Seven Great Time-Lapse Travel Videos

Lists: Jim Benning sifts through YouTube's accelerated videos to find the seven best

01.13.09 | 9:09 AM ET

Watch enough time-lapse videos and you realize that speeding something up doesn’t necessarily make it more interesting. In the worst instances, watching a three-minute video of a three-day road trip feels like three weeks behind the wheel.

In recent days, I watched dozens of high-speed road trip movies. I endured videos with names like “Hong Kong Construction Afternoon Time Lapse” (music by Pink Floyd). And though it had nothing to do with travel, I even observed a tomato turn from a plump, bright red to a sunken moldy black in mere minutes. (Gross.) I did this to find YouTube’s best time-lapse videos that capture the feeling of travel, or a strong, unique sense of place. Because some are truly mesmerizing.

Herewith, seven time-lapse videos worth a little bit of your (accelerated) time.

Time-Lapse Albuquerque International Balloon Festival

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2 Comments for Seven Great Time-Lapse Travel Videos

Eva Holland 01.13.09 | 11:38 AM ET

Thanks for digging these up, Jim! (Sounds like it was a grueling task.) I remember when you guys first posted that cross-country drive, and I still love it. The balloon festival was pretty cool, too.

Peter 01.28.09 | 11:10 AM ET

Great timelapse here, but there’s more…here what i like:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FV3qm3vpuUg&feature=channel_page

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