Silicon Valley Self-Guided Driving Audio Tour for Tech Lovers
Description
Recommended: Purchase one tour per car, not per person. Everyone listens together! Explore the birthplace of tech with a self-guided audio tour! Drive through Silicon Valley while checking out the headquarters of tech giants like Apple, Google, Facebook, Tesla, and more. Learn about the visionaries who’ve shaped the world around us, from the feud between Bill Gates and Steve Jobs to the controversies around Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos to the eccentricities of Elon Musk. After booking, check your email/text to download the separate Audio Tour Guide App by Action while connected to WiFi or mobile data. Enter the password, download the tour, and enjoy it offline. Follow the audio instructions and route from the designated starting point. New, Lifetime access, no expiry. Use it anytime, on any trip, as many times as you want.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Formerly the Facebook HQ, now the Meta HQ, this imposing complex is home to the company that drove much of the social media revolution. As you circle the campus, you'll learn about the origins of Facebook, eccentric CEO Mark Zuckerberg, and the many controversies which have surrounded the company for years. NOTE: The tour is over 38 miles long, with more than 56 audio stories, and takes about 2-4 hours to complete. New, Lifetime access, no expiry. Use it anytime, on any trip, as many times as you want.
Though humble on the outside, this building is the brain behind the most important part of Amazon's business model: Amazon Web Services. Here, workers manage the globe-spanning cloud computing service which gives Amazon dominance not only over the retail scene but over huge swaths of the internet itself.
Google's Android Garden is filled with strangely charming foam sculptures of lollipops, marshmallows, cupcakes, and tons of other sweets. Each represents a different software update to the Android operating system.
The Googleplex is the headquarters of Google, the search giant known for its catchphrase "Don't be evil." As you drive by this enormous complex, you'll get the full story behind the company's creation and its braniac founders.
Microsoft might not have been founded in Silicon Valley, but you can’t talk about tech without it. Here at their California HQ, you'll hear the whole history of this influential company, from Bill Gates to its ongoing feud with Apple.
The Computer History Museum houses the largest collection of computing artifacts in the world. The collection comprises nearly 90,000 objects and photos, 4,000 feet of cataloged documentation, and hundreds of gigabytes of software. If you're a major techie, this place will be right up your alley.
Apple has three separate campuses in Silicon Valley, but this one is the original. As you drive around the loop, you'll hear how Apple became the company it is today, and how they continue to shape the future of technology around the world.
If you'd like to take a break and check out the latest Apple tech, this Apple store is the place for you. There's also a cafe here if you need a snack.
Up until the end of 2021, this building was the headquarters of Tesla, the electric car company famous for stirring up the automotive industry for better or for worse. As you drive, you'll hear plenty more about its divisive leader, Elon Musk, as well as his other ventures, such as SpaceX.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- How To Access: After booking, you’ll get an email and text with setup instructions and password (search “audio tour” in emails and texts). • Download the separate tour app by Action • Enter the password sent by email and text. • MUST download the tour while in strong wifi/cellular. • Works offline after download.
- How to start touring: Open Action’s separate audio tour guide app once onsite. • If there is just one tour, launch it. • If multiple tour versions exist, launch the one with your planned starting point and direction.
- Go to the starting point No one will meet you at the start. This tour is self-guided Enter the first story’s point and the audio will begin automatically Follow the audio cues to the next story, which will also play automatically. Enjoy hands-free exploring. If you face audio issues, contact support. Stick to the tour route & speed limit for the best experience.
- Travel worry-free: Use the tour app anytime, on any day, and over multiple days. Start and pause the tour whenever you like, taking breaks and exploring side excursions at your own pace. Skip anything you don’t care about or explore bonus content for everything that interests you
- Savings tips: Driving tours: purchase just one tour for everyone in the car
- New, Lifetime access, no expiry. Use it anytime, on any trip, as many times as you want.
- Audio Setup: Connect your phone to your car's stereo system using Bluetooth, USB, or AUX. For the best experience, consider using headphones for walking tours. Audio playback is compatible with Apple CarPlay, with navigation features coming soon. Support for Android Auto is also on the way.
- The tour requires a supported mobile device for navigation. Please use an iPhone with iOS 15 or later, an Android device with Android 9 or later, or an iPad/tablet with GPS and cellular service.
Reviews(24)
This audio tour is well voiced and provides a lot of information. But the area is very disappointing. Everything is scattered, and many things have not been opened (but still on the audio) or have even moved. We expected to be able to get in to more companies; in our case, this was only possible at Apple.
Jeannette, I’m glad you enjoyed my Silicon Valley audio tour narration and the information I provided. I understand that the area itself wasn’t as engaging as you expected—unfortunately, that’s out of my control. If you’re looking for more exciting experiences, I have over 100 self-guided audio tours in different locations that might suit you better. I’d be happy to help you choose one that’s a better fit!
This was my first time using this type of tour and it was great! We had a great time, saw everything and learned a lot! I would definitely recommend.
Lisa, I’m so glad to hear that you enjoyed your first experience with my Silicon Valley audio tour. It’s great to know you had fun, saw everything, and learned a lot. I really appreciate your recommendation. If you’re ready for more California adventures, check out my Tour of California Self-Guided Driving Bundle, which includes impressive spots like Big Sur and San Francisco. Happy travels!
Pay close attention to the direction and having someone with you who can read a map you need a good copilot
Rex, I’m glad you enjoyed my Silicon Valley audio tour. You’re right—having a copilot can also help with directions, but you can also connect the audio to your car stereo to listen to the directions through your speakers. Following the route and speed limit will help the audio sync with the locations as you drive. I’m also planning to add a CarPlay feature in the future, which will allow customers to see the map directly on the car screen while driving. Thanks again for your valuable input. Happy travels!
My family has some tech lovers in it and we did a lot of this tour. We cut out parts that we weren’t as interested in and didn’t have time for, but still had a great time driving around and hopping out at various locations. I’m sure we could have learned a lot of this by doing our own research but this saved us time and allowed us all to see the sights while learning tidbits about these important companies. If you know a lot about these companies already, the information might not be too new, but the itinerary map could be a timesaver and make it worth it. There are a few places I wouldn’t have seen without the tour.
Ellen, I'm so glad my Silicon Valley tour met your family's expectations. It's great to hear that the flexibility to skip parts and focus on what you enjoyed most made the experience smoother. I designed the tour to save time and still share fun, insightful stories—and it’s wonderful to know that even as tech fans, you still discovered new spots and appreciated the curated route. If you’re ready for more adventures, check out my All-In-One California Self-Guided Driving & Walking Bundle Tour, featuring Big Sur, Palm Springs, Hollywood Homes, Yosemite, and more!
The narration is good / informative. Really need more advanced warning on the next turn or next exit - it's extremely annoying to be able to go back to location before getting lost. I think it needs two person to use this app - one to drive and another to give advanced warning.
Hi Viet, thanks for sharing your experience with the Silicon Valley Self-Guided Driving Audio Tour. I’m glad you found the narration informative. For the best experience, it’s essential to start from the designated starting point and follow the speed limit shown in the app—this helps the tour sync properly and lets you know what’s coming up next. If you’re ready for more California adventures, check out my Tour of California Self-Guided Driving Bundle, which includes impressive spots like Big Sur and San Francisco. Happy travels!
You Must have an Apple device to tour. This is not clesr until after you pay the non-cancelable non-refundable tour fee. Then I was unable to get the tour to work on my iPad. I gave up. Good idea but terrible experience trying to use it.
Rich, my audio tour works on both iOS and Android devices, as long as the OS is iOS 14 or later or Android 9 (Pie) or later. For iPads, it's compatible with models that have a GPS chip. It sounds like there may have been confusion during the setup. If this was a last-minute booking, the non-refundable notice may have been shown, but don't hesitate to contact me. I'd be happy to process a refund or help with any questions. My product has been valid for a year, so you have plenty of time to try it again. Let me know if you'd prefer a replacement!
Followed this tour as a family with 2 older teenage sons. We all very much enjoyed the commentary and it definitely enhanced the experience of driving all round Silicon Valley. Much better than the alternative, which would have been working out our own itinerary and plotting our own route. Took us around 4 hours with a coffee/cake stop at Google (thoroughly recommend - better option than food/drink at Apple) and a stop at Apple visitor centre. Had already visited Stanford so didn’t stop there or the computer museum. Directions were easy to follow. App crashed a couple of times but was easy to restart and return to where we left off. All in all, would very much recommend this app.
Helen, I’m glad my Silicon Valley Self-Guided Driving Audio Tour worked well for your family. It’s great that the commentary enhanced your experience, and the directions were easy to follow. I appreciate your patience with the app; next time, try following the speed limit shown on the app, as it might help prevent crashes. If you’re ready for more California adventures, check out my Tour of California Self-Guided Driving Bundle, which includes impressive spots like Big Sur and San Francisco. Happy travels!
Highly recommended for those who have limited time and would like a feel of the tech company campuses in the valley. Covered companies include Apple, Google, Meta, Amazon (AWS), etc. The app is convenient. The only small issue is that it does not redirect to the guided tour so we had to repeat some loops, thought it is not inconvenient.
I'm glad you enjoyed the Silicon Valley tour, Vikas! My audio tour gave you a taste of the tech giants in the valley. Check out my Tour of California Bundle for a deeper dive into California. Explore iconic destinations like San Francisco and Yosemite, or hit the scenic Pacific Coast Highway at your own pace with self-guided tours. Happy adventuring!
The tour was simply amazing for a tech-inspired family like ours with young kids. We are not from the area, hence, driving (not to miss the exits) and listening to the details was a bit hard. We had the navigation map on another phone so that we could listen and drive at the same time. Having a list of various stops by email will be more convenient. But we enjoyed the tour overall and learned a lot of details and some unique stories (liked seeing Steve Jobs Garage). We also figured later that we could play each of the numbers again and listened to the details when not driving. We got off to walk around Google campus (Google Visitor Center, Google store, the sculptures, the Droids, Google Cafe etc) as well as the Apple campus. In the Apple Visitor Center, we went to the balcony and took pictures of the Apple space building. The model of the building and the 3D view on the iPAD was a treat for the kids. And so were the demos for the new iPhone and other gadgets. Apple Cafe was lovely. We enjoyed the tour very much.
I’m glad you enjoyed my Silicon Valley Tour! If you're up for more adventures, check out my Tour of California Self-Guided Driving Bundle. It includes fantastic routes like Big Sur, Pacific Coast Highway, Yosemite National Park, and more. You can find it at the same place you booked this tour. Happy touring!
We enjoyed this experience. Very interesting facts and stories about the big tech giants. Only suggestion; the start needs to tell you which way to turn. (Left out of the park where we started). After that the instructions were great.
Kathy, It's great to hear you enjoyed my Silicon Valley Audio Tour and found it informative! I appreciate your suggestion and will pass it on to my team for review. To explore more of California's natural wonders, check out my California Self-Guided Driving Bundle. It includes over 14 tours that offer a deeper dive into the area's history and beauty.
