There’s nothing better than kicking back, ordering an extra large pizza with every topping imaginable and watching a good movie. Well, there’s nothing better except for travelling that is, and these are the films that will inspire you to travel!

I used to watch movie after movie before I left home to hit the road. I spent countless hours winding down the days and trying to satisfy my wanderlust. Here’s a compilation of the best films in the world, the films that made me want to travel. These are the films that will make you quit your job to travel the world!

The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty…

The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty is perhaps THE great travel movie of the last decade. Walter Mitty, the titular protagonist- played by Ben Stiller- is a negative assets manager at Life Magazine, whose forced on a journey of ridiculous, foolhardy proportions, in search of the Quintessence of Life. Perhaps I see so much of myself in the shy, introverted Walter, who never the less forces himself out of his comfort zone to embark on an outlandish adventure across Greenland, Iceland, Afghanistan and the Himalayas in search of himself and a lost photograph. If you don’t want to quit your office job to embark on your own adventure, then don’t even think about switching this exceptional travel film on.

Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas…

Hunter S. Thompson’s ode to the dying convulsions of the American Dream is lucidly adapted by Terry Gilliam into an hallucinogenic film which you may never understand. This psychedelic, always confusing, and horribly intense adaptation of the book will make you want to buy a ton of drugs, find yourself an attorney, a few fire arms and smash up Las Vegas.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8m662obIvhY

7 Years in Tibet…

A beautiful depiction of a Tibet that the traveller will never again be able to set eyes upon. The true story of Austrian mountaineer Heinrich Harrer who escapes across the Himalayas after being interned by the British in India following the outbreak of World War II. In Tibet, he starts a new, alien life which he comes to embrace, along the way befriending the young Dalai Lama and witnessing the tumultuous invasion by China which irrevocably changed the Tibetan way of life forever. This a film which traverses many genres, but the over riding theme is how travel, new cultures and experiencing different ways of life can change a person as much as the landscape of a nation can be changed through politics and conflict.

A Walk In The Woods…

Hilarious, charming and motivational. A Walk In The Woods goes a long way to show that you’re never to old to attempt anything. Even if that means attempting to walk across the entire length of The Appalachian Trail, a mammoth hike through the east of the United States, as an ageing writer with no walking experience and an alcoholic travel companion who’s in even worse shape. This is Bill Bryson’s walk in the woods.

Salmon Fishing In The Yemen…

I was caught by the title. Instantly transfixed by this unusual premise. Who even goes to Yemen, let alone tries to fish for salmon there? This film follows the dreams of a Sheikh who attempts to realise his vision for fly fishing in Yemen. The major problem of course, is that Yemen has no salmon. So in goes Ewan MacGregor, a fisheries expert, quite literally out of his depth in a country he’s never even visited, as he attempts to realise the insane, the impossible and find a bit of romance along the way.

Hector And The Search For Happiness…

Hector- played by Simon Pegg- is a psychiatrist. Hector thought he was happy. He was successful, he thought he enjoyed life, his career, but he realised that he was becoming bored. So he sets out on a journey across the world, to research what it means to be happy. He travels to China, Africa, America, he interviews gangsters, kidnappers, drug lords, billionaire businessmen, all the while searching for the true meaning of happiness and trying to find happiness in his own life.

Tracks…

Tracks is the true story of Robyn Davidson who travels across the desert of Western Australia accompanied only by her pet dog and her trusty camels. She undertakes a huge journey, across a vast wilderness and at the same time unravels the cultural landscape of Australia itself, as she overcomes her own demons to make it to the ocean with her camels. This is a travel film that will motivate you to get off the sofa and do something big!

Kon-Tiki…

In 1947 Norwegian explorer Thor Heyerdahl and his crew set out on a hand built, flimsy wooden raft from Peru. Their aim: to travel over 4000 miles of rough and unforgiving ocean, to prove a theory that Polynesian settlers could have colonised South America. There’s sharks, waves and storms. It makes for riveting viewing.

The Way…

The Way follows one man’s personal pilgrimage along the famous El Camino, the route through Spain to Santiago de Compostela that has been walked for centuries. It shows the positive effect that a real physical and mental challenge can have on a person, and it might just make you pick up a rucksack to make your own pilgrimage.

EuroTrip…

EuroTrip has turned into a comedy classic. It’s stupid. It’s funny. It’s probably offensive to anyone from any European country. But it captures perfectly what every teenager expects from their first travel experience, as the film follows a bunch of American friends who try to understand and travel across the very foreign nations of Europe.

Richard Collett

Am I missing an epic film? An inspirational movie? An eye opening documentary? Then let me know in the comments below!