The heat is on! Summer is really making it’s presence felt in the Northern Hemisphere and this week sees us officially welcoming in the new season with the passing of the equinox, and the shortest night of the year.

Nothing better than preparing a cold drink, sitting in front of the fan with the blinds down and watching a summer movie. Here’s our pick of the best film locations in summer movies to inspire you to dig out some classics or discover them for the first time.

– Las Ramblas, Gaudi landmarks and a dozen other locations in Vicky Cristina Barcelona

– Catalan country retreats in La Garrotxa to transport you back to your childhood in Berlinale winner Estiu 1993

– Martha’s Vineyard forms the perfect holiday town backdrop in Jaws

– Los Monegros desert and the iconic, black bull sign in Jamon, Jamon, one ofPenelope Cruz Javier Bardem’s first films together.

– Julia Roberts’ Bali in Eat, Pray, Love

– Greenwich Village in Rear Window, not actually a location as it was a set built especially with a sophisticated lighting system and special drainage to accommodate the night and rain scenes.

– La Seine and Paris at night in Before Sunrise

– Cypress Gardens, South Carolina, for the lake scenes in Cassevetes’ The Notebook.  The trained birds were brought in especially.

– Kennywood amusement park, where Jesse Eisenberg steals the show in American teen pic Adventureland.

– 1950’s Costa Brava with Dirk Bogarde in The Spanish Gardener