Google Maps Photo Tours allows you to watch guided, 3D tours of thousands of landmarks and locations around the globe using photos submitted to Google Maps.

Watch a tour

If you’re using Google Maps with MapsGL, you’ll be able to view Photo Tours – when they’re available – directly from your browser. To find and start a Photo Tour, look for the “{link label}” link in the left panel and the information windows of landmarks and business listings. Here are a few examples of Photo Tours: Colosseum, Hagia Sophia, Half Dome, Kōtoku-in, Mont Saint-Michel, Moraine Lake, Sagrada Familia, Shoshone Falls Park, St. Mark’s Basilica, Trevi Fountain, Arch of Titus

Source of photos

Photo Tours are built from photos that people have submitted to Panoramio or uploaded to a public Picasa photos album.

Google Maps uses state of the art computer vision techniques to organize and relate all the photos in 3D and then group, or cluster, the photos according to what’s seen. If a lot of people take photos in front of a famous cathedral, for example, an algorithm selects the best photo. Photos that someone takes down from Panoramio or Picasa will likewise be removed from Photo Tours.

Report inappropriate photos

To report an inappropriate photo, simply click the “Report a problem” link in the lower right-hand corner when an image comes up. You can then submit a report for that particular photo on the photo site that it came from.