Well, it’s official, we’re now firmly in ‘the future’, and there’s no turning back. A little while ago, I posted a blog about how Google had introduced its Street View feature to the Eiffel Tower, meaning anyone could now enjoy a virtual view from the tower across Paris. Since then a few other landmarks have been added but we’ve now had the launch of something that takes it all one step further – the virtual river cruise.

Taking a step back from the dramatic for a second, it’s really a natural extension of the normal Street View, but instead of being able to place ‘Pegman’ on a road street, you can now place him on a 30-mile stretch of the River Thames and click your way through your own cruise down the famous London waters to see the many sights lining the banks from a new perspective.

It’s an interesting prospect, and it’ll be strange to see if they use the same technology on some of the larger rivers around the world where river cruise holidays are popular. Normally Street View is more functional as a way of finding something specific, or working out directions before you travel. If you want to see images of attractions, you could just do an image search.

But this seems to be designed to give you the feel of cruising along the river, taking in the attractions in the same order that you would if you were sailing on it in reality. So maybe it’s a new direction for the tool – the virtual holiday.

Obviously, it’s not the same. Seeing a picture of something isn’t the same as seeing it in real life, getting a feel of the atmosphere, and getting into the nooks and crannies. So I suppose the real question is this: would Street View on the major rivers of the world be beneficial, a way to browse before you book, or would it spoil the surprises?

Let me know what you think in the comments.

By Ian Lewis
Google