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Note: All travel is subject to frequently changing governmental restrictions—please check federal, state and local advisories before scheduling trips.

Over these past many months, staying home has become its own kind of adventure. And even though we’re (temporarily) not the wanderers we once were, many of us have grown accustomed to channeling the adventure of travel via the glories of Hulu and Netflix. For LGBTQIA folks, movies about faraway places feel even more enchanting when they portray our community. So, spark up your streaming devices and break out the popcorn for these queer classics that will inspire your travel imagination—and get you planning a future trip.

RELATED: Visit our LGBTQIA travel hub for welcoming hotels, the ultimate queer events calendar, inspiration, and more!

Call Me By Your Name

 Caution: This captivating coming-of-age tale may make you want to book a flight to Italy immediately. Gorgeously set in Lombardy in the early ’80s, Call Me By Your Name tells the story of young Elio (Timothée Chalamet) discovering first love with his father’s handsome research assistant, Oliver (Armie Hammer). Based on a 2007 novel of the same name, Elio sweetly evolves from skepticism over Oliver’s easygoing charm, to falling hard for him. Meanwhile, the beauty of Northern Italy serves as the ultimate romantic setting, a place where just about anyone could fall in love, at any age. In Bergamo, recreate Elio and Oliver’s Italian fling with a dance in the Piazza Padre Reginaldo Giuliani, outside the 12th-century Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore.

Carol

Let Carol and Therese’s wintry road trip transport you from New York across America’s Midwestern landscapes. The 2014 film version of Patricia Highsmith’s 1952 novel, The Price of Salt, offers a stylized mid-century depiction of forbidden love. Even though the movie takes us to fewer locales than the book, travel plays a key role, both as a metaphor for the pair’s journey, and as part of a heartbreaking plot twist. Visit Waterloo, Iowa as an out traveler; or check into Chicago’s Drake Hotel and be as open as Carol (Cate Blanchett) and Therese (Rooney Mara) wished they could have been.

3 Generations

 The mystique of Manhattan comes in many forms, as we see in this 2015 film about 16-year-old Ray (Elle Fanning), who’s just starting to transition. Ray’s hetero mother Maggie (Naomi Watts) and his lesbian grandmother Dolly (Susan Sarandon) disagree on his planned path, and things get more complicated when his father must consent to Ray starting testosterone treatments. But throughout the picture, Ray leads us through his New York via foot, train and skateboard. If you’re missing Soho and Chinatown, 3 Generations offers an enlightening tour through the city, where everyone can be their true selves.

Brokeback Mountain

 Big skies and open pastures are the tranquil backdrop of 2005’s Brokeback Mountain. Filmed largely in Calgary and Alberta’s swath of the Canadian Rockies, the story of Ennis (Heath Ledger) and Jack (Jake Gyllenhaal) is unlike any other cowboy movie, thanks to its tender love story spanning two decades. The hired hands start off in 1963, herding sheep on the namesake mountain. They eventually give in to their romantic attraction, which feels as tangible as Brokeback’s brisk mountain air. Author Annie Proulx set her original short story in Wyoming, giving those white Rocky peaks new meaning for gay cowboys and cowgirls who love country living.

The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert

 Traverse the Aussie outback aboard Priscilla, the beloved tour bus behind this heartfelt comedy. The movie was a smash among worldwide audiences in 1994, telling the story of two drag queens (Hugo Weaving and Guy Pearce) and one transwoman (Terence Stamp). True to the title, the trio’s “adventures” kick off in Sydney, and travel more than 2,000 miles through the towns of Broken Hill, Coober Pedy and Alice Springs. Through shared tribulations and the addition of new friends, Priscilla’s drivers find their crowning glory in full drag regalia, atop magnificent Kings Canyon.

Frida

 In 2002’s Frida, Mexico City comes alive with this vibrant portrayal of Frida Kahlo (Selma Hayek). We glimpse the artist’s 47-year lifespan, from her devastating streetcar accident at age 18, including her stormy marriage to Diego Rivera (Alfred Molina), and her artistic survival and success. But most of all, Frida takes us on a journey through her home city—shot partly in San Luis Potosí—and magical real-life home, the Casa Azul in the Coyoacán neighborhood. Kahlo’s female affairs are inherent to her life’s story, and Hayek’s chemistry with sculptor Tina Modotti (Ashley Judd) may alone seduce viewers to visit CDMX. The film also takes us along her adventures near and far, from the Aztec city of Teotihuacan, to New York City and beyond. Few movies about artists so vividly depict their characters and settings, here celebrating the essence of Mexican landscapes costumes, music, and Kahlo’s iconic works.

Transamerica

 Transamerica packed a punch for 2005 audiences who were glad to see a trans character front and center. Felicity Huffman plays transwoman Bree Osbourne, who’s surprised to learn suddenly that she has a 17-year-old son (Kevin Zegers). The plot soon takes us on a winding road trip from New York to Los Angeles, with stops in Kentucky, Texas, and Arizona, as the pair discover truths about one another and themselves. Beyond the film’s emotional turns, road-trip lovers will relish sights of America’s Interstates and iconic landscapes, which unfurl along with this groundbreaking story. Plus, don’t forget to sing along to Dolly Parton’s Oscar-nominated song “Travelin’ Thru.”

Tagged: Australia, Canada, Italy, LGBTQIA, Los Angeles, Mexico, New York, Uncategorized

Note: Orbitz compensates authors for their writings appearing on this site.

Kelsy Chauvin

Kelsy Chauvin

Kelsy Chauvin is a travel writer specializing in LGBTQIA interests, as well as gastronomy, culture, cannabis, and more. Her work has been featured in an array of publications including Fodor’s Travel, Afar, Condé Nast Traveler, Lonely Planet, EDGE Media Network, and Passport. Follow her on Instagram and Twitter: @kelsycc.
Kelsy Chauvin

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