Dial of Destinations: The world’s most Indiana Jones-worthy travel locations
With Harrison Ford about to embark on his final turn as the whip-cracking adventurer, here’s where to experience an Indiana Jones adventure of your own
In the Indiana Jones series, often nothing is as it seems. Whether a royal palace that’s a front for a sinister cult, or an impossible leap that’s actually a camouflaged stone bridge, appearances frequently deceive. And, as with the narratives, so with the locations.
The Himalayas in Temple of Doom? Actually Mammoth Mountain in southern California. Verdant Peru in Crystal Skull? The jungles of Hawaii. And, when the Indian government, put out by chilled monkey brains for supper, demanded final-cut privileges on the second installment of the franchise, filming was switched from the subcontinent to Sri Lanka.
Whether the movies were filmed on location or, for reasons of cost and convenience, in a backlot in Burbank, what is remarkable, with the original trilogy at least, is just how much Spielberg and Lucas use setting to create a sense of adventure.
To mark the next chapter in the Jones saga, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, which is released in cinemas on 28 June, we’ve compiled a list of the most breath-taking, adrenaline-charged, and action-packed destinations seen (or, in the case of India, almost seen) in everybody’s favourite archaeologist-adventure franchise. Plus, some pointers on where to stay during your own escapades.
Fedoras and bullwhips optional.
Syracuse, Italy
An ancient capital clad in white limestone, it’s a wonder it took the franchise until the fifth film to arrive in Syracuse. Once the largest city in antiquity, and a rival to Rome, Syracuse is also the birthplace of Archimedes, the mathematician behind the so-called ‘Dial of Destiny’. Amid the limestone alleys of Ortigia (its historic centre) rowdy Sicilian fish markets fulminate, while, in an unassuming corner of the Piazza della Duomo, a Caravaggio hangs, emanating an irresistible pull. It’s exactly the kind of city where you’d hide treasures, with so many already in plain sight.
Where to stay: Antico Hotel Roma 1880
The pretty-in-pink Antico Hotel Roma 1880 is perfectly situated beside that arresting duomo for your Indiana Jones fantasy of after-hours catacomb-raiding. Time better spent might be relaxing in this palazzo-cum-hotel’s hot tub prior to a negroni sbagliato at the bar. As Ortigia’s number one hotel, its lobby plays host to many of the island’s politicians and celebrities. While it may be that you don’t know who any of them are, the general charisma and glamour on show can make the whole scene feel almost stage-managed, especially if you’re dining by candlelight on the elegant terrace.
India
After the Indian government refused filming permission for Temple of Doom, having found the blood cult stuff a touch offensive, the shoot was relocated to Kandy, Sri Lanka. And while Sri Lanka offers culture, history and stunning nature in a highly-manageable island package, well, Indiana Jones thrives on the edge of the unmanageable, yanking his fedora to safety in just the nick of time. So, it has to be India, with its urban chaos, intricate palaces, and vivid religious celebrations. And what could be more Jones than cantering on Marwari horses across Rajasthan, the Land of Kings, before a tuktuk tour through the azure maze of historic Jodhpur?
Where to stay: Umaid Bhawan Palace
While Jodhpur, the city of the Brahmins, has stately residences to spare, your stay has to be at the Umaid Bhawan Palace. Like an Indiana Jones/Game of Thrones crossover, this palatial Indo-Saracenic residence of the Maharaja is the world’s sixth-largest residence. Check into the stylishly traditional rooms with their Art Deco flourishes, obviously checking reflexively for any tell-tale breezes from concealed passages. Make a visit to the Maharaja’s stables, relax by the pool with your complimentary picnic basket of goodies, and gaze up at the historic Mehrangarh Fort from your al fresco dinner spot on the veranda.
Shanghai, China
The opening scene of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom offers one of cinema’s most dramatic deployments of a lazy Susan. There’s a gong, glamorous Kate Capshaw, and a 1980s seediness within the subtly named ‘Club Obi Wan’. It’s an Indy riff on Casino Royale, with Harrison Ford in a white tuxedo jacket squaring up to 1930s gangsters before he gets Shanghai-ed with a roofie. While filming for this scene took place in Macau, there are pockets of Shanghai that aren’t entirely sleek and vertical, most visibly among the riverfront sweep of colonial-era buildings on the Bund.
Where to stay: Waldorf Astoria Shanghai
Tucked away within the baroque stylings of the historic Shanghai Club Building, the Waldorf Astoria Shanghai on the Bund offers an ideal synthesis of old and new. It also supplies the ideal setting for an Indiana Jones action sequence, amid the button-back leather chairs of its Long Bar (formerly The Shanghai Club). The Long Bar is 34-metres of mahogany: perfect for an adventurer to slide across or stand bestride to command the room with a whip. On an average night, whips are not encouraged (at least in the public areas of the hotel), so focus instead on the Long Bar’s world-beating spirits menu.
Bhutan
In the Indiana Jones franchise, two iconic scenes are set in the Himalayas. The first has petite Marion drinking yak-sized Nepalese under the table in Raiders of the Lost Ark, while The Temple of Doom sees Indy, Willie and Short Round flee a crash-landing plane by sledding to safety on a life raft. While for filmgoers in the '80s, the Himalayas seemed a place of untouched eastern allure, today’s regular images of the Everest summit queue have tarnished the mystique of Nepal and the Himalayas a tad. Travel to Bhutan instead, where tourist numbers are controlled and its national mystery remains intact.
Where to stay: Bhutan Spirit Sanctuary
There’s a superb selection of luxury accommodation in the Land of the Thunder Dragon. The Bhutan Spirit Sanctuary in Paro is a superlative example, offering serene, traditional architecture allayed with impressive luxury. Built to resemble a traditional Bhutanese fortress, the resort overlooks the verdant valley while the capacious in-room windows welcome the immense sky. Culture immersions are available, such as meditating with the monks in the adjoining monastery or making a day-trip pilgrimage to the dramatic Tiger’s Nest monastery. There’s also a spa with must-try therapies such as the mugwort-based ‘moxibustion’.
Colorado, USA
The crucible for our fedora-toting hero is Colorado, where, in Last Crusade, we encounter the formative experiences that shape him into what he is to become. The western state is a destination rich in adventure, with its Wild West history and rugged Southern Rockies topography. It’s hard to resist a trip here in the winter, tapping into resorts such as Aspen and Vail, although it may be among the working ranches that this state feels closest to Jones. For the diehards, you’ll want to stay in the Indiana Jones Home – the actual house used as Indy’s childhood home that’s now a movie-themed B&B in historic Antonito.
Where to stay: The Ritz-Carlton, Bachelor Gulch
Colorado has a mind-blowing breadth of activities, four contrasting national parks, and bucket-list accommodation – the hard part is deciding between them. Epic backcountry skiing or summer hikes through the pines? High plains or higher peaks? Or just let luxury decide and plump for the log cabin ambiance of The Ritz-Carlton, Bachelor Gulch. Spruced up following a recent multi-million-dollar renovation, this year-round ski-in ski-out retreat is found high on Beaver Creek Mountain, about 20 minutes away from the crowds at Vail. Ski in after a day of powder and relax in the award-winning spa.
Peru
As we’ve said, Peru in Crystal Skull is not Peru – it’s Hawaii blended with the thunderous Iguazu Falls in South America. However, nothing, not even Hollywood with all of its wizardry, can generate the real-life ambiance of Peru – arguably the most Indy-esque destination the world over. From happening upon Incan ruins shrouded in clouds, to Nazca Lines engraved in the desert floor, Peru is a country of unending wonder. And in the former Incan capital of Cusco, you have its zenith – a high-altitude metropolis that can make you feel, as you turn a corner, like you’ve travelled back through time.
Where to stay: Monasterio, A Belmond Hotel, Cusco
Make for the colonial colonnades of the Monasterio. Set in the heart of the city, this Belmond hotel inhabits a 16th-century seminary built on the footprint of an Inca palace. So far, so Jones. The service today leans more towards palatial excess than spiritual restraint. Bath butlers make sure your tub’s brimming with just-the-right-temperature water, in-room oxygen enrichment is available to combat altitude sickness, and opera singers fill the seminary courtyard with song while you dine by candlelight.
'Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny' is in cinemas on 28 June.
