Bored in Quarantine? Check Out These Wild Virtual Experiences and Things To Do in Quarantine

If you’re like us, our weekdays seem to blend together during quarantine. Our weekends? Well, that’s a whole other thing. Kevin and I haven’t missed a beat — exploring LA’s many hidden staircases, ordering take-out feasts from fancy-schmancy restaurants like Vespertine and even trekking out to see the bioluminescent waves along the California coast (that can be hit or miss, depending on the night).

But it’s the virtual experiences that have made our weekends fly by. From virtual walking tours to wine tastings and even a Zoom drag show (yes, that’s a thing!), we’ve certainly done a lot in a short time. But we’ve narrowed our list down to our top picks of things to do in quarantine. After tackling a few of these, we guarantee you won’t be bored. And soon you’ll also be asking yourselves — just where did the weekend go?

5. Solving A Murder Mystery With a Slice of Pizza

During these isolating times, Vampire Dot Pizza aims to bring some excitement with an immersive pop-up experience (rotating across US cities). They recently made a stop in LA at Ghost Pizza, which provided the pizza to munch on while you solve the various puzzles. Think of it as an at-home escape room with some pizza on the side. Here is the premise — Belle is looking to recruit vampires to help make the world a better place. And by doing this challenge, we’re now part of her tribe.

After following a few clues, we discovered Belle’s hidden video where she tells us, “Pizza delivery is how we vampires are going to communicate.” Pizza as our common language? I’m down with that. And to ensure she gets the best vampires, she’s set up these puzzles to test if we have the right skills.

Each of the puzzles leads you to a password for the next video. In total, it took us about an hour to solve the first chapter. Speaking of which, Vampire Dot Pizza hopes to roll out even more chapters, keeping this vampire game going. And even if you’re not into puzzles, hey, you’ll enjoy the tasty pizza, salad and cookies for dessert.

We had a great time trying to solve the mystery even if some of the puzzles left us completely stumped at times. Though luckily, each box comes with a list of clues (and an answer key, that I MAY have peeked at a few times throughout!). Kevin refused to get any clues. But I say hey, even escape rooms come with some helpful hints! Advanced reservations are highly recommended (as they typically sell out). This is one of the pricier experiences on our list, at $90 for 2 people. Order by going to their website and check out what city they’re currently operating out of . They’re also looking for recommendations on where to go next so feel free to submit your own city for updates.

4. Learning Spooky Tales on a Virtual Walking Tour of LA

So we can sometimes be scaredy cats when it comes to horror. But think of this next pick as more of a history lesson with a creepy twist. Downtown LA Walking Tours is offering both private and public virtual tours that you can follow along from the comfort of your couch. Each virtual tour is led by a guide via Zoom. And oh, did we mention that it is completely free? They just kindly ask for a donation to help keep them afloat during these weird coronavirus times. We decided to join Haunted Tales, a 2-hour virtual tour that included 7 stops. Many stories are from LA’s early beginnings — like the notorious Black Dahlia case — and re-create the scene with vintage photos.

But the tour also has some modern tales, like 2013’s nightmare-inducing story of a Canadian tourist found in the water tank of the Cecil Hotel (after guests complained that the water tasted bad and was coming out black). Ewww, gross! Besides the creepy stories, we also got some inside tips on how to access downtown LA’s secret network of underground tunnels (once used during prohibition as speakeasies). Check out Downtown LA Walking Tours website and sign up for a free virtual tour. Other virtual experiences include a stroll through LA’s art district to a Taylor Swift-themed tour following the shooting locations of her 2018 music video “Delicate.”

3. Reliving Our Childhood with an Old School Drive-in Movie

Few things say America more than apple pie, barbecues on the 4th of July and drive-in movies. With humble beginnings in Depression-era, the drive-in theater is making a comeback in a big way during these socially-distancing times. While many of these old-school drive-ins remain closed in California, we were thrilled to find one open for business (and thriving!). Mission Tiki Drive-in is in Montclair, located about a 45 minute drive east of Los Angeles.

Since Kevin and I met about 15 years ago, we’ve made Friday nights as our date night at the movies. And luckily, we can keep this tradition going while movie theaters are shut during the pandemic. Plus, add in some tasty Mexican food from the concession stand, and we are completely sold! We recommend skipping the nacho’s and going for the asada quesadillas and tacos.

The drive-in has 4 screens total, showing double features 7 days of the week. Tickets are good for both movies and $10 for adults and $1 for kids 5-to-9 years old. They don’t offer advanced sales, just simply show up and pay. We highly recommend arriving at least 45 minutes before showtime to get a prime spot to park and avoid the massive lines. Word is getting out! And if you’re interested in a road trip adventure, we recommend a slight detour along the way to The Donut Hole in La Puente where the drive-thru lane takes you through a donut! I don’t even like donuts, yet I devoured 2 glazed and a half dozen of the glazed donut holes. No shame (okay, maybe a little!).

2. Creating the Perfect Sangria With Portugal’s Top Drag Queens

There was no hesitation from Kevin when I asked him if he’d be interested in doing one of Airbnb’s newest online experiences — a virtual class featuring a crew of Portugal’s fabulous drag queens teaching us how to make fresh sangria from scratch. It almost sounds like a comedy sketch. But oh no, this is a real thing!

The class is 1.5 hours and after a brief intro, the drag queens will interact with everyone on the Zoom video call. But don’t worry, it’s all in good fun. Our class included people from all over the world with several large groups joining in to celebrate special occasions like birthdays or college graduations. There are 2 options for the viewer — you can either be a “popcorn guest” (meaning, you just watch). Or an active participant. We highly recommend making the sangria even if you aren’t much of a cook. The class zips along during the longer prep sections with over-the-top drag performances. I mean, I sort of wish that all my recipes came with a show!

Spots fill up far in advance. So be sure to reserve your place on Airbnb’s experience page. The cost is $34 USD per person, plus you’ll need to buy the ingredients in advance if you don’t have them. The list of ingredients is sent to you upon booking and includes substitutions in case you have a difficult time finding anything. Most of it is pretty standard though. And the final product? It tasted amazing, if we do say so ourselves!

1. Top Pick of Things to do in Quarantine: It’s a Tie! Sampling Cheese and Sipping Wine with a Virtual Tasting

Our #1 pick of things to do in quarantine shouldn’t be a shock to anyone who knows us. We love classes and learning new things. Whether you’re self-quarantining or just don’t want to leave home, online classes are a blast. While all of California’s wine cellars are shut right now, many are offering virtual tastings including Paso Robles’ Daou winery. Tastings are typically $40 in person at the winery. But you can now do it for free with their virtual wine tasting.

Reservations are available on Tock nearly every day of the week on the hour from 12 – 5 PM. Advanced reservations are recommended — especially for Fridays and Saturdays. Kevin and I first tried out a tasting on our own. And we had such a fantastic time, that we invited our family on the east coast to join in. We loved getting to chat with our family and at the same time, learn about the art of wine making. Setting it up is pretty simple, too. Hey, if my dad can figure out Zoom, we’re pretty sure anyone can! The only thing you need — beyond a computer and Wifi — is a bottle or two of Daou wine to join along. You can either order this directly from the winery, or search your local wine shop. Most places in LA carry it.

Love virtual classes as much as we do? And enjoy cheese? Then you’ll love our next pick — a cheese tasting with Murray’s Cheese Shop in New York City. Murray’s is bringing their classroom experience online by offering their Cheese 101 course. When you sign up, they’ll send you four different cheeses and accompaniments. You’ll get everything by mail and a link ahead of the scheduled time where you can join in with others from around the world.

This class didn’t put us on camera, which I appreciated. Though, I’m sure Kevin was intrigued to see our fellow students. Even though we weren’t on, it was still incredibly interactive with a chat box where the instructor answered every question we had.

They have classes for kids along with virtual cheese cave tours. Classes are $110 each. Sign up by visiting their Eventbrite page.

Clearly, social distancing doesn’t have to be such a drag (well, unless you’re doing the Portuguese drag sangria class, I guess!). Looking for other ideas of things to do during quarantine? And looking for a slight change of scene? Consider a road trip adventure and hunkering down inside a relaxing Airbnb. Check out our anniversary getaway to La Jolla or our weekend away in Paso Roble’s wine country. Looking for more places to explore in LA? Check out all our adventures in Los Angeles here. Want to do more urban hikes? Then check out our round up of the best hidden staircase hikes in Los Angeles.