• As millions of people are under lockdown, virtual experiences have grown in popularity.
  • As the travel industry is having to adapt, London guide Katie Wignall decided to stream live walking tours from her apartment.
  • Viewers from around the world have found that the 20-minute episodes are a way to learn about a new place and escape from reality.
  • Visit Insider’s homepage for more stories.

When London went into lockdown, Katie Wignall didn’t stop sharing the hidden history of her favorite city.

Wignall is the creator of Look Up London, a walking tour company and blog focused on sharing London’s secret spots.

Before the lockdown, her typical day was spent guiding international visitors and Londoners throughout the city. She’d make stops at London’s financial center where cultures clash and let visitors explore the street art in the city’s West End.

http://instagr.am/p/B4iUxdTHo7v

Then all nonessential travel came to a halt.

On March 23, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that the country was facing a national emergency and that residents should stay home to help stop the spread of the coronavirus. The restrictions put a ban on gatherings of more than two people and closed all nonessential businesses.

The lockdown measures in London forced Wignall to adapt

She had the idea to shift her tours to Instagram. She enlisted her husband as a cameraman and set out on a walking tour through Tower Hill, where she took followers to a hidden garden tucked inside a public metro station.

http://instagr.am/p/B94rNjpnfEc

After three livestreamed walking tours, Wignall decided to switch to doing all the outings from the confines of her home.

"We wanted to do it from home to encourage everyone else to stay home as well," she said.

Using videos she's collected over the years, along with public photographs and Google Street View, Wignall takes her Instagram followers to new London destinations three times a week.

Katie Wignall Look Up London.PNG

Foto: A screenshot from Katie Wingall's virtual tour of council offices of the City of London. Source: Look Up London

Wignall said she feels honored to provide people with a little escape during these challenging times.

"They've just said it's really helped them, on either their lunch break or if they're tuning in later," Wignall told Insider. "They've said they almost feel like they've been outside and they've learned something new."

http://instagr.am/p/B-sHAmXnhmd

People have watched Wignall's 20-minute videos from their homes in Taiwan, Australia, Tasmania, the United States, and other locations around the world

"I've found it quite humbling, to be honest," she said. "Because this is global, it affects everyone."

Although her tours are free, Wignall set up a PayPal for donations.

"It's been so helpful for my small business right now," she said. "My livelihood is doing walking tours, so it's just been so lovely. Even people giving whatever amount of money they can."

http://instagr.am/p/B-msPIJnPdT

Wignall said she hopes to continue to share London through Instagram after the lockdown is over through a monthly livestream.

"It has changed what I think of in terms of possibilities of tours."