These Movies About Italy Will Rouse Your Wanderlust And Inspire Your Next Trip

Think of Italy, and the imagination runs riot depending on what your passions are. For the food-obsessed, it's piles of freshly made pasta or pizza. For art and history buffs, it's the ancient ruins of Rome or Pompeii. For cinema lovers, the mind conjures visions of Italy through a lens, with scenes of sun-tinted olive groves scattered across the Tuscan hillsides or the terracotta rooftops of Florence. Whatever images spring to mind, it's easy to see why filmmakers from around the world continue to be inspired by the hopelessly beautiful and diverse cinematic backdrop of the Italian countryside and the towns brimming with charm and intrigue.

If you're planning a trip to Italy and need some inspiration, dive into the film archives and dig out classics such as "Roman Holiday," "Life is Beautiful," "A Room With A View," and, more recently, "Call Me By Your Name." Although vastly different films, watching them is enough to make you sweep up your belongings, throw them in a suitcase, and book the first flight over. The only problem? Deciding where to go first. So, pour yourself a glass of chianti, swap the popcorn for some olives, and enjoy a cinematic escape to the ultimate destinations in Italy. Buon viaggio!

A classic romantic comedy starring Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn, "Roman Holiday," directed by William Wyler, was filmed across several different locations throughout Rome. Even though it's a black-and-white film, the landmarks don't need any glorious Technicolor to make them shine. It tells the story of a princess who gets discovered by Joe, a newspaper reporter, after he finds her asleep on a bench. When he realizes her true identity, he intends to use her to earn money by printing an exclusive interview, without revealing what he's really up to. Needless to say, his ambitious intentions soon melt away; as they spend more time together exploring the city, Joe falls in love with the princess.

Famous scenes take in many of the city's landmarks, include the Roman Forum, where he finds her, and the Spanish Steps, where the pair famously sit eating gelato. One of the movie's most memorable scenes features the Mouth of Truth found just outside the church of Santa Maria in Cosmedin; it has become a favorite tourist location with visitors lining up to get photographed with their hands inside the mouth. If you'd like to follow in the footsteps of Princess Ann and Joe Bradley, rent a Vespa and zip through the cobbled streets Italian-style or take a guided walking tour around the famous locations — gelato included, of course.

"A Room with a View" is a quintessentially British drama based on the book by E.M. Forster that takes place between England and Italy. It follows the travels of a young English woman, Lucy Honeychurch, who travels to Florence chaperoned by her older cousin. There, she falls for a charismatic young man called George Emerson, who swaps his room with a view with hers in the hotel where they are both staying. Sadly, she is already promised to an older man, so when George comes to England, she must choose between the two. Starring Helena Bonham Carter and Julian Sands, the movie was filmed mostly in Florence and, much like "Roman Holiday" did in Rome, takes in many of the Tuscan city's famous landmarks.

The actual room with a view scenes were filmed at the former Pensione Quisisana, now the Hotel degli Orafi. If you fancy the same view Lucy had of the Ponte Vecchio arching over the River Arno, you need to book room 414. Other filming locations, which may or may not put you in the mood for romance, are the Piazza della Santissima Annunziata and the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, with the famous dome that you can climb to on one of the sightseeing tours. This is a timeless classic that you now have to watch if you want to find out who Lucy ultimately chooses.

The Oscar-winning "Life is Beautiful," directed by and starring Roberto Benigni, is set in Italy during World War II. It tells the tale of Guido, a Jewish waiter who, after knocking the girl of his dreams over with his bicycle, wins her heart. They then fall in love, get married, and have a son. Guido lives a happy life running a bookstore, until the film takes a dark turn and he and his family are taken to a concentration camp. Guido tries to protect his son by telling him it's all a game, and despite the tragic situation they are in, the film is a story of love, hope, and sacrifice.

The first half of the movie was filmed in Arezzo and in surrounding Tuscan towns and the countryside. The famous scene of Guido cycling through town was filmed between Piazza Grande and Via Borgunto, where his fictional bookshop was located. Other notable scenes are the Art Deco-style Villa Masini in Montevarchi, which featured both as Dora's home and as the Grand Hotel. If the picture-perfect, cyprus-lined roads winding through the olive-covered Tuscan hills are calling your name, you can reach Arezzo from the nearest airport in Florence, which is about an hour away by car. From Florence, take a bus or train into Arezzo and embark on a private or self-guided tour of the town to relive this magical cinematic journey. While exploring the town and surrounding areas in Tuscany and Umbria, don't just go by the guide book — be sure to include a few locations that locals recommend you visit while in Italy.

A romantic coming-of-age film, "Call Me by Your Name" sees 17-year-old Elio (Timothée Chalamet) fall for the older Oliver (Armie Hammer), a graduate student who comes to stay with Elio and his family to assist Elio's father, an archaeology professor. The film follows Oliver and Elio's adventures over a dreamy Italian summer in 1983, filled with lazy days spent swimming in lakes and rivers and long sunny evenings spent laughing and dining in the garden of a shabby, but very chic, villa.

Filming locations were in a quiet corner of northern Italy, around the towns of Crema, Moscazzano, and Bergamo in the Lombardy region. The Italian countryside is beautifully depicted with such dreamy nostalgia; it's enough to make anyone want to stay there forever. If you're tempted by the idea of quiet rural Italian life, the nearest airport to Crema is in Milan, about an hour's drive away. Unfortunately, the private Villa Albergoni, which was used as the family home, isn't open to the public. However, you can wander through the streets of Crema and see the Piazza del Duomo (where Oliver has drinks) in front of the striking cathedral. A 6-mile drive south to Moscazzano brings you to the Bar Belvedere, where the scene with Oliver playing cards as Elio watches takes place. You can also head about 60 miles further east to Sirmione to find ancient Roman ruins, which were also featured in the film.

It would be a very long read if all the movies filmed in Italy were included here, but there are some other notable destinations worth adding to your must-see list. Starting in Rome, some of the best sites for history lovers to visit are recreated in all their splendor in "Gladiator" (2000). Okay, so the Colosseum may not look quite the same, but with a little imagination, let your mind wander back in time and imagine how it must have felt to stand amongst the crowds roaring with macabre delight. Also in the Eternal City, the Trevi Fountain was captured in film in "La Dolce Vita" (1960), leaving us with the immortal image of Anita Ekberg taking a moonlit dip — not recommended, unless you want to be pursued through the streets by some angry Italian policemen.

For spy fans, perhaps an image of James Bond speeding through the Venetian canals springs to mind. Often chosen as a film location due to its beauty and atmosphere, Venice has captured the imagination of filmmakers for years. "Death in Venice" (1971), "Dangerous Beauty" (1998), and "Don't Look Now" (1973) all succeed in portraying the city in elegant, suspenseful, or more dramatic tones. The Bay of Naples is displayed in all its seductive beauty in "The Talented Mr. Ripley" (1999), as is the Sicilian countryside in the classic "Godfather" trilogy. Although it's not a movie, a special mention has to be given to the recent series "Ripley" (2024), a superb display of black-and-white cinematography showcasing Italy's cities and coastlines and a final addition to inspire your next trip.

To come up with these films set in Italy, we combined personal choice with a diverse range of films over different time periods, genres, and filming locations. They also consistently appear in "Best Of" lists, and these in particular stir up the imagination of being in each of the landscapes featured, providing a glimpse of what the ideal Italian vacation might look like.