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Set-Jetting: Movies to Watch | Dream by Luxury Escapes
Always wanted to know where the likes of atmospheric Dune and Game of Thrones were filmed? Read on to uncover some of the world’s most scene-stealing destinations.
Peru
Peru’s greatest ambassador, Paddington Bear, returns to his roots in Paddington in Peru (2024). With Antonio Banderas and Olivia Colman joining the cast, Peru-watchers will spy the Incan ruins of Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley, as well as the cities of Lima and Cusco in the movie.
The town of Maras, an hour north of Cusco, steps up as Paddington’s hometown. Prepping climbers may not want to watch Touching the Void (2003), Joe Simpson’s terrifying account of climbing the west face of Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes; for the rest of us, it’s a nail-biter set in some of the world’s most dramatic scenery.
Malta
The little Mediterranean island nation still buzzes with the clash of swords and slap of sandals of Gladiator II (2024) – 24 years since director Ridley Scott’s Gladiator movie featuring Russell ‘Maximus’ Crowe. It again starred atmospheric 18th-century Fort Manoel and its walled capital Valletta; you’ll also spy Valletta in the latest Jurassic Park movie, Jurassic World Rebirth (2025). Malta’s other great fort, Fort Ricasoli, has doubled as Rome, Troy and most recently, as the French city of Toulon for another Ridley Scott epic, Napoleon (2023), starring Joaquin Phoenix.
England
You could fill a book with movies shot in London – think Notting Hill, Bond’s Skyfall and Four Weddings and a Funeral. Leaving the Big Smoke, The Salt Path (2025) is the adaptation of Raynor Winn’s memoir along England’s longest walking route, the South West Coast Path. It’s filmed in Somerset, Devon and also Cornwall, which also features in the Game of Thrones spin-off House of the Dragon, whose third season drops next year – look for the medieval castle St Michael’s Mount, aka Driftmark.
England’s manors and mansions again frock up for the romance of Bridgerton season 4’s 2026 release; spot Ranger’s House in Greenwich in south-east London, the home of the Bridgerton tribe, while the Featherington crew camp at 1 Royal Crescent in beautiful Bath.
United Arab Emirates
The rolling dunes of Dune 2’s (2024) desert planet of Arrakis are actually the Liwa Oasis (thankfully without any giant, voracious sandworms), which is 250km from downtown Abu Dhabi, on the edge of the vast Empty Quarter (Rub’al Khali). It’s still unconfirmed as to whether Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya return next year in the yet-to-be-filmed Dune: Messiah.
The Empty Quarter has already provided the backdrop for earlier Star Wars films and Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning (2023), its signature rooftop chase this time along the roof of Abu Dhabi’s as then yet-to-open Zayed airport.
Canada
Spot a swirl of red cloaks in Toronto and you know an episode of The Handmaid’s Tale is being filmed – while the final series is now showing, its sequel, The Testaments, is currently under production. Toronto watchers might recognise the city hall and University of Toronto campus, as well as Yonge-Dundas Square.
If the dreamy forest scenery of smoochy TV series Virgin River has you needing a forest getaway, jump a water taxi from Vancouver to the real-life Snug Cove on Bowen Island. Otherwise, cross the Arctic Circle to Canada’s most northerly city, Iqaluit, on Baffin Island, the film site for the all-Canadian series North of North (2025).
New York City
New York City has a history of stealing the show – think When Harry Met Sally (1989), with Katz’s Delicatessen the location of the iconic “I’ll have what she’s having” scene. Or the Plaza Hotel, showcased in the Christmas cult movie Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992) – you can still order its 16-scoop sundae with all the fixings (but be prepared for a mighty price tag). Recently, the city streets were taken over by the clunky jalopy of Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire (2024), which returns to its beginning at the New York City firehouse.
Northern Ireland
With its picturesque pubs, rolling countryside and storied streets, Northern Ireland punches above its weight, hitting the big time with its trail of moody Game of Thrones locations. Travel through the Dark Hedges, an 18th-century avenue of beech trees better known as the King’s Road, or Castle Ward, aka Winterfell, the seat of House Stark.
Otherwise, head to Derry to reenact your favourite Derry Girls scene, and to its drawcard mural of the stars on the wall of Badger’s Bar. For a taste of the live-action remake of How to Train Your Dragon (2025), head to Tollymore Forest Park (also home to GoT’s orphaned direwolves).
New Zealand
Arguably the grandaddy of the jet-setting trend, the six movies of the Lord of the Rings series were filmed entirely in New Zealand.
Don’t forget other Kiwi cinema greats such as Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016), shot in the North Island’s Waitakere Ranges in west Auckland and Tongariro National Park, home of the country’s best day hike (and LOTR’s Mount Doom).
On the South Island, it’s a wrap on filming East of Eden (2026), the screen adaptation of the John Steinbeck novel, starring Florence Pugh and the southern city of Dunedin. Dunedin’s gardens, railway and hotel will take on 1800s California for the series, due to land next year.
Thailand
The series that re-ignited the set-jetting trend of travelling to locations you’ve seen on screen, The White Lotus, is now in its third series, having cemented the fortunes of the Four Seasons hotels in Maui, Hawaii and Taormina, Sicily. In its third iteration, it’s the Thai hotspots of Koh Samui, Phuket and Bangkok in the spotlight, with filming taking place in dramatic Four Seasons Koh Samui and three Anantara resorts. Meanwhile, the national parks and limestone caves and karsts of Krabi, Phang Nga and Trang are thrown back in time for Jurassic World 4 (2025).
Tunisia
This little North African country has serious film pedigree – its southern region of Tataouine was the inspiration and film site for the original Star Wars (1977) and four more movies in the series. Visit the Mos Espa spaceport, the movie set is preserved in the deserts today, and the lonely Lars homestead on the salt flats of Chott el Jerid. They’re also the location for The English Patient (1996), while Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) saw the narrow streets of Kairouan double for Cairo. Even further back, the ruins of ancient Carthage and the 8th-century fortress Ribat of Monastir were the backdrop for Monty Python’s classic, Life of Brian.
Feature image: Copyright of the Tourism Authority of Thailand
