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Travel Movies That Inspire Wanderlust


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Movies are not just a source of entertainment; they help in a subtle way, to consider ideas we may not have considered otherwise. There are so many movies that showcase the beauty of a place and inspire us to get off the couch, pack our bags and head to that very land, all while telling a captivating story.

If you are looking for inspiration to spark your wanderlust, here are some 10 amazing travel movies of all time.

  • Into the Wild (Adventure – 2007) – Into the Wild is the true story of Christopher McCandless, a college graduate who gives away his life savings and hitchhikes to Alaska. Along the way, he encounters a series of characters that shape his life. In Alaska, he heads out into the wilderness to live on his own. His life is filled with random adventures and experiences while he makes his way up to “The Last Frontier”.

  • Under The Tuscan Sun (Comedy – 2003) – The film is about Frances Mayes, a 35-year-old San Francisco writer whose perfect life has just taken an unexpected detour. Her recent divorce has left her with terminal writer’s block and extremely depressed. Her best friend, Patti, is beginning to think she might never recover. Frances decides to take a break and she buys a villa in the beautiful Tuscan countryside and decides to begin anew. Restoring her new home, she eventually finds the fulfillment she was searching for, including love.

https://youtu.be/dNZJnLN8irw

  • Eat Pray Love (Romance – 2010) – A married woman realizes how unhappy her marriage really is, and that her life needs to go in a different direction. After a painful divorce, she takes off on a round-the-world journey to “find herself”. Film locations included New York in the USA, Naples and Rome in Italy, and Delhi and Pataudi in India, as well as Padang Padang Beach and Ubud in Indonesia.

  • Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (Comedy Drama 2011) – Three friends, Friends Kabir, Imran and Arjun take a vacation in Spain before Kabir’s marriage. The trip turns into an opportunity to mend fences, heal wounds, fall in love with life and combat their worst fears.

TRAVEL MOVIES THAT INSPIRE WANDERLUST

  • Queen (Comedy Drama 2014) – Rani, a 24-year-old homely girl, decides to go on her honeymoon alone when her fiance calls off their wedding. Travelling around Europe on her maiden solo trip, she finds joy, makes friends and gains new perspective about living life on her own terms.

  • The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (Adventure 2013) – When his job along with that of his co-worker are threatened, Walter takes action in the real world embarking on a global journey that turns into an adventure more extraordinary than anything he could have ever imagined.

  • Wild (Adventure 2014) – A chronicle of one woman’s 1,100-mile solo hike undertaken as a way to recover from a recent personal tragedy. Cheryl Strayed, a writer crosses the dusty Mojave, crazy forests, snowy fields, and muddy trails, losing toenails but gaining mental clarity—or at least self-acceptance—along the way.

https://youtu.be/MvDT42x_NBk

  • Up in the Air (Drama 2009) – Ryan Bingham is truly living the high life. Flying all over the world on business, he never stops moving… until he meets Alex, a fellow passenger and learns that life isn’t about the journey, but the connections we make along the way.

  • The Darjeeling Limited (Adventure, Comedy, Drama 2007) – After the death of their father, three brothers set out on a train journey across India, in an attempt to rediscover their lost bond. The experiences that they have force them to introspect.

  • The Bucket List (Comedy, Drama 2007) – Two terminally ill men decide to explore life and make a bucket list comprising all the things they haven’t tried before. On their around-the-world vacation, they go skydiving, drive a Shelby Mustang, fly over the North Pole, eat dinner at Chevre d’or in France, visit and praise the beauty and history of Taj Mahal, India, ride motorcycles on the Great Wall of China, attend a lion safari in Tanzania, and visit the base of Mt. Everest in Nepal.

Which of these movies have you seen? Which are your favorite travel movies?

75 Responses

  1. I have seen Queen, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, Eat Pray Love and The Bucket List. All my favourites especially Queen & ZNMD.

    I was watching The Darjeeling Limited but didn’t like so didn’t finish.

    I seldom watch TV and these days, not at all! but Will watch others if I find them on TV.

    1. All the movies that you have watched are amazing travel movies. I can never get tired of watching some of these. Hope you get to watch the others too, Tarang!

    1. Bucket List is a wonderful movie about friendships and living life to the fullest. Hope you get to watch it, Stephanie!

  2. I’ve seen Bucket list and Under the Tuscan Sun…one of the reasons I enjoy movies is for this very reason, armchair travelling. I will watch the trailer links Shilpa, thank you for providing them!

    1. Please do and hope you enjoy this virtual traveling to the various places through these movies, Debbie 🙂

  3. What a great list, out of these I have only seen 5 so far as far as I remember. Queen has been my favorite, something I admired in the female protagonist despite being timid city girl- solo traveling. 😀

    1. I dont know how many times I have watched ZNMD and Queen. EPL is twice though. These are really amazing travel movies and showcase some amazing locales.

    1. Well said, Shalini. Travel truly transformed these characters and helped them find themselves in the process. These are some really inspiring movies.

    1. Yes, Tuscany is a hot fav in our home too, we love cooking and experimenting Tuscany food, thanks to The Complete Illustrated Tuscan Cookery Book!

  4. I was waiting for this post on your blog. Thankfully, other than ‘Under the Tuscan Sun’ I have watched all of them. Recently I watched a movie called ‘Paris can Wait’ and I loved that one as well.

    1. Paris Can Wait sounds interesting! Have not heard of it, will check it out! Thank you, Balaka, you are a sweetie!

  5. I love this post , Shilpa! All wonderful movies you have listed above. I have yet to see “The secret life of Walter Mitty” and “The Darjeeling Limited”. And my most favorite among the rest is our very own “Queen”. It is an absolute gem of a movie. I can watch it any number of times.

    1. True, Queen is truly inspiring. Thanks Sapna and hope you get to more travel more through these movies 🙂

  6. I’m afraid you have listed two of my favourites: “Wild” and “Into the Wild”. I’ve seen a couple more of the titles in your list.

    There is another film that I love: “Into Thin Air: Death on Everest” (1997). The film is great, but, as you have guessed, it doesn’t exactly leads you to try the climb of the mountain…

    1. I have read ‘Into the Wild’ and watched it too. It’s truly fascinating. Will check out “Into Thin Air: Death on Everest” Thanks for the recommendation, Eva!

  7. I love travel sagas. That’s a great list. Having travelled down south and Far East recently, I realize that unlike social media, travel makes you look at life in a positive way. So many beautiful experiences, such lovely people and amazing diversity.

    1. Well said. Travel is not only good for the soul but for the mind and the body too and if you cut yourself off from the social media. it’s simply fabulous. Thanks for dropping by and sharing your thoughts, Alka!

  8. I like this post shilpa, I enjoyed watching Queen and Zindagi Na Milegi dobara.. really enjoyed . I liked the trailer of eat, pray and love and the other videos are not opening will try again, thanks for sharing:)

    1. Queen and ZNMD are great Indian travel movies. Hope you get to watch other travel movies too, Genevive!

    1. Have read and seen so much about the beauty of Alaska. It is a must travel destination for adventure seekers. Thanks Jacqui, glad you liked this post 🙂

  9. I’ve only watched half the list and I’m listing down the other half to watch as soon as I can.

    Thank you for sharing this, Shilpa.

    1. Oh ZNMD is classic. I dont know how many times I have watched it. It has such fun moments, love the sense of humor of all the three guys 😀

  10. I don’t think I’ve seen any of these movies, but it’s funny because I just finished a project about an on-location lot in Arizona where celebrities used to stay while filming. There’s not much left of the area that harkens back to those days, and it’s too bad because I think more would go there if they knew it was so close to home.

  11. Didn’t know of many mentioned here.. eat, pray, love has been in my list from long now. Have to watch it. Seen only ZNMD,Queen and The Bucket List. I so hope I watch these soon.

  12. I’ve seen The Bucket List and Under the Tuscan Sun. I never saw the movie version of Eat Pray Love, but I read the book. All of the movies look good, and your descriptions make them even more enticing.

  13. Oooohhh.. what a great list of movies to add to my list of things to do while practicing social distancing! My all time favourite is Under The Tuscan Sun and Eat Pray Love. These are the only two I have seen on the list. Will definitely add the others to my list of movies to see. Thank You!

  14. Have seen almost all and I agree, travel-based movies can give me serious wanderlust. Under the Tuscan Sun was beautiful! Made me want to pack my bags and set off. Same with Into the Wild. Just the day before yesterday it was airing on TV. Eat, Pray, Love was also enjoyable. Who doesn’t dream of taking off like that? Loved your post, Shilpa

  15. I loved The Bucket List and Under The Tuscan Sun. I only recently watched Eat Pray Love for the first time. I know, it’s a tragedy that it took me so long to get around to seeing it but I really enjoyed it. I think I’ll have to watch a few more of these to inspire me to travel more next year.

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