Many movies inspire the audience to want to pack their bags and
hit the road. Here are a few to load
into your DVD or Blu-Ray player for some travel inspiration.
The
Lord of the Rings Trilogy: Filmed entirely in New Zealand, the best
scenery that the country has to offer was on brilliant display as Tolkien’s
Middle Earth. Notable sights to visit include Tongariro National Park, home of
three active volcanoes and the setting for the Land of Mordor: Mt. Ruapehu, the
largest active volcano in New Zealand, Mt. Tongariro and Mt. Ngauruhoe. The
Whakapapa Ski Field on the slopes of Mt. Ruapehu hosted the battlefield for the
opening battle sequence in Fellowship of
the Ring. Want to visit the Shire? Then head over to the private Alexander
Farm in the Waikato area. This farm now proudly advertises itself as
“Hobbiton.” The city of Wellington supported quite a few filming locations such
as the town of Bree and the road where the Hobbits first hide from the Black
Riders. A host of tour companies offer
packages that take travelers around New Zealand to the locations of the movies’
filming spots.
A
River Runs Through It: This
Academy Award winning movie was set in Montana and was filmed there, as well.
The scenery played a large part in the telling of the story, and the Academy
win for cinematography speaks to that. The river scenes were shot on three
different rivers. To take in the wonderful river scenery from the film, travel
close to Paradise Valley on the Yellowstone River, south of Bozeman on the
Gallatin River, and south of Big Timber on the Boulder River.
March
of the Penguins: Adventurous souls may be inspired by the
scenery of Antarctica seen in this award-winning documentary on penguins. This
film was shot mainly around the permanent French scientific base Dumont d'Urville in Adélie Land, Antarctica. Those who
like it cold, rugged, and rough may find that this movie gives the push needed
to schedule a journey to the south.
The
Sound of Music: This movie has been inspiring travel to
Austria for years, and with good reason. The bulk of the movie was filmed in
and around Salzburg, Austria. For example, the exterior of the Von Trapp Villa
was filmed in two different locations. The front of the house was Schloss Frohnburg which was a country house but is now a music
academy. The lakefront terrace at the back was filmed at Schloss Leopoldskron,
a castle which is now a private college. The Do-Re-Mi song begins on the Winkler Terrace which provides great
views of Salzburg. The abbey where Maria married Captain von Trapp is the twin-towered
church of Mondsee Cathedral, just 15 miles from Salzburg. Sound of Music fans will have no
trouble finding any number of companies in Salzburg that tour the actual film
sights. Sing the songs, and make it seem even more authentic!
Braveheart: Fans of
this movie will be interested to know that while the entire movie is set in
Scotland, only a fraction of the movie was filmed there, such as the sweeping
mountain scenes with William Wallace traipsing along the mountain pathway which
were filmed on the Mamores, a group of ten mountains that stretch between Glen
Nevis and Loch Leven. Glen Coe and the
base of Ben Nevis were a few of the other Scottish sights that made it into the
film. The rest of the outdoor movie scenes were shot in Ireland, such as Trim
Castle which became the town of York. Dunsoghly Castle stood in for the more
famous Edinburgh Castle of Scotland, the base of Robert the Bruce. Either way, travels
to one or both of these countries would satisfy the appetite for what the
British Isles have to offer.
The
Harry Potter Saga: Speaking of the British Isles, consider the
recently popular movie series, Harry
Potter. The beautiful U-shaped gulley at Glen Coe in Scotland provided the
backdrop for the area around Hogwarts Castle, although the castle is strictly a
CGI creation. Scotland also provided the Glenfinnan Viaduct, the 21-arch
viaduct that the Hogwarts Express steamed across. In England, swing by Alnwick
Castle in Northumberland to see where Harry first rode a broomstick, Christ
Church at the University of Oxford which provided the inspiration for the Great
Hall of Hogwarts, and Lacock Abbey in Wiltshire which became the setting for
many of the classrooms and hallways at Hogwarts.
These
are just a handful of the wonderful movies that have graced the silver screen
and inspired movie goers to pack their bags.
