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Movies and TV shows provide a great way to see your favorite types of vacation spots without leaving your house. When I get bored looking at the same four walls every day, I tend to turn to movies and TV shows to “travel” in the comfort of my house. By using TV shows and film genres such as horror, comedy, romance, and drama, there are many different things to watch when traveling inside your house.
Beach:
Beaches are always my first thought about where to travel when I want to getaway. The sound of the water crashing on the sand always seems to help get you into a relaxing mood. Listed below are a few movies to turn to when you are looking for a beach vacation.
1. Jaws (1975) – (Horror)
A cinematic classic, Jaws, is about a “rogue” shark targeting the ocean side of Amity Island after finding out he has a taste for human flesh. Jaws has inspired an entire genre of movies and of course, the phrase “You’re going to need a bigger boat” quoted in a countless number of movies.
2: The Shallows – (Horror)
Blake Lively plays surfer and med student Nancy, who is looking for a secret beach that her mother went to when she was pregnant with Nancy. The secret beach is calm and clear, providing a seemingly safe environment throughout the whole movie.
After surfing for most of the day, Nancy gets attacked by a shark and has to survive the night on a small reef that is only visible when it is low tide. The appeal of surfing is on full display during the first part of the movie showing the excitement and relaxation of literally going with the flow.
3: Just Go With It – (Comedy)
Adam Sandler plays a popular plastic surgeon, Danny, who wears a fake wedding ring in order to not have to call back the women he sleeps with.
Jennifer Aniston plays his assistant, Katherine, who helps him get out of his lie to a girl he wants to marry. The second half of this movie takes place in Hawaii after Katherine’s son blackmails Danny into taking them all on a vacation.
4: Couples Retreat – (Comedy)
Four couples are having problems with their relationship and they all decide as a group of friends to go on this trip.
During their retreat, we see waterfalls, fish, and a weird yoga instructor all while enjoying the view and calming effects of the ocean.
5: Animal Kingdom – (TV Series)
With four seasons out and a fifth one confirmed, this comes as a highly anticipated show. The Cody brothers pull a lot of illegal jobs in order to keep living their lavish lifestyle in Oceanside, California.
Their mom is head of the operation and continues to make them do their jobs no matter the cost. With one brother addicted to drugs, one cheating on his wife, another having just finished jail, and a closeted gay brother, what could go wrong? (A lot, a lot goes wrong.)
6: Lost – (TV Series)
Lost is a TV show that had an accidental airplane crash landing on an abandoned island — possibly in the Bermuda Triangle as they can’t communicate to the rest of the world. Granted, each season got a little more unrealistic, it has produced some great characters and wonderful character arcs to go along with it.
And obviously, with this being a show based on an abandoned island, every time they go on an adventure to find more people or food, they go through a rain forest landscape. When they are stationary, they are relaxing on a beach with the ocean constantly lapping at the sand on one side and the rain forest shaking and providing eerie sounds on the other.
Abroad/Domestic:
If traveling abroad has always been a dream, catching famous locations and seeing the landscape may only be viewable through a TV screen this year. Fortunately, there have been quite a few movies made abroad.
1: Sisterhood Of The Traveling Pants – (Drama)
Four friends found a pair of pants that magically fit their different body types. As their summer starts, they send the pants back and forth to each person along with a letter talking about what has happened while wearing the pants.
One goes to Greece, one goes to Mexico, one stays home, and one goes to her dad’s house to live with his new family for the summer. The movie shows Greece’s beauty and strong family atmosphere while showing the inner city of Mexico where the soccer player’s friend is located.
2: Taken – (Thriller)
Ahh, the movie you are constantly told will happen when you suggest you want to travel alone across seas. Liam Neeson has a special set of skills in order to get his daughter back from a sex trafficking ring in Paris.
As with many action movies, you see the beautiful city during many chasing scenes and some of the bad scenery.
3: Jack Ryan – (TV Series)
John Krasinski stars as Jack Ryan, who was working at a desk for the CIA when he got moved back into the field to travel and help take down terrorists. This series is based on the books by Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan. They travel to different countries in order to help stop terrorist attacks and help keep the peace among the different nations.
He stops terrorists by finding the reasoning behind their hate and showing the antagonists humanity to make them seem like real people instead of a stereotypical bad guy. Also, instead of the normal fancy scenery from action movies, Jack Ryan shows the different groups’ headquarters in each season. In fact, in the second season, Jack Ryan shows the differences in poverty and the privileged in Venezuela.
4: Dark Tourist – (TV Series)
While I do recommend this show, it comes with a lot of warnings. There is animal abuse, talks about gun violence, and a lot of conversations about death. With all of that in mind, if you can handle it, this docu-series is highly recommended.
David Farrier has a calm and interesting way of looking at all of the tourist spots he travels to and genuinely wants to learn more about these unique places. It is extremely informative about cultures and nationalities you may have never heard of.
5: Shameless – (TV Series)
Shameless is based in Chicago and resulted in multiple episodes throughout the ten seasons of having snow or a lot of cold weather. With an iconic gay couple, a crazy alcoholic father, and an older sister with too much on her plate, this is a great series to get into.
6: Longmire – (TV Series)
Longmire is a western crime investigation show that has episodes traveling to the mountains of Wyoming. The show lasted six seasons with Walt solving crimes in his small town along with the help of his deputies Vic, Ferg, and Branch and his friend Henry Standing Bear.
Snow:
Have you ever wanted to see what Mount Everest looks like or what it takes to become a sled dog racer? Watching these movies below may give you a glimpse into the vacation of a lifetime in the snow.
1: Everest – (Thriller)
This movie is based on the tragedy that happened in May of 1996. Two men named Rob Hall and Scott Fisher took an expedition up Mount Everest only to have tragedy strike both teams. The movie is set almost entirely on Mount Everest and is a joy to watch. The mountain itself is covered in snow and ice along with giant crevasses that many people have died in.
The walk up to base camp has many children enjoying their time while older men and women gasp for air while passing many prayer flags. You learn some climbing techniques and language as well as quotes from some of the most famous climbers to have taken on Mount Everest.
2: Frozen – (Horror)
Not to be confused with the Disney Princess movie, Frozen is about a group of friends that are the last ones to travel on a ski lift and the operator shuts down the lift before they get off.
This happens on a Sunday and the ski resort doesn’t open back up until Friday which leaves the three friends with no choice but to try to get off the ski lift from their chair extremely high off the ground. It’s a good movie to watch but maybe not too soon before traveling to go skiing.
3: Snow Dogs – (Drama)
Snow Dogs is one of my favorite Disney movies with eight huskies, one border collie, Cuba Gooding Jr., and Thunder Jack. Cuba Gooding Jr. plays Ted Brooks, a dentist in Miami, Florida who finds out he was adopted after his mother died and leaves him possessions in her will.
Ted travels to Alaska to find her huskies and after much practice, has to save Thunder Jack in the Arctic Challenge. We learn about sled dog racing as Barb gives Ted a few lessons on how to become a great sled dog racer.
4: Big Miracle – (Drama)
Big Miracle is a movie that all animal lovers should watch. Being based off a true story, in October of 1988, three California Gray Whales are stuck in the Alaskan ice, unable to travel their normal route and get a proper amount of air.
This results in the press traveling to Alaska and locals trying to keep the water warm enough and create an exit route in order to set free the California Gray Whales. This movie follows the efforts put in by everyone in order to save these whales.
Travel While Sitting On Your Couch
With summer getting hotter and more protocols being put in place to make sure everyone is safe, traveling from home may be your safest bet. Staying safe during the pandemic and during the summer it may seem difficult but finding what you enjoy to fill your time can help. So grab your laptop, fill up your baby pool, and set one of these movies or TV shows up and enjoy your day.
