Famous Filming Locations
From entire towns to tiny, hidden gems off the beaten path, the film industry finds unique and extravagant locales to elevate their stories to new heights. And these fantastic visuals have inspired travellers to explore new and exotic locations. Here are some of our favourites…
ITALY
It’s no wonder Italy is a popular film location. From the ancient historical monuments and remains of the Roman Empire to the areas of incredible natural beauty, Italy has all the ingredients of an enchanting film location – most of which you can visit too.
Matera
The southern region of Basilicata is famous for the ancient cave city of Matera, whose sassi – stone houses carved from the limestone cliffs and caves – sprawl below the rim of a gaping ravine. Narrow alleys and steps weave through these house-like facades, which have been inhabited since Paleolithic times.
A significant action sequence in the 007 film No Time to Die (2021), involving a high-speed chase with a Triumph 12000 motorcycle and Bond’s Aston Martin DB5 takes place here.
Matera also features in Wonder Woman (2017) and The Passion of the Christ (2004).
You can experience the cave dwellings of Matera on our Puglia, Lecce & Vieste tour.
Rome
Italy’s capital is one of the world’s most charismatic cities, offering visitors an intoxicating blend of larger-than-life ruins, incredible art and street life.
The Eternal City, as the Romans called it, served as the backdrop for a classic film, Roman Holiday (1953). Starring Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck, the film featured Rome’s numerous most iconic sights, including the Colosseum, the Trevi Fountain and the Bocca della Verità – or the Mouth of Truth – which supposedly bites off the hands of liars.
Florence
Another favourite Italian film location is Florence, the cradle of the Renaissance. It is considered by many to be Italy’s finest city, the place to feast on world-class art and gourmet cuisine with narrow, cobbled streets, where little has changed since the 16th century.
Florence provides the setting for most of Dan Brown’s book, Inferno, adapted to film in 2016. Many outdoor scenes were filmed around Piazza della Signoria and other famous spots around the city: the impressive Il Duomo cathedral, the Palazzo Vecchio and the immaculate Boboli Gardens. Many other films shot in Florence include E M Forster’s A Room with a View (1985), the drama series Medici (2016-2019)and the recent House of Gucci (2021).
You can see the highlights of this city on our tour of Florence & Tuscany.
GERMANY
From classics like Cabaret (1972) to new blockbusters like Captain America: Civil War (2016), Germany has been a Hollywood favourite for years.
Berlin
Germany’s capital has captured the imaginations of authors and screenwriters. Originally two separate 14th-century towns, it has long been a city of contrasts and never more so than in its recent past, which makes it such a fascinating place to visit.
The remnants of its violent past heighten the drama and create the perfect backdrop for thrilling action and adventure. Its well-known history lends itself well to spy films like the James Bond film, Octopussy (1983), and the Jason Bourne franchise (2002-2016), both of which have shot scenes in the city.
See famous Berlin sights like the Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag and visit what remains of the Berlin Wall – now a protected historical monument on our tour of Berlin, Dresden, Meiseen and Colditz.
Neuschwanstein Castle
Neuschwanstein Castle, one of Germany’s most iconic monuments, epitomises our idea of a fairy-tale castle. It inspired so many stories and fascinated children the world over. Its white limestone façade and blue turrets are said to be the real-life inspiration for several Disney castles: the castle in the 1950s animated films Cinderella (1950) and Sleeping Beauty (1950). However, the castle has also been featured in other classic movies such as Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968), featured as Baron Bomburst’s castle, and the castle Hendley and Blythe also fly over the Neuschwanstein in The Great Escape (1963).
Those with a more eclectic taste in films may also recognise Neuschwanstein Castle as King Roland’s castle in the Star Wars parody Spaceballs (1987).
You can visit Neuschwanstein Castle on our Austrian Tyrol & Innsbruck tour.
JORDAN
The appeal of Jordan is not hard to spot, with some of the world’s most stunning desert landscapes and echoes of the heart of the ancient world all waiting to be discovered. From Moses, Alexander the Great and the Romans to Saladin, the Crusaders and Lawrence of Arabia. At the heart of the ancient world, it’s part of a region seen as the very cradle of civilisation – fascinating stories have come to life on the lifeless desert floor.
Wadi Rum
The first film to shoot in Wadi Rum was the 1962 classic film Lawrence of Arabia. Recent films have used the otherworldliness of the red stone narrow gorges, natural arches and towering cliffs as the setting for space adventures like The Star Wars prequel, Rouge One (2016), which featured as Planet Jedha and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019), as planet Pasaana.
The desert location is also a favourite of director Ridley Scott, who filmed The Martian (2015) and Prometheus (2012) there, and Denis Villeneuve, the director of Dune: Part One (2021) & Two (set to be released this year).
You can tour Wadi Rum in 4×4 vehicles and stay the night at the Wadi Rum Space Village, a Bedouin-style tented camp on our tour of Jordan and Petra.
Petra
Close to Wadi Rum is the Lost City of Petra. This must-see sight was rediscovered in 1812 and is considered one of the New Seven Wonders of the World. The ancient capital is famous throughout history as a centre of trade. Legend has it, it is also where Moses struck a rock and water gushed forth.
Most notably, the exterior of the Treasury, or Al-Khazneh, was featured in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) as The Temple of the Sun, in which Indy has to complete a series of challenges on his quest for The Holy Grail. It was featured more recently in the Disney live-action remake of Aladdin (2019).
Visit Petra and Wadi Rum on our new tour, Wonders of Jordan.
NEW ZEALAND
The epic landscape of New Zealand is the perfect backdrop for epic adventures, making it a special favourite of the fantasy genre.
Packed into a land mass of just over 100,000 square miles – only a little larger than the UK – are magnificent national parks, snow-covered mountains, rugged peaks, thick forests, green fertile coastal plains, plunging waterfalls, huge lakes and fjords, geysers and volcanoes.
Wellington
The most famous films shot in New Zealand are the Lord of the Rings (2001 –2003) and The Hobbit (2012-2014) trilogies. Filming locations spanned more than 150 locations in the North and South Islands.
The most accessible filming location is Wellington, which was used in many settings throughout the trilogies. For example, the forested areas around Mount Victoria, within walking distance of the city centre, were used to depict Hobbiton Woods and Wellington’s Kaitoke Regional Park became Rivendell, home of the High-Elves, where Frodo recovered from the knife attack.
Canterbury
The region of Canterbury includes a large central portion of the East Coast of the South Island, centred around the city of Christchurch. With silvery beaches and the jagged Southern Alps, the landscapes of the region offer a wide variety of film locations.
The Lord of the Rings trilogy built a bespoke set on the sheer-sided hill known as Mount Sunday, which became the setting of Erodas, home to the Rohan people.
Another classic fantasy film shot in New Zealand is Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005). The epic battle in the first film between Aslan’s forces and the powerful army of the White Witch was filmed in Flock Hill Station, near Arthur’s pass in Canterbury.
Explore New Zealand’s epic landscape on our New Zealand tour and travel through Canterbury’s Southern Alps on the TranzAlpine train, one of the great train journeys.
CROATIA
Croatia’s stunning natural beauty and incredible coastlines offer a dramatic backdrop for films. The Dalmatian coastline is perhaps the country’s best-known feature, with dramatic cliff faces overlooking the emerald-blue waters of the Adriatic Sea for hundreds of miles.
Dubrovnik
Soaring above the turquoise Adriatic against limestone mountains, Dubrovnik sits proudly within medieval walls. The former Republic of Ragusa boasts a perfectly preserved old town overlooking a stunning coastline graced by fragrant pine forests.
This stunning city featured in two successful franchises. Dubrovnik was the film location for many scenes in Game of Thrones, featured as King’s Landing, the capital city of the Seven Kingdoms. Star Wars: The Last Jedi turns Dubrovnik into an out-of-this-world casino city – the Monte Carlo of the Star Wars galaxy.
Visit the city’s fascinating sights on our Dubrovnik & the Dalmatian Coast tour.
You can tour Croatia or gently gliding along the coast of Croatia to see these film locations from a different perspective on a luxury yacht cruise.
Find out if you can visit the location of your favourite films with Riviera Travel.
