BY: CAROLINE ROLF

As beautiful as reality may be, it never seems quite as impressive as what’s on the big screen.

If there is one genre of movie that can inspire change in your life and make you lust for your own adventure, it’s those that tell the story of travel. There’s something about getting lost in the adventure of a character from the comfort of your couch that makes you wish you could teleport to another world or at least head to bed and dream big. Before the title sequence plays you’re thinking of the homework you’re putting off and considering adding more butter to your microwave popcorn. Soon after the credits roll though, you find yourself searching cheap flights, finding out which one of your friends is down for a road trip and dragging down your suitcase from the attic with determination.

Nothing makes you long for adventure quite like a movie can. To heighten your wanderlust and put you in a great mood, here are five of the best travel films.

 1. Into The Wild

Into the Wild takes you far from the well travelled path, telling the true story of Christopher McCandless, a man who dreams of losing himself in the Alaskan wild, determined to live off the land. McCandless’ journey doesn’t quite go as planned and the gruelling yet glorious story is a great example of travel’s ability to teach you more than you thought possible. Without the limitations of a classroom, the young explorer learns his lessons from the land. Into the Wild will make you want to dive straight into the wilderness, just maybe not by yourself.

2. Outsourced

This is not your typical travel movie. Instead of packing a suitcase by choice, the character in this film is forced to go to India, where his job was outsourced, to train his own replacement. But what happens after he arrives is truly inspiring and will make you want to discover a new culture. This film is about leaving your customs behind to understand and appreciate a new way of living. Outsourced will leave you eager to get outside and find what you really want.

3. Easy Rider

Easy Rider tells the story of two motorcyclists who travel through the States in search of some serious relaxation, and some more immoral things. Their journey, as to be expected, gets somewhat more complicated. On a road trip from Los Angeles to New Orleans, filled with desert landscapes and counter-cultural messages, viewers will itch to hit the road for a little taste of freedom.

4. Tracks

Let this film be a reminder that nearly anything is possible if you want it bad enough. Tracks tells the true story of Robyn Davidson, a young woman who leaves on a solo trip from Alice Springs across the desert to the Indian Ocean—accompanied only by her dog and a few camels. The compelling tale of self-discovery, Tracks makes you realize that travel doesn’t always have to look like something from a glossy magazine. Your journey belongs to you and you alone; don’t be afraid if things turn in a different direction than expected.

5. The Darjeeling Limited

The moral of this story might be one we’ve heard many times before, but it doesn’t make it any less powerful. Travel has this way of transforming ones self and the relationship with those around us. Three brothers divided by an old strife reunite on a train trip across India. When the men are confined to the quarters of the train, sibling rivalry threatens to ruin the trip and their relationship once and for all. The Darjeeling Limited shows us how a road (or train) trip can mend even the most tattered of ties.

Image sourcing: amandeepmittal.wordpress.com