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What TV Shows Feed Your Travel Dreams?

PBS is chockablock with travel shows with Rick's show remaining the jewel in the crown (for me), but having seen literally every episode (going back into the old catalog too) many, many times, we can often just roll it in the background but are not deriving a ton of new "dreams" from it. It is interesting to revisit the specific shows for an upcoming trip (or just completed trip) to see what "extra" we can get from them. In reality, though, we will have already gone the RS guidebook route and internet planning (like here) to get much deeper.

We do mix in the other travel shows we get on PBS, but those are all "real" vs the types of TV shows I am thinking (and asking) about which are fictional and/or travel-show adjacent.

So, for us, we wrapped up the Emily In Paris (Netflix) show (until the next season). I finally watched the first Van Der Valk (PBS) for an Amsterdam drama. Periodically watch The Amazing Race for it's rapid bouncing around the world. Slow Horses (Apple) or Bridgerton (Netflix) give us a London/England mix. Even White Lotus (HBO/MAX) could be visually stunning despite darker plots. In the good old days before it got way too scripted, Top Gear (BBC) was great when the trio would set off across the roads of Europe. We loved the Durrells in Corfu (PBS) as well. And House Hunters International - despite it turning a bit formulaic with the "drama" between couples.

I should also add the countless stages of the Tour de France, Vuelta Espana, Giro d'Italia, Paris-Nice, etc., that I watch displaying the real and steady magnificence of those countries.

It's actually tough to remember all the shows we often get sucked into simply because of the locale. But there are a LOT for us.

How about you?

Posted by
1417 posts

Hmm. I often watch cooking or food centric shows that feature different venues. Chefs Table is one of my favorites. This season is all about noodles: Italy, Los Angeles, London, Cambodia

Posted by
11739 posts

Too many! We love the British mysteries so Vera, Shetland, Broadchurch, Hinterland. Not that we’ve gotten to Northumberland (very much want to go there), Shetland, or the southern coast of England just yet.

The TV series Rome set in Ancient Rome fueled our first trip and might just merit a rewatching as we are now in Rome and were thinking about the TV show. While we’re on Italy, Hotel Portofino is beautiful and makes me long for when Liguria was not overrun with the likes of us. So elegant! I also adore the movie Mid-August Lunch (Pranzo di Ferragosto) which speaks to Roman culture. I am sure there are dozens. Those are top-of-my-head.

Posted by
1323 posts

I remember watching Van Der Valk in the 1970s. Catchy theme tune and Barry Foster pretending to be Dutch. Is it really still going on?

More up-to-date, I'd guess the modern version of All Creatures Great and Small must rank highly for pulling in visitors to God's Own Country.

Best, though, is surely Sicily and Inspector Montalbano. I cannot imagine why anyone would go there if not for Montalbano and the great food he was somehow always getting.

Posted by
1134 posts

Because food is a huge part of our travel experience, we gravitate towards those types of shows - like Anthony Bourdain and Stanley Tucci style. However, we mainly watch YouTube for travel content these days. We follow a few - Kara & Nate (and their new offshoots, FareDrop for the cute couple that they paid to travel for six months and DailyDrop for deals), Les Frenchies, Pasta Grammar, Nicki Positano (who now has a second home in Tuscany). Ways of the World is a relatively new find so exploring some of their older stuff. There are a few others but they've moved from less traveling to more renovation and raising families - not really on topic.

Posted by
1271 posts

Nick,
The new Van DER Valk stars Mark Warren...yes, another British take on Amsterdam. Still a good show!

I get a lot of my Europe fix with Acorn TV shows (e.g.Candice Renoir, Seaside Hotel, the original Professor T), Netflix, and PBS (Borgen, Call My Agent..Dix percent in French...Rita, Lupin, Astrid). Too many to list. Also, Acorn TV has tons of Australian and New Zealand shows (800 Words, My Life Is Murder, Broken wood Mysteries, Heart Guy, the Miss Fisher Mysteries...etc.)
I love seeing places I have been in movies and tv shows, and get jazzed to visit new places also. And, of course, the many, many British shows, old and new, going back to "To the Manor Born" and the original "Upstairs, Downstairs", are so much fun to watch and look for familiar places and things.
If I tried to list all the shows I have enjoyed I would far exceed the word limit here.
Fun thread!

Posted by
1271 posts

Add: Brittany..."Agathe Koltes" and "Komissar Dupin". Check out "Walter Prresents", a venue for many European shows. Our PBS station has begun to use many of the shows featured therein. Also, Acorn TV offers "Walter Presents" selections.

Posted by
379 posts

A friend recently recommended Escape to the Country, which is basically House Hunters in rural England. In addition to house-hunting, there are charming features on local businesses and residents.
Speaking of escapes, I LOVED Escape to the Chateau about the British couple who bought and renovated a French chateau.

Posted by
2602 posts

celeste--We love Somebody Feed Phil! I love his expressions and how joyful and honest he is.

I tried to watch Bridgerton, but kept falling asleep. I like Emily In Paris, even though it is as cheesy as they come;)

We love the dark Nordic shows/movies and watch various travel shows on YouTube. We just search for a destination and see what pops up and go from there.

Posted by
276 posts

Plenty of great travel videos on utube and I just got Premium so no adds-luv it!

Posted by
9181 posts

When Anthony Bourdain was alive I recall watching an episode of his TV series. My thought was why does he get to visit Cuba and I can’t?

Took 6 months of research but got to Cuba in 2012.

An absolute favorite British cop show is Inspector George Gently. There was a scene of he and his
cohort standing on a bridge over a river with a huge cathedral in the background. Peaked my interest. Researched and discovered it was the Durham Cathedral. On a London visit made certain I visited and stayed in Durham ( AirBnb) for 2 nights in order to stand on the same bridge as well as visit the cathedral.

Posted by
1026 posts

Besides those mentioned, I also love to watch Nordic Murders set in northern Germany just south of Sweden and the newest Poldark for killer scenery of Cornwall. Slow Horses I watch because it's great and for Gary Oldman.

Posted by
4228 posts

FYI, most of these shows are not filmed where they say they are set. For example, much of Hotel Portofino is filmed in Lovran and Opatija, Croatia. We just watched a Nicholas Cage movie which was supposed to be Majorca but was also filmed in southern Croatia.

Check out Paul Hollywood City Bakes. He goes all around the world.

Posted by
186 posts

I agree with many of the already mentioned shows but would like to add The Reluctant Traveler on Apple TV. Although he stays in high end properties, it’s a fun travel show to watch.

Posted by
585 posts

@Nick, totally agree with you on Montalbano.

A show I enjoy here is "Les carnets de Julie". Julie Andrieu drives around France visiting different regions, talking to local people and preparing a big meal at the end. We get it dubbed in Spanish here. It seems that it is on Prime.

In the series she drives around in sporty red Peugeot 304 Cabriolet. Last week there was a classic car rally near here, and all week there were this classic cars driving around. One day I was walking behind three older gentleman, and one of them was explaining a car to his friend, and he said "it is like the one that French cook Julie drives around in". So I know that there are at least two people around here who watches the show.

Posted by
1271 posts

G3rrtCee,
Check out "Escape to the Continent." Same as Escape to the Country, but Brits looking to move to France, Italy, etc. At least 10 years old (home prices!), but lots of fun!

Posted by
2958 posts

Only thing I can remember is Skyfall. I did not do the journey to Scotland because of it but when already in the region in late autumn I was curious if this landscape and nature would be so repelling - and yes it was (in a positive way).

Posted by
4499 posts

Amazing Race has given me a lot of ideas. It's the first time I'd heard of Carcassonne and Commarque Castle in France. Lisbon got put on my list after an episode when they raced through there.

Posted by
957 posts

Top Gear or Grand Tour. "Long Way Down." Interesting stuff... Thing is the USA is so big, no one has ever done it right.

Posted by
7832 posts

I recently watched MaryLand on PBS (highly recommend it and you can't beat the incredible cast), and now I want to visit the Isle of Man. It was so beautiful. I did read that some of it was not filmed on Man but other places, but I don't care. I still want to go there now.

Posted by
378 posts

Love the question!

Loooong ago I watched National Geographic from my home in Chugiak, Alaska. That fueled the wonders of life outside our burb that didn't even have a traffic light. Now we watch Rick Steves on PBS (of course), Europe from Above, all types of animal shows on Disney, The Amazing Race, Somebody Feed Phil, Down to Earth with Zac Efron, and the Long Way series with Ewan McGregor. Other shows we watch that don't make us want to travel but we enjoy the locations are Emily in Paris, The Durrels in Corfu, Bridgerton, White Lotus, and more I'm not thinking of right now.

Posted by
616 posts

The streaming service MHz Choice + Topic has TV shows and movies from many European countries. They have English subtitles and several series are dubbed in English. There are so many shows I’ve watched that whet my appetite for travel (like I need any help in that area!). The French series Murder In… features movies that are set in different scenic locales in France, many that I haven’t heard of. Watching Don Matteo numerous times makes me want to visit Umbria, where it’s set first in Gubbio and then in Spoleto. Inspector Montalbano for Sicily. Also Nordic noir shows that make me want to go there: Sandhamn Murders for Sweden and Bordertown for Finland.
I highly recommend this streaming service for a wide variety of foreign TV shows and films.

Posted by
54 posts

We enjoy watching House Hunters International on PBS. The settings in different parts of Europe are neat to see.

Posted by
14898 posts

Certain dramas on PBS have fueled my interest or enlightened me on seeking out a particular site. "Vienna Blood" is for sure one of these dramas.

Two of its episodes were filmed in Schloss Laxenburg (very historical) located outside of Vienna, to which is accessible by bus from Wien Hbf, the # 200 and # 210. I was totally ignorant of this singular historical Schloss so pertinent in Austrian Imperial history until seeing it on PBS

Posted by
59 posts

Signora Fox (was on Acorn), for those of us who dream of just dumping it all and moving somewhere beautiful for a new life
the Mallorca Files (seems to have moved to Prime)
Babylon Berlin (on MHz now)
the Art of the Crime (l'Art de la Crime), on MHz. (A way to see French art museums like the Louvre, without a hundred thousand heads in the way.. if I can stand the mystery melodrama.)

Posted by
23 posts

Alas, the Doc Martin series has ended but visiting Portwenn (Port Isaac) is still on my bucket list. The PBS series Richard Bangs Adventures is also very good, especially for fans of Switzerland.