This article was produced by National Geographic Traveller (UK).
Islands have served as the settings for exotic holidays and swoon-worthy romances, as well as homes for the shipwrecked, the marooned and the stranded. With around 900,000 to choose from, coming in all shapes and sizes, they are a dream for directors to use as a canvas for their stories. Whether it’s Luke Skywalker standing on a craggy outcrop on Ireland’s Skellig Michael or the girls from Sex and the City barhopping across Manhattan, islands have endless visual potential.
TV show The White Lotus is famous for its stunning backdrops, with the first season set on Wailea, in Hawaii, and the second in Sicily. Both island locations benefitted from what’s come to be known as ‘The White Lotus effect’, where travellers in their droves make pilgrimages to the filming locations of their favourite shows and films. And with islands’ innate allure, it’s not hard to see the appeal. These are some of the most exciting film and TV locations you can visit today.
Sex and the City (1998)
New York City, USA
The show: The hit HBO series follows four friends as they navigate New York’s dating scene. It’s narrated by Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker), a writer and hopeless romantic with a penchant for Manolo Blahnik shoes and emotionally unavailable men.
The typical scene: The girls bar-hop across Manhattan, sipping cosmos and gossiping about their love lives.
The location: Sex and the City was filmed mainly in Manhattan, one of New York’s three principal islands, with a glittering skyline and enviable addresses. The West Village’s independent boutiques and cafes, charming cobbled streets and historic townhouses were featured prominently in many episodes. It’s where they filmed the exterior shots of Carrie’s apartment, a handsome brownstone located at 66 Perry Street.
While you’re there: Step out onto a platform suspended 1,100ft above the city streets at Edge, the Western Hemisphere’s highest outdoor observation deck, jutting out from the 100th floor of the 30 Hudson Yards skyscraper.
How to do it: Three nights at Yotel New York Times Square in midtown Manhattan from £995 per person, including return flights from heathrow.tui.co.uk
Death in Paradise (2011)
Guadeloupe, French Caribbean
The show: A lighthearted Anglo-French murder mystery series set on the imaginary island of Saint Marie, following the fish-out-of-water adventures of DI Richard Poole (Ben Miller).
The typical scene: Most episodes conclude at Catherine’s Bar, where Richard and his fellow detectives enjoy a few drinks after cracking a case.
The location: The gorgeous backdrop is actually Guadeloupe, a French island group sandwiched between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The islands are nicknamed ‘the butterfly islands’ as the two main islands — Grand-Terre and Basse-Terre — are shaped like a butterfly extending its wings. Guadeloupe’s landscapes are strikingly varied, ranging from the pearly white sand and deep blue waters of beaches such as Vieux Fort to the volcanic, lunar-like interior, which is great hiking terrain.
While you’re there: Explore Deshaies, a sun-drenched town tucked in the northern tip of Basse-Terre that’s home to several Death in Paradise filming locations, including Deshaies Botanical Garden and Grand Anse Beach.
How to do it: Seven nights at Club Med La Caravelle from £2,305 per person, all-inclusive. Includes flights from Heathrow to Pointe-a-Pitre via Paris.
Modriki Island, a tiny, uninhabited island in Fiji, is the real-life setting of Cast Away.
Cast Away (2000)
Modriki Island, Fiji
The film: The film follows the plight of Chuck Noland (Tom Hanks), who becomes stranded on a desert island following a plane crash.
The iconic scene: The heartbreaking sequence in which Wilson, the companion that Chuck fashions out of a volleyball, drifts out to sea.
The location: The real-life location of Cast Away is Modriki Island, part of Fiji’s Mamanuca island group, in the South Pacific. Tiny Modriki is little more than a speck on the map and is completely uninhabited. Travellers wanting to visit it should join a guided boat trip that will whizz them ashore. The beaches are immaculate and the water is warm, tantalisingly clear and surrounded by coral, making it ideal for snorkelling.
While you’re there: Take part in the ultimate Fiji food experience: a traditional lovo feast. Lovo involves cooking meat and vegetables in an underground oven, resulting in delicious, smoky-tasting dishes. Most resorts will host a regular lovo.
How to do it: Freedom Destinations offers a four-day Island Explorer package from £569 per person. This includes a cruise around the Mamanuka Islands and a snorkelling excursion to Modriki. Includes accommodation, transfers, and activities. Does not include flights.
Eat, Pray, Love (2010)
Bali, Indonesia
The film: This adaptation of Elizabeth Gilbert’s best-selling memoir tracks Elizabeth (Julia Roberts) on her journey from an unhappy marriage to divorce via a globe-trotting adventure to ‘find herself’. Her travels take her to India, Italy and Bali, as she makes peace with her past and learns to love again.
The iconic scene: Elizabeth takes a leisurely bike ride through the rice paddies and greenery of Bali, watching children play on the side of the road.
The location: Bali gets the spotlight in the final part of the film when Elizabeth stays in Ubud, a town in the centre of the island with stunning jungle scenery and a thriving arts scene. However, it’s perhaps best known for being the island’s spiritual heartland — ‘Ubud’ means ‘medicine’ in Balinese, and locals have long regarded it as a place for healing. One of the most popular ways to explore it is to pay a visit to a healer or shaman, just like our heroine does in Eat, Pray, Love.
Ubud is also a religious hub — most of the population practice Hinduism and the town has many temples and sacred sites. Visitors will notice colourful canang flower offerings everywhere — outside shops, houses and on street corners — which the Balinese place daily to show their devotion to the gods.
While you’re there: Dive into Ubud’s rich cultural history on a walking tour from Ubud Story Walks. These guided tours take in some of the region’s most striking architecture and history, including the village of Pejeng and its ancient burial sites.
How to do it: Scott Dunn offers a nine-day tour of Bali — including Ubud, Lombok and Seminyak — from £5,300 per person. The ‘Epic Bali and Lombok’ itinerary includes witnessing local ceremonies and traditional Balinese customs in Ubud, as well as snorkelling amidst the coral reefs of the Gili Islands. Includes flights, transfers, accommodation and excursions.
Ubud is best known as the spiritual heartland of Bali and featured in the final scenes of Eat, Pray, Love.
Photograph by Pierrick Lemaret, Getty Images
Jaws (1975)
Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, USA
The film: Jaws is all about a massive great white shark that spends a summer terrorising a sleepy beach town. While the film is a masterpiece, it did damage the great white’s public image. Thankfully, since then, the public has become better educated on the vital role these endangered animals play in sustaining the health of our oceans.
The iconic scene: Chrissie, a young beachgoer, becomes the shark’s first victim in the film’s terrifying opening sequence.
The location: Martha’s Vineyard served as the fictitious Amity Island. Lying south of Cape Cod in Massachusetts, the island is a popular retreat for the rich and famous. It offers the quintessential New England seaside experience — lighthouses, sailing boats, beaches and seafood shacks. But this isn’t why it caught the eye of director Steven Spielberg and his team. They chose to shoot here, thanks to its calm, shallow waters — ideal for operating a full-size mechanical shark in.
Edgartown, one of Martha’s Vineyard’s six towns, is especially popular with tourists. It’s known for its beautiful clapboard mansions, along with excellent restaurants and shops. It’s also home to Edgartown Harbor Light, arguably the prettiest lighthouse on the island, surrounded by high dunes; it’s open to the public from late May to mid-October.
While you’re there: Treat yourself to an ice cream from Mad Martha’s. An island institution, it’s been dishing out frozen treats since 1971. There are three locations to choose from; Edgartown, Oak Bluffs and Vineyard Haven.
How to do it: Audley Travel has a 13-day tailor-made self-drive trip to New England from £5,000 per person, based on two sharing. This covers accommodation, including two nights in Martha’s Vineyard plus time in Boston, Kennebunkport, Jackson, Manchester and Chatham, flights, transfers, car rental and excursions.
Dr No (1962)
Jamaica, Caribbean
The film: Sean Connery stars as James Bond in the first film adaptation of Ian Fleming’s spy novels. Here, the suave sleuth is on the fictional Jamaican island of Crab Key, investigating the death of one of his colleagues.
The iconic scene: Bond wakes up to Honey Rider (Ursula Andress) singing ‘Underneath the Mango Tree’ as she steps out of the ocean.
The location: It’s no coincidence that Bond finds himself in Jamaica — author Ian Fleming owned a beachfront property on Jamaica’s north coast, which he named GoldenEye. Today, it’s a luxury hotel with the same name, where visitors can relax in private villas, cottages and beach huts amid the iconic Caribbean scenery that inspired so many of his espionage adventures. Aside from its connections to Bond, Jamaica offers plenty of other delights: stunning beaches, tropical forests, live reggae, knock-your-socks-off rum and delicious jerk cuisine.
While you’re there: Don’t miss out on a trip to Dunn’s River Falls, a famous waterfall near Ocho Rios. This 600ft-wide spring-water cascade is special as it’s the only waterfall in the Caribbean that empties directly into the sea. Climbing the falls (water shoes are a must) makes for a thrilling adventure worth of any Bond film.
How to do it: Five nights at the Jamaica Inn in a Superior Balcony Suite from 31 August costs £1,960 per person, including return flights from Heathrow via British Airways.
All of the action in Mamma Mia! took place in Skopelos, Greece.
Photograph by Leslie Othen, Alamy Photos
Mamma Mia! (2008)
Skopelos, Greece
The film: Mamma Mia! is the tale of Sophie (Amanda Seyfried), who lives with her mother Donna (Meryl Streep) on a small Greek island. With her wedding approaching, Sophie goes on a quest to find her biological father before the big day.
The iconic scene: As the sun sets and waves crash, Donna stands at the bottom of the rocky path leading up to the wedding chapel and belts out a powerful rendition of ‘The Winner Takes It All’.
The location: The Greek island in the film is Skopelos, part of the Northern Sporades archipelago. It’s a natural beauty, with unspoiled pebbly bays that are perfect for swimming and snorkelling. Skopelos is one of the greenest Greek islands, half covered in pine forests, making it a must for hikers and nature-lovers.
The island has two main villages, Skopelos and Glossa, where winding streets climb the hillside between houses painted white and blue. There are dozens of monasteries to explore, as well as plenty of excellent tavernas. Better still, despite its Mamma Mia! fame, the island is relatively peaceful and quiet, even in high season.
While you’re there: Visit the tiny chapel of Agios Ioannis, perched atop a huge rock overlooking the sea, where the iconic scene takes place. There’s no getting out of the 200 or so steps to the top, but the views are worth the effort.
How to do it: Seven nights’ B&B at Aeolos Hotel Skopelos from 20 May costs £841 per person, including return flights from Gatwick.
Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)
Skellig Michael, County Kerry, Ireland
The film: The seventh Star Wars instalment sees orphaned scavenger Rey (Daisy Ridley) learn the truth of her identity and try to restore galactic peace. The iconic scene: Rey meets Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) in the final scene atop an emerald-green hill as the camera whirls overhead.
The location: Skellig Michael, one of the Skellig Islands, eight miles off the Irish coast provided one of the film’s most otherworldly backdrops. Once home to Christian monks, this inhospitable chunk of rock rising dramatically out of the sea is now better known as the hideout of Luke Skywalker. Visitors can see the beehive-shaped huts the monks lived in over 1,400 years ago, as well as the ruins of St Fionán’s Monastery. The number of visitors to the island, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is capped at 180 per day and only licensed boats can ferry people over. Tours depart daily between May and October from Portmagee Harbour.
While you’re there: Look out for the colony of puffins that nest on the island in the summer. When the sequel, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, was filmed in the same location, the birds were digitally repurposed as a cute fictional species called porgs.
How to do it: Tour Radar’s seven-day Hiking & Island Hopping — Cork and Kerry costs from £2,101 per person, which covers accommodation, meals and excursions, including a visit to Skellig Michael.
Published in the Islands Collection 2024, distributed with the April 2024 issue of National Geographic Traveller (UK).
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