White House launches new virtual tour

The White House is opening its virtual doors with a new tour that allows visitors to step into 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. without making the trek to the nation’s capital.

Jill Biden announced Friday the launch of a new virtual White House tour that utilizes Google Street View technology. The tour features a welcome video from President Biden and the first lady — the same clip that in-person visitors see at the White House Visitor Center in Washington.

“Room by room, we can trace the history of our country, and see the legacies of each generation woven into our past and present,” Jill Biden says in the video.

For the first time, the virtual tour also features a Spanish translation as well as audio captions, which were narrated by White House social secretary Carlos Elizondo.

“Not everyone can make the trip to Washington, D.C., to tour the White House, so [the first lady] is bringing the White House to them,” Elizabeth Alexander, Jill Biden’s communications director, said in a statement.

Alexander said the virtual tour, released to coincide with National Civics Day, is part of an effort to “open the doors of the White House wider and wider, using technology and digital platforms to bring the ‘People’s House’ to as many people as possible.”

The virtual visit includes looks at all the areas of the public tour, including the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden, the Vermeil, East and Blue Rooms and the State Dining Room, among several other spaces.

The virtual tour is available on the White House’s website, along with Google Maps and the Google Arts & Culture page.