Top Ten Summer Travel Movies

Summer travel brings to mind the beach. Or perhaps a trip to Europe and train rides through different countries. Maybe your summer travel ideas involve driving across the United States and taking in sites like the Grand Canyon or Yellowstone Park. Well, relax and sit back and live vicariously through the people in these summer travel movies, and your travel dreams will come to life without you having to spend any money or move off of your sofa. Here are the top ten summer travel movies.

1. The Endless Summer (1966). This is a story of two surfers from California. Once the water starts getting cold due to the end of the summer season in California, these guys decide to travel the world in search of great beaches where the water is warm during the winter. Some of their destinations include Hawaii, New Zealand, Africa and Australia. So, if you have the money, the summer never has to end. You can travel around the world to different spots where the weather is warm, even if you're not a surfer.

2. Summer Rental (1985). John Candy stars in this movie. He saves up the money to take his family on a vacation to Florida. You can guess, with John Candy in the movie, just about everything that can possibly go wrong does. This makes for a funny summer travel movie.

3. The Beach (2000). Leonardo DiCaprio takes the lead in this movie about a guy who finds out about a beach paradise, and sets out to find it. He talks another couple into joining him in his quest. This movie is considered a travel drama, as DiCaprio's character runs into many issues once arriving at the beach. For one, he ends up beginning an affair with the female of the couple, which of course is going to bring about conflict.

4. Little Miss Sunshine (2006). Steve Carrell is the father in this movie about a family taking a road trip to attend a beauty pageant for their little girl. Little Miss Sunshine is a hilarious summer travel comedy. Imagine a family of about eight people traveling in one yellow VW bus across the country.

5. The Motorcycle Diaries (2004). This summer travel movie is based on the memoir of Che Guevara, who is known as an iconic Marxist. This is about his journey across South America with his friend by motorcycle. The two discover a different taste of the world, as they encounter extreme poverty stricken people on their travels. What a learning experience. Now, what do you do with this knowledge?

7. Flirting with Disaster (1996). Ben Stiller is a new father. He has adoptive parents, and wants to meet his real parents since he just had a baby with his wife. He ends up with his wife and the lady from the adoption agency in an adventure across the country to reunite with his biological mother and father. Unfortunately, the adoption agency lady isn't really competent, and so it's kind of like a wild goose chase. This is a great comical summer travel movie.

8. Thelma and Louise (1991). Thelma and Louise (played by Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon), are on the adventure summer travel of their lifetime. What was supposed to just be a weekend getaway ends up turning into a true adventure as Thelma and Louise try to evade the cops after Louise ends up shooting someone to save Thelma from being raped in a bar parking lot. The plot thickens as more and more events occur that get the dynamic duo into more and more trouble. Can they ever return to a normal life?

9. Stand By Me (1986). A group of four preteen guys decide to set out on a trip to find a body of a missing boy. The trouble is, their older teenage brothers also set out on the mission, because there is a reward offered for anyone who finds it. This summer travel movie is a great coming of age movie, as the young boys discover much about themselves and life while traveling to find the body. They also learn about how to stand up for each other, as true friends do.

10. One Week (2008). Enter a young man who finds out he has terminal cancer. He could stick around and enter treatment immediately to try and save him. Or, he could set out on the adventure of a lifetime. You can guess which scenario he picks. He embarks on a motorcycle trip from Toronto to British Columbia, where he discovers the meaning of his life. This is a great summer road trip travel movie.

Do you know of any other great summer travel movies?