Launched in November 2016 as Airbnb Trips, then later rebranded, Experiences is its attempt to plant a flag in the tour economy that occupies a significant share of vacationers’ budgets. Still, it may explain the enthusiasm I felt in early April, when I learned that Airbnb was offering what it calls Online Experiences: virtual cooking classes, fitness sessions, and other quirky forays led by hosts of odd expertise all over the world and conducted via the video-conferencing app Zoom for the distraction and amusement of people who find themselves bored, anxious, and homebound.īefore the emergence of COVID-19, I had plans to report on the company’s original, in-real-life version, Airbnb Experiences, for Outside. It’s a problem that anyone working from home should feel lucky to have.

My unconscious mind seems to be telling me that, after eight weeks of leaving my apartment as little as possible, I’m more restless than I’ve let myself admit. I felt a sickening dread, and then I woke up. We’d just hugged hello in a crowded airport terminal when my dream self remembered the existence of the novel coronavirus. Last night I dreamed I was waiting for a connecting flight when I realized I’d lost my luggage. A few weeks ago, my subconscious arranged a vacation with my parents, who, in reality, I haven’t seen since February. I am always in transit I never fully arrive. But in sleep, I find myself lining up to board planes, sprinting to catch trains, rattling on buses through unfamiliar landscapes. During waking hours, the fact that I can’t predict the timing of my next trip ranks low on my list of concerns.

Since the lockdown began, I’ve been dreaming about traveling.

Airbnb virtual experiences