm, Severe Studios also has plenty of archived storm videos for you to indulge in, such as the video below.
8. Visit gorillas in the Congo or pandas in China
You don’t have to go on a safari or to a zoo to see what some of the world’s most beautiful creatures are getting up to.
Thanks to modern technology, there are live webcams positioned all over the world that’ll let you get up close and personal with everything from big cats, to birds and sea life – and all footage is available on YouTube.
With so many different options, it’s totally up to you to decide where you want to go. Perhaps you’d like to visit gorillas in the Congo, pandas in China, or Hummingbirds in California. There’s something extra special about getting to watch these stunning creatures when they think no one’s watching.
9. Watch an adventure movie
In a similar way to reading a great book, it’s also easy to find yourself getting lost in a great movie – particularly ones where the main character heads off on a long journey.
Even though you’re enjoying a movie from the comfort of your sofa, you can quickly feel as though you’re walking beside them, experiencing the same senses, and sharing in their emotions. You know you’ve become really engrossed in a good movie when you don’t want it to end and you’ve got to know the characters so well that it feels as if you know them personally.
If you’re looking for some inspiration for adventure movies, we’d recommend trying Eat Pray Love (2010), Into the Wild (2007), and Back to the Future (1985).
However, if none of these take your fancy, you might find something you like in our article; 25 great travel films that will take you on an adventure or in the film and TV section of our website.
10. Practise guided meditation
Practising guided meditation is a great way to relax, unwind, and transport your mind to somewhere more peaceful. Many people use meditation as a form of mindfulness to help them stay in the present moment and quiet negative thoughts.
During a guided meditation, a soothing voice will talk you through each step; encouraging you to do things like visualising certain surroundings, focusing on your breathing, or letting go of specific thoughts or worries that are affecting your daily life.
If you’d like to use guided meditation as an opportunity to go on a mindful adventure, consider listening to those that focus on the visualisation of surroundings. For example, those that ask you to imagine you’re listening to the waves as you walk along a beach, or to take in all the woody sights and smells as you wander through a forest. YouTube has a number of really useful, free guided meditations, so it’s worth giving these a try.
You could also try downloading the Headspace app, which has plenty of guided imagery meditations. They offer a two-week free trial so that you can see if it works for you before committing to a full subscription.
Or, if you’d like to find out more about the benefits of being mindful and how to get started, check out our introductory guide to mindfulness…
11. See what’s happening at popular tourist hotspots around the world
Do you fancy popping over to Times Square or enjoying a view of the Ponte delle Guglie in Venice?
To take a sneak peek at what’s going on at some of the world’s most famous tourist spots in real-time, consider checking in to one of many live webcams across the globe. If you’re someone who loves people-watching, this is one for you.
When we’re feeling particularly stressed or anxious, there can be something very reassuring about watching the world go by. It can help us to see the bigger picture, and to realise that no matter how big or small problems are – the world will keep on turning.
Here’s a quick list of some of our favourite webcams worldwide…
- Hollywood Beach Broadwalk, Florida, USA
- Ponte delle Guglie, Venice, Italy
- Assisi-Basilica di, San Francesco, USA
- Times Square, New York, USA
- The Earth from the International Space Station (not a tourist spot, but still immensely entertaining)
Alternatively, you might find some ideas in our article; 10 of the world’s best virtual museum and art gallery tours.
12. Take a trip down memory lane
If you’ve got a quiet afternoon, day, or weekend, why not consider having a bit of a declutter and using this as a chance to take a trip down memory lane?
Decluttering is a journey in itself, and it can be quite liberating to let go of things that you no longer need, organise the things you want to keep, and enjoy the neat and tidy end result.
It also gives you a great excuse to get out your old keepsakes, mementoes, and diaries. Reminiscing about the past can help you see how far you’ve come, appreciate where you are at present, revisit happy memories, and indulge in a bit of nostalgia.
Sometimes we can surprise ourselves when we remember how much we’ve already done, and how much we’ve grown as individuals. If you’d like to have an adventure at home, then getting lost in your past for a few hours can be a great way to do this.
13. Try to see adventure as a mindset
By choosing to see adventure as a mindset, you’ll never be short of it. We often lose our sense of adventure when we repeat the same actions and become bored with our everyday routine. But there’s an adventure to be had in every scenario if we approach things a little differently than we normally would.
For example, instead of driving the same route to work every day in autopilot mode, why not leave a bit earlier and explore a new route? Or, instead of picking from the same handful of dinner options every day, why not try a completely different recipe that gets you excited? You’ll find plenty of new recipe inspiration on the food and drink section of our website.
Sometimes, looking at the world a little differently and making an effort to find adventure where we can – even in small ways – can open up a whole new and exciting world, wherever we happen to be.
“Adventure isn’t hanging off a rope on the side of a mountain. Adventure is an attitude we must apply to the day-to-day obstacles of life.”
14. Travel the world with this musical time machine
There’s nothing like music to transport us to a different time and place. From gospel to Motown, and classical to the swinging 60s, it’s amazing how quickly sounds can evoke feelings of escapism.
With Radiooooo, an online musical time machine, you can listen to music from any decade and country of your choice. Visit Brazil in the 1960s or China in the 1990s, or simply explore the sounds of the world.
There’s a premium offering of Radiooooo but even the free version of the service will have you transported out of your living room. The creators built this tool with the goal of broadening people’s horizons through musical culture.
15. Track turtles, sharks and dolphins
OCEARCH is a scientific research project trying to help ocean wildlife. With this tracker, you can keep track of tagged ocean animals around the world and see where they are and where they’ve been. You can find out each animal’s name, weight, and length.
If you become attached to any specific animal, you can search for its name and see where they’ve ended up. My favourite is a White Shark, named Helena. She’s 12ft 5ins, weighs 1314lbs, and I last spotted her along the Atlantic Coast of North Carolina.
Final thoughts...
Deciding to look at every aspect of your life as an adventure can make it a lot more fun, and offer some relief from the stresses and strains of daily life.
It’s important that we all take steps to look after ourselves not just physically, but mentally too. For many of us, this can mean finding ways to have fun and keep our minds engaged – and fortunately, there are plenty of ways we can do this from the comfort of our own homes.
With a little imagination and curiosity, it’s possible to start an adventure wherever we happen to be. Not all adventures are immediately obvious – but they are there.
For further reading, head over to the hobbies and activities section of our website. Here you’ll find everything from ideas for mindful activities to activities that can help you connect with others.