Virtual reality (VR) has opened new possibilities for experiential learning by allowing students to explore authentic environments that are often inaccessible due to constraints of time, cost, safety, or distance. We have developed EduVenture-VR, a learning system designed to empower non-technical teachers to become VR-supported instructional designers, enabling them to create and facilitate virtual experiential learning (VEL) for their own students. The system has undergone iterative optimization, evolving from the use of teacher-recorded spherical video-based VR (SVVR) to the integration of generative artificial intelligence (AI), which is scaled to support immersive and interactive virtual expeditions across diverse subject areas and educational levels. This keynote article focuses on discussing the empowerment of non-technical teachers as VEL designers through EduVenture-VR, emphasizing that educators are not merely passive users of technology but active creators of meaningful VR-supported learning processes. Insights into how this pedagogical paradigm fosters students’ learning performance and motivation, drawn from a series of empirical studies, are shared. It concludes with reflections on lessons learned from the EduVenture-VR journey and on the opportunities and challenges of scaling teacher-led VEL in the age of AI.