In Bali two years ago, I fell sick just after I had stepped out of the plane. It was also raining in Ubud, so we cancelled our excursions and stayed in. Our saviour? Movies. That day, sipping a cup of peppermint tea and listening to pitter-patter of rain, we watched it Dil Dhadakne Do (again) and discussed our own travel bucket lists. So to me, travel movies are a way to add more to my bucket list–whether it is a destination that I have been to and didn’t explore fully, or new holiday destinations that I never expected to excite me.
So, here’s a list of my favourite travel movies because life is too long to have a short travel bucket list. PS: You’ll find most of them on OTT platforms including Netflix, Hotstar and Amazon Prime.
Bollywood’s Best Travel Movies
Bollywood has given us many great travel movies. These are just some that I liked (there’s always Yash Raj and their love for Switzerland if you want to go that way).
Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara
Three best friends, one bachelor trip to Spain, three stories of self-discovery. Hrithik Roshan, Farhan Akhtar and Abhay Deol face their fears as they drive around Spain and form even closer bonds, with each other and people they meet along the way. Director Zoya Akhtar at her best! This may have introduced Indians to Tomatina Festival and running of the bulls. It’s an ad for Spain tourism and they’ve really cashed on it.
Watch it on Amazon Prime here
Queen
What do you do if you’ve booked a honeymoon, but don’t actually end up getting married? Well, you go anyway! Kangana Ranaut, a girl who had never been anywhere alone, goes on a solo trip to Amsterdam and Paris, and finds her self-confidence again. Can you imagine how much courage it takes to go somewhere you’ve never been, with no knowledge or local linguistic skills? Gotta admire it and take inspiration.
Watch it on Netflix here
Tamasha
This is another one of Ranbir Kapoor’s another coming of age movies, with Deepika Padukone as his partner in crime. They meet in Corsica, with fake identities, and fall in love. Unfortunately, Ranbir isn’t the dude he was in France, so Deepika discovers. But forget about all that and just watch it for the beautiful landscapes of the French island, where the couple is singing and dancing (look for Bonifacio’s King of Aragon Staircase in Matargasti).
Watch it on Netflix here
Dil Dhadakne Do
A cruise on the Meditterrenean? Yes, please! Again, Zoya Akhtar weaves her magic as she narrates the story of a Punjabi family who plans a cruise for their friends and family to celebrate their anniversary. A pretty impressive ensemble with Priyanka Chopra, Ranveer Singh, Anil Kapoor, Anushka Sharma, Farhan Akhtar and Shefali Shah in lead roles, but the destinations overshadow everything else: Anushka Sharma and Ranveer Singh cycling in Istanbul; a Turkish hammam for the ladies; a glimpse of Hagia Sophia; hot air ballooning in Cappadocia.
Watch it on Amazon Prime here
Dilwale
Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol reunite for this Rohit Shetty movie that takes you through Bulgaria, but also slips in Iceland in the song Gerua (the black beach of Sólheimasandur with an abandoned plane, the Skógafoss waterfall, the Vestrahorn mountain, and more). There is also a lot of Goa in the second half of the movie, but really, the drama of Iceland is hard to beat later.
Watch it on Netflix here
Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani
Once more, let’s give a shout to Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone. In this love story, they first take us to Manali (but note that the song Subhanallah was shot in Pahalgam, Jammu and the trek showed Kashmir). Later, Ranbir shoots Paris for us as a traveller cinematographer and when he comes back to India for his best friend’s wedding, the couple take a tour around Udaipur (The Oberoi Udaivilas features in the movie) and teach us an important lesson about travel: Don’t miss the sunset for a list of things on your itinerary and enjoy the moment.
Watch it on Amazon Prime here
Hollywood’s Best Travel Movies
You’ve got to give it to Hollywood, they do love to produce memorable travel movies.
The Holiday
Two women, on either side of the Atlantic Ocean, decide to exchange their homes for Christmas and both fall in love–the Londoner to an American and the American to an English. The Holiday introduces us to (Iris) Kate Winslet and (Amanda) Cameron Diaz, and takes us to Surrey and Los Angeles. It’s a contrast in scenery, in Christmas celebrations, in lifestyles but you’d still find both equally riveting.
Watch it on Netflix here
Under The Tuscan Sun
This movie is one of the reasons Tuscany is on my bucket list. A San Francisco-based writer is battling depression and writer’s block after her divorce. On a tour in Tuscany, she finds an on-sale board at a villa and buys it impulsively. The countryside, the beautiful vineyards, and the Tuscan villas set in this backdrop will make you want to plan a trip, too.
Watch it on Youtube here
Letters To Juliet
Another one set in Italy, but this is more recent than Under The Tuscan Sun. It’s a sweet story of a writer (yes, I like writers as protagonists) who travels to Verona with her boyfriend and starts answering letters to Juliet when he gets too busy for her. Of course, she meets someone (and his grandmother), but the real story is the landscapes, the wineries and the stunning setting.
Watch it on Netflix here
The Bucket List
Two men, who are dying in a few months, decide to take life in their own hands and do everything on their bucket list–the Pyramids of Giza, the Great Wall of China, a safari in Africa and the Taj Mahal. The movie ends on a high too (literally) and if you’re looking for a travel wishlist of your own, I think you’ve found it. If you’re an adventurous soul, try kopi luwak that Jack Nicholson loves in the movie.
Watch it on Netflix here
Roman Holiday
It’s a classic and it has to be on every list of best travel movies. Audrey Hepburn is a princess of a fictitious nation, which means she has no freedom to move about. So she does what any girl her age would do–she sneaks out to see Rome. The black and white film gives a new perspective of the Colosseum, the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps. If this didn’t put Vespa on the tourist guidebooks, I don’t know what did. One more reason to watch this movie is the suave Gregory Peck.
Watch it on Youtube here
Leap Year
The rolling Irish countryside looks stunning in this movie. Unfortunately, it was geographically inaccurate and was widely criticised. Still, if you need a list of where everything was shot, it goes like this: the Rock of Dunamase, Inishmor, Glendalough and Temple Bar street in Dublin. Oh and the movie is a sweet romantic comedy about two characters who are like chalk and cheese: an American stager and an Irish bar-owner.
Watch it on Youtube here
Out Of Africa
Based on Karen Blixen’s eponymous book, the story takes us to Ngong Hills just outside of Nairobi. Our heroine moves to Kenya after getting married and settles into farm life. Watch it for the rawness of the bush life, the migration of wildebeest, and wildlife safaris that bring you into the wild. If you’re here because of Karen Blixen (or Meryl Steep), then make a stop at the Karen Blixen Museum, which is where the author once lived.
Watch it on Youtube here