Movies can often spark wanderlust. Seeing an exotic location on the big screen gets us longing for a trip to explore something new.

The Dominican Republic is a tropical paradise with some of the best hotels and has played host to several great movies, as the Barceló Hotel Group notes.

The Godfather II

Directed by Francis Ford Coppola in 1974, this big time sequel shot scenes in the Santo Domingo’s Colonial District. A fun fact per the Barceló blogger, the “El Embajador, a Royal Hideaway Hotel, still features the balcony from which the movie was filmed.

Apocalypse Now

Another Francis Ford Coppola movie, the main set was the Philippines but the Dominican Republic was used. They filmed some epic scenes, such as the aerial attack, on the Chavón River in La Romana.

Jurassic Park

The Steven Spielberg classic filmed in the Dominican Republic at the Amber Museum in Puerto Plata for the frozen mosquito scene.

The Good Shepherd

This Robert De Niro film used the Santo Domingo’s Colonial District and Santiago Airport for scenes. Per the Barceló blogger, “the set was guarded by the National Army, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (AMET, Autoridad Metropolitana de Transporte), Tourism Police (Politur) and the Special Forces of the National Police.”

Miami Vice

Michael Mann filmed scenes in for his Miami Vice movie in the city of Santo Domingo. A fun fact here is that the colors of buildings and street signs were changed from Spanish to French for scenes depicting Haiti.

Fast & Furious 3.5: Los Bandoleros

This short film was directed, co-written, and co-produced by Vin Diesel in 2009. It features an appearance by Sammy Sosa appears as well as the reggaeton stars Tego Calderón and Don Omar.