50 Best Travel Shows Of All Time (& How To Watch Them)

Anthony Bourdain clip from "Roadrunner"

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Most of us can't reasonably travel all of the time. Thankfully, we can live vicariously through our screens when we cannot be globetrotting ourselves. Travel shows are a dime a dozen, mainly because many of us would rather explore than deal with our responsibilities. But how do you know which shows are worth your time? That depends mainly on your tastes and interests, but we can provide some solid starting points.

From celebrities heading their own adventurous docuseries to food-loving vagabonds visiting remote destinations, travel shows can show us scenes and cultures we would otherwise have no concept of. In fact, television often inspires travel, and watching world wanderers eat their way through exotic destinations is a great way to help plan your next trip. These 50 series are some of the best TV has to offer, and even if you don't make it through all of them, you may find a gem that piques your particular interest.

50. Nomad with Carlton McCoy

Classically trained chef and expert sommelier Carlton McCoy seeks out the best in international cuisine, music, and art in the CNN series "Nomad with Carlton McCoy." Premiering in May 2022, McCoy travels everywhere in the travel series, from the overlooked pleasures of Mississippi to the corners of Ghana. For McCoy, the show's focus lies in adventures and delights found away from the well-worn paths frequented by tourists. Instead, he enjoys savoring hometown favorites from local populations. What McCoy may lack in experience and poise, he and "Nomad" make up for with its premise to go behind the scenes of some of the world's most recognizable locales. 

The first "Nomad with Carlton McCoy" season is available to stream on  Prime Video with Discovery+.

49. Down to Earth with Zac Efron

The world is a beautiful place, and it's easy to showcase such on film. This is why a travel show has to be about more than just pretty scenery, and "Down to Earth with Zac Efron" delivers in a big way. The series puts a highly informative spin on the genre by taking viewers on whirlwind journeys worldwide in search of health secrets. We're not talking about avocado toast or juice cleanses, either.

Efron and wellness expert Darin Olien visit destinations to learn about topics like renewable energy, superfoods, and water quality. Have you ever heard of a water sommelier? The experts know a thing or two about what kind of water makes our bodies happy, and a "Down to Earth" episode in France consults one of the few professionals in existence. The series also has episodes on a seed bank stocked for the end of the world, Iceland's Blue Lagoon, and the Amazon rainforest.

Although "Down to Earth" earned Zac Efron a Daytime Emmy, lack of viewership caused the series to be canceled quickly. It had one season at Netflix and was picked up for another at The CW, only to be on the chopping block two episodes later. Lack of quantity does not mean lack of quality, though, and the "High School Musical" star's travel show is a solid viewing.

You can watch "Down to Earth with Zach Efron" on Netflix and The CW .

48. The World's Most Amazing Vacation Rentals

Sometimes, a typical hotel on vacation doesn't cut it, with intrepid travelers opting for more unique and luxurious digs during their stay abroad. The Netflix original series "The World's Most Amazing Vacation Rentals" explores everything from treehouses to alpaca farms to rent worldwide. Hosted by Megan Batoon, Jo Franco, and Luis D. Ortiz, the show reminds viewers that far more than cheap motels and chain hotels are available to make a vacation even more authentic and unique. While some of the rentals visited on the show run on the pricier side, these are balanced out with more cost-effective rentals for travelers not looking to shell out top dollar on accommodations.

"The World's Most Amazing Vacation Rentals" is available to stream on  Netflix .

47. Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy

Academy Award-nominated actor Stanley Tucci reconnects with his ancestral roots in the CNN travel series "Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy." Premiering in 2021, the show has Tucci visit different regions in Italy to learn more about the local cuisine, culture, and history in a sun-soaked tour of the Mediterranean country. Though the major tourist centers of Italy are among the destinations in Tucci's tour, the host takes the time to explore restaurants and locations off the beaten track to reveal a more authentic Italian experience. Buoyed by Tucci's understated yet quietly charismatic presence, "Searching for Italy" has been nominated for multiple Emmy Awards, winning two for its achievement in nonfiction television. 

Available to purchase and rent through most digital retailers, "Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy" is also available to stream on Discovery+ .

46. Mysterious Islands

Accomplished pilot and explorer Kellee Edwards invites viewers to join her on his globe-trotting adventures with the Travel Channel series "Mysterious Islands." Edwards particularly takes an interest in some of the most remote islands on Earth, visiting them with her private seaplane to examine them from above and by foot. A refreshing contrast to the hustle-and-bustle of travel shows revolving around heavily populated locales, "Mysterious Islands" offers a more serene, nature-focused look at isolated getaways. Before hosting "Mysterious Islands," Edwards hosted and published a travel vlog through her website that catapulted her into the public eye.

"Mysterious Islands" is currently available to stream on  fuboTV and Philo .

45. Ride with Norman Reedus

"Cool" is the only way to describe "Ride with Norman Reedus." Cruising on a slew of bikes, "The Boondock Saints" and "The Walking Dead" actor meets up with a different travel partner in each episode to explore the open road of America and international destinations. With six seasons as of 2023, the series has become a lasting one on AMC.

Norman Reedus isn't the first to make a travel show centered on biker culture, so what makes it so unique? His vibe, for one. However, it's also the particular variety that his program offers viewers. Reedus does not stick to just one style or motorcycle manufacturer; he also has many celebrity guests. He has the bikers' seal of approval.

From Dave Chapelle to Keanu Reeves, you'll be surprised that some of your favorite celebrities ride and are just as captivating in an environment you don't usually see them in. Fans of Reedus' work will also be happy to see quite a few familiar faces as his "The Walking Dead" co-stars, including Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Steven Yeun, join in on the fun.

You can watch "Ride with Norman Reedus" on AMC+ .

44. Epic Drives

Car expert Arthur St. Antoine entered the pole position with the automobile travel series "Epic Drives," premiering in 2010. Backed with a whole fleet of cars, often with some of the world's coolest and fastest sports and luxury automobiles, St. Antoine opens the engine up and cuts loose on roads around the globe. From traversing the Pacific Coast Highway to showcasing winter driving tips on the frozen roads of Scandinavia, St. Antoine guides viewers through truly stunning international roadways. Though "Epic Rides" puts its slick automobiles in the forefront, the travel series is also keenly aware of how to capture the natural beauty of the gorgeous destinations visited. 

"Epic Drives" is available to stream on Roku and Prime Video  with a MotorTrend extension.

43. Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern

Prolific chef, author, and television personality Andrew Zimmern delves into the off-kilter local cuisine from around the world that outsiders may view as strange in the Travel Channel series "Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern." Running steadily since 2006, "Bizarre Foods" has become a large television franchise in and of itself, spawning spinoff series and specials, while the main series has undergone several rebrands. Later, carrying the subtitle "Delicious Destinations," Zimmern's unique perspective on local cuisine proved as engaging as ever. Traveling anywhere from remote settlements in the untamed wilderness to local gastronomy usually avoided by tourists, Zimmern doesn't just focus on the cuisine and preparation itself but where the key ingredients come from. 

A Travel Channel staple for over a decade, "Bizarre Foods With Andrew Zimmern" is currently available to stream on Max and Discovery+ .

42. Samantha Brown's Places to Love

Prolific travel television personality Samantha Brown created the acclaimed PBS series "Samantha Brown's Places to Love," which premiered in 2018. Markedly different from her previous programming on the Travel Channel, Brown's PBS show offers ways for prospective travelers to blend in more naturally with places they visit rather than disrupt local scenes. Featuring a more subdued approach, Brown presents a more authentic, understated cultural experience in the destinations she showcases. "Places to Love" was widely praised for its approach to travel programming and won two Daytime Emmy Awards for its outstanding achievement.

"Samantha Brown's Places to Love" is available to watch through local PBS outlets.

41. A Cook's Tour

Chef and author Anthony Bourdain's first foray into travel television was on the Food Network series "A Cook's Tour," which was filmed while Bourdain was simultaneously writing a book about his experiences. Running for two seasons from 2002-2003, the show took Bourdain around the globe to sample local cuisine and culture, with Asia being a prominent recurring destination. In Variety's review of the first season, "A Cook's Tour" was praised for focusing on destinations less well-documented by other travel shows while providing a man-on-the-street perspective. The series offers a fascinating look at Bourdain discovering his voice as a television host while still possessing his acerbic wit.

"A Cook's Tour" is currently available to stream in full on Prime Video and Tubi .

40. America Outdoors with Baratunde Thurston

Notable writer and commentator Baratunde Thurston expanded from his usual political fare to launch the PBS travel series "America Outdoors with Baratunde Thurston." Thurston travels around the United States, from Death Valley to the Appalachian Mountains, to document America's distinct and immersive outdoor destinations. More than simply hiking and camping, Thurston engages in local activities, including trying his hand at collecting wild rice and surfing, to better appreciate local cultures. Thurston takes the premise behind "America Outdoors" more liberally than most travel shows with similar scopes, with an entire episode reframing outdoor culture in Los Angeles. 

An engaging look at the United States' relationship with its outdoor spaces, "America Outdoors with Baratunde Thurston" is available to stream on Prime Video with PBS Living or PBS Documentaries and PBS with WOSU Passport.

39. Travel Man

Popular British actor and comedian Richard Ayoade launched the breakneck travel series "Travel Man," blending comedy with hectic itineraries. Paired with a celebrity guest, Ayoade and his travel companion have 48 hours to take in the sights and cuisine in different international cities. Starting with the show's tenth season, Ayoade was replaced by British comedian Joe Lycett, but the overall formula remains largely the same. Buoyed by Ayoade and Lycett's hilarious personalities and its limited-time premise, "Travel Man" is as freewheeling and fun as travelogs get.

"Travel Man: 48 Hours in..." is available to stream on Prime Video and  Peacock .

38. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Beloved chef and restauranteur David Chang covers all the most important meals of the day around the world in the original series "Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner." Joined by different celebrity guest stars in each episode, including Seth Rogen and Kate McKinnon, Chang learns what constitutes traditional daily meals in major cities from Marrakech to Phnom Penh. Elevated by thoughtful and entertaining discussions between Chang and his guests, the series offers a broader perspective on the meals we take for granted each day. As with Chang's other travel and cooking shows, the international cuisine-driven travel series focuses on authenticity and a society's connection to its defining food. 

"Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner" is available to stream on  Netflix  and  Prime Video with Fuse+.

37. No Passport Required

With a country as richly vast and varied as the United States, there are plenty of interesting travel spots without ever having to go abroad. This underlying truth provides the basic premise to the PBS travel series "No Passport Required," which is focused on exploring the legacy of immigrant traditions and cuisines within the country. Hosted by noted chef Marcus Samuelsson, six major American cities are showcased as Samuelsson examines the immigrant legacy and food that lovingly define each locale. Going beyond the typical fare that colors each city's perception, Samuelsson meets with everyone from the Armenian community in Los Angeles to the Chinese legacy behind Las Vegas, showcasing some of the cultures that help to make each city great.

"No Passport Required" is currently available to stream on Roku ,  Prime Video with PBS Living or PBS Documentaries, and PBS.

36. Big City, Little Budget

The prospect of living in or visiting major American cities isn't cheap, but host Oneika Raymond guides audiences through more cost-effective approaches to modern metropolises in "Big City, Little Budget." Produced by the Travel Channel, the web series has Raymond visiting cities from sea to shining sea while also providing tips on how to navigate each place without having a robust budget at one's disposal. From frugal dining tips to which neighborhoods won't break the bank, "Big City, Little Budget" offers invaluable advice. With its bite-sized episodes, Raymond offers clear and concise guidance through cities from Miami to New York as she leans into approaching each destination on a budget without compromising the fun.

"Big City, Little Budget" is available to stream through the Travel Channel's YouTube channel .

35. I'll Have What Phil's Having

After helming the long-running sitcom "Everybody Loves Raymond," prolific television writer and producer Phil Rosenthal turned to travelog hosting, starting with the 2015 series "I'll Have What Phil Is Having." Running on PBS for six episodes, the show follows Rosenthal as he travels around the world to check out the local food scenes. Joined by celebrity guests like Martin Short and Ray Romano, Rosenthal's comedic perspective helps give the usual travel show proceedings a more engaging approach. Though short-lived, "I'll Have What Phil Is Having" provides an early look at the type of travel programming Rosenthal would host to greater success on Netflix.

"I'll Have What Phil's Having" is currently available to stream on Roku , Prime Video with PBS Living or PBS Documentaries, Pluto TV , and PBS.

34. Basic Versus Baller: Travel at Any Cost

Even the same iconic locales can offer vastly different experiences depending on the visitor's financial situation, and this dichotomy is explored in the travel series "Basic Versus Baller: Travel at Any Cost." Hosted by siblings Alex and Marko Ayling, the two showcase how to navigate major travel destinations on a budget or take advantage of the visit when flush with cash. Whether they're discussing different approaches to visiting Hong Kong or trying the varying cuisines of France, the Ayling brothers provide plenty of information and varying perspectives on the same destinations. One of the things that work in favor of "Basic Versus Baller" is that the show's premise isn't necessarily binary, as tourists can mix the frugal and luxurious options provided as they see fit. 

A dual-perspective on the travelog formula, "Basic Versus Baller: Travel at Any Cost" is currently available to stream on Hulu , Prime Video with Tastemade, and Peacock .

33. Ugly Delicious

Chef and author David Chang looks at the cultural history and deeper meaning behind popular cuisine in the Netflix original series "Ugly Delicious." Premiering in 2018, Chang and a group of celebrity guests explore the origins of different foods through extensive interviews and traveling to informative points from the cuisine's origins. A thoughtful discussion about food and its inextricable links to societal identity, "Ugly Delicious" blends serious insight with Chang's quick wit to great effect. Widely acclaimed for its approach to asking the hard questions about cuisine's impact on culture and cultural perception, the series was nominated for an Emmy Award.

"Ugly Delicious" is currently available to stream on Netflix .

32. United Shades of America

The United States is, like any nation, an incredibly complicated and occasionally contentious place to live, from sea to shining sea, across a variety of communities. Comedian W. Kamau Bell spotlights these communities, their traditions, and their struggles in the CNN documentary series "United Shades of America." From speaking with indigenous communities in South Dakota to the extensive Black populations in the Appalachians, Bell provides an all-encompassing tour of the modern American experience. Bell's thoughtful approach to admittedly somber subject matter paints a more complete look at the country and the many voices that bring it to life as he travels nationwide.

The winner of multiple Emmy Awards for its sweeping work, "United Shades of America" is available to stream on Discovery+  and  Max  and purchase and rent via online retailers.

31. Booze Traveler

A lot can be learned about a culture through its gastronomy, and host Jack Maxwell is determined to get to the bottom of this search for identity – and the bottom of many bottles – in the Travel Channel show "Booze Traveler." Exploring domestic and international destinations, Maxwell reveals how drinking culture informs daily life in places like Seoul and Dublin while partaking in local spirits himself. With Maxwell's easygoing personality at the forefront, "Booze Traveler" looks at how communities bond over their love of drink. As a former South Boston bartender, Maxwell lends an everyday perspective to his global travels. He is more interested in looking for a good time than asking the hard questions as the show breezily chugs along.

A fittingly rambunctious travelog, "Booze Traveler" is available to stream on Discovery+ and rent and purchase through most digital retailers.

30. Street Food

While acclaimed filmmaker and documentarian David Gelb focuses primarily on haute cuisine with his award-winning "Chef's Table" series, his other Netflix original show, "Street Food," takes a different perspective. Rather than spotlight a single cook per episode like his previous work, Gelb examines an entire city's street food scene, exploring the origins of the cuisine that defines it. From the robust marks of Singapore to hole-in-the-wall restaurants in New Orleans, "Street Food" and its rotating set of hosts provide an authentic culinary portrait of the show's destinations. Gelb's everyman approach and broader scope per episode, in contrast to "Chef's Table," is an effective change that "Street Food" takes full advantage of.

The first season of "Street Food" is set in Asia, the second in Latin America, and the third in the United States, with the series currently available to stream on Netflix .

29. The Kindness Diaries

Connecting with your fellow humans and experiencing people of different backgrounds and cultures is one of the enormous benefits of traveling; for some, it's their entire purpose. In a way, "The Kindness Diaries" encapsulates the spirit of travel, as host Leon Logothetis traverses the globe depending on the kindness of strangers.

Equipped only with a bright yellow motorbike swapped for an equally yellow vintage convertible in the second season, Leon Logothetis searches for kind-hearted people to supply his needs on his travels. This includes food, accommodations, and gasoline. You'll be pleasantly surprised how far one can get in the world just by simply asking — though, he does sleep in his motorbike's sidecar when necessary. While the destinations range from all over the United States to Europe, Cambodia, and Vietnam, this feel-good travel doc is more about the people we meet along the way. Even though "The Kindness Diaries" only has two seasons behind it, the beautiful souls depicted stay with viewers for the long haul.

You can stream "The Kindness Diaries" on Discovery+ .

28. Gordon's Great Escape

Famous chef and television personality Gordon Ramsay decided to visit the originating countries of some of his favorite cuisines in the British television series "Gordon's Great Escape." In an interview with The Guardian , Ramsay shared his lifelong love of Indian food and chronicled his first trip to India in the show. Beyond his visit to India, Ramsay filmed the second set of interviews exploring other parts of Southeast Asia and its cuisine, including Thailand and Vietnam. Offering Ramsay a chance to escape the limelight he was experiencing in America and the United Kingdom, the show reveals him rediscovering his love of cooking while learning about overseas culinary traditions.

"Gordon's Great Escape" is available to stream through Prime Video , Tubi , Roku , and Fox.

27. Long Way Down

Actors and longtime motorcycle aficionados Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman reunited for another international motorcycle voyage with the British travel series "Long Way Down." A follow-up to their 2004 series "Long Way Round," the 2007 offering has the two bikers travel from Scotland all the way to Cape Town, South Africa. Along the way, the pair rides through 18 countries by motorcycle as they traverse Europe and the length of Africa. Even for those not particularly enamored by motorcycles, "Long Way Down" is a fascinating look at life on the open road across two continents anchored by two charismatic leads.

"Long Way Down" is currently available to stream on Apple TV+ .

26. Globe Trekker

One of the longest-running travel shows from the United Kingdom is "Globe Trekker," originally broadcast from 1994 to 2016. With a rotating set of hosts for each episode, the British series highlights a different region and provides audiences with a thorough guide to the sights and culture. More than simply presenting the major tourist attractions, the hosts examine local traditions, including interviews with local industries beyond tourism and hospitality. With such an impressive breadth of episodes, "Globe Trekker" set an enduring standard for travel programming in the United Kingdom against which all other travel shows are to be judged. 

Unfortunately, "Globe Trekker" is unavailable to stream or purchase in the United States.

25. Man v. Food

Eating challenges can say a lot about a culture, from the type of cuisine competitors consume to the quantity eaten to succeed. Actor and television personality Adam Richman took it upon himself to travel all over the United States to face all manner of eating challenges in the Travel Channel series "Man v. Food." Heading to a different destination each episode, Richman singlehandedly subjects himself to various regional eating challenges, from consuming massive steaks to an entire platter of chili dogs in a limited time. "Man v. Food" gave the Travel Channel its highest-rated debut upon its premiere in 2008 (per the Los Angeles Times ), with the show revived in 2017 and Richman replaced by current host Casey Webb.

An amusing look at different American regions by the eating challenges that help define it, "Man v. Food" is available to purchase and rent through most online retailers and to stream on Discovery+ and Max .

24. Tales by Light

If a vacation isn't documented and shared on Instagram, did it actually take place? Photography in some of Earth's most jaw-droppingly gorgeous places is the central premise behind the Australian travel series "Tales by Light." Each episode follows different professional photographers who tell an immersive story about exotic destinations through their pictures and videos. The perfect travel series for the social media-oriented generation, "Tales by Light" delivers truly breathtaking photographs and videos from the overlooked corners of the world.

All three beautifully rendered "Tales by Light" seasons are currently available to stream on Netflix .

23. Conan Without Borders

As an extension of his popular talk show on TBS, veteran host Conan O'Brien took his series on the road on multiple occasions to experience different cultures around the world. These special episodes were compiled in the online "Conan Without Borders," as O'Brien eschewed his typical talk show format. Traveling everywhere from Cuba to South Korea, O'Brien explores the societal morays of each of these destinations with his usual comedic antics and insight. A welcome change of pace from his usual formula, O'Brien blends biting political commentary with a genuine appreciation for local cultures, with "Conan Without Borders" winning an Emmy for its efforts.

"Conan Without Borders" is currently available to stream on Max .

22. The Moaning of Life

When British comedian and actor Karl Pilkington faced something of a midlife crisis, he decided to examine the lives and cultures of others around the world to gain a better sense of perspective (per Cinema Blend ). The resulting international tour was filmed for the British travel series "The Moaning of Life," as Pilkington contemplated love, life, and mortality on the road. To expand his view on the human condition, Pilkington visits drive-thru weddings in Las Vegas, professional mourners in Taiwan, and fertility clinics in Japan. The Hollywood Reporter's review of "The Moaning of Life" complimented the show's existential subject matter and Pilkington's hilarious perspective on the world to make its messaging less somber.

A good-natured look at life, death, and everything in between with an international scope, "The Moaning of Life" is available for purchase and rent on most major digital retailers, including Prime Video and Vudu .

21. Long Way Round

The first of a trilogy of documentary series, 2004's "Long Way Round" puts Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman in the driver's seat as they ride motorcycles from London to New York City eastward. The 19,000-mile journey is undertaken to promote the international humanitarian causes spearheaded by UNICEF, while McGregor and Boorman endure pitfalls and injuries in their journies around the globe. Inspired by the experience, McGregor and Boorman wrote a book detailing their journey, including McGregor adopting an orphan encountered along the way. The kind of celebrity road trip that doesn't feel overly pretentious or self-indulgent, McGregor and Boorman provide a unique perspective as they embark on a truly epic journey.

"Long Way Round" is currently available to stream on Apple TV+ .

20. Three Sheets

Not all cuisine is solid, which is why the 2008 travel series "Three Sheets" showcased a decidedly liquid diet as it visited drinking cultures around the world. Hosted by comedian Zane Lamprey, the show highlights local alcoholic beverages at a multitude of destinations, learning about their history and cultural impact. Of course, this examination goes beyond a mere history lesson, with Zamprey partaking in the beverages, usually in impressive quantities. Part travel series and part televised pub crawl, Lamprey is often accompanied on his journeys by a group of guests, including his college friend Steve McKenna.

After starting on MOJO HD, "Three Sheets" was broadcast on various platforms before ending its run on Spike in 2011. Most of the series is currently available to buy on Prime Video .

19. Worth It

The popular Buzzfeed series "Worth It" offers three different and simultaneous perspectives on the worldwide dining scene in each episode. The show has the three hosts, Steven Lim, Andrew Ilnyckyj, and Adam Bianchi, order three different dishes from a range of price points at varying destinations. This can entail a cheap cup of coffee or designer espresso costing hundreds of dollars while visiting Tokyo. The underlying question is whether or not the dishes are worth the price. Winning a Streamy Award, "Worth It" has been credited with changing how people approach food criticism online, actively comparing quality with price points worldwide (per SBS ).

Available to stream on Hulu , "Worth It" helps viewers know how best to check out the food scenes and types of cuisine in several countries.

18. Somebody Feed Phil

After getting his start travel hosting on PBS, Phil Rosenthal went bigger and better for the Netflix original series "Somebody Feed Phil" in 2018. While maintaining the broader premise of his previous show, "I'll Have What Phil Is Having," Rosenthal's Netflix series feels like a more personal experience for its host. Occasionally checking in with his brother, parents, and son while he is on the road, Rosenthal continues to sample local cuisine from around the world. As Rosenthal visits major international cities, he spotlights local charities and nonprofit organizations active in the destinations, providing a more community-based scope.

"Somebody Feed Phil" is currently available to stream on Netflix .

17. Jack Whitehall: Travels with My Father

Popular British comedian Jack Whitehall and his longtime television producer father, Michael, take their paternal dynamic on the road for the Netflix original series "Jack Whitehall: Travels with My Father." With a decided focus on familial comedy, the Whitehalls find themselves in countless awkward and hilarious situations worldwide as they bond together over their international trips. The two men learn about the cultures they visit, from Cambodia to Turkey, with the final season bringing the father-son duo back to the United Kingdom. Though Jack and Michael Whitehall's antics are played for laughs, the societies they visit are largely treated with the utmost respect as they travel through the jungle and desert together.

All five "Jack Whitehall: Travels with My Father" seasons are available to stream on Netflix .

16. Extreme Engagement

Journalists and producers PJ Madam and Tim Noonan decided to put their then-recent engagement to the test around the world for the Netflix original series "Extreme Engagement." The miniseries has the happy couple travel around the globe for over a year to see how their relationship endures. While the premise feels relatively scripted, rather than providing an authentically spontaneous show, "Extreme Engagement" offers a romantic twist on the travelog format. Noonan and Madam visit romantic destinations that keep the focus on love and lasting relationships, from observing ancient fertility rituals to meeting cultural practices promoting romantic love.

A love odyssey that spans the islands of Indonesia to remote villages in Africa, "Extreme Engagement" is currently available to stream on Netflix .

15. Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives

Restauranteur and television host Guy Fieri has become something of a cultural icon himself, and Fieri's flagship series is the enormously popular "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives." Premiering in 2006 on the Food Network, the show has Fieri travel across North America, stopping at diners, hole-in-the-wall restaurants, and dive bars to sample their signature cuisine. Occasionally joined by an impressive set of celebrity guest stars, Fieri has visited hundreds of locations as part of his cross-country odyssey. Due to the sheer popularity of "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives," many of these spots have seen a noticeable increase in business following episode airings.

As the gold standard among Fieri's travel and food reality shows, "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" is available to rent and purchase via most online retailers and to stream on Discovery+ and Max .

14. Survivorman

Travel isn't just luxury hotels and all-inclusive resorts; for some, vacations involve roughing it in the wild and returning to nature through camping and other immersive experiences. The Canadian travel and wilderness survival series "Survivorman" takes these sensibilities to their extreme as host Les Stroud spends over a week alone in remote locations. With only a handful of tools and the clothes on his back, Stroud has to make do with local flora and fauna to survive these conditions for the allotted time. As a much more stripped-down and extreme approach than "Man vs. Wild," Stroud takes audiences everywhere, from the frozen expanse of Alaska to the predator-filled Amazon rainforest.

For those looking for the ultimate survivalist approach to the world's most unforgiving locations, "Survivorman" is available to stream on Discovery+ and Roku and to rent and purchase through most digital retailers.

13. An Idiot Abroad

When comedian Karl Pilkington's friends and frequent collaborators Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant learned he had no interest in world travel, the two created the series "An Idiot Abroad" in response. Capitalizing on Pilkington's often innocently naive worldview, the British travel show is primarily played for laughs as Pilkington makes wry observations about the destinations he visits. Not content to simply let Pilkington take in the picturesque sights, sounds, and cuisine, Gervais and Merchant have Pilkington endure several challenges, including bungee-jumping in New Zealand and swimming with sharks in Australia. MSN's review of "An Idiot Abroad" praised the mishaps for Pilkington's voyages orchestrated by Gervais and Merchant, with Pilkington's odd perspective and observations elevating the entire show.

A humorous look at the most gorgeous international locales, "An Idiot Abroad" is available to purchase and rent on most digital retailers, including Prime Video and Vudu .

12. Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations

After two seasons on the Food Network with "A Cook's Tour," Bourdain made the leap to the Travel Channel to host his popular travel series "Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations." Running for nine seasons from 2005-2012, Bourdain upped the scope considerably from his previous series while still retaining its everyman qualities. Backed by a more ambitious production, Bourdain visits a wider range of locales while incorporating his love of pop culture and inviting celebrity guests, including Bill Murray and Sean Penn. One of the more notable episodes sees Bourdain and his film crew trapped in Beirut during the 2006 Israel-Lebanon War. "No Reservations" went on to win two Emmy Awards and multiple nominations as a testament to the show's captivating perspective on the world. 

"Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations" is available to purchase from most online retailers and to stream on Discovery+ , Max , and through the Travel Channel website with a linked television provider.

11. Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted

After exploring and experiencing culinary traditions in Southeast Asia firsthand in his first travel series, chef Gordon Ramsay expanded the scope of his follow-up show " Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted " to encompass the whole world. Premiering on National Geographic in 2019, "Uncharted" has Ramsay visit different countries to learn about their cuisine and cooking techniques and take advantage of local thrills. From white water rafting through Laos to climbing up Alaskan mountains and glaciers, Ramsay showcases a more outdoorsy side of himself beyond the world of restaurants and kitchens. In Forbes' review of the series, Ramsay's genuine enthusiasm for the subject matter and destinations he visits was praised for elevating the premise and showing a new side to the temperamental chef.

"Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted" is available to stream through Disney+ and Hulu .

10. Chef's Table

After directing the universally acclaimed documentary film "Jiro Dreams of Sushi" in 2011, filmmaker David Gelb teamed up with Netflix for its original documentary series, "Chef's Table." Premiering in 2015, the show focuses on a different cook for each episode, from a Korean monk renowned for her kimchi to Mexican street food in Philadelphia. With its highly detailed and stylized cinematography and in-depth portraits of its subjects, "Chef's Table" is one of the best documentary series currently on the air. "Chef's Table" brings a global scope to cuisine while never losing sight of the very grounded and human story behind each of the cooks that make every dish possible. The show has been nominated for multiple Emmy Awards as it shines a light on everything from Michelin-starred restaurants to hole-in-the-wall dining locations. 

The main "Chef's Table" series and its numerous spinoffs are available to stream on Netflix .

9. The Amazing Race

In contrast to "Survivor," which keeps its contestants in a single remote location for an entire season, CBS' long-running reality series "The Amazing Race" takes full advantage of its global scope. Teams of two speed through different legs around the world, following clues and completing challenges to gain an edge. On the air since 2001, "The Amazing Race" has showcased some of the most stunning locales on the planet while pitting its teams in genuinely thrilling competitions each season. With many seasons of "The Amazing Race" offering a journey with contestants circumnavigating the globe, the travel element to the reality competition series is unmistakably at the forefront.

"The Amazing Race" is available to stream on Hulu , Netflix , and Paramount+ .

8. Expedition Unknown

With so many legends and historical mysteries around the world demanding answers, archaeologist Josh Gates sets out to find the truth in the Discovery Channel series "Expedition Unknown." From cryptozoology searches for mythical creatures like Bigfoot to attempting to discover clues linked to the lost city of Atlantis, Gates positions himself as a real-life Indiana Jones. Part globe-trotting history lesson, part debunking widely known myths, "Expedition Unknown" provides a fun twist on international travel off the beaten path. As an immensely popular show, "Expedition Unknown" has spawned several spinoff specials, miniseries, and after shows as Gates widens his worldwide search for truth.

"Expedition Unknown" is currently available to stream on Discovery+ and  Max and is available to purchase or rent through most online retailers.

7. Dark Tourist

Not every tourist is going to check out conventional art museums or major family-friendly attractions in their voyages around the world. The Netflix original series "Dark Tourist" offers travelers a chance to check out the more off-beat elements of local cultures, sometimes venturing into the outright macabre. Hosted by journalist David Farrier, "Dark Tourist" visits the purportedly haunted areas of major cities and tourism sites capitalizing on local tragedies and notorious figures around the world. From exploring irradiated sites to touring museums dedicated to infamous serial killers, "Dark Tourist" certainly isn't every traveler's cup of tea by the way it provides a morbid twist on the genre.

"Dark Tourist" is currently available to stream on Netflix .

6. The National Parks: America's Best Idea

Celebrated documentarian Ken Burns, who has crafted documentary series chronicling numerous elements of American culture and history, turned his attention to the country's national parks. The 2009 six-episode miniseries "The National Parks: America's Best Idea" recounts the history behind the parks and how they each capture the stirring beauty of the United States. From the enduring legacy of John Muir to the evolution of the National Park Service, "The National Parks" is a must-watch for anyone planning to visit the natural wonders nationwide. Universally acclaimed, "The National Parks" won two Emmy Awards, with critics praising how the documentary series presented the parks as a gorgeous extension of the national identity.

Released with a companion book expanding its story, "The National Parks: America's Best Idea" is currently available to stream on PBS with WOSU Passport and Prime Video with PBS Documentaries.

5. The Grand Tour

After being ousted from hosting "Top Gear," Jeremy Clarkson and his co-hosts Richard Hammond and James May took their globe-trotting automobile expertise to Prime Video for "The Grand Tour" (via Variety ). Retaining much of the format from their previous work together on "Top Gear," "The Grand Tour" has participants travel to different destinations using an impressive array of cars. From Cambodia to Madagascar, "The Grand Tour" showcases thrilling routes and cars, backed by the hosts' irascible wit. The Independent's positive review of "The Grand Tour" praised the show as distilling the best elements from "Top Gear" while boasting a significantly larger production budget.

With jaw-dropping destinations and high-octane action, "The Grand Tour" is currently available to stream on Prime Video .

4. Passport with Samantha Brown

Television personality Samantha Brown has built an impressive empire of travel shows on a number of platforms. One of Brown's most enduring lines of programming to date is "Passport," which sees Brown extensively explore different regions around the world for the ultimate experience. Starting with 2004's "Passport to Europe," Brown launched several different shows, taking her informative style to examine Latin America, China, and eco-friendly tourism. Brown's "Passport to Europe" won a Daytime Emmy Award while the subsequent "Passport to Latin America" was nominated for an Emmy, as a testament to Brown's eye for entertainment and educational quality. 

Brown's "Passport" series are currently available to stream on Discovery+ .

3. Anthony Bourdain: The Layover

As someone who hosted travel shows since 2002, Anthony Bourdain has experienced a lot of extended layovers and quick detours between trips to larger destinations. This premise of enjoying a locale on a tight turnaround time drives the core premise behind his Travel Channel series "The Layover." With only 24-48 hours in each location, Bourdain enjoys as much of the tourist-oriented and locally authentic experiences as he can before departing once more. A more tightly paced approach to Bourdain's usual travel fare, "The Layover" still finds the time to provide an informative look at different city cultures all over the globe. 

Invaluable for those looking to make the most of their time on a tight schedule, "Anthony Bourdain: The Layover" is available to stream on Discovery+ , along with purchase and rent options on most digital platforms.

2. Rick Steves' Europe

Perhaps the gold standard in public broadcasting produced travel shows, "Rick Steves' Europe" follows travel author and television personality Rick Steves as he explores cities in Europe. Running from 2000 to 2021, Steves not only shares the biggest cultural landmarks and defining fare in each destination, but he provides audiences with valuable travel tips along the way. More than simply focusing on the biggest tourist spots, like London and Paris, Steves adds plenty of overlooked getaways, including Slovenia and Oslo. With a steady hand and wealth of knowledge, Steves has provided his even-keeled traveler wisdom to those interested in visiting Europe for decades.

"Rick Steves' Europe" is currently available to stream on the show's website , PBS with WOSU Passport, Prime Video , and Tubi .

1. Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown

Television personality Anthony Bourdain's final travel show was "Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown," which ran for 12 seasons on CNN from 2013 to 2018. Though "Parts Unknown" certainly retains the focus on local cuisine prominent in Bourdain's past travel shows, the CNN series weaves in more sociopolitical commentary in examining its locales. The series came to an abrupt end  following Bourdain's tragic death , with the remaining episodes becoming a tribute to the late host and his unique worldview. Led by Bourdain's insightful and incisive perspective on the places he visited around the world, "Parts Unknown” was widely acclaimed and won numerous Emmy Awards across its run. More than just a show about food and culture, "Parts Unknown" examines the overlooked qualities of its destinations and what brings people together on a universal level.

Available to purchase on most digital retailers, "Parts Unknown" is also available to stream on Max and Discovery+ .

Our ranking methodology

Everyone has that one show they're connected to, whether popular or not. "Best" is always subjective, and your all-time favorite series may not even be something someone else knows exists. That doesn't mean it's any less valid, though. We've tried to keep our personal opinions from this list and instead relied on more tangible elements when compiling our rankings. You'll find some of the most beloved, compelling, and critically acclaimed travel shows — and some you may have never heard of.

A travel show's host can be as important as the places traveled. There's a reason why Anthony Bourdain will always appear on lists like this one. His captivating storytelling capabilities and genuinely raw nature make for compelling TV that viewers resonate with. This kind of grab power shows up throughout our list of picks, with the face and voice of a program helping to boost some of the programs in our rankings.

We've considered the likability of the shows chosen here by scouring reviews from multiple sources, like Reddit, Rotten Tomatoes, and IMDb. We've also factored in the number of seasons and any accolades a show may have been given. A lack of awards certainly doesn't dull a hidden gem's luster, though, so don't be surprised that many shows featured here have gone under the award committees' radar.

The Best Travel Shows Of All Time (TV, Netflix, Amazon Prime & More)

If you are like me and always yearning to travel, then one of the best ways to do this from home is to watch amazing travel shows on TV.

Over the years I have spent way too much of my spare time consuming every travel show under the sun. And, I thought it was high time I shared some of them with you.

So, without further ado, here are some of the best travel shows on TV – whether it be DVD, Netflix or Amazon.

1. Long Way Round

I remember watching the Long Way Round years ago (2004), which is still clear in my memory. The world-famous Ewan McGregor and one of his best friends Charlie Boorman, pursue their passion for BMW motorbikes and adventure travel and head east from London, as far as possible.

The journey was nearly 19 thousand miles (33,000 kms) and took them through Europe, overland through Asia (Russia, Kazakhstan and Mongolia) to the USA and New York.

Of course, they do take a crew with them, but this is hardcore overland travel at its best. No script, all the hardships are shown. Boy, they had a difficult time in some parts of Asia!

Update: They have the latest episode in this series, Long Way Up, which features the boys riding from Ushuaia in Argentina to Los Angeles. This is more or less the classic Pan-American Highway route that travelers love!

2. Long Way Down

Following on from the 2004 success, Ewan McGregor and Charlie Boorman set out again in 20017. This time North to South from Scotland to Cape Town in the Long Way Down . This is yet another infamous overland route and also not a simple one.

Many of the roads and countries in Africa are not in the same state as their European counterparts, so they had some challenges with their suspension. They also had quite some adventures and exciting visits, even with presidents!

If you liked the first one of the series, then this is an equally good follow-up.

It’s also available on Amazon.

Below is a quick intro to the show. It’s worth taking a look.

3. Anthony Bourdain (Parts Unknown, No Reservations, A Cook’s Tour & The Layover)

With the sad news of his recent passing, how can I not include one of the food travel show classics from Anthony Bourdain and his team at CNN? This series was still being filmed at the time of this death, and they have since tried to finalise it without being able to use him for voiceovers. However, there is so much material in this series, you won’t be stressed looking for things to watch.

Anthony was actually made famous by his book, Kitchen Confidential , where he revealed how things work in the restaurant business. I actually read this book over 20 years ago, long before I even realised he was on TV.

Parts Unknown is a unique take on travel from Anthony where he visits various countries around the world that interest him and explores all the great food they have on offer. But, he does not go for the classy restaurants and showy food, he looks for the best of what locals enjoy.

And dives right in himself! It’s super-inspiring to see someone so famous get down and dirty and have absolutely zero pretence. He loves food. He loves people. And he loves to travel. What more could you ask for in a TV Show.

Some of the series from Parts Unknown is available on Amazon .

As are some of his older series like No Reservations , A Cook’s Tour , The Layover

And here is a quick preview of season 7 from CNN.

4. Departures – with Scott Wilson and Justin Lukach

Two best friends from Canada decide they need a little excitement in their lives and head off for a year of adventure.  They end up exploring vast areas of the world and looking for as many unique experiences as possible.

The series is quite in-depth, covering 43 episodes , and almost as many countries. And by the time you have finished it, I will be surprised if you don’t just get up and go traveling yourself.

You can grab it on Bluray on Amazon.

Here is a quick intro to the series.

5. Simon Reeve Travels

I absolutely love to watch Louis Theroux on TV. His bumbling, almost nerd-like charm somehow disarms all the crazy nut-jobs that he interviews.

Simon Reeve, at least to me, seems like his equal in the BBC travel world. He is not a gung-ho daring, Tom Cruise look-alike. He is a down-to-earth, easy-to-like, bumbling reporter who takes to the most interesting places on earth. And makes you fall in love with them all as much as he does.

We have started watching some of his earlier shows. We have started with his crazy trip around the Equator. But some of the others are available on the BBC (if you live in the UK) including such trips as: the Mediterranean, Caribbean, Australia, Africa, Colombia and many more.

Here is a quick intro to the Caribbean series.

6. Rick Steves Travel Series

Another prolific traveler and creator of travel-related content both on and offline is Rick Steves. If you type in many European-related travel searches in Google, you will often find his website in the top ten.

He seems to have been everywhere worldwide and made a TV show about most of it. He appeals to an older demographic in my opinion, as his commentary is a little stiffer, but you can certainly learn a lot from this guy.

You can check them out on his website.

And below is an intro to Season 9 of his European series.

7. Michael Palins (Various Adventures around the world)

Michael Palin, a former Monty Python member and Jon Cleese, has been producing top-notch travel series for years and is a little more old-school than Rick Steves. His shows focus on longer adventures, similar to A Long Way Round, although perhaps not as challenging.

They are fun to watch, and you certainly get to see some of the lesser-explored regions of the world. Although some of these series will be a little dated by now – I remember watching some decades ago!

And just as I said that I took a look and saw he has since made some new series on Channel 5 in the UK, including a trip into the forbidden land of North Korea !

Michael Palin’s Around the World in 80 Days

8. An Idiot Abroad

Venturing into a little bit of Travel Comedy, An Idiot Abroad is the brainchild of the creator of the British (original) The Office, along with a few co-creators. The idea is to send someone who has almost never left their town, let alone lifestyle and send them to some very foreign destinations.

Along the way, they experience some extremely challenging destinations and situations all in the name of broadening their horizons. Karl Pilkington will never be the same again, and maybe neither will you.

You can grab Season 1 and Season 2 on Amazon.

Here is a quick Best Of from the China episode to give you a taste of the show.

9. Travel Man with Richard Ayoade

Another long-running comedy travel show from the UK, Travel Man is very short episode focused on 48 hours in various cities, mainly in Europe. Of course, now that he is on about his 10th season, he has started to venture a little further afield. Apart from his sarcasm, one of the best things about the show for me is the wacky things he (or his team) finds in every location. Not your run-of-the-mill tourist attractions.

Each episode is extremely sarcastic and accompanied by another usually British comedian, so people outside the UK may have trouble laughing or even understanding what he is saying. His accent is strong and his vocabulary is broad. You might have seen him as one of the wacky IT experts in t he IT Crowd (which you can see on Netflix ), a little like the British version of Silicon Valley, albeit filmed years before.

There are various seasons up for grabs on Amazon .

If you want to see if it’s up to your alley, here is a quick taste of Richard with some of his fellow comedians on the show.

10. Top Gear

Intended as a bit of a petrolhead’s show about cars, Top Gear has also done a significant amount of travel-related shows over the years too. From the drives down the most dangerous roads in the world to almost killing themselves in places like Switzerland. Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May will show you a great time on the road and while traveling.

You can check out Season 1 here on Amazon and other seasons that follow.

11. Joanna Lumley’s Travel Series

Joanna Lumley became famous back in the 70s, but for me, she became even more famous for her role in Absolutely Fabulous. Since then, she has traveled and filmed it all for us. She has also done a “making of” series that I enjoyed. She may seem very posh and British when you first see her shows, but if you love sarcasm and comedy then just wait a bit and she will deliver!

Here is a list of her extensive travel shows you can catch on BBC or other online streaming services:

  • Joanna Lumley’s Hidden Caribbean
  • Joanna Lumley in the Kingdom of the Thunder Dragon
  • Joanna Lumley in the Land of the Northern Lights
  • Joanna Lumley’s Japan
  • Joanna Lumley: The Quest For Noah’s Ark
  • Joanna Lumley’s India
  • Jennifer & Joanna: Absolutely Champers

The Best Travel Shows On Netflix

Netflix is a bit of a special category in this post because they don’t have many of the more famous shows above at the moment.

12. Dark Tourist

One of the more recent and perhaps more infamous trends in travel right now is called Dark Tourism. With the recent airing of the series about Chornobyl, it seems to have accelerated even more.

One wacky New Zealand traveler, David Farrier heads to some quirky and sometimes dangerous locations in eight episodes of Dark Tourist , which sees him head to most continents. From the recent Japanese nuclear disaster to perhaps shooting a cow in Cambodia, he tries it all.

13. Street Food: Asia

If you like to combine mouth-watering food and travel, a popular past-time, then this is a recent addition to Netflix that I am currently devouring. It shows you some amazing chefs who are almost always out on the street and serving the locals with something of an obsession. From Thailand to India, you get to see it all – no-frills cooking from some of the best street food vendors in the world.

14. Tales By Light

Another show I have been checking out lately is Tales By Light , a travel and photography-based series up to season 3. It follows a famous Australian photographer all around the world, delving into the lives of the people he meets and how he experiences travel through the lens.

15. Jack Whitehall: Travels with my Father

A show I have not had a chance to see, but it certainly looks like a travel comedy worth checking out. It involves a comedian and his stuffy father taking far-flung adventures to foreign lands and trying to teach each other a thing or two.

16. Somebody Feed Phil

A more modern version of a travel & food show, Somebody Feed Phil , is about exploring the places and food no one talks about. Phil is quite the quirky and loveable character, so you will either love him or loathe him. I watched half the first season and did not fall in love with it. However, given that Netflix has commissioned 6 seasons of the show, there must be a lot of people who love it.

17. Conan Without Borders

Following famous TV night show host Conan O’Brien to some adventurous destinations around the world, this is yet another travel and comedy combination you won’t want to miss. From Haiti and Cuba to K-Pop in South Korea this is as wacky as it is travel.

18. Restaurants on the Edge

“Restaurants on the Edge” is a Canadian reality TV series premiered in 2020. It showcases chef Dennis Prescott, designer Karin Bohn, and restaurateur Nick Liberato assisting struggling restaurants in scenic, remote locations like seashores, lakes, and mountains. This is a little like Gordon Ramsay’s old show Kitchen Nightmares, but more travel related.

The goal of the visits on this show is to rejuvenate these places by integrating them with the local culture. Additionally, the show offers a travel experience, with episodes featuring the experts exploring local areas, meeting artisans, and tasting authentic local foods.

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About the author roger timbrook.

Roger is a little obsessed with travel. He has been to over 40 countries, broken 3 suitcases and owned over 10 backpacks in 12 months. What he doesn't know about travel, ain't worth knowing!

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8 Old Travel Shows On TV For A Nostalgic Trip

Long before bloggers started chronicling their travel experiences, it was the travel shows broadcast on TV that virtually took us around the world. While many introduced us to exotic and off- beat destinations, others gave us a glimpse of unique cultures and unusual local cuisines. Entertaining as well as informational, these are 8 old television travel series that would not only take you on a trip of nostalgia but also inspire you to tour the world. A couple of them are so popular that they continue to be telecast on TV.

1. Globe Trekker (1994 - Present)

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Image Source: ket.org

Running since 1994, Globe Trekker has been enticing everyone to travel around the world. Originally broadcast as Lonely Planet, the adventure tourism-based show primarily takes the off-beaten path for exploring the local culture. Each episode, hosted by a different ‘traveler’, transports you to breathtaking destinations across the globe. 

2. Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations (2005 - 2012)

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Image Source: Youtube.com

The world recently lost Anthony Bourdain, but his travel shows like Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations have made him immortal. ‘Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations’ had a perfect mixture of travel and food. People used to look forward to the destinations that the sharp-tongued Bourdain would explore and the cuisines that he would taste. 

3. Passport to Europe with Samantha Brown (2004 - 2006)

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Image Source: wfsu.org

Passport to Europe with Samantha Brown benefited many who were planning a Euro trip. In this show, the bright-eyed host Samantha visits famous, as well as, smaller European cities, interacting with the locals to know their culture. Besides, the show also introduces you to the local landmarks, along with popular restaurants and shopping sites.  

4. Departures (2008 - 2010)

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Image Source: departuresentertainment.com

Most of us can relate to the travel series Departures, showing two regular guys road-tripping since they are bored. It is one of my favorites as the adventure-travel-show focuses more on the journey rather than destinations. Embarking on a journey of 42 episodes, you get to experience the travelogue of Scott Wilson, Andre Dupuis, and Justin Lukach.  

5. An Idiot Abroad (2010 - 2012)

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Unlike other travel shows where a host takes you around the world, An Idiot Abroad is all about watching Karl Pilkington perform impromptu tasks at different destinations. This road trip comedy television series is an absolute entertainer while watching Karl dance with a samba school in a Carnival parade, traveling the desert on a camel, or training as a luchador. 

6. Michael Palin: Around the World in 80 Days (1989)

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Image Source: forthearts.org.uk

Telecast on BBC1 way back in 1989, the travel series ‘Around the World in 80 Days’ is inspired from Jules Verne's classic novel that goes by the same name. In this television travel series, Michael Palin is challenged to travel around the world in just 80 days without using aircraft for transport. A critically acclaimed programme, you get to see Michael’s challenges and experiences up-close.    

7. Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern (2006 - Present) 

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Image Source: andrewzimmern.com

One of the longest-running travel shows, Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern is a favorite amongst foodies (or rather not?). Perfectly mixing food with travel, in this show you see chef Andrew Zimmern traveling to different countries and trying unusual cuisines that one would normally turn away. Discovering the most authentic food, beware though as a few graphics may be outright disgusting.   

8. The Thirsty Traveler (2002 - 2006)

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The Thirsty Traveler was a show to see how host Kevin Brauch quenched his thirst for ale and travel. While spanning the globe, Kevin is seen to be on a quest of finding the best tasting spirits. For the beer, wine, and bourbon lovers, this is one of the must-watch travel shows broadcast on television. 

How many of these travel shows on TV have you watched? Any other travel series that have made you yearn to go wandering? Comment below and let everyone know!

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34 best travel tv shows to binge watch this year.

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links, at no extra cost for you!

Are you looking for some amazing travel TV shows to feed your wanderlust?

There is nothing better than watching inspiring travel TV shows when you don’t get to travel. They are entertaining, helpful to plan your travels and open your mind (and heart) to new places.

I absolutely love watching travel shows on TV. While it’s true that I prefer doing the actual travelling, I’m like everybody else and I also enjoy staying at home and dreaming of my next destinations.

I spend a lot of time watching travel shows and find it to be not just entertaining, but enlightening!

Sometimes you will discover underrated places that you would have never thought of going. And that’s the great thing about it, you don’t only get to learn about the places you want to go. You discover new places!

It’s also a very good way to learn more about the culture of these places.

As you may know, I love discovering new cultures. I find all of them so incredibly interesting. Foreign languages, food, history… there is just so much to discover. It’s so interesting and exciting!

Here are some of the best travel TV shows to watch now!

🔎 Table of Contents

1. Jack Whitehall: Travels with my father

Jack Whitehall is a famous British comedian. He is mainly known to be the posh lad in Fresh Meat (filmed in Manchester by the way 😉 ).

In real life, Jack Whitehall actually is a very posh Londoner. He comes from a wealthy family and never got the chance to go backpacking as many young people do.

On top of that, he always had quite a difficult relationship with his dad, who is 79.

This is why, in 2017, Jack Whitehall invites his dad, Michael, to go backpacking with him in Asia for a Netflix original series .

By that, I mean proper backpacking. Sleeping in hostels, taking cheap transportation, carrying a backpack… and guess what, his dad said yes!

This show is absolutely hilarious and a perfect mix between comedy and travel. If you need something to cheer you up and make you dream of foreign lands, it’s the perfect choice!

In the first season, they travel through countries such as Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia.

It’s so funny to watch as the dad is quite a character. He is a very posh person and obviously not quite happy about the lack of comfort.

If you like British humour, Jack and Michael Whitehall will crack you up!

The show had so much success that it was renewed for a second season in Europe . A continent that Michael famously voted to leave! In the third season, they go to America and here again, it takes a whole new dimension.

Give it a try, you will be hooked straight from the first episode! It’s so funny and arguably the best travel reality show on Netflix!

2. Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown

You may know Anthony Bourdain as a chef but did you know that he had a few travel shows as well?

My favourite is Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown .

This American food and travel show was produced by CNN and ran from 2013 to 2018. Sadly, Anthony died while working on a show about Strasbourg, France on the 8th of June 2018.

In this show, he travels the world and focuses on the lesser-known and underrated places.

He goes to pretty much any country you can think of and explores the culture and cuisine with locals. Very often he goes around with local guides, sometimes he also gets to meet famous personalities.

In his episode about Lyon in France, he goes for dinner with Paul Bocuse, the famous French chef.

Bourdain has this very unique way to explore the world. He sees the beauty in everything and always makes sure to be in perfect sync with local cultures.

He had this unique ability to see the world as the absolute beauty it really is and through Parts Unknown, shares his vision of the world’s cultures.

It’s not a show that I would categorise as funny, although there are some quirks. But it’s definitely the most interesting and passionate one of this list!

3. Down to Earth

Seasons:  1

This is a fun travel show / documentary to watch. It stars Zac Efron who travels around the world with wellness expert Darin Olien.

The goal of these travels is to discover more sustainable ways to live. They go everywhere around the world including Iceland, Sardinia and South America. 

Each destination highlight a specific sustainable lifestyle. For example, Sardinia in Italy is known as a blue zone. A blue zone is an area with more people reaching the age of 100 than the average.

When they get to Sardinia, they meet with locals and experts to try to understand how the way people live and eat has impacted their health.

Darin Olien is known to be big on super foods so you will also learn plenty about that when they go to South America.

All in all, this is a great show to watch as it perfectly mixes together fun and education.

4. BBC Race Across the World

Even though the Amazing Race is a concept available in almost all countries, it doesn’t exist in the UK.

But don’t you worry, the BBC thought that through and created its own program!

The concept of the Race across the world is a bit different though. In this show, you will follow 5 pairs of travellers on an epic race across the world.

In the first season, their mission is to go from London to Singapore without taking a single flight.

They are being given a bit of money, the equivalent of a flight ticket from London to Singapore ie about £1000. With this money, they have to go to Singapore without flying.

This means they have to find transport, accommodation and food for a month within that £500 budget per head. Each pair adopts a different strategy.

They take all sorts of transportation. Some hitchhike, some take the bus…

It’s a very entertaining thing to watch. You will surprise yourself trying to plan that trip as well!

5. Somebody Feed Phil

Seasons:  4

This Netflix Original is an excellent thing to watch if you love both travelling and food.

You will follow Philip Rosenthal on his trips around the world and discover the local delicacies.

There is no better way to understand the local culture than eating local dishes with the locals themselves and that’s what Phil is doing here.

From the floating markets in Thailand to the classic Mexican cantinas, he tries it all!

The best thing about this show is that you will discover so much more than just food and drinks.

He really tries to understand the local culture and why things are the way they are.

It’s also worth noting that Phil is a very happy and funny guy which makes it very pleasant to watch.

6. Instant Hotel

Instant Hotel is an Australian reality show that follows several teams of homeowners.

Each duo owns a holiday rental in Australia and will host the other contestants for a day and a night.

It’s a nice thing to watch if you love Australia or would like to visit one day.

You will get to see several states including Victoria, Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia and Northern Territory.

Not only will you see some very famous locations such as Bondi Beach but will also get to discover some hidden gems.

There are 2 seasons available on Netflix.

7. Ugly Delicious

This is another food and travel TV show on Netflix. In this one, you will follow chef David Chang on his journey around the world.

A bit like Anthony Bourdain used to do, Chang is using food to tackle misconceptions and break down cultural barriers. 

Food is a powerful way to experience a country and learn more about the local culture. Chef Chang knows that and he shows you exactly how to!

He is also joined by guests including other chefs, artists, activists and plenty more. With him, you’ll discover many different regions including the USA, Asia and Europe.

8. Dark Tourist

In Dark Tourist, the journalist David Farrier focuses on something rarely talked about: Dark Tourism. Dark tourism is the fact of travelling to places associated with death or tragedy.

This type of travel is getting more and more popular and that’s why David Farrier goes to experience it and share with us his journey.

Dark Tourist is a very interesting show to watch as clearly, he is immersing himself into some culture and believes that you probably never even heard of before that.

Secondly, it can get quite funny and that Kiwi accent is always so cute!

Lastly, let’s be honest, it’s bloody weird! And clearly extremely interesting. I had no idea most of these things existed and although it can be creepy at times, it is quite interesting to know more about them.

9. Emily in Paris

Emily in Paris is a Netflix Original TV Show that was released in 2020. It was created by Darren Star (best known for “Sex and the City”).

It’s the story of Emily Cooper, an American girl, who moves to Paris to work in a French marketing agency.

Although it was argued that the show was full of clichés, it is still a very cool thing to watch. As a French person, I loved it!

It may not quite be representative of what a normal french life is but it highlights the most magical aspects of Paris! It will make you dream!

Emily Cooper is played by Lily Collins (British-American actress) but most of the other main characters are French which makes the show even better!

They all speak English (some with a better accent than others).

It’s a feel-good travel show that will make you want to visit Paris straight away!

And if you do, you will be able to visit Emily in Paris filming locations!

10. Griff’s Great Australian Rail Trip

Looking for a travel show about Australia? Here you go!

This 2020 docuseries is one of the best things to watch before going to Australia.

Here you will see Griff Rhys Jones, a Welsh comedian, taking on an amazing train journey from Perth to Sydney and Darwin to Adelaide.

Not only is it a great way to see what the Indian Pacific and The Ghan trains are like but you will also get to learn so much about the Australian outback and culture.

You can tell that Griff is truly fascinated by Australia and he will definitely make you want to jump on a plane straight away!

11. The Kindness Diaries

The Kindness Diaries is one of the best travel programmes if you also love motorbikes (don’t worry if you don’t though, it’s fun either way but if you do like motorbikes, this is the ultimate best travel series for you).

You will follow the adventures of Leon who travels around the world on a vintage motorcycle relying solely on the kindness of strangers for accommodation, food and even petrol.

This is an extraordinary travel tv program. Not only is it interesting and fun but seeing the kindness of people all around the world is simply the most moving thing you can see.

It will leave you quite emotional on a few occasions!

12. James May: Our man in Japan

You may know James May as one of the presenters of Top Gear. But he’s got way more in store than you’d think.

In this Amazon Prime original , James May goes to Japan and experiences many aspects of Japanese Culture.

He goes to all the main cities including Tokyo and Kyoto but also some more remote places in the Japanese countryside.

James May is a typical British guy and definitely knows how to come up with the best comments!

Just picture him, in Japan, not speaking a single word of Japanese, clueless about the culture… and yet going for it!

It’s a very interesting mix of fun and culture.

If you love Japan, you will definitely like it but even if you don’t have any specific interest in this country, you will still enjoy it, I promise!

You can watch this amazing show on Amazon Prime.

Click here to check it out and get a free trial!

13. Gordon, Gino and Fred’s Road Trip

If you are looking for comedy travel shows, look no further! This one will make you laugh out loud!

This 2-season show features 3 famous chefs in the UK: Gordon Ramsay, Gino D’Acampo, and Fred Serieix.

Just picture it for a moment, we are putting together a British man, an Italian man and a French man, in a same place and make them travel the world to discover the best foods.

The result? One of the best celebrity travel shows we can think of!

It is a very cool show and you get to discover their home countries of Italy , France and Scotland but also some other destinations such as Texas or Mexico.

14. By Any Means

Seasons:  1 (6 episodes)

This one is for all the adventurers out there! Unlike some of the shows out there that are quite commercialised, this one is very pure and honest. You will be following Charley Boorman, an Irishman who decides to go from his small hometown in Ireland all the way down to Australia without flying.

Charley is not doing all of that on his own. He is with a team which makes it even more entertaining.

In the first episode, you will see how they went about planning the trip itself which was pretty challenging back in 2008. After that, the good stuff starts and you follow them on this incredible journey.

It’s a great way to learn more about hidden gems and underrated travel destinations.

Click here to watch on Amazon Prime.

15. The Grand Tour

The Grand Tour is British motoring show featuring Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May. Although it is known for cars, it’s also an excellent travel TV show to watch.

The famous trio used to present Top Gear for BBC. In 2015, BBC didn’t renew Jeremy Clarkson’s contract.

At this point, his friends decided to follow him and they signed a contract with Amazon Prime. The Grand Tour was born!

On the Grand Tour, Clarkson, Hammond and May embark the most incredible vehicles and set off to explore some of the most beautiful countries in the world!

They visit some famous places but also adventure themselves in very remote, off-the-beaten-path, locations. This includes Madagascar, Morocco, Namibia, Italy and many more!

The Grand Tour is available on Amazon Prime . There are several seasons and some specials!

Click here to watch The Grand Tour.

16. Amazing Race

old travel shows on tv

The Amazing Race is an American reality TV show. I’ve watched every season of the French equivalent, Pekin Express.

As much as I would love to talk about this show, I appreciate that watching a show in french might not be of your liking!

But it’s ok because the Amazing Race is pretty much the same thing. There is an American and Canadian version.

The concept is simple. There are several teams of two racing around the world. In each episode, they have to go to a certain destination with no money.

Therefore their only option is to hitchhike and get locals to accommodate them for free.

Along the way, other missions are given to them. These can be hikes, riding… all sorts of things.

It’s the perfect show to discover many countries in a different way. The Amazing Race has it all: competition, culture, landscapes, fun… A must see!

And there are over 30 seasons available so plenty to binge-watch!

Click here to watch the Amazing Race.

17. Travel Man

If you are looking for another funny British travel show, Travel Man is for you!

In this channel 4 show, the host Richard Ayoade explores all major cities around the world. The goal? Visiting as many tourist spots in the minimum amount of time.

When I say that, don’t get me wrong. He is very well organised and makes sure to go on a guided tour most of the time.

This means he actually embeds himself very well in the culture of the place he is visiting.

But where loads of travel shows focus on hidden gems and off-the-beaten-path destinations, Travel Man does the opposite. He goes for the most famous landmarks!

And it’s a good thing because even though these places are touristy, they are famous for a reason!

Richard Ayoade is a very funny man and will make you laugh out loud quite a few times!

Somehow, he always does his best not to enjoy himself which makes the whole show absolutely hilarious!

This show is perfect if you are planning city breaks or are into architecture.

If you are an adventure and after nature discovery, it won’t be what you are looking for.

Click here to watch Travel Man.

18. Anthony Bourdain: The Layover

The late Anthony Bourdain was famous as a celebrity chef. But he gained an army of new fans with his excellent travel series, Anthony Bourdain: The Layover .

Showcasing Bourdain’s swift visits to various cities around the world, the show aired on the Travel Channel from 2011 to 2013.

It focused on how to make the most of a short layover or brief stopover in a city.

Each episode featured Bourdain spending 24 to 48 hours in a featured city, providing viewers with a fast-paced, no-nonsense guide to experiencing the best food, culture and attractions a place had to offer.

He often sought the help of local experts and friends, including chefs and celebrities, to uncover hidden gems and popular hotspots.

Visiting everywhere from New York City to Istanbul, the show is renowned for Bourdain’s candid and unfiltered commentary, his willingness to try exotic and unconventional dishes and his deep appreciation for the diverse cultures he encountered.

19. All Joanna Lumley’s Shows

Joanna Lumley is a famous British actress. You may know her from  The New Avengers  or more recently  The Wolf of Wall Street.

She is also well known for her travel documentaries.

She has done quite a few of them over the years and they are all fantastic things to watch. The most recent one was released in 2020 and is called Joanna Lumley’s Hidden Caribbean: Havana to Haiti.

If you love the Caribbean and want to learn more about this part of the world, watching Joanna Lumley’s TV show will be the perfect thing to do.

It is considered a documentary but like most travel shows, it’s quite funny on top of being interesting.

In this one, she goes to Cuban and Haiti. Local culture, quirky situations, funny humour… it has it all!

You should also consider watching the other ones as they are all fantastic:

  • Joanna Lumley’s Nile
  • Joanna Lumley’s Japan
  • Joanna Lumley’s Trans-Siberian Adventure
  • Joanna Lumley’s Unseen Adventures
  • Joanna Lumley’s Greek Odyssey
  • Joanna Lumley’s India
  • Joanna Lumley’s Home Sweet Home: Travels in My Own Land
  • Joanna Lumley’s Silk Road Adventure
  • Joanna Lumley’s Postcards

Most of them are available on Amazon Prime as well as ITV Hub and BBC Select.

20. Bradley Walsh & Son: Breaking Dad

This one is very similar to Jack Whitehall Travels with my father. On paper at least.

In this case, the dad is the celebrity. Bradley Walsh is a famous British comedian and presenter. If he never particularly wanted to travel, his 21-year old son, Barney, decided otherwise!

Together they go on a road trip in America in an RV. The series started in 2019 and can be watched on Amazon . There are 2 seasons, 10 episodes in total.

In this case, they don’t go for a budget-travel version. They keep their comfort but try very unexpected activities in the States.

It’s more about the contact with the locals which is quite interesting.

As you would expect from the Walsh’s, it’s also very funny!

They go from the Florida Keys up to Georgia. So if you are interested in knowing more about Florida and the east coast states, this one’s for you!

You can watch this amazing show on  ITV (eligible for a free trial as well!).

21. An Idiot Abroad

An Idiot Abroad is one the quirkiest travel show that you can find.

Here is the plot: the main person, Karl Pilkington has never wanted to travel and will be forced to.

Basically, at the beginning of the episode, Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant (who created the show) send Karl abroad with instructions. They put together a bucket list and he has to do everything.

It’s so funny! I promise, this British show will crack you up!

The thing that makes it so entertaining is the fact that Karl Pilkington has no interest in travelling and ends up doing all these things while the other two stay in the UK!

If you want to have a good laugh, An Idiot Abroad is the way to go!

22. The Americas with Simon Reeve

If you are looking for the best travel shows on BBC iplayer, this one is for you!

It features Simon Reeve, a famous British adventurer, exploring the Americas.

The first season includes 5 episodes during which you discover some of the most famous places in the Americas such as Machu Picchu in Peru but also some very remote places in the Amazon rainforest.

If you’d like to learn more about Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, Brazil, Peru, Bolivia, Chile and Paraguay, this is the travel show for you.

There is a lot to love about the Americas. Between the ancient Maya heritage and the beautiful national parks in the USA, there is so much to discover.

That’s exactly what you will do if you want “The Americas with Simon Reeve”.

You will follow him on his incredible journey and learn more about the local culture as well as sustainable ways to live. From planting trees in Costa Rica to hiking the Rocky Mountains, this is the perfect mix between adventure, culture and sustainability.

This TV show was produced by BBC and available on BBC iPlayer. 

23. Men in Kilts

If you’d love to learn more about Scotland , then Men in Kilts is the perfect travel show for you!

Here you will follow Sam Heughan and Graham McTavish, the stars of Outlander, around Scotland and discover plenty about the local culture.

This includes whisky, bagpipes and of course, stunning landscapes.

Not only is it a very interesting show to watch but the hosts are so funny and it’s so great to see them in another context than Outlander.

24. Long Way Up

Premiering in 2020, Long Way Up is part of the Long Way series of documentary travel TV shows, which follows motorcycle journeys led by longtime actors and friends Charley Boorman and Ewan McGregor.

In Long Way Up , Charley and Ewan embark on an epic adventure, riding electric Harley Davidson LiveWire motorbikes from the southern tip of South America in Argentina to Los Angeles in the USA.

The journey covers over 13,000 miles and 13 countries, taking them through Chile, Bolivia, Peru , Ecuador, Colombia, Central America and Mexico between their start and finish points.

Some of the most memorable moments include navigating challenging terrains like the Atacama Desert and the Andes Mountains, dealing with extreme weather conditions, and experiencing the cultural diversity of the countries they visit.

The duo also encounter unexpected obstacles, like charging their electric motorcycles in remote locations with limited infrastructure, which adds an extra layer of adventure to their trip.

25. Booze Traveler

Booze Traveler was a popular Travel Channel television series from 2014 to 2018. Its host was the effervescent Jack Maxwell – a well-known Boston-born actor and television personality.

Each episode featured Maxwell embarking on a worldwide adventure to learn about different cultures through their alcoholic beverages and drinking customs.

The series took viewers to various destinations, including Mexico, India, Japan, Italy, and South Africa.

In each place, Maxwell immersed himself in local customs, tried traditional drinks and interacted with the locals to understand the importance of alcohol in their culture better.

In doing this, he often tried unique and sometimes unusual alcoholic drinks, such as snake wine in Vietnam and fermented mare’s milk in Mongolia.

Overall, the show explored the cultural and historical significance of alcohol, revealing how it has shaped societies and brought people together.

Sadly, the show was not renewed for a fifth series because Maxwell was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma while filming the last few episodes of this travel series.

26. Amazing Hotels: Life Beyond the Lobby

Considered one of the best travel TV series out of the UK, Amazing Hotels: Life Beyond the Lobby debuted in 2017 and quickly became popular amongst those who aspire to the finer things in life.

Giles Coren, a British food and travel writer and Monica Galetti, a renowned chef and restaurant critic, host the show.

The series explores some of the world’s most unique and luxurious hotels, delving beyond their opulent lobbies to uncover the behind-the-scenes operations and extraordinary experiences they offer.

In each episode, Coren and Galetti visit a different exceptional hotel, often located in stunning and remote locations.

They meet with the staff, from chefs to concierges, to understand the craftsmanship, innovation and dedication required to maintain these extraordinary establishments.

The show highlights the environmental and sustainability efforts of these hotels where possible.

Over the years, Amazing Hotels has featured various destinations, including the Fogo Island Inn in Canada, the Burj Al Arab in Dubai, the Giraffe Manor in Kenya and the Treehotel in Sweden.

27. Iain Robertson Rambles

If you watch Iain Robertson Rambles , you’ll see one of the most fascinating documentary travel TV shows ever.

As its name suggests, this captivating series is hosted by Iain Robertson, a Scottish presenter and broadcaster widely recognised for his love for nature and the outdoors.

The show focuses on Robertson’s expeditions through some of Scotland’s most picturesque and remote terrains and the UK.

During each episode, viewers accompany Robertson on his long walks and hikes across breathtaking landscapes.

The show offers a unique blend of travelogue, natural history, and personal storytelling.

Robertson’s passion for the outdoors and his knowledge of wildlife and environmental conservation are central to the series.

Throughout the series, Iain Robertson explores various destinations in Scotland and the UK, including the rugged Highlands , the serene islands of the Hebrides, and the lush woodlands of Wales.

Whilst watching him do this, viewers feel like they are alongside him – trekking through the picturesque landscapes he explores.

28. The Misadventures of Romesh Ranganathan

If you are looking for funny travel shows, look no further than The Misadventures of Romesh Ranganathan .

The show, a travel documentary series starring the British comedian, first aired in 2018.

It follows Romesh as he embarks on journeys to various destinations worldwide, often focusing on places considered off the beaten path or challenging for tourists.

Throughout the series, Romesh immerses himself in the local cultures and traditions of the places he visits.

He often seeks unique and authentic experiences, interacting with locals and trying his hand at their customs and activities.

Some places he visits include Ethiopia, Haiti, Albania, Zimbabwe, Mongolia, and Bosnia – locations known for their rich history, distinctive cultures, and, in some cases, reputations for being less frequented by mainstream travellers.

As Romesh offers humorous and self-deprecating commentary while navigating unfamiliar and sometimes challenging situations, the show provides a fresh perspective on travel.

His witty observations and genuine reactions to the places he goes to make for entertaining viewing. 

29. Passport to Europe with Samantha Brown

Passport to Europe with Samantha Brown is one of several TV travel shows that hit our screens from the Travel Channel.

The show ran from 2004 to 2006 and was hosted by the American television personality and travel expert known for her engaging and relatable approach to travel.

In the series, Samantha Brown explores various European destinations, providing viewers with insider tips, cultural insights and travel recommendations.

She regularly immersed herself in the local culture, trying regional foods, experiencing traditions, and interacting with locals.

Some of the destinations she went to included Paris, Rome, Venice, London, Vienna and Barcelona.

The show captures each location’s iconic landmarks, historical sites and vibrant neighbourhoods while highlighting their unique charms during her visits.

It was known for dishing out practical travel advice and inspirational exploration of European cities and cultures.

It encouraged viewers to embrace the adventure of travel and discover the beauty and diversity of Europe’s many destinations.

30. Globe Trekker

One of the longest-running TV travel shows was the incomparable Globe Trekker , which aired for 17 seasons and well over 200 episodes from 1994 to 2010.

The show features trekkers who embark on journeys to destinations worldwide, providing viewers with insights into different cultures, traditions and experiences.

Over the years, it has had a rotating cast of hosts, including Ian Wright, Megan McCormick, Zay Harding and one Bradley Cooper – who went on to achieve international fame as a Hollywood superstar.

These hosts have travelled to various destinations around the globe from the ancient ruins of Machu Picchu in Peru and the vibrant markets of Marrakech in Morocco to the serene landscapes of New Zealand and the untouched beauty of Bora Bora.

The show’s format combines travelogue-style storytelling with practical travel tips, making it entertaining and informative for viewers interested in exploring the world.

31. Conan Without Borders

For those wanting the best travel shows streaming right now, it’s hard to go past Conan Without Borders.

Hosted by the famous comedian and talk show, the show debuted in 2015.

It featured Conan travelling to various international destinations, often to engage with local cultures, traditions and humour.

Celebrity guests, friends, and local personalities join Conan O’Brien in exploring the destinations throughout the series – including former First Lady Michelle Obama, actor Jack Black and comedian Jordan Schlansky.

The show has taken viewers on hilarious and insightful journeys to destinations like Cuba, Mexico, Israel, Japan, South Korea, Italy and Ghana.

It typically blends travelogue-style segments with Conan’s trademark comedic sketches and interviews.

While watching his attempts to immerse himself in cultural practices (such as learning traditional dances or trying regional cuisine), Conan presents us with his comedic take on each destination’s unique quirks and idiosyncrasies.

In doing so, the show entertains and fosters a sense of global connection and curiosity.

32. Tales by Light

Combining breathtaking imagery, storytelling, and a profound appreciation for the planet’s wonders, Tales by Light is a must-watch travel TV series for photography enthusiasts and anyone interested in the world’s most extraordinary and untamed places.

The show is a documentary television series that delves into the world of photography and the experiences of renowned photographers as they capture compelling images from around the globe.

It explores the stories behind these captivating photographs and the photographers’ journeys to catch them.

The series has featured various acclaimed photographers, including Art Wolfe, Darren Jew and Krystle Wright, who each provide insights into their unique approach to photography. 

They usually travel to remote and exotic destinations – including the Amazon Rainforest, Antarctica, Papua New Guinea, India and the Arctic Circle – often pursuing wildlife, nature and indigenous cultures.

Overall, the show provides viewers with a visually stunning and educational experience, showcasing the photographers’ dedication to their craft and deep respect for the natural world.

33. Ed Stafford: Into the Unknown

If you have yet to see it, Ed Stafford: Into the Unknown is one of the most compelling travel-related shows you can watch.

Hosted by British adventurer and explorer Ed Stafford – known for being the first person to walk the entire length of the Amazon River – the show illustrates the spirit of human exploration and resilience.

It highlights the former British army captain’s quest for adventure by journeying to some of the world’s most remote and challenging locations.

Throughout the series, Ed Stafford travels solo to destinations like Venezuela, Mongolia, Ethiopia and Peru. He has close encounters with grizzly bears in Alaska and tracking elusive snow leopards in Mongolia.

In every episode, Stafford immerses himself in the local culture and landscapes, often relying on his survival skills to navigate the wild and unfamiliar terrains.

The show combines elements of exploration, adventure and survival as Stafford pushes himself to his physical and mental limits.

34. Expedition Unknown

Expedition Unknown, a popular adventure and travel documentary television series, premiered on the Travel Channel in 2015.

The show’s presenter is Josh Gates, an explorer and adventurer who takes viewers on a quest to uncover mysteries, legends, and secrets from around the world.

During the series, Gates travels to a wide range of famous and obscure destinations to investigate historical enigmas, treasure hunts, and unsolved mysteries.

He often collaborates with experts, historians, and local guides to gather clues and solve puzzles related to each episode’s theme.

Some places he visits include Egypt, South America, and the Caribbean, where he seeks hidden treasures and solves perplexing mysteries.

His adventures involve investigating Amelia Earhart’s disappearance, searching for Atlantis, and pursuing the elusive Yeti in the Himalayas.

Ultimately, the show is known for its blend of adventure, history and exploration, making it entertaining for viewers interested in the thrill of discovery and the fascination of uncovering the world’s hidden secrets.

How to watch travel TV shows?

There are many places where you can find travel TV shows, but these would be the best places to start! I use all of them and love them! They are very complementary!

You can create an account and start watching Netflix here. This is where you will find most of the shows about travel.

Amazon Prime Video

Amazon Prime Video comes with your prime subscription. There are many things to watch on Prime and it’s very good value. You can get a free trial for Amazon Prime Video here.

BBC iplayer

BBC offers some of the best UK travel shows including Race Across the World and The Americas with Simon Reeve.

ITV channel

ITV Channel offers some amazing TV shows such as the Bradley Walsh one or Gordon, Gino and Fred Road Trip. You can get a free trial for ITV here.

Disney + / Hulu

Although these are no TV shows, I’d recommend you to watch some Disney movies . Loads of them are perfect to discover new places.

We don’t always realise it but they are very good to embed yourself into a foreign culture.

For example:

  • France: Aristocats
  • UK: Mary Poppins
  • China: Mulan

I thought I’d put it in there as clearly, Disney is always a good idea !

Channel 4 is a free-to-air television channel in the UK. You can go to their websites and watch everything for free.

There are some ads but they are pretty short.

I hope you will enjoy these amazing travel shows! If you have any recommendations, please share them in the comments as I would love to discover more myself!

You may also be interested in:

  • Best books about France and the French
  • Harry Potter Things to do in NYC
  • Guide to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in the USA
  • Magical Emily In Paris Filming Locations you can actually visit in France

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Founder of Beeloved City, I am originally from France and have been living in the UK since 2016. I've travelled to 25 countries as a backpacker, travel coordinator and for holidays. I spent a year in Australia before eventually settling down in Manchester, England

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The Best Travel Shows to Stream Right Now

Enjoy the thrill of the chase in paris, a stanley tucci tour of italy, and a puppet’s-eye view of global cuisine with these streaming tv shows..

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The Best Travel Shows to Stream Right Now

In “Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy,” the actor lives the dream by exploring the best of Italy’s food and wine.

Courtesy of CNN

While we wait for borders to open , these fuel-your-wanderlust shows will take you off the couch to Italy, England, Norway, France, and Peru (by magic shopping cart). Can you tell we’re excited about Michelle Obama’s fantastical new global food show, Waffles and Mochi ? It debuts next week on Netflix. Until then, explore the world from home by streaming any of these 26 travel shows and TV shows set in foreign countries.

Waffles and Mochi

Watch it : Netflix

A Sesame Street –style kids’ TV show for the budding chef, Waffles and Mochi follows the eponymous puppets—one a sweet little monster with waffles for ears, the other a sentient pink rice ball—around the world as they seek out fresh global ingredients and learn about healthy eating and cooking.

This show will appeal to adults as much as to toddlers. To start: Michelle Obama costars (this is part of the Obamas’ production deal with Netflix) as a grocery store owner who teaches Waffles and Mochi about the wide world beyond the Land of Frozen Food. Off on fabulous journeys they go—to Japan, Peru, Italy, where they have friendly encounters with famous chefs like Samin Nosrat and José Andrés, as well as special guests Rashida Jones, Queer Eye ’s Tan France, Zach Galifianakis, Sia, Common, and more (technically, Mandy Moore). Start streaming it on Netflix March 16. —Laura Dannen Redman

Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy

Watch it : CNN

Actor Stanley Tucci kept spirits afloat with his cocktail and cooking demos on Instagram during lockdown. When travel restrictions lifted in Europe last year, Tucci traveled to Italy—where he has deep roots—to film this six-episode series exploring food and culture through Italy’s people, cities, and regions: Sicily, Tuscany, Milan, Bologna, Rome, and Naples and the Amalfi Coast.

For those desperately missing Italy, Tucci is the perfect knowledgeable yet curious tour guide, introducing his friends—winemakers, chefs, and authors—who he pokes a little fun at, and taking you on tours, such as around Florence’s Renaissance-era wine windows, aka “little doors of paradise.”

If the show leaves you craving more, buy his two Italian cookbooks— The Tucci Table: Cooking with Family and Friends and The Tucci Cookbook— and preorder his memoir, Taste: My Life Through Food . The series has been renewed for season two. — Annie Fitzsimmons

Who is Lupin? He’s a gentleman thief, a master of disguise, a sort of French superhero at the heart of Maurice Leblanc’s short stories, “Arsène Lupin, Gentleman Burglar.” These early 20th-century Sherlockian tales inspire the new Netflix show, Lupin , starring Omar Sy ( The Intouchables ) as a Senegalese immigrant in today’s Paris who follows Arsène’s escapades as a road map for revenge.

In the pilot episode Sy’s Arsène struts through the Louvre disguised as a janitor, plotting a jewelry heist like a cohort of Danny Ocean. Lupin is also full of lust-worthy shots of the city: a room with a view of Sacré-Cœur; the Eiffel Tower from every angle; the Jardin du Luxembourg in the rain; a bustling café. A heist thriller is only as good as its setting, and Lupin —and Paris—deliver. —L.D.R.

“Outlander” stars Sam Heughan and Graham McTavish take you on a spirited journey through Scotland.

“Outlander” stars Sam Heughan and Graham McTavish take you on a spirited journey through Scotland.

Courtesy of Starz

Men in Kilts: A Roadtrip with Sam and Graham

Watch it : Starz

If the popular period drama Outlander didn’t already have you craving a trip to Scotland, this travel show starring Sam Heughan (Jamie Fraser in Outlander ) and Graham McTavish ( Outlander’s Dougal Mackenzie) will seal the deal. Even if you’re not an Outlander devotee, this Scottish duo, who are constantly making jabs at each other and themselves, are ideal guides for this literal campervan road trip through Scotland. Their banter is on point (you can tell they’re good pals IRL), and they transport viewers into the heart and soul of the country without taking themselves too seriously.

Each episode focuses on a different aspect of Scottish culture and history. For the food and drink episode, Heughan and McTavish visit one of Scotland’s oldest whisky distilleries and introduce viewers to Scottish seafood. For the sports episode, they try their hand at archaic Highland Games (aka throwing a massive hammer) and playing golf on Scotland’s most hallowed turf. And for the song and dance episode, viewers learn more about bagpipes and traditional Scottish dancing—Heughan and McTavish are game guinea pigs while also offering insights and knowledge into the theme at hand.

I’m not always big on traditional “travel shows,” but I absolutely love this one and am ready to book my first trip to Scotland ASAP after watching. — Michelle Baran

Watch it : Apple TV

West London’s Richmond upon Thames, with its distinctly British cobblestone shopping alleys, parks, and lively pubs, is the backdrop to the story of very American Ted Lasso, played by Jason Sudeikis.

Lasso is an American football coach hired to reboot a Premier League British football team, AFC Richmond. An eternal optimist, Ted is someone you wish you knew—warm and funny, with leadership skills that win over nearly everyone he meets in this fish-out-of-water story.

The Apple TV show isn’t really about sports, though there are plenty of soaring, heart-pumping soccer—football!—scenes. There are love triangles and mishaps, a delightful cast of characters, and the realization that you can do the impossible if you just “Believe,” Ted’s motto. The show has already been renewed for two more seasons. —A.F.

The head of government rides her bike to work: two clues this series isn’t set in the United States. In Copenhagen, everyone rides a bike. Maybe “Danish political drama” doesn’t sound compelling but this is, with a standout cast of well-developed characters. It follows the path of politician Birgitte Nyborg and how demands of her rise to power clash with her family life. Concerns about media news coverage are among the issues making this drama universal. The show, with an 8.5 IMDb rating, originally aired 2010–2013; Netflix plans a fourth season for 2022. — Pat Tompkins

If you’re one of the few who haven’t seen Bridgerton yet (apparently, it’s Netflix’s most successful series ever ), and you miss the U.K., it’s time to settle into Shonda Rhimes’s soapy, steamy Regency-era drama that reimagines the time as one when equality reigns: Black and white people coexist as equals, and the Queen is Black.

It centers on the romance between debutante Daphne Bridgerton and Simon Basset, reluctant Duke of Hastings. Scenic British locations include the Bridgerton family home, Ranger’s House in Greenwich, London; promenades in Bath’s green parks and Royal Crescent; and parties at Wilton House in Salisbury as the Duke’s country mansion. — A.F.

“Killing Eve” sets the codependent cop-and-killer chase in glamorous sites around Europe.

“Killing Eve” sets the codependent cop-and-killer chase in glamorous sites around Europe.

Courtesy of BBC

Killing Eve

Watch it : YouTube TV

When Eve, a British intelligence investigator, becomes obsessed by an assassin-for-hire, Villanelle, their cat-and-mouse chase leads the characters through Tuscany, Paris, London, and Romania. The glamorous destinations make this a bingeable spy thriller for travel lovers who crave dark humor, cliffhangers, and dreamy settings. —Ciera Velarde

Four Weddings and a Funeral

Watch it : Hulu

This 10-episode series from Mindy Kaling is nothing like the movie it takes its name from, except that there are four weddings and one funeral. London has never looked more magical as friends in their thirties fall in love, break up, and get married across rooftop parties in Trafalgar Square, conversations at the National Gallery and inside dreamy Notting Hill houses, and walks in Kew Gardens.

Like its cast, but unlike so many romantic comedies, it also showcases the diversity of the city through Indian family culture in Hounslow and the multicultural Southall Market. It’s completely addictive, and you might replay the final 10 minutes of the series (a wedding, of course!) over and over again. — A.F.

Un Village Francais/A French Village

Watch it : Amazon Prime

Over seven seasons, this series captures what German occupation of a fictional village, Villeneuve, meant for its inhabitants from 1940 to 1945. Instead of battles, we get the war’s impact on civilian life, an impact that affects everyone. It could have been a soap opera, but it’s not, thanks to complex characters and intriguing stories.

Among those in the first episode are Spanish refugees, a Jewish family, and the town doctor, all coping with the sudden upheaval of life in Occupied France. Travel to a different place and time in these 80+ episodes. — P.T.

Home for Christmas

The first Norwegian series from Netflix, Home for Christmas was filmed in Oslo and the small mining town of Røros, known for its colorful wooden buildings from the 1700s. We see the town and countryside dressed for the holidays, with snow, twinkle lights, and cider at Christmas markets aplenty.

But the festive season is just a vehicle for showcasing the complicated bonds of family. The show follows the up-and-down love life and quirky characters surrounding Johanne, a nurse in her thirties who feels pressure from her large, boisterous family to settle down. But what relationship can compete with her friendships? — A.F.

Call My Agent

Calling all francophiles. For those missing not just France but the language and people as well, this French-language Netflix show is génial . Call My Agent is a witty comedy about a Paris-based talent agency. The central cast of characters brings viewers along as they manage the many moods and demands of their high-maintenance actor clients. (They do everything from intervene when clients refuse to get intimate on a film set to help a client learn to drive for a movie role, plus attend ridiculous soirées to appease these high-strung celebs.)

As the series continues, deeper emotional themes around family, friendship, and love develop. I found myself tearing up (in a good way) by the end of the first season, something I wasn’t expecting at all at the start. The comic relief serves as a wonderful escape and there’s something oddly satisfying about seeing behind the scenes of France’s acting and filming world even if it is a fictional look. — M.B.

Indian Matchmaking

This is a reality show, with all its tropes and gimmicks, inviting us to be voyeurs of the Indian dating world. But Indian Matchmaking is also a fascinating glimpse into the culture of matchmaking and quasi-arranged marriages, for both the singles and families. It follows Mumbai-based matchmaker Sima Taparia as she tries to pair clients both in the U.S. and India; the scenes in India are most vibrant and really make the show worth a watch even if you’re skeptical about the premise.

You feel like you’re sitting right next to the characters in that Mumbai restaurant or Delhi bar as they chat with friends or go out on that first (slightly awkward) date with their match. — M.B.

Watch it : HBO Now , Hulu , YouTube TV

If your family is driving you up the wall, imagine self-quarantining with Succession ’s Roy family. This addictive dramedy centers on who will take over a global media and hospitality empire as the family patriarch faces health issues. Because this dysfunctional family is crazy rich, the series transports us to the most exclusive corners of New York City, a sprawling ranch in New Mexico, and even a castle in England. The juicy Season 2 finale takes place on a private yacht in Croatia, so pour yourself some prosecco and lose yourself in someone else’s family drama. —C.V.

Olivia Colman dazzles as Queen Elizabeth in the third season of “The Crown.”

Olivia Colman dazzles as Queen Elizabeth in the third season of “The Crown.”

Courtesy of Netflix

Pour yourself a cuppa and don your finest sweatpants, because we’re headed to Buckingham Palace, folks. Well, no filming was actually done in Buckingham Palace, but Lancaster House, Wilton House, and Waddesdon Manor serve as lavish, convincing stand-ins. Get ready to follow the trials and tribulations of the Windsors and get peeks at country-home castles, private train cars, African tree houses, and passels of corgis romping on the moors. —C.V.

Watch it : Hulu , HBO Now

Every time a local musician appears onscreen during this series (and they appear a lot), hearing the soulful jazz they play will transport you to New Orleans. Shot entirely on location in the city, Treme ’s storyline begins three months after Hurricane Katrina and follows its characters—musicians, bartenders, families—as they try to rebuild their lives. —C.V.

Sam Heughan stars in “Outlander,” a drama heavy on time travel and rolling Scottish countryside.

Sam Heughan stars in “Outlander,” a drama heavy on time travel and rolling Scottish countryside.

Watch it : Starz , Netflix , YouTube TV

After just one episode of Outlander, you’ll be eager to traverse the peaks of Scotland’s evergreen Highlands and drink a wee dram of whisky. This time-travel series, shot on location in Scotland, creates a fantasy world that feels rooted in a real place. —C.V.

Broadchurch

Watch it : Amazon

South England’s Jurassic Coast is the real-life setting for this moody crime drama set in a fictional seaside town. Millions of years of coastal erosion have formed striking rock formations along the craggy cliffs and beaches of the region—the spectacular UNESCO World Heritage–recognized area even serves as an important plot device. —C.V.

Ugly Delicious

Watch it: Netflix

In each episode of this docuseries, the James Beard Foundation award–winning chef David Chang focuses on a specific food (one episode is about fried rice, another about barbecue) and then bounces from country to country to taste local iterations of the same dish. After the first episode (which involves pizza: lots and lots of pizza), you’ll learn not to watch on an empty stomach. —C.V.

Top of the Lake

Viewers will be instantly hooked by Elisabeth Moss’s performance as a detective investigating the disappearance of a pregnant 12-year-old girl. The show was filmed on the South Island of New Zealand, and the titular lake provides an eerie and dramatic background for the emotionally heavy show. —C.V.

The action of “The Night Manager” starts in Egypt, but the scenes were actually shot in Marrakesh, Morocco.

The action of “The Night Manager” starts in Egypt, but the scenes were actually shot in Marrakesh, Morocco.

Courtesy of Amazon

The Night Manager

Watch it : Amazon Prime Video

Great writing, fast-paced action, and an all-star cast (Tom Hiddleston, Olivia Colman, Hugh Laurie) make this drama unmissable. The story follows a hotel night manager recruited to infiltrate the inner circle of a corrupt businessman. The show is rumored to be the most expensive miniseries ever made by the BBC, and travel-hungry viewers will enjoy the gorgeous locations, like Majorca, Spain; Zermatt, Switzerland; and Marrakesh, Morocco.

Salt Fat Acid Heat

Chef Samin Nosrat visits culinary colleagues in Italy, Japan, Mexico, and Berkeley, California, to explain how—you guessed it—salt, fat, acid, and heat are the essential elements to master when cooking any meal. Samin’s passion for food radiates through the screen, and you’ll be left hungry and inspired to test out some of her cooking tips—with her cookbook by the same name —yourself. —C.V.

If you want to lean into the current news, Fortitude is one way to go. Set in the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard (but filmed in Eastern Iceland), this drama is about a deadly virus that turns infected people into murderers. Winter-travel lovers: Get ready for sweeping icy landscapes, snow-capped mountains, and frigid, rocky beaches. —C.V.

“My Brilliant Friend” is a realistic portrayal of the gritty yet beautiful city of Naples.

“My Brilliant Friend” is a realistic portrayal of the gritty yet beautiful city of Naples.

Photo by Eduardo Castaldo/HBO

My Brilliant Friend

Although this show follows two childhood friends as they grow into women in postwar Italy, the true star is Naples , with its crowded sidewalks, lively piazzas, and ancient architecture. (In the sixth episode, viewers get to travel to the volcanic island of Ischia, to summer with the characters on beaches lapped by turquoise waters). —C.V.

The makers of Our Planet leave no corner of Earth untouched. This breathtaking nature docuseries allows you to swim with whales, swing from tree to tree with orangutans, and explore the Serengeti, all from your couch. The camerawork is remarkable: You’ll ask yourself “how did they even film that?!” at least four times per episode. —C.V.

Big Little Lies

Oh, what we’d give to be social distancing in one of the spacious seaside mansions on this show. The frothy mix of petty neighborhood squabbles, a mysterious death, and the sweeping shots of the Pacific Ocean makes watching Big Little Lies roughly 10 times better than watching the news. And if you’re inspired to plan a trip to Monterey after watching the show (and, of course, after virus concerns are lifted) , we’ve got you covered . —C.V.

>>Next: Around the World in International Films

A cloudy, empty beach with birds flying above in Padre Island, Texas

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The 85+ Best Food & Travel Shows, Ranked

Ranker TV

There's something captivating about non-fiction TV that allows even seemingly boring subjects to pull you in and hold your attention episode after episode, and it is especially true with food travel shows. While most of us don't lead a life that allows us to travel to exotic countries and eat whatever random and delicious food is being sold on the street, whenever food and travel shows come on TV there's few of us who can resist the hunger to tune in. The best food and travel TV shows are a mix of delicious HD food porn, quirky hosts that know their spices, and wish-fulfillment that involves seeing all the places you'll never visit and the five-star meals you'll never eat. Simply put, food travelogue series makes us feel good (and hungry) and the best ones are just plain old entertaining TV.

So whether you're flipping through the Food Network on a day off, burning hours at a time on Netflix, going around the world thanks to all of Zimmern's Travel Channel food shows, or actively seeking out and sharing clips of your favorite food and travel shows online, there's no denying that the top food travelogue shows can make us salivate in front of our TVs and keep us there until well past dinner. So go on and fire up the grill, enjoy a quick and easy sushi meal while traveling down an ancient river, eat all the street food in the world without worrying about getting sick, and rank the best food and travel shows ever. 

Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown

Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown

Explore the farthest corners of the world through the eyes of a culinary legend in this renowned series. Delving into local cultures, politics, and history, it's an extraordinary journey that goes beyond mere food shows and provides unparalleled insights into the human experience.

Is Anthony Bourdain: Part... Worth Your Time?

  • # 51 of 750 on The 600+ Best Reality TV Shows Of All Time
  • # 176 of 298 on 285+ Smart TV Shows That Only Intellectuals Appreciate
  • # 2 of 83 on The 75+ Best Travel TV Shows Sure To Give You The Travel Bug

Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations

Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations

Travel alongside an iconic chef as he seeks out the most authentic culinary experiences in every corner of the globe. As compelling as it is entertaining, this show is a must-watch for foodies who crave adventure and authenticity.

Is Anthony Bourdain: No R... Worth Your Time?

  • # 571 of 750 on The 600+ Best Reality TV Shows Of All Time
  • # 3 of 83 on The 75+ Best Travel TV Shows Sure To Give You The Travel Bug
  • # 14 of 21 on 21 Wholesome Reality Shows That Feel Like A Warm Hug

old travel shows on tv

Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives

Host Guy Fieri takes viewers on a journey across America to visit mouthwatering mom-and-pop restaurants, hidden food gems, and beloved greasy spoons. It’s a tribute to the hardworking people behind these eateries while showcasing the flavorful dishes that make them stand out.

Is Diners, Drive-Ins and ... Worth Your Time?

  • # 185 of 302 on The Best TV Shows Of The Past 20 Years
  • # 246 of 447 on The 440+ Best Binge Worthy Shows Of All Time
  • # 59 of 113 on The 100+ Best Feel-Good TV Shows, Ranked

Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern

Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern

Prepare to have your taste buds challenged as host Andrew Zimmern seeks out the most unusual, exotic, and downright bizarre foods from around the world. It's a gastronomic journey that will both entertain and educate viewers on the diversity of global cuisine.

Is Bizarre Foods with And... Worth Your Time?

Somebody Feed Phil

Somebody Feed Phil

Join Phil Rosenthal, creator of " Everybody Loves Raymond ," as he immerses himself in the gastronomic delights of various cities worldwide. With boundless energy and enthusiasm, Phil connects with locals, embraces cultural differences and savors a smorgasbord of international cuisine.

Is Somebody Feed Phil Worth Your Time?

A Cook's Tour

A Cook's Tour

Follow the exploits of a world-renowned chef as he embarks on a culinary adventure across the globe. From France to Vietnam, each episode showcases local cuisine, traditions, and the art of cooking in unique and fascinating ways.

Is A Cook's Tour Worth Your Time?

Man v. Food

Man v. Food

Is Man v. Food Worth Your Time?

The Layover

The Layover

Imagine trying to squeeze the best food and cultural experiences from top cities around the world in just 24-48 hours. As if traveling like a local, each episode features exciting culinary adventures, insider tips, and local culture that's perfect for travelers with a tight schedule.

Is The Layover Worth Your Time?

Chef's Table

Chef's Table

Experience the stories and culinary philosophies of some of the world's most renowned chefs in this beautifully crafted documentary series. Each episode delves deep into the creativity, passion, and discipline that drive these culinary visionaries to push the limits of their craft.

Is Chef's Table Worth Your Time?

  • Dig Deeper... Chef's Table Chefs Whose Food You Want To Eat The Most
  • # 11 of 39 on The Best Netflix Documentary Series Of 2024, Ranked
  • # 1 of 52 on The Best Food & Cooking Shows Of 2024, Ranked

I'll Have What Phil's Having

I'll Have What Phil's Having

Phil Rosenthal is back for another round of culinary adventures as he explores the world's most delicious destinations. Combining humor and a genuine passion for food, this show offers a delightful mix of travel, culture, and mouthwatering dishes.

Is I'll Have What Phil's ... Worth Your Time?

Bizarre Foods: Delicious Destinations

Bizarre Foods: Delicious Destinations

This spin-off from Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern  focuses on the must-try foods in various cities around the globe. Showcasing iconic dishes and local favorites, it's an excellent introduction to global cuisine for both culinary novices and seasoned foodies.

Is Bizarre Foods: Delicio... Worth Your Time?

Ugly Delicious

Ugly Delicious

Tackle the myths and misconceptions surrounding food, taste, and tradition in this insightful docuseries. Host David Chang strips away the pretense and gets to the heart of what makes food truly delicious, even if it's not always pretty.

Is Ugly Delicious Worth Your Time?

Amazing Eats

Amazing Eats

Celebrate the mouthwatering food creations that fuel our obsession with all things delicious. From towering burgers to decadent desserts, this series showcases the best of the best in each mouthwatering episode.

Is Amazing Eats Worth Your Time?

Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted

Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted

Witness acclaimed chef Gordon Ramsay push himself to new limits and venture into uncharted territory in search of extraordinary culinary experiences. Get a glimpse of his daring exploits and explore diverse food cultures with this captivating series.

Is Gordon Ramsay: Unchart... Worth Your Time?

  • # 24 of 83 on The 75+ Best Travel TV Shows Sure To Give You The Travel Bug
  • # 27 of 716 on The Best New Reality TV Shows of the Last Few Years
  • # 39 of 304 on The Best Reality Shows Of 2024, Ranked

Salt Fat Acid Heat

Salt Fat Acid Heat

Based on the bestselling cookbook, this visually stunning series explores the four elements that make food taste great. Taking viewers from Japan to Italy, the show provides an insightful look into unique culinary traditions while proving that mastering just a few principles can have a transformative effect on one's cooking.

Is Salt Fat Acid Heat Worth Your Time?

The Mind of a Chef

The Mind of a Chef

Combining travel, cooking, and the fascinating minds of culinary masters, this exceptional series delves into the thoughts and inspirations driving the world's most innovative chefs. Through insightful interviews, beautiful cinematography, and mouthwatering dishes, it's an exploration of what makes food truly exceptional.

Is The Mind of a Chef Worth Your Time?

Bizarre Foods America

Bizarre Foods America

Andrew Zimmern once again takes viewers on an unconventional journey, this time within the United States. Discover the hidden gems and lesser-known food history of America while experiencing some truly out-of-the-ordinary gastronomic delights.

Is Bizarre Foods America... Worth Your Time?

Street Food

Street Food

Venture off the beaten path and experience the heart and soul of a country's cuisine through its street food. Celebrating the culinary heroes who create these delicious, affordable meals, this series is an homage to the rich diversity and ingenuity of food from around the world.

Is Street Food Worth Your Time?

The Chef Show

The Chef Show

Join filmmaker Jon Favreau and renowned chef Roy Choi as they experiment with new recipes, techniques, and ingredients. Featuring a mix of star-studded guests and intriguing food destinations, this show is an irresistible treat for fans of good eats and good company.

Is The Chef Show Worth Your Time?

  • # 138 of 589 on The 500+ Best Current Shows On Netflix
  • # 140 of 624 on The Best New Reality TV Shows of the Last Few Years
  • # 202 of 266 on The 250+ Best Netflix Documentary Series

Food Paradise

Food Paradise

Discover the most unique, memorable, and downright delicious eateries across the United States in this mouthwatering series. Whether it's an iconic steakhouse or a quirky diner, each episode serves up a plateful of unforgettable food destinations.

Is Food Paradise Worth Your Time?

Gordon, Gino and Fred: Road Trip

Gordon, Gino and Fred: Road Trip

Embark on a hilarious adventure with chefs Gordon Ramsay, Gino D'Acampo, and Fred Sirieix as they travel through Europe, tasting the finest regional cuisine, and embarking on epic culinary challenges. It's a food-filled joyride with three charismatic personalities at the helm.

Is Gordon, Gino and Fred:... Worth Your Time?

Adam Eats the 80s

Adam Eats the 80s

Take a trip down memory lane with host Adam Richman as he revisits iconic dishes and food trends from the 1980s. This nostalgic journey is sure to delight viewers with a taste for both pop culture and culinary exploration.

Is Adam Eats the 80s Worth Your Time?

  • # 46 of 179 on The Best Newer TV Shows The Whole Family Can Enjoy
  • # 1019 of 1,137 on The Best New TV Shows Of 2022
  • # 494 of 748 on The 600+ Best Reality TV Shows Of All Time

Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Join celebrity chef David Chang as he travels the globe with famous friends to explore the culture and cuisine of various locations. From feasting in Marrakech with Chrissy Teigen to exploring Los Angeles with Lena Waithe, it's a laid-back culinary adventure served up with heart and humor.

Is Breakfast, Lunch & Din... Worth Your Time?

View and Chew

View and Chew

Feast your eyes on the visual splendor of gastronomy as this visually-driven series highlights the artistic side of cooking. Each episode showcases innovative chefs and their stunning creations while diving into the inspiration, dedication, and passion behind the dishes.

Taste the Nation With Padma Lakshmi

Taste the Nation With Padma Lakshmi

Host Padma Lakshmi delves into the diverse food culture within the United States in this enlightening series. Exploring the history, ingredients, and culinary traditions of various immigrant communities, Taste the Nation offers viewers a fascinating blend of food and storytelling.

Is Taste the Nation With ... Worth Your Time?

  • # 633 of 1,053 on The 250+ Best Streaming Shows Of The Last Few Years
  • # 39 of 83 on The 75+ Best Travel TV Shows Sure To Give You The Travel Bug
  • # 25 of 25 on The Best Hulu Documentaries Of 2023

Ainsley Eats the Streets

Ainsley Eats the Streets

Travel with British TV chef Ainsley Harriott as he scours city streets worldwide in search of the tastiest street food. Engaging with locals and showcasing the unique stories behind these culinary delights, this series blends adventure, culture, and mouthwatering eats.

Is Ainsley Eats the Stree... Worth Your Time?

From the Source

From the Source

Dive deep into a country's culinary roots as this immersive series explores the origins of beloved dishes, ingredients, and flavors. It offers a fascinating glimpse into the history and cultural significance behind what we eat, appealing to foodies and history buffs alike.

Is From the Source Worth Your Time?

  • # 437 of 949 on The Best New TV Shows Of 2021
  • # 457 of 737 on The 120 Best Reality Shows On Now
  • # 120 of 693 on The Best New Reality TV Shows of the Last Few Years

Huang's World

Huang's World

Follow Eddie Huang, chef and author of Fresh Off the Boat , as he ventures around the globe, uncovering fascinating stories about food, culture, and identity. With his inquisitive nature and candid humor, Huang challenges our perceptions of the world and the food within it.

Is Huang's World Worth Your Time?

Eater's Guide to the World

Eater's Guide to the World

Satisfy your culinary wanderlust with this captivating series that takes viewers on a journey through the world's most unforgettable food destinations. Narrated by Maya Rudolph, each episode celebrates the people, places, and stories behind some of the most amazing meals on the planet.

Is Eater's Guide to the W... Worth Your Time?

  • # 308 of 737 on The 120 Best Reality Shows On Now
  • # 5 of 693 on The Best New Reality TV Shows of the Last Few Years
  • # 337 of 586 on The Best New TV Shows Of 2020

Chuck and Danny's Road Trip

Chuck and Danny's Road Trip

Chefs Chuck Hughes and Danny Smiles hit the road across Canada, discovering delicious local dishes and exploring the country's diverse regions. From coast to coast, this series showcases the unique flavors, ingredients, and culinary traditions that define Canadian cuisine.

Is Chuck and Danny's Road... Worth Your Time?

Guy's All-American Road Trip

Guy's All-American Road Trip

Is Guy's All-American Roa... Worth Your Time?

  • # 366 of 764 on The 600+ Best Reality TV Shows Of All Time
  • # 48 of 52 on The Best Food & Cooking Shows Of 2024, Ranked
  • # 218 of 753 on The 120 Best Reality Shows On Now

Carnival Eats

Carnival Eats

Is Carnival Eats Worth Your Time?

Gordon's Great Escape

Gordon's Great Escape

Join Gordon Ramsay on a culinary adventure as he explores the vast, diverse, and exciting world of international cuisine. With his trademark intensity and wit, Ramsay delves into each country's unique food culture, creating an engaging travelogue experience.

Is Gordon's Great Escape... Worth Your Time?

Bobby and Giada in Italy

Bobby and Giada in Italy

Join culinary powerhouses Bobby Flay and Giada De Laurentiis as they travel through Italy, uncovering the secrets behind the country's rich food heritage. From rustic countryside dishes to innovative urban cuisine, this series is a delicious journey through Italian culinary traditions.

Is Bobby and Giada in Ita... Worth Your Time?

Booze Traveler

Booze Traveler

Join host Jack Maxwell as he embarks on a spirited adventure, exploring the world's most fascinating drinking cultures and traditions. From ancient rituals to modern mixology, this show is a lively globetrotting journey through the history and lore of alcohol.

Is Booze Traveler Worth Your Time?

Fresh, Fried & Crispy

Fresh, Fried & Crispy

Watch as food critic Daym Drops travels the United States in search of the best fried dishes the country has to offer. From classic Southern comfort food to unexpected culinary gems, viewers will feast their eyes on a wide range of delectable, crispy creations.

Is Fresh, Fried & Crispy... Worth Your Time?

  • # 298 of 670 on The 500+ Best Current Shows On Netflix
  • # 228 of 753 on The 120 Best Reality Shows On Now
  • # 512 of 716 on The Best New Reality TV Shows of the Last Few Years

Beerland

Brewmaster Meg Gill traverses the United States in search of innovative and passionate homebrewers crafting unique beers. As they uncover the stories behind these brews, viewers will gain a deeper appreciation for the complexities and artistry of beer-making.

Is Beerland Worth Your Time?

Heavenly Bites: Mexico

Heavenly Bites: Mexico

Explore the rich, vibrant, and deeply rooted culinary heritage of Mexico as this series highlights the country's diverse regional cuisines. From bustling markets to family-run establishments, it's an unforgettable gastronomic journey through Mexican culture.

Is Heavenly Bites: Mexico... Worth Your Time?

  • # 907 of 1,137 on The Best New TV Shows Of 2022
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  • # 95 of 113 on The 100+ Best Spanish TV Shows On Netflix, Ranked

Foodgod

Join social media sensation Jonathan “Foodgod” Cheban as he takes viewers on a glamorous journey through the world of high-end dining. Experience some of the rarest, most extravagant dishes imaginable as Foodgod's over-the-top personality matches these culinary indulgences.

Is Foodgod Worth Your Time?

  • # 519 of 949 on The Best New TV Shows Of 2021
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  • # 40 of 63 on The Best Food Documentary Series

Restaurants at the End of the World

Restaurants at the End of the World

Is Restaurants at the End... Worth Your Time?

  • # 522 of 764 on The 600+ Best Reality TV Shows Of All Time
  • # 16 of 52 on The Best Food & Cooking Shows Of 2024, Ranked
  • # 428 of 753 on The 120 Best Reality Shows On Now

Chef's Table: Pizza

Chef's Table: Pizza

Is Chef's Table: Pizza Worth Your Time?

  • # 11 of 52 on The Best Food & Cooking Shows Of 2024, Ranked
  • # 2 of 50 on The Best Reality Shows on Netflix in 2023
  • # 193 of 753 on The 120 Best Reality Shows On Now

Men in Kilts: A Roadtrip with Sam and Graham

Men in Kilts: A Roadtrip with Sam and Graham

Join Outlander  stars Sam Heughan and Graham McTavish as they embark on an epic road trip through Scotland, exploring the country's history, culture, and, of course, its delicious local cuisine. Their camaraderie and enthusiasm make this show a delightful watch for travel and food enthusiasts alike.

Is Men in Kilts: A Roadtr... Worth Your Time?

  • # 41 of 86 on The 80+ Best British Reality Shows
  • # 36 of 83 on The 75+ Best Travel TV Shows Sure To Give You The Travel Bug
  • # 51 of 62 on The Best Shows On Friday Night In 2024

The Wild Chef

The Wild Chef

Experience the thrill of cooking in nature with a chef who's not afraid to push boundaries. Blending adventure and gastronomy, this series features inventive dishes created using locally sourced ingredients, all while surrounded by breathtaking wilderness landscapes.

Is The Wild Chef Worth Your Time?

Brew Dogs

Is Brew Dogs Worth Your Time?

Man Finds Food

Man Finds Food

Is Man Finds Food Worth Your Time?

F*ck, That's Delicious

F*ck, That's Delicious

Rapper and former chef Action Bronson takes viewers on an unconventional food odyssey, blending music, travel, and culinary exploration. With a roster of colorful friends and collaborators, this irreverent series offers an offbeat look at the world's most intriguing food destinations.

Is F*ck, That's Delicious... Worth Your Time?

Guy: Hawaiian Style

Guy: Hawaiian Style

Guy Fieri brings his signature energy and enthusiasm to the beautiful islands of Hawaii, exploring the local cuisine and unique flavors of this tropical paradise. From traditional dishes to modern fusion, this series offers a mouthwatering taste of the aloha spirit.

Is Guy: Hawaiian Style Worth Your Time?

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Nomad With Carlton McCoy

Nomad With Carlton McCoy

Travel the globe with Master Sommelier Carlton McCoy, as he uncovers the most exceptional wine and food experiences in stunning locations. Along with immersive storytelling, this show offers a masterclass in the art of appreciation for fine wines and cuisine.

Is Nomad With Carlton McC... Worth Your Time?

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Take Out With Lisa Ling

Take Out With Lisa Ling

Veteran journalist Lisa Ling brings her insightful storytelling skills to the world of food, exploring the rich tapestry of culinary experiences available via takeout. In each episode, she spotlights immigrant-owned restaurants, drawing out the unique stories and flavors that make these eateries exceptional.

Is Take Out With Lisa Lin... Worth Your Time?

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Selena + Restaurant

Selena + Restaurant

Is Selena + Restaurant Worth Your Time?

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David Rocco's Dolce Vita

David Rocco's Dolce Vita

Is David Rocco's Dolce Vi... Worth Your Time?

Thirst With Shay Mitchell

Thirst With Shay Mitchell

Is Thirst With Shay Mitch... Worth Your Time?

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Talking Sabor

Talking Sabor

Is Talking Sabor Worth Your Time?

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Best Bite in Town

Best Bite in Town

Is Best Bite in Town Worth Your Time?

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A Cook Abroad

A Cook Abroad

Explore the culinary wonders of various countries with a rotating cast of passionate food explorers, including top British chefs and personalities. Each episode delves into a different nation's food culture, traditions, and flavors, creating a compelling and diverse gastronomic experience.

Is A Cook Abroad Worth Your Time?

Chasing Flavor

Chasing Flavor

Is Chasing Flavor Worth Your Time?

Midnight Asia: Eat. Dance. Dream

Midnight Asia: Eat. Dance. Dream

Experience the vibrant and exhilarating nightlife of Asia as this series dives into the sights, sounds, and flavors that come alive after dark. From bustling food markets to sizzling street eats, it's an immersive exploration of nocturnal culture and cuisine.

Is Midnight Asia: Eat. Da... Worth Your Time?

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The Thirsty Traveler

The Thirsty Traveler

Experience the diverse cultures and traditions of the world through the lens of their unique alcoholic beverages. Host Kevin Brauch ventures to the far corners of the earth, partaking in local libations and uncovering the fascinating stories behind each drink.

Is The Thirsty Traveler Worth Your Time?

Dining Downunder

Dining Downunder

Is Dining Downunder Worth Your Time?

BBQuest

Is BBQuest Worth Your Time?

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Lists about all the fun things happening in the kitchen.

The Best Movies About Cooking

The Travel Sisters

Best travel shows to watch right now (on tv, netflix, amazon prime & other streaming services).

by The Travel Sisters | Oct 20, 2020 | Travel Inspiration | 3 comments

Best Travel Shows to Watch Right Now (On TV, Netflix, Amazon Prime & Other Streaming Services)

And if you are looking for more travel related things to watch, here is a list of the best travel movies of all time .

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Best Travel Shows and Series

Pin Best Travel Shows to Watch on TV, Netflix, Amazon Prime and More Streaming Services

Best Travel Shows on Netflix

The following travel shows and series are available on Netflix only.

Ugly Delicious

Recommended by Stephanie from Explore More Clean Less

Ugly Delicious is a relatively new food focused travel show that follows celebrity chef David Chang, founder of Momofuku, as he explores both across the United States and internationally. The episodes are loose and casual, showing Chang investigating the history of different regional cuisines and food rivalries. His guests range widely including other chefs, writers, actors, and artists, but they tend to share similar air time to the restaurant owners and people off the street. The focus blurs between culture and personal, feeling like you’re the fly on a wall while interesting people who love food hang out and chat about it. There’s no way to watch it and not be itching to travel to a new region and try some of the foods they highlight!

Travels With My Father

Recommended by Lee from The Travel Scribes

From the moment they touchdown in Bangkok, Thailand and make their way to the famous Khao San Road, the Netflix series Travels with my Father  will capture your heart, and tickle your funny bone.

Chronicling the experiences of British father and son duo, Jack and Michael Whitehall, this laugh a minute series not only showcases some of the globe’s most famous destinations but features the offbeat, slightly sarcastic relationship between Jack, a 30-something comedian still longing for his backpacker days and Michael, his elderly ever-suffering dad. The drama (and the giggles) are mostly driven by the vastly different travel styles of the two: Jack, the singlet and loud shorts-wearing millennial who is most comfortable in questionable hostels and eating street food and Michael, a slightly uptight luxury traveller who insists on wearing his ‘Sunday best’ on the streets of Southeast Asia and checking into five star hotels.

The show, now in its third season, sees the unlikely pair traverse the globe with jaunts in South East Asia, Europe and, more recently, a tour of the USA. This is must-watch viewing for anyone who loves British comedy and travel, in each measure.

Somebody Feed Phil

Recommended by Amber from Food And Drink Destinations

From the creator of the hit comedy series, Everyone Loves Raymond, comes the Netflix food travel series, Somebody Feed Phil. Following the culinary journeys of Phil Rosenthal, Somebody Feed Phil presents food travel from the “average” travelers perspective. Phil is by no means a food professional like Anthony Bourdain or Andrew Zimmern. Phil is an easy going family man who just happens to LOVE food. Over 2 seasons and 12 episodes, Phil with his mall crew, including his brother, travel to some of the best food destinations around the world. Phil’s childlike enthusiasm for each new destination, cuisine and culinary experience is priceless. His inquisitive nature and ability to connect with people makes Somebody Feed Phil a one of a kind culinary travel show. For those interested in traveling for food, Somebody Feed Phil attempts to alleviate the fear of trying the local food. It’s certainly worth watching. Netflix has also previously announced a season 3 with episodes scheduled to air sometime in 2020.

Dark Tourist

Recommended by Martha from Quirky Globetrotter

Nowadays, travel is often painted as an Instagrammable pastime. Yet, there is a surge of tourists who are looking for quite the opposite and want to see the not-so-glamorous parts of the world. We’re not talking off the beaten path. We’re talking more about what happens behind closed doors and what rumors try to speculate. The trend of traveling and diving into the taboo and unknown comes to life in the Netflix show, “ Dark Tourist .”

Whether it’s visiting radioactive nuclear sites or learning about gruesome assassinations, it’s the sense of forbiddenness or coveted secrets that these tourists ache for. Have you ever wondered why people are so enthralled by serial killer documentaries? The same thrill takes place in these destinations. (Don’t worry, there’s a Jeffrey Dahmer tour for you true crime aficionados.) Dark tourism profits off exposing the occult or veiled history of these locales.

Recommended by Laura from What’s Hot?

Our Planet is one of David Attenborough’s latest documentary series and was made directly for Netflix. Like all his other series, this one is beautifully shot, highly informative and well-loved by all the family. What sets One Planet apart from some of the others however is the focus upon how human life and global warming are destroying these natural havens. Attenborough takes us to some of the most beautiful and peaceful places on Earth before showing us the tragic consequences that have left other, similar areas barren wastelands.

Alternating between land and sea, you’ll go to the desert, the depths of the ocean, the jungles and the coast. This is an important one for avid travellers because it will jointly inspires us to travel more of the world’s secluded locations but also to do so in a way which doesn’t disturb our planet.

Emily in Paris

Recommended by Matilda

Emily in Paris is about a young American woman who lands a job in a Parisian marketing firm. The show was created by the same person as Sex and The City and has a similar vibe only instead of New York heavily features Paris. It is fun, somewhat campy and an easy watch. While I wouldn’t recommend it as an entirely accurate portrayal of French culture, the scenery is absolutely beautiful and reminds me why Paris is one of my all-time favorite cities.

Best Travel Shows on TV, Amazon Prime Video and Other Streaming Services

The following travel shows and series are available on TV, Amazon Prime Video and/or various streaming services (such as Hulu).

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An Idiot Abroad

Recommended by Haley Plotkin, Ready Set Jet Set

An Idiot Abroad is a hysterical British travel docu-series following Karl Pilkington, a man that one could call an “idiot savant”. What everyone has to know about Karl is, he really does not like to travel. Knowing this, his friends Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, who one may know as famous British comedic actors, send Karl on epic adventures all across the world, with some twists and pranks along the way. These are the kind of trips that most people would kill for, but to Karl, he’d rather be home with a cup of tea. One of the highlights of the show is the Karl-isms along the way, such as: “The Great Pyramid is overrated. It’s a bad design. The lounge is going to be huge, but the bedroom is going to be tiny.” This is really not your typical travel show, and that’s what makes it a must-watch!

Where to Watch: This show is a few years old, so it is not currently airing anywhere in the US (it was created for Sky TV in the UK). In the US, you can buy it digitally on platforms such as Amazon Prime , Vudu , and iTunes .

The Layover

Recommended by Paula Morgan from Expert Abroad

The Layover was just one of the many travel shows that featured everyone’s favourite food traveller Anthony Bourdain. It aired for three seasons between 2011-2013 and after watching the very first episode on a 48-hour visit to New York it will likely change the way you travel forever.

No longer will you book the fastest trip to your destination. A stopover is not viewed as a hardship it is now something to embrace. The series covered 20 cities and racing against the clock Bourdain showed the audience the best things to eat, see and do, usually with a knowledgeable local as his sidekick.

The pace at times seems a little exhausting and you may not manage to cover as much in your 24 hours as the pro’s do but they make it easy for you to pick a few things for your next visit.

The team covered almost all of the main transit hubs across Asia, Europe and the USA including Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, San Francisco and NYC. Next time you find a cheap flight because of a long stopover check the series list and start making some plans.

Where to Watch: You can watch The Layover on Amazon Prime or The Travel Channel . Some episodes are also on YouTube .

Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown

Recommended by Arrianne Guzman from Travel Habeat

Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown is a travel and food show featuring an amazing chef exploring destinations less traveled by. As it inspires you to explore off-the-beaten paths, you’ll delve into intricate cultures, rich history, and beautiful people. You’d realize that a dish is more than what goes in a plate, it’s about tradition, heritage, and way of living. Catch Anthony tries a delectable Filipino dish called sisig and a scrumptious dessert fondly named “halo-halo” while grasping how the Philippines spend an extended Christmas season. Unravel with him the complicated past of Koreatown in Los Angeles and see what it was like to grow up Korean American. Or maybe you’d agree with him how a salad of fermented tea leaves can taste good in Myanmar.

Where to Watch: An original CNN series, it is available in digital media platforms including Amazon Prime , iTunes, and Vudu .

Expedition Unknown

Recommended by Albi from Ginger Around the Globe

Expedition Unknown is a TV show that will sparkle the heart of every traveler, who loves history. Josh Gates will take you around the globe and at the same time, you will see him and other archeologists, solving ancient mysteries. You will get to know about Kruger treasure, where is the tomb of last Inka king and more Indiana Jones mysteries like this. So you will see all kinds of places and at the same time, know their history and local culture. It is very informative, fun and wanderlusty.

Where to Watch: You can watch the show on the Discovery Channel or on the Travel Channel . If you prefer streaming services, you can also find the show on Hulu or Amazon Prime Video .

Rick Steves Travel Series

Recommended by Noel Morata from Travel Photo Discovery

One of my favorite travel shows that turned me onto traveling was watching the PBS travel programs with Rick Steve’s. Primarily focused on travels in Europe, Rick Steve’s showcased an amazing series of places to visit around Europe and each lovely country. He initially visits a destination and hops around with a local expert to show the highlights, enjoy some local food and drink and see some cultural treasures along with connecting with locals, merchants and everyday people. It makes it so fascinating to watch his programs and really shows audiences the connection with people, place, culture and food makes traveling to Europe so wonderful and fun. Rick Steve’s has created a lot of guide books about individual countries that you can purchase or just watch his TV series on PBS for inspiration for planning a trip to a specific country in Europe that has always been on your bucklist of places to visit. So if you are looking for inspiration about a particular country with all the bells and whistles of what makes each area so unique and special, check out any of his programs on TV. You’ll be hooked and wanting to binge watch all of his programs in a row.

Where to Watch: On TV at PBS and Amazon Prime Video

Booze Traveler

Recommended by Megan Starr

One of the best shows to watch for those that love combining travel with beverages and food is Booze Traveler, a show by The Travel Channel that showcases a host traveling around the world in search for special alcoholic drinks in countries that he visits. I actually helped with a couple of the episodes back in the day (Lithuania and Armenia ) and it really brought to light how many unique drinks exist in every place that you travel! They travel across the globe from Hawaii to Armenia to Nepal and beyond. It is a really refreshing show!

Where to Watch: The best way to watch Booze Traveler is to catch reruns on-demand from The Travel Channel in the US. You can watch it on Amazon Prime Video .

Recommended by Coni from Experiencing the Globe

Three Canadian friends decide to leave the Great White North behind and explore the world. They pack a bag, say goodbye to friends and family, and off they go. The initial plan is to spend a year traveling, but it quickly transforms into three whole years.

They spend a month in India, another in Japan, another in New Zealand. As they start feeling more comfortable on the road, the push their own boundaries and head to tougher destinations, like Libya and North Korea. They explore Greenland during winter, meet ancient tribes in Papua New Guinea and travel across the different scientific bases of Antarctica .

It’s impossible not to get inspired with the tons of wanderlust Departure sends our way.

Where to Watch: Available on Apple iTunes and Hoopla .

James May: Our Man in Japan

Recommended by Emma from Emma Jane Explores

Top Gear’s James May might seem like a strange choice for a travel show host, but the bumbling Englishman is an endearing host as he takes viewers on a comprehensive trip around Japan from North to South. Always happy to throw himself into any bizarre situation, Our Man in Japan sees May participate in all sorts of activities from dog sledding in Hokkaido to painting Mount Fuji with a renowned Japanese artist. Streaming on Amazon Prime, Our Man in Japan covers a whole lot of unique quirks that make the country a must-travel destination for all kinds of traveller types. Whether you’re a first timer to Japan or a serial visitor, Our Man in Japan will make you all kinds of eager to get back over to the land of the rising sun soon.

Where to Watch: You can watch on Amazon Prime Video only.

Planet Earth

Recommended by Roshni from The Wanderlust Within

The award-winning, BBC documentary series, Planet Earth was first shown in 2006. It took four years to film, using 71 cameramen in 64 different countries. The series was the most expensive nature documentary series ever commissioned by the BBC and the first to be filmed in high definition. The 11 episode series is narrated by David Attenborough and celebrates the natural world in a way you’ve never seen it before. Each episode features a different biome or habitat on Earth and lasts 50 minutes plus an extra 10 minutes of behind the scenes footage showing the challenges of filming the episode.

Ten years after the first series, Planet Earth II was released showing how animals meet the challenges of surviving in the most iconic habitats on earth. A third sequel is planned to air in 2022.

Where to Watch: All 11 episodes of Planet Earth , and all 6 episodes of Planet Earth II are available for streaming on BBC iPlayer, Amazon Prime Video and iTunes.

Samantha Brown: Places to Love

Recommended by Francesca Makana of Homeroomtravel

Samantha Brown has been an icon in the travel world for my entire life. Back in the day, she was best known for her Passport series . Present-day she hosts Samantha Brown: Places to Love. In this show, Brown showcases some lesser-known destinations, like the Texas Hill Country, and covers things to do in that area. Although she does still cover larger, well-known cities, such as Shanghai, she will not just list the main tourist sites. Instead, she interacts with the locals and finds unique things to do in that location.

Where to Watch: Viewers can catch Places to Love on PBS and select episodes on the PBS website .

Joanna Lumley’s Silk Road Adventure

Recommended by Emily from Wander-Lush

There are few parts of the world that inspire wanderlust more than Central Asia. In this 2018 miniseries, British actress and supermodel, Joanna Lumley (you may recognize her from the 1990s comedy sitcom Absolutely Fabulous) retraces parts of the fabled Silk Road trading route from the perspective of a tourist.

Over four episodes, she travels from Venice to Uzbekistan via Iran, Turkey, Georgia and Azerbaijan, visiting caravanserais, fire temples and bazaars along the way. This series brings to life the cross-pollination of ideas and influences that characterizes this part of the world where East intersects with West.

Lumley’s dry British humor and insatiable curiosity make her a terrific host. Even if you’re never considered visiting Central Asia and the Caucasus before, this series will inspire you to follow the footsteps of Marco Polo on one of the most epic overland journeys of all time.

Where to Watch: Joanna Lumley’s Silk Road Adventure is currently available to stream via Amazon Prime UK . Some episodes are also on YouTube .

Recommended by Ruby from A Journey We Love

Travel Man is a 30 minute British TV show hosted by Richard Ayoade shown on Channel 4 (UK). Each week, he travels with someone for a quick getaway (48-72 hours) and breaks down tourist sites, what to eat, facts about the city and banters around with his co-presenter for the week. For people living abroad, you can watch some of the shows on Channel 4’s website, and there are also full episodes available on Travel Man’s official YouTube channel . What makes the show interesting is that the host, Richard Ayoade, is not a big traveler nor is he a big fan of trying new things. It makes for a great perspective on how to plan quick weekend getaways for those who are planning trips with people who don’t like to travel and how to make it interesting for them. It also makes the series very funny because watching the host’s reactions and monologues is absolutely priceless.

Where to Watch: For people living abroad, you can watch some of the shows on Channel 4’s website, and there are also full episodes available on Travel Man’s official YouTube channel . You can also find episodes on Amazon Prime Video .

The Amazing Race

Recommended by us

The Amazing Race is our favorite travel show and we have been watching it from the beginning. The American reality competition show has aired 32 seasons on CBS since its premiere in 2001. If you enjoy the drama of reality competition shows and are also a travel lover then you will love The Amazing Race . Each season takes place in a few different countries and in total The Amazing Race has visited over 90 different countries and six continents. Teams of two people (usually couples, friends, or family members) race around the world, solving clues and completing tasks and challenges along the way. Relationships are tested and there are sometimes arguments between teammates and with other teams. The last team to finish each leg is eliminated until three teams race to the finish line in order to win $1 million. Fun fact: We actually applied to be on the show as a sisters team (more than ten years ago and long before we started this blog) but alas we were not chosen!

Where to Watch: You can stream old seasons of the Amazing Race on CBS All Access , Amazon Prime Video and various streaming services such as Hulu .

Did your favorite travel show or series make the list?

Some good recommendations on this list for sure. James May also has some other travel shows that can be found on Netflix, Youtube, etc. Although it’s a Vlog and not a true TV show I would add Kara and Nate’s Vlog show from Youtube. They have visited over a 100 countries and it’s one of the best. If you’ve never watched them, just start with their first show and binge watch it through to today.

Thanks for the suggestion. Will check them out!

I’ll recommend a few new ones. AppleTV has “Long Way Up” from the “Long Way Down” and “Long Way Around” fame. Actor Ewan McGregor and his friend, Charley Boorman from the tip of South America to Los Angeles on electric Harley Davidson motorcycles. I pretty much hate AppleTV+ but this show is so very good. You might check out Max&Lee on Youtube which has recently continued on with Max&Occy. This is one of many Vanlife travel vlogs but it’s better than most. Start at the beginning with Max & Lee and work your way forward for good binge-watching. I will also add in a bonus travel vlog from YouTube and that is Sergio & Rhoda in Isreal. This couple travels around Isreal and shows details about various historical sites with a local flair. Very interesting for those that enjoy this region.

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What is shoulder season? Experts weigh in with tips to save on airfare, hotels in opposite seasons

old travel shows on tv

Craig Hastings/Getty Images

NEW YORK — There's still plenty of time to plan more fun in the sun summer getaways, but if you haven't yet booked travel for shoulder season -- or winter holidays -- experts are sharing why now may be the sweet spot time of year to scope out savings.

What is shoulder season? How to save on travel during off-peak months

Jesse Neugarten, founder and CEO of Dollar Flight Club, understands the importance of finding the best offers on airfare and told Good Morning America that travelers can find "significant savings" during shoulder season.

"It refers to the periods between peak and off-peak travel times when destinations are less crowded and travel costs are generally lower," she said.

The upcoming shoulder season in Europe, for example, during early autumn -- September to October -- "offers favorable weather without the high prices and large crowds of peak season," she said.

"Traveling during shoulder season allows you to take advantage of reduced airfare and accommodation rates due to decreased demand, leaving more money in your wallet," Neugarten explained.

Her company has sent out deal alerts on both domestic and international travel during this time period "such as round-trip flights to Europe for under $400 and within the U.S. for as low as $250."

Neugarten added that "prices are on average 15% cheaper when looking at U.S. to Europe routes during the off season, but can be up to 25% cheaper on particular routes."

"Additionally, some regions experience a brief shoulder season in January, following the holiday season," she said. "As tourists head home, hotels and airlines often reduce prices, encouraging travelers to take advantage of quieter winter getaways."

Fellow industry expert Daniel Green echoed her sentiments, adding that travel dates set just after the very end of summer typically come with price drops, since hotels and airlines alike "can't guarantee that the weather will be what you expect," depending on the destination.

Green, the co-founder and chief technology officer at Faye Travel Insurance, told GMA to think of it "like booking a ski vacation the day the slopes are due to open, even though it may not be snowing yet."

"Because you're taking that risk that your ski vacation will be spent entirely in the lodge -- or your beach vacation might be spent under the wrong type of umbrella -- there's less demand for flights and accommodation, so you can save," he said.

Like many in the space, Green also encouraged people to utilize tools like Google Flights, which he said "will often show you the price for an entire month, so you can easily see if the week before you intended to fly is half the price."

Save on travel by booking now for the opposite season

Scott Keyes, another proponent of tracking flight prices, has regularly emphasized the importance of booking trips for the opposite season if you want to save on airfare. He previously told Good Morning America about the "Goldilocks window," which is the ideal time to book a flight because "it's not too early or too late" for the price to be just right.

"If you book 11 months in advance, you don't see many cheap flights, but also, if you wait until a week or two before, your likelihood of a cheap flight at that point is gonna be very low," the Going.com founder said.

Tips for booking cheap flights for winter during summer

Neugarten's first suggestion is to start early: "Begin your search several months in advance to catch early bird deals. We recommend at least three months prior."

Next, be flexible. "Flexibility with travel dates and destinations increases your chances of finding cheaper flights," she said. "Keep an open mind for new places you haven’t explored yet."

Like Green and Keyes, Neugarten said travelers should "sign up for free fare alerts," whether it's with her company or by utilizing tools like Google Flights and Hopper "to receive insights on optimal booking times and notifications of price drops."

"Consider nearby airports -- sometimes flying into or out of a nearby airport can be significantly cheaper," Neugarten said. "Don’t be afraid to drive a little further to a different airport. You might save hundreds on the flight."

Once you're ready to book, she suggested going directly through the airline, because carriers "occasionally offer exclusive deals on their websites that are not available through third-party booking sites."

"Also, make sure to keep an eye on points and miles deals during shoulder season," she added.

What's the 21-day rule for airfare bookings?

Keyes also reminded travelers to follow his golden rule of air travel, back-timing when to book based on your departure date in order to align with an airline's "advanced purchase requirement," found in the fine print of the fare terms and conditions.

"Pull up a calendar and circle 21 days before your travel date," he said. "That needs to be your sort of drop-dead date to get your flights booked by."

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

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20 Best Time-Travel Shows Ranked

Loki looking surprised

If you could travel back and forth through time, where would you go? What would you do? Who would you talk to? Even better, if you were writing a book, making a movie, or working on a television show about time travel, what would you include? The best TV shows about time travel all feature characters who visit other eras for various compelling (or even life-threatening) reasons. Maybe it's to prevent a coming apocalypse, maybe it's just to save one person's life — but as many of these shows teach, small changes can have big effects, and many of these characters learn that their time-traveling can change the world.  

Now, there are some great time travel-adjacent shows that don't quite fit this list. A fun romp like "Early Edition," for example, utilizes a time-traveling newspaper and potentially a time-traveling cat, but doesn't in and of itself feature a lot of time travel. Likewise, something like "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" is rooted in a time travel premise, but stays mostly in one time. With all that said, here's a look at our choices for the 20 best time travel shows on TV.

Save the cheerleader, save the world. That's what future Hiro Nakamura (Masi Oka) tells present-day Hiro when he appears to him from the future, and that's what establishes "Heroes" as way more than just a superhero show.

The NBC series follows a group of regular people who develop special powers, not unlike mutants in the "X-Men" series, after a mysterious worldwide eclipse. Each character gains their own individual abilities. Claire Bennet (Hayden Panettiere) develops the ability to heal from any injury. Senator Nathan Petrelli (Adrian Pasdar) gains the ability to fly, while his brother Peter (Milo Ventimiglia) can temporarily absorb others' powers. Still, few of these characters have cooler abilities than Hiro, who can influence the space-time continuum. This means he can teleport, slow down time — and, of course, time travel.   

Understandably, Hiro's power set becomes a serious asset throughout the series, and his path to perfect his abilities is one of "Heroes'" strongest story arcs. The first few times he travels through time don't go as planned, and throughout the series, things can get in the way of him ending up where he wants to go or when he wants to be. While Hiro's time-traveling is just one part of the larger story, it's definitely one of the show's highlights – especially since Oka is so darn charming as the character.

19. 11.22.63

One of the best Stephen King TV series out there, the eight-episode "11.22.63" follows a man named Jake Epping (James Franco). He's a relatively normal guy who receives a chance to change history when his friend Al (Chris Cooper) tells him he's found a way to travel back in time. Al tells Jake that the portal he's discovered goes back to the year 1960 and that he's been working on a plan to stop the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

Al's age and advancing cancer diagnosis prevent him from following through on the plan, however, and he asks Jake to take over for him. Jake agrees, but soon his quest is met with pushback from a mysterious source. As it turns out, the past doesn't want to be changed, and every step Jake takes toward preventing JFK's assassination leads to more cracks in the timeline. 

A charming and exciting time travel drama, "11.22.63" is a well-executed, twisty tale that only ranks so low on this list because it's in such great company. If you're looking for a quick, self-contained time travel miniseries that revolves around one of modern America's most notable events, this show is well worth a watch. 

When Oceanic Airlines Flight 815 crash lands on a deserted island, wacky and scary things start happening to the survivors. ABC's "Lost" deals with flashbacks, flash-forwards, mysterious groups that already have a presence on the island, a black smoke monster — and, as it turns out, an ancient battle between good and evil. One of the great appointment television shows before streaming broke through, "Lost" had fans talking about it and theorizing about its mysteries on a weekly basis.

The sci-fi drama captivated viewers for six seasons, and though time travel is referenced throughout the entire series run, it plays the biggest role in Season 4. As the island itself leaps from place to place and from time to time, the main group of characters jumps with it, encountering previous versions of themselves and island events that occurred in the past, and suffering from the effects of temporal displacement. The most beloved episode dealing with time travel is undoubtedly "The Constant," in which fan-favorite Desmond Hume (Henry Ian Cusick) figures out a way to stop his consciousness from jumping through time by finding his constant — his true love, Penny (Sonya Walger).

Of course, "Lost" is not just a time travel show, and famously covers such a wide variety of mysteries and sci-fi concepts that viewers might find it hard to keep up. As such, it ends up with this relatively low ranking. 

Like "Lost", "Fringe" is considered one of the most binge-worthy sci-fi shows of all time  but the fact that it isn't exclusively about time travel means it lands near the tail end of this particular list. The ABC show revolves around a science-fiction conglomerate that dabbles with interdimensional travel, wormholes, and alternate realities. Anna Torv stars as FBI Agent Olivia Dunham, who heads up the bureau's Fringe Division. With the help of "mad scientist" Dr. Walter Bishop (John Noble), his estranged son Peter (Joshua Jackson), and their lab assistant Astrid Farnsworth (Jakisa Nicole), Dunham explores cases involving fringe science — be they about time travel, mind control, experiments gone wrong or any other strange and obscure criminal activity.

Time travel is more of a looming presence early in "Fringe," particularly present in the character of the Observer (Michael Cerveris), a bald, pale, genetically advanced human from the future. While Season 1 and Season 2 deal with the battle between two dimensions and realities, time travel really becomes an element in Season 3. Seasons 4 and 5 then deal with alternate timelines and the Observers that infiltrate the world from the future, intent on wiping out humanity. As you might expect, things can get a bit confusing, but the show sure is fun.

16. The Umbrella Academy

You have to respect a show that's so high-concept that time travel doesn't even get top billing. "The Umbrella Academy" boasts mysterious events, family drama, dance numbers, a talking chimpanzee, some of the cleverest superpowers in superhero shows, and a robot mom — and that's just scratching the surface. Based on "The Umbrella Academy" comics created by Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance fame, the Netflix show is a saga that exploits everything from the butterfly effect to the grandfather paradox for emotional and comedic impact.

The central Hargreeves family consists of a group of kids all born on the same day, adopted by the same eccentric billionaire (Colm Feore). He has trained them to protect the world with their various superpowers, but they aren't particularly great at it, and their strict upbringing has left them with a wide array of issues and deep rifts between them. The dysfunctional bunch starts out fairly estranged, but slowly bonds to save humanity from an apocalyptic event ... only to cause another potential apocalyptic event by sprinkling themselves across time.

In between the tears in the space-time continuum, "The Umbrella Academy" is ultimately an ensemble story about found (and re-found) family, as well as a truly unique superhero show where personal failure and the side-effects of costumed crimefighter life play a huge role. However, since Season 1 largely approaches time travel through Number Five (Aidan Gallagher) and the Temps Aeternalis agency, and much of Season 3 focuses on a present-day alternate reality, only the 1960s-themed Season 2 goes truly all in on the concept of sending all main characters to a different era. 

15. Sliders

"Sliders" is a 1990s sci-fi adventure series that features Jerry O'Connell and friends getting lost across the multiverse. O'Connell ("Stand By Me") plays boy genius Quinn Mallory, inventor of the Timer — a device that lets him and his friends "slide" through a wormhole vortex into different versions of Earth. The thing about wormhole vortexes, though, is that they like to misbehave, meaning Quinn and his buds never know where they're headed next on their adventures. This makes their quest to get back home to their own Earth a tricky one.

"Sliders" starts off fun and strong, and is at its best when having bonkers fun — like when Rembrandt (Cleavant Derricks) discovers a world where he could have been Elvis-level famous — and when it's exploring real-world issues in a high-concept dimension, like when the crew visits an Earth that treats men worse than women. Even if you've seen it before, it's definitely worth a re-watch, because "Sliders" is one  TV show that's better than you remember.

14. Continuum

On "Continuum," Kiera Cameron (Rachel Nichols) is a Protector – think futuristic government agent from even more futuristic equipment — from the year 2077. She gets transported to the year 2012 along with a group of murderous terrorists, forcing Kiera to remain in the past as she chases them down. Fortunately, her gadgets and knowledge of the past soon come in handy and she finds loyal allies. Unfortunately, her enemies also know their history and plan on altering it for their own gain. 

"Continuum" milks the premise for all it's worth, while avoiding the pitfall of becoming a run-in-the-mill procedural with an unchanging status quo. While Kiera does handle her share of case-of-the-week story arcs, they're often connected to the group she pursues, and she never lets go of her primary target of stopping the terrorists. In order to avoid disrupting the timeline, she also has to go to great lengths to avoid revealing that either she or her targets are time travelers — and when their actions inevitably end up changing the future, she has to deal with the consequences. 

13. Timeless

If ever there was a time travel show that was canceled too soon, it's Eric Kripke and Shawn Ryan's "Timeless." The NBC sci-fi series stars Abigail Spencer as the historian Lucy, Matt Lanter as the soldier Wyatt, and Malcolm Barrett as Rufus, a scientist who makes up a team trying to prevent a mysterious organization from altering the courses of history through time travel. They're up againsts Garcia Flynn (Goran Višnjić), who travels throughout history intending to influence major events like the Hindenburg disaster. However, the team soon realizes that the villain they thought they were fighting is much larger and infiltrates the historical timeline in ways they never imagined. 

Instead of focusing on the usual historical suspects, "Timeless" often highlights forgotten people of color, women, and lesser-known historical figures, giving them their due and celebrating their contributions to society. This element of the show can be seen in the way Rufus, for instance, is reluctant to join the team because he knows how Black people are treated in the eras they visit. 

Despite its intriguing concept, the show was canceled after Season 1, but fans caused such an uproar that NBC reversed the decision of canceling "Timeless"  and renewed it for another season. After Season 2, NBC pulled the plug once more, and again, the fans cried foul. In a kind of compromise, NBC greenlit a special two-hour series finale that ties up loose ends and gives much-needed closure to the story. 

12. 12 Monkeys

The "12 Monkeys" SyFy series is based on the 1995 film of the same name that stars Bruce Willis and Brad Pitt — though the series makes a fair few changes to stretch the plot into a four-season sci-fi drama. The series stars Aaron Sanford as James Cole, a scavenger from the year 2024 who's tasked with traveling to 2015 in order to stop the release of a biological weapon. In the movie, James is helped by a psychologist named Kathryn Railly played by Madeleine Stowe, but here, he befriends a virologist named Dr. Cassandra "Cassie" Railly (Amanda Schull). Pitt's character, Jeffrey Goines, is also gender-swapped here, with Emily Hampshire playing Jennifer Goines.

Like the movie, the series deals with the Cassandra Complex, the idea that we have a hard time believing concerns about the future, no matter how likely and provable they are. It also deals with circular time and the idea that past events can be affected by future ones. If those aspects of the film lift your time travel antennae, the four-season show dives even deeper.

11. Paper Girls

"Paper Girls" is a brilliant time travel show that was canceled way ahead of its time. Based on the comics by Brian K. Vaughan and Cliff Chiang, this Amazon series tells the story of a group of 1990s tween girls who get attacked by futuristic invaders. They manage to escape into the future, where one of the girls, Erin (Riley Lai Nelet ), meets her adult self (Ali Wong).

The show dispenses with grandfather paradox hand-wringing and instead uses the concept of the girls confronting their past and future selves, to brutally honest and hilarious effect. Young Erin is horrified to find out how much of herself she's abandoned by the time she turns into Old Erin, and refuses to let life work out that way. It motivates Erin to want to return to her home time even more — this kid has a clock to beat. However, there are two sides to the coin, and Old Erin is also able to care for her young self in ways she never felt able to when she was younger. It's a beautiful and potent visual metaphor that other characters also make good on. 

All in all, "Paper Girls" is a feast for the eyes as much as its ensemble cast is a feast for the soul. Plus, Jason Mantzoukas playfully chewing scenery as the ominous Grand Father? This show could have lasted until the end of time — or at least until Season 2.

10. Timewasters

"Timewasters" is a time travel comedy about a Black British jazz band that accidentally time-slips back to 1920s London, among other timelines. The quartet stumbles into an earlier time perod via a disgusting elevator that, yes, doubles as a time machine. Once the crew shows up in the past, they're treated like freaks, but they gain some measure of success as musicians. While the crew eventually tries to return to the present, they also have a "Back to the Future" moment when they seemingly get stuck in the 1950s.

"Timewasters" is full of funny jokes and great music, and it's a groundbreaking show in a number of ways. "People like us never get to time travel — it's what white people do, like skiing or brunch," creator Daniel Lawrence Taylor told the Royal Television Society . "For me, race is so important." Taylor also stars in "Timewasters," along with Kadiff Kirwan ("Slow Horses"), Adelayo Adedayo ("Some Girls"), and Samson Kayo ("Our Flag Means Death"). The show is also an excellent destination if you're into spotting a variety of British actors and comedians ... including Joseph Quinn, who went on to rise to fame as Eddie Munson on "Stranger Things."

9. Outlander

Based on the series of novels by Diana Gabaldon, Starz's "Outlander" follows the story of a World War II nurse named Claire (Caitriona Balfe) who finds herself thrown back in time after visiting a circle of mysterious Druid stones. She arrives in 18th Century Scotland and, after being taken in by a band of gruff Scots, she marries the dashing young Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan) in order to avoid being taken prisoner by her real husband's (Tobias Menzies) apparent evil ancestor, Black Jack Randall (Menzies). Claire lives through a time of great upheaval in Scotland when tensions with British control are rising and history-making battles loom in the near future. Despite being initially reluctant to stay, she and Jamie fall deeply in love, and their romance remains the backbone of the series.

The entire "Outlander" timeline  takes some time to explain, what with several 20th-century characters taking the trip to the 18th century and the show covering versions of notable real-world historical events. Without further spoilers, all there is to say is that if you enjoy time travel shows that lean heavily toward historical drama, "Outlander" is where it's at. Also, if you view Tobias Menzies as an incorrigible dweeb due to his performance as Edmure Tully on "Game of Thrones," his monstrous "Outlander" villain is guaranteed to erase that image.

8. Quantum Leap

"Quantum Leap" stars Scott Bakula as Dr. Sam Beckett, a physicist who invents a way to travel through time. When the corporation funding his project threatens to shut it down, Sam uses himself as a guinea pig to test out the method. He finds himself thrown back in time, but in another person's body. The only other entity aware of his 'leap" is a hologram of his colleague and best friend, Admiral Al Calavicci (Dean Stockwell). Al tells Sam that he must correct things that went wrong in the past before being allowed to leap back to his own time and body, and can only use the resources of the project's supercomputer, Ziggy.

With Sam leaping back and forth into different bodies at different times, the show uses a variant of the traditional procedural set up. New characters turn up to guest star and Sam gets to save the day, have a fling, and learn something new before leaping to the next destination, which just might be home one of these days.  

The series ran on NBC from 1989 to 1993, but its combination of time travel and case-of-the-week antics has proved enduring enough that "Quantum Leap" even gets a shout-out in "Avengers: Endgame." Despite being over three decades old, it remains a cool time travel series worth checking out.

7. The 4400

In the opening scenes of "The 4400," an enormous ball of light drops 4,400 people at the foot of Mount Rainier in Washington. They soon realize that they were all taken from some other point in time and deposited into the year 2004, unaged and without any memories of where they'd been. At first, everyone assumes that these people have been abducted by aliens. However, it soon turns out that the truth is far more time travel-related.

The returned people soon start developing "Heroes"-style powers that range from telekinesis to telepathy and super-strength, which people from the future have entrusted with to prevent various catastrophic events that they want to avoid in their timeline. Unfortunately, the 2004 government considers the powered folks a threat, and inhibits their powers with a neurological drug. 

The stories that unfold from this setup are exactly as complex and entertaining as you'd imagine, with various members of the titular group treating their powers in different ways and society having a hard time dealing with them. Unfortunately, "The 4400" ended abruptly after four seasons on a somewhat ambiguous note, but even so, it's a fun show to revisit.

6. Travelers

In Netflix's "Travelers," time-traveling operatives from a post-apocalyptic future are tasked with preventing certain events that have led to the downfall of society in their own present day of 2018. The travelers' consciousness takes over a person in the desired time who's just about to die, and the operative then lives out the rest of that person's days though with the mission in mind ... and a strict set of rules they must follow. Apart from a list of ways they're not allowed to interact with the past, they're also strictly forbidden from communicating with other known travelers outside their team, save for special circumstances dictated by the Director, who communicates by temporarily taking over children. 

It's a unique and complex premise, and the way the travelers scope out potential targets for takeover and learn to live as them is as timely as it comes — they use social media, GPS locations, and other readily available online information for their time-travel tricks. This adds a layer of present-day dread to the show's fascinating take on time travel. 

Loki Laufeyson (Tom Hiddleston) meets his match when he comes up against the Time Variance Authority in one of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's most ambitious Disney+ shows, "Loki." The TVA is so dedicated to maintaining a particular sacred timeline that they purge all alternate realities where someone made a choice they deem wrong, which might not always make sense, but precision isn't the point here. It's the idea of playfulness versus control. 

The Loki we see here is an alternate-timeline variant of the one the audiences are familiar with, and thus starts the show in full "The Avengers" villain mode before life — and time — starts grinding him down. Working with TVA agent Mobius M. Mobius (Owen Wilson), he starts redeeming himself by tracking down an apparently evil version of himself, Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino) ... and ultimately tackling the biggest challenges time can offer.  

The God of Mischief's surprisingly human path of reckoning is the heart of a show that's deliciously stylish, silly, and sometimes scary. "Loki" takes a cops-and-robbers crime caper into time travel territory and explores hefty themes with a light touch, from mindless compliance to self-serving overseers to criminalizing anyone deemed different. "Loki" isn't just a time travel show — it's a show about everything time can offer and more, with characters dancing between eras as you might step from room to room. Also, it has Alligator Loki, who's objectively the best Loki of all. 

If "Loki" is too light-hearted for you, Netflix's "Dark" might be your jam ... provided you can make sense of its incredibly convoluted time travel storyline. Four families weave a tangled web of time travel in this German-language psychological thriller about missing kids, a rotten town, and how almost all of our secrets come out in time. In other words, it's a good time travel show, but it's definitely not a feel-good time travel show. 

"Dark" follows its many characters over the course of their lifetimes and, at one point, has three timelines going at once. Part of the intrigue and challenge of watching the show is trying to understand how (and when) each timeline threads into the other. If you decide to watch it, it's best to have an evidence board and plenty of red yarn ready to chart the relationships and betrayals the town of Winden sees over the years.

While "Dark" is as much a show about human connection and how frayed it can become as it is about time travel, it's also the MVP of using as many time travel paradoxes as possible during its three-season run. "Dark" is also an innovator in the field of wormhole placement. Wormholes are already not to be trusted, but a wormhole underneath a nuclear power plant? No, thank you.

3. Beforeigners

What happens when a bunch of Viking-era warriors, 19th-century figures, and Stone Age people pop up in modern-day Oslo? "Beforeigners" attempts to answer that question while navigating twisty murder mysteries with such efficiency that the Norwegian series may be best described as "crime travel." Adding to the intrigue is the way it focuses more on the present-day relationship between the time refugees and their modern counterparts than on how they showed up in the first place.

"Beforeigners" centers around the odd-couple partnership between hardened police detective Lars Haaland (Nicolai Cleve Broch) and eager new Viking police recruit Alfhildr Enginnsdóttir (Krista Kosonen), who investigate things like the murder of a Stone Age victim and even look into crimes with possible ties to Jack the Ripper.

The metaphor of time migration is an apt one for immigration, and this sci-fi show explores tricky real-life issues with plenty of scope. Creators Anne Bjørnstad and Eilif Skodvin got their start in comedy writing, and their commitment to the bit is evident in the show, including the language used. "Early on, I contacted researchers, professors who helped us. We also constructed the language that Stone Age people spoke, and even with the language from the 19th century: We worked on it to make it sound right," Bjørnstad told Variety . "Why not invest in language, which is such a big part of a person's identity?"

2. Russian Doll

"Russian Doll" could be pitched as "Natasha Lyonne's 'Groundhog Day,'" but that still wouldn't hint at half of the show's charm and emotion. This Netflix offering is a mind-bending time loop dramedy that's a stylish and surreal exploration of life, death, and all the trauma in between. Season 1 of "Russian Doll" features Nadia (Lyonne) stuck reliving her 36th birthday until she inevitably dies and resets back to her friend's bathroom. Later in the season, she discovers a fellow time traveler (Charlie Barnett). They quickly realize that the way out of their dead ends and into a new life is through helping each other.

Season 2 takes some departures from the recursive reality set up in the first season, bending viewers' minds even more thoroughly. "Russian Doll" goes deep, but keeps a sense of humor even as it twists the knife in its characters' hearts — and their timelines. The show keeps audiences just oriented enough by linking its time loops to recognizable spaces and sound cues. You will never look at the subway the same way again, and you will probably never get Harry Nilsson's "Gotta Get Up" out of your head.

1. Doctor Who

Really, could any other show top a list like this?  The untold history of "Doctor Who"  goes all the way back to 1963, when the show premiered on the BBC. The series follows the adventures of a Time Lord who calls themselves the Doctor — an alien being from the planet Gallifrey who travels through space and time on a craft called the TARDIS, which is charmingly disguised as an old-fashioned British police call box and is famously bigger on the inside.  Every Doctor has their own companions  – humans who follow the Doctor throughout space and time, helping people, battling new and recurring villains, and dealing with the assorted wibbly-wobbly stuff on the Doctor's timeline .

The original series ran from 1963 through 1989 and established the neat trick of recasting the Doctor every few years or so, thanks to the premise that the character has multiple lives and can reincarnate himself into different physical bodies. The modern series was revived in 2005 with Christopher Eccleston as the Doctor, and talented actors like David Tennant (twice), Matt Smith, Peter Capaldi, Jodie Whitaker, and Ncuti Gatwa have followed in his footsteps. Even without the fact that no other show has time travel quite as integrated into its very premise as "Doctor Who," the show's sheer longevity and cultural impact are more than enough to make it the king of the time travel hill. 

32 TV Shows That Went On Way Too Long

These series didn't know when to throw in the towel.

The Office

There are those shows that ended long before we wanted them to, from '90s one-season wonders like Freaks & Geeks and My So-Called Life to perfectly timed dramas like Succession and Breaking Bad . These are not those shows. Instead, these television titles overstayed their welcome, long after their biggest stars departed, or the critical acclaim and awards dried up, or the storylines made any sense. Here are 32 TV shows that simply went on way too long. 

Californication

Californication

At the beginning of Showtime's Californication , which ran on the network from 2007 to 2014, the story of troubled novelist Hank Moody ( David Duchovny ) and his hedonistic ways felt fresh and edgy. But seven seasons of incessant drinking and womanizing majorly dulled any of that edge. 

The Walking Dead

The Walking Dead

How long can people survive a zombie apocalypse? Apparently, for a while —the AMC flagship series The Walking Dead went on for an unfathomable eleven seasons and the survival story of Rick Grimes ( Andrew Lincoln ) and Michonne ( Danai Gurira ) still isn't over, having been picked up in the spin-off miniseries The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live. 

Michael C. Hall in Dexter

One word: lumberjack. For eight seasons, the Showtime series followed Miami man Dexter Morgan ( Michael C. Hall ) as he worked as a forensic pathologist by day and a vigilante serial killer by night. Spending nearly a decade watching Dexter get away with murder after murder felt both implausible and repetitive. And don't even get us started on that disappointing, woodsy series finale . 

Grey's Anatomy

Grey's Anatomy

It's felt like Grey's Anatomy has been resuscitated more times than any of the patients at Seattle Grace. It's been the longest-running medical drama on primetime, but it became barely the Grey's that O.G. fans remember. In later seasons, lead actress Ellen Pompeo , who plays Meredith Grey, scaled back to a recurring role , and beloved original characters like Cristina Yang (Sandra Oh), Izzie Stevens (Katherine Heigl), and Alex Karev (Justin Chambers) were all long gone. 

The Handmaid's Tale

The Handmaid's Tale

There's plenty of argument to be made that Hulu's dragged-out dystopian drama The Handmaid's Tale —which sees fertile American women (played by the likes of Elisabeth Moss , Alexis Bledel  and Samira Wiley) being forced into child-bearing slavery by a totalitarian government—should have been a one-and-done miniseries. After all, the 1985 Margaret Atwood novel on which it is based concluded after the events of the first season. 

Sons of Anarchy

Sons of Anarchy

Too-long episodes (many of which pushed way past the traditional hour-long mark) and irredeemable characters made it hard to continue to care about  Jax (Charlie Hunnam), Gemma ( Katey Sagal ) and the rest of the outlaw bikers in the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club after seven seasons of the FX crime drama.

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Shameless

Sure, Shameless had a jam-packed ensemble throughout its entire eleven season run, including Jeremy Allen White, William H. Macy, Cameron Monaghan and Shanola Hampton. But the grungy Showtime family drama lost its heart when lead actress Emmy Rossum—who played the older sister-turned-matriarch Fiona Gallagher— departed the series in season nine . 

White Collar

White Collar

Many White Collar fans felt that things were getting a little rinse-and-repeat with the USA Network procedural by the end of its six-season run, with case-of-the-week storylines and stagnant character development. Imagine their surprise, then, when it was announced that the show was getting a Netflix revival , with actors Matt Bomer, Tim DeKay and Tiffani Thiessen reprising their roles. 

This Is Us

The earned emotionality of early seasons of This Is Us —an NBC family drama that follows the lives of two parents (played by Milo Ventimiglia and Mandy Moore) and their three children (Sterling K. Brown, Chrissy Metz and Justin Hartley,) in several different time frames—started to feel manipulative and maudlin after six years. 

Suits

Some television shows suffer from an unsustainable premise. Case in point, Suits , the USA Network legal drama that follows a college dropout with a photographic memory (Patrick J. Adams) who is hired to work as an associate at a prestigious law firm, despite not actually having a license to practice law. Sure, Jan. Despite the dubious concept, Suits aired for a whopping nine seasons. 

Supernatural

Supernatural

Exactly how many demons, ghosts and monsters did brothers Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles) have to hunt down to save the world? Fifteen seasons and 327 episodes worth! However, even many Supernatural superfans believe the CW fantasy series lost its way by the end and should have finished after season five when creator Eric Kripke left as showrunner. 

How I Met Your Mother

How I Met Your Mother

That is one long story that Ted Mosby (played by Josh Radnor) tells his adolescent children Luke (David Henrie) and Penny (Lyndsy Fonseca) about how their dad first met their mother. In fact, the tale took nine whole years, with many meandering tangents along the way, that we wouldn't blame the kids if they, too, got bored listening to it. 

Glee

Few shows faced quite the critical fall from grace as Glee . Early on, the FOX teen show—which centered on the plucky members of New Directions, the glee club of the fictional William McKinley High School—was an awards show juggernaut, winning several Emmys in its first few seasons, but those high notes were soured when the scripts focused less on the show's original characters and more on ad nauseum celebrity guests . 

Scrubs

Starting with the ninth season, many of the original Scrubs cast —including Zach Braff, Sarah Chalke, Ken Jenkins and Neil Flynn—stepped back from being main characters on the show, popping up in only a handful or as little as one episode that season. Longtime fans of the NBC medical comedy didn't love that their favorites got replaced with new characters, played by the likes of Kerry Bishé, Michael Mosley and Dave Franco.

The Big Bang Theory

The Big Bang Theory

Running for 12 seasons and 279 episodes, this CBS sitcom about Leonard Hofstadter (Johnny Galecki), Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons) and their similarly geeky pals got bogged down by too many main characters, recycled old catchphrases and the use of laugh tracks as a crutch. 

The Simpsons

The Simpsons

As old as, well, the person writing this very article, the satirical animated sitcom has broken several TV records in its three-decade tenure, including being the longest-running scripted primetime series in American television. And though Homer, Marge, Bar, Lisa, Maggie and the rest of the residents of Springfield are comedy legends, they now feel like relics of a different generation. 

Riverdale

The occurrences within the town of Riverdale were easy enough to keep track of in the early seasons of the CW teen drama, which was populated with the famous characters from Archie Comics (Archie, Betty, Veronica, Jughead and the like.) But as the writing got messier and mazelike, and the characters' storylines more and more outlandish, the soapy series became impossible to take seriously by the end of its seven-season run. 

Game of Thrones

Game of Thrones

The brazenness with which the Game of Thrones creators killed off some of its biggest, most beloved characters — Ned Stark (Sean Bean) in season one, his son Robb (Richard Madden) and wife Catelyn (Michelle Fairley) in season four — majorly lost its umph when the show killed off Jon Snow (Kit Harington) in the season five finale...only to resurrect him two episodes later. 

Homeland

The first two seasons of this Showtime espionage thriller — in which Claire Danes stars as a CIA officer with bipolar disorder, opposite Damian Lewis playing a Marine Corps Scout Sniper who has just returned home following eight years in captivity — received universal acclaim, including the 2012 Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series. However, though Homeland had eight seasons total, it never recovered in quality following the death of Lewis's character in season 3 . 

Two and a Half Men

Two and a Half Men

It's always a gamble when you replace the main character of a TV show, especially such a long-running one as the CBS sitcom Two and a Half Men . Originally starring Charlie Sheen as a hedonistic jingle writer living with his uptight brother (played by Jon Cryer) and his nephew (Angus T. Jones), the show misguidedly hired Ashton Kutcher to lead the cast in seasons nine through twelve after Sheen left the show to enter drug rehab. 

One Tree Hill

One Tree Hill

It rarely works when a high school show follows its characters to college and into adulthood. One Tree Hill , the early-aughts teen drama that ran for three seasons on The WB and another six on The CW, stretched the storylines of Lucas Scott (Chad Michael Murray), Peyton Sawyer (Hilarie Burton), Brooke Davis (Sophia Bush) and the rest of the Tree Hill Ravens crew too long past graduation, especially as both Murray and Burton departed the show after season five.  

Lost

Airing 121 episodes over six seasons from 2004 to 2010 , Lost packed a lot of supernatural nonsense onto that island, frustratingly devolving over the years from a character drama to a complex mythology swirling with time travel, smoke monsters and electromagnetic phenomena. Even co-creator Damon Lindelof has said that he wanted the show to end after three seasons instead of six. By the time the series aired its final episode, the sci-fi series had offered up far too many questions and far too few answers.

Modern Family

Modern Family

Even Modern Family star Sarah Hyland, who played Haley Dunphy in 11 seasons of the Emmy-winning ABC comedy, was kind of disappointed by the show's later seasons . And she seemingly wasn't the only one: though it had earned both critical acclaim and strong viewership for its earlier installments, season 10 had the worst ratings of the series. 

Once Upon a Time

Once Upon a Time

The thing about fairytales is that soon enough you get to that happily ever after at the end. The ABC fantasy drama Once Upon a Time seemingly didn't get that message because it made fans wait for that storybook ending for seven long seasons — even Robert Carlyle, who portrayed Rumplestiltskin in the series, retrospectively admitted to The A.V. Club that he felt that the series "ran for too long."

Killing Eve

Killing Eve

On paper, we should have never wanted Killing Eve to end, with its cast led by a superb Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer — as a British intelligence investigator and the psychopathic assassin she's tasked with capturing, respectively — and scripts from the brilliant mind of Fleabag scribe-star Phoebe Waller-Bridge. However, when Waller-Bridge departed as head writer after the first season, the once-great show simply ran out of story. 

Bones

Crime procedurals have a habit of staying on TV long after they should, what with their formulaic case-of-the-week structure that's easy to replicate season after season. And Bones , the long-running Fox crime drama starring Emily Deschanel and David Boreanaz, is definitely no exception, overstuffed with soapy gimmicks , themed episodes and a way-too-long will-they-won't-they dynamic between Deschanel's Temperance Brennan and Boreanaz's Seeley Booth.

The Office

Of course, we love the entire Dunder Mifflin crew, but everybody knows that The Office should have naturally called it quits when lead Steve Carell — who played the "World's Best Boss," a.k.a. the delightfully incompetent Michael Scott — departed the show after its seventh season. Not even big-name actors like Will Ferrell and James Spader could fill the hole Michael Scott left. 

Westworld

Westworld 's first season is to this day the most-watched first season of any HBO original series. However, that popularity, coupled with early critical acclaim, didn't last long for the dystopian Western — the writing and character work drastically declined by the time the show was canceled in November 2022, and just a month later, the entire series was brutally removed from HBO Max. 

That '70s Show

That '70s Show

The Fox teen drama — centered on a groovy group of teenage friends living in the fictional town of Point Place, Wisconsin — worked because of the chemistry created by its young cast, including Topher Grace, Mila Kunis, Ashton Kutcher, Danny Masterson, Laura Prepon and Wilmer Valderrama. So of course the show itself took a creative hit when that chemistry was altered following the departures of Grace and Kutcher after the seventh season. 

Smallville

Initially a show about a teenage Clark Kent dealing with issues both human (bullies, crushes) and superhuman (kryptonite and such) while growing up in fictional Smallville, Kansas, Smallville seemed to care less and less about the human side of the Man of Steel over the course of ten seasons. Many fans suggest that the TV superhero should have hung his cape after season seven, which saw the departure of both the show's main villain Lex Luther (Michael Rosenbaum) and Smallville  creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar. 

13 Reasons Why

13 Reasons Why

Based on the young adult novel by Jay Asher,  13 Reasons Why  is one of those cases where a multi-season show was made to be a limited series. Instead of just neatly telling the story of Hannah Baker (Katherine Langford) and the tapes she leaves behind after tragically ending her own life, the Netflix teen drama inexplicably changed genres throughout its four-season run, becoming a poor murder mystery in the show's third season. 

Heroes

Though the NBC superhero drama Heroes only went on for four seasons, critics of the show were already pointing out less-than-engaging storylines and lack of cohesion as early as season two. The tales of ordinary people who discover that they have superhuman abilities and have to work together to prevent catastrophic futures should have been adrenaline-pumping stuff, but it simply couldn't sustain that energy after its acclaimed first season. 

Christina Izzo is a writer-editor covering culture, entertainment and lifestyle in New York City. She was previously the Deputy Editor at My Imperfect Life, the Features Editor at Rachael Ray In Season and Reveal, as well as the Food & Drink Editor and chief restaurant critic at Time Out New York. Regularly covers Bravo shows, Oscar contenders, the latest streaming news and anything happening with Harry Styles.

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Globe Trekker

Globe Trekker (1994)

The hosts travel to various destinations around the world. As they do, you view their experiences and listen to their critiques along the way. The hosts travel to various destinations around the world. As they do, you view their experiences and listen to their critiques along the way. The hosts travel to various destinations around the world. As they do, you view their experiences and listen to their critiques along the way.

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Money blog: What will happen to tax and interest rates under Labour – and how will benefits change? | Join our live Q&A

Business presenter Ian King is answering your questions on what a Labour government means for your personal finances, here in the Money blog. There's still time to submit a question below.

Monday 8 July 2024 18:20, UK

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Thanks for all your questions  - and for following Ian King's responses on the likely changes we can expect under the new Labour government.

Dad of Swifties:

Why don't the government remove VAT on concert tickets like in other countries and announce stronger regulation on sites like Ticketmaster? Prices are a joke

Here's what  Ian King , our business presenter, says on this one...

Labour promised not to increase the rate of VAT during the election campaign. 

That is very different from cutting it or making some products and services tax free. 

I'd be surprised if it happened. The government needs to raise money, not give it away. 

That said, I note that US Congress has recently been talking about tougher regulation of businesses like Ticketmaster, so doubtless parliamentarians on this side of the Atlantic will be watching closely.

May I ask who is likely to be eligible for the proposed new housing as outlined today? I have a son of 43 and his wife living with us as they can't afford a mortgage, and aren't eligible for social housing. Not everyone in Britain wants the responsibility of owning a house.

Ian King , Sky News business presenter, says...

Labour is aiming for increasing housing availability across the board with a mix of both public/social housing and also private sector accommodation – while also looking to stimulate the "build to rent" sector. 

It's not a case of eligibility, as such. 

They're seeking to increase supply in the first instance – get that right and demand will be met.

Haven't we heard all this before with housebuilding targets - what's different this time?

Good question – which reminds me that one of the most dangerous phrases in investment and business is "it's different this time". 

What genuinely appears to be different is that Labour seem totally committed to sweeping away the planning rules and regulations that stand in the way of more homes being built. 

If they can pull this off then, all other things being equal, they will have a fighting chance of completing 1.5 million new homes over the life of this parliament.

The other thing I would say is that this is a hugely ambitious target and so Labour, by making it public, have confidence it can be done. 

You can rest assured that Labour will be asked about it a lot towards the next general election. 

The political graveyards are littered with those politicians – Harold Macmillan, Conservative prime minister from 1957-1963, is a good example – who made promises on housebuilding they failed to keep.

The last government promised an end to no-fault evictions... is this legislation still alive?

Another short answer from our business presenter  Ian King ...

The legislation died with the last government but, yes, the expectation is that Labour will abolish no-fault evictions.

What will Labour do with dividend tax? And what about corporation tax?

Rachel Reeves is already committed to keeping corporation tax unchanged for the life of this parliament. 

But no such commitments have been forthcoming on the taxation of dividends. 

And some people fear the worst because Labour has form here - Gordon Brown took away tax relief on the dividends that pension funds received on their investments in 1997 - which contributed to the near extinction of gold-plated "defined benefit" or "final salary" pension schemes in the private sector.

In fairness, Labour can point out that the Conservatives also stripped away protections enjoyed by savers on their dividends. 

You can now only receive dividends of £500 on shares or investment funds held outside an ISA. The allowance stood at 10 times that just seven years ago.

The moral of the story is clear – if you hold shares or investment funds which pay dividends, protect them in an ISA, which ensures the payouts will be tax-free.

If memory serves me correctly weren't the railways an unmitigated disaster last time they were in public ownership? How is renationalising meant to help anyone?

Here's what  Ian King , our business presenter, says to this...

Labour argues that, in state ownership, the rail network can be more coherent with one "fat controller" type figure in charge to oversee timetables and ticketing. 

Bear in mind most of the railways more or less have been renationalised already – the exception being the rolling stock companies, which will remain privately owned. 

You are right to point out the shortcomings of the nationalised model – as I did in this article for Sky News back in 2017 .

The nationalised model is not a silver bullet – as English and Scottish football supporters to have used Germany's nationalised rail service during the Euros will testify.

We heard nothing in the campaign about how growth would be achieved - how much convincing detail did we get from Reeves?

The UK's sclerotic planning rules have been a major drag on growth over the last decade. 

If Labour has found a way of obviating those rules then it should generate growth. But bear in mind this is going to cause huge rows as Whitehall orders local planning managers what to do and rides roughshod over them when they don't co-operate. 

Not everyone will like it and especially those who find their views interrupted by, for example, new homes. The same applies to tearing up the rules banning more onshore wind farms. 

All other things being equal, it should also be positive for growth, but those who have views of open countryside blighted by new wind turbines may disagree.

Croydon Ajay:

Can anything be done to scrap the disparities in stamp duty which means young buyers in London have to pay when the same people in the North East don't pay a penny?

Stamp duty is a rotten tax and, if you want to promote growth, scrapping it would certainly be a good way of doing so. But given that Stamp Duty Land Tax brought in £11.6bn in the last financial year, the government is likely to want to keep it in place. 

The differing tax takes to which you refer reflect the fact that house prices are cheaper in the North East than in London. 

SDLT is very much a London tax – the capital accounted for 36% of all SDLT paid in 2021-22, the latest year for which figures are available. 

Homebuyers in the London borough of Westminster alone paid more SDLT than the whole of the North West of England. I doubt those disparities to which you refer will change unless house prices in London collapse and house prices rocket elsewhere. 

You are right to point out the pernicious effects of this. 

In some London boroughs, primary schools are starting to close, because parents find they cannot live in the capital and raise a family. They're moving out – reducing demand for London school places in some areas.

Disgruntled:

Ian can you give us an idea of how much scrapping the two-child benefit cap would cost and why is this not achievable with a windfall tax on oil and gas companies raking it in? Starmer is a Tory with a red rosette

The Resolution Foundation has estimated that the two-child benefit cap will save the government £2.5bn during the current financial year – which would rise to £3.6bn if applied to all families claiming universal credit.

Labour is committed to raising the levy on North Sea oil and gas producers from the current 75% to 78% - and has earmarked the money raised will go towards funding its wider plans for energy and, in particular, decarbonisation. 

It would be ill-advised to raise taxes further. The decisions it has made have already had an impact on investment in the North Sea, as I report here . 

And don't forget, the cap is not just about saving money. It's also about avoiding awkward newspaper headlines and stories about big families being paid a small fortune in benefits of the kind that embarrassed the last Labour government and angered so many of its traditional working-class supporters in particular.

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Published Jul 1, 2024

All Episodes of Star Trek: Prodigy Season 2 Now Available

Old friends, new worlds, even time travel.

A bearded Chakotay sits in the driver's seat of a Runaway vehicle with Gwyn strapped in beside him in 'Last Flight of the Protostar, Part I'

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Ready for a brand-new classified mission? All episodes of Season 2 of Star Trek: Prodigy are now streaming!

In Season 2, these six young outcasts who make up the Prodigy crew are assigned a new mission aboard the U.S.S. Voyager -A to rescue Captain Chakotay and bring peace to Gwyn's home world. However, when their plan goes astray, it creates a time paradox that jeopardizes both their future and past.

Season 2 Episode Titles and Synopses:

Star Trek: Prodigy Season 2 - Episode Titles

201 – "Into the Breach, Part I" 

The Prodigy crew is reunited and assigned a new mission aboard the U.S.S. Voyager -A, only to discover Admiral Janeway has other plans.

202 – "Into the Breach, Part II"

After Gwyn's plan to save Solum is sabotaged, she must turn to an unlikely ally. On Voyager , Janeway's secret mission is interrupted by the arrival of a mysterious entity — and the Prodigy crew is accidentally sent through a rift.

203 – "Who Saves the Saviors"

The Prodigy crew crash lands in future Solum where they try to rescue Captain Chakotay, but when their plan goes astray, it creates a time paradox putting Gwyn in danger.

204 – "Temporal Mechanics 101"

In a race to save Gwyn, the Prodigy crew use their scientific know how to escape the dark future they are stranded in and travel back to the present, with some mysterious help from an unknown entity.

205 – "Observer's Paradox"

After saving Gwyn during a botched rescue mission, the Prodigy crew faces new scrutiny aboard Voyager . But hope is not lost if they can find the Protostar and repair the time paradox — and decode a cryptic message from Murf.

206 – "Imposter Syndrome"

Ready to embark on their quest to find the Protostar , the Prodigy crew creates holograms of themselves to leave Voyager undetected — but their holo-doubles jeopardize everything in a case of mistaken identity.

207 – "The Fast and the Curious"

As our crew travels to the spiral nebula in search of the lost Protostar , they take a shortcut through an old transwarp conduit— but are detoured by a Kazon warlord who enters them into a literal race for their lives. 

208 – "Is There in Beauty No Truth?"

With Zero's suit damaged beyond repair, the Prodigy crew visits a colony of non-corporeal beings who may be able to help Zero — by granting the Medusan a physical body.

209 – "The Devourer of All Things, Part I"

Upon arriving at the coordinates given to Gwyn by the mysterious entity, the Prodigy crew find themselves on a strange hidden planet where someone is waiting for them… and it's someone unexpected.

210 – "The Devourer of All Things, Part II"

After meeting the entity who's been helping our crew find the Protostar and fix the timeline, their plans are interrupted by an attack from the Loom and the arrival of Voyager .

Star Trek: Prodigy Season 2 - Episode Titles

211 – "Last Flight of the Protostar , Part I"

After a brush with the Loom, the Prodigy crew find the lost Protostar on a deserted ocean planet, but their only hope to fix the timeline is in jeopardy when its captain refuses to leave.

212 – "Last Flight of the Protostar , Part II"

After convincing Chakotay to help repair the Protostar , the Prodigy crew now need fuel for it to fly — which means converting it into a literal ship and sailing across the planet's gaseous ocean in an epic tale of survival.

213 – "A Tribble Called Quest"

The Protostar crew lands on a strange new world in search of the exotic matter they need to proto-warp back to Voyager … only to discover the planet is infested with an unusually large species of Tribbles. 

214 – "Cracked Mirror"

When a proto-warp gone wrong fractures Voyager into different realities, the Prodigy crew must venture through dangerous alternate dimensions to reunite with Admiral Janeway.

215 – "Ascension, Part I"

The Prodigy crew and Chakotay reunite with Voyager , bringing the timelost Protostar with them. But the past catches up to them when Ilthuran delivers a dire warning — Asencia is coming.

216 – "Ascension, Part II"

When Asencia's mysterious time weapon strikes Voyager and threatens all aboard, it's up to the crews of the Protostar , Voyager , and Nova Squadron to survive the attack.

217 – "Brink"

To prevent a war with Solum, Gwyn leads the Protostar crew on a mission to rescue Ilthuran. But surprising discoveries force Gwyn to make hard choices which have dire consequences for everyone.

218 – "Touch of Grey"

Admiral Janeway and her senior officers feel their age as they find themselves thrown back in danger on an old school away mission to rescue the Protostar crew. 

219 – "Ouroboros, Part I"

Determined to save both Starfleet and Solum, the Prodigy crew must stop an invasion and open the wormhole that will send the Protostar back to Tars Lamora.

220 – "Ouroboros, Part II"

To save the present and fix the past, our crew must face the Loom and pilot the Protostar through the temporal wormhole back to Tars Lamora. Even if they succeed, what will the future hold?

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Star Trek: Prodigy will stream on Netflix globally (excluding Canada, Nordics, CEE, Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Poland, Russia, Belarus and Mainland China) and Season 1 is currently available on SkyShowtime in the Nordics, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal and Central and Eastern Europe with Season 2 coming soon. Season two has launched in France on France Televisions channels and Okoo.

Season 2 Star Trek: Prodigy key art with Jankom Pog, Admiral Janeway, Murf, Rok-Tahk, Gwyn, and Zero crowded together on the surface of a planet

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The 1950s: Your Guide to 101 Classic (and Not-So-Classic) TV Shows From Yesteryear

kelly-ripa-and-mark-consuelos-swimsuit-snaps

Before the Golden Age of Television hit in the 1950s, the medium had already given the growing viewing audience some hints of what it could achieve. The 1940s saw the arrival of Milton Berle on Texaco Star Theatre, The Ed Sullivan Show   (a variety showcase that would run from 1948 to 1971); kids fare like Howdy Doody,   Kukla, Fran and Ollie  and  Captain Video and His Video Rangers ; early sitcoms in the form of The Morey Amsterdam Show  (before he became a part of  The Dick Van Dyke Show   in the ’60s); and The Lone Ranger , which celebrated its 70th anniversary in 2019. But the true arrival of Classic TV would come in the 1950s.

101-shows-of-the-1960s-main

When we think of that term — Classic TV — frequently what comes to mind are shows from the ’60s, like The Brady Bunch   (which, 50 years later, has continued on, most recently in the form of HGTV’s  A Very Brady Renovation ), the supernatural sitcoms  I Dream of Jeannie   and  Bewitched , Bill Bixby in  The Courtship of Eddie’s Father , the original  Star Trek  and so many others. But, as noted above, we need to dial things back a bit to the decade that preceded it.

1950s-jack-benny-danny-thomas

How can you consider the idea of television classics  without  thinking of  I Love Lucy , The Honeymooners , Father Knows Best , Leave It to Beaver , The Jack Benny Program, Lassie   or  Adventures of Superman ? And what’s even more amazing is that while some of those may be the cream of the crop, there are  so  many more that need to be remembered (and some, admittedly, which don’t, but we nonetheless felt compelled to include them).

1980s-tv-main

For that reason, we’ve compiled this little trip back through time to present to you our guide to 101 TV shows of the 1950s. Considering that television was still in its infancy, and there were only three networks (plus syndication to independent stations), it’s impressive to see how much material — and how much of it was of genuine quality — was produced. But, hey, don’t take our word for it.

Please scroll down for a complete list of shows from the ’50s.

1950s-tv-your-show-of-shows

Nbc-Tv/Kobal/Shutterstock

‘Your Show of Shows’ (1950-1954)

Still heralded as one of the best variety shows ever made, it stars Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca , with a number of regular performers, among them Carl Reiner (who would go on to create  The Dick Van Dyke Show ). And check out the writers that were involved: Mel Brooks , Neil Simon and his brother Danny Simon , Larry Gelbart  and Woody Allen . One of the innovative aspects of the show is that it would incorporate ongoing sitcoms within the variety format.

1950s-tv-george-burns-and-gracie-allen

Everett/Shutterstock

‘The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show’ (1950-1958)

Also known as  The Burns and Allen Show , it features husband-and-wife comedy team George Burns and Gracie Allen , who began working together in Vaudeville, enjoyed great success on radio and transferred their show to television. In 1958, Gracie Allen retired, which brought the show to an end. However, George decided to keep things going, so the series was renamed The George Burns Show  and he kept much of what already existed. Unfortunately, the audience missed Gracie and ratings dropped, resulting in its cancelation one season in.

1950s-tv-jack-benny

Kobal/Shutterstock

‘The Jack Benny Program’ (1950-1965)

Like George Burns, Jack Benny brought his radio show to television (spending many years performing on both at the same time). Accompanied by Eddie Anderson ‘s Rochester Van Jones, pitchman Don Wilson , singer Dennis Day , Sadie Marks as Mary Livingston (notably, Sadie was Jack’s wife and legally changed her name to her character’s), singer and bandleader Phil Harris and Mel Blanc (the man of a thousand voices). The show is absolutely brilliant and Jack, master of the slow burn, is still amazing all these years later.

1950s-tv-alan-young

Unknown/AP/Shutterstock

‘The Alan Young Show’ (1950-1953)

Before he became best friends with that talking horse, Mister Ed , Alan Young hosted his own variety show featuring musical guests and comic skits. In its third season, it took on the form of a traditional sitcom.

1950s-tv-dick-tracy

‘Dick Tracy’ (1950-1952)

Ralph Byrd is the title character — a cop — which is based on the long-running newspaper comic strip created by Chester Gould . It lacked the strange and bizarre villains that made up Tracy’s rogue’s gallery.

1950s-tv-dragnet

Universal Tv/Dragnet Prod/Mark Vii/Kobal/Shutterstock

‘Dragnet’ (1951-1959)

Just the facts, ma’am. The classic series starring the oh-so-stoic Jack Webb (he may have been television’s first Vulcan, predating Leonard Nimoy ‘s Spock by more than a decade) and Harry Morgan (later to become Colonel Potter on M*A*S*H ). Each episode was based on a true story, though “names have been changed to protect the innocent.”

1950s-tv-i-love-lucy

Globe Photos/Shutterstock

‘I Love Lucy’ (1951-1957)

It simply doesn’t get any better than this when it comes to Classic TV. Lucille Ball gave up a successful career in film and radio so that she could be close to husband Desi Arnaz . On screen they were great together, made even better by co-stars Vivian Vance  and William Frawley .

After the series ended, everyone kept things going between 1957 and 1960 during which CBS aired 13 one-hour specials of the spin-off,  The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour .

1950s-tv-casey-crime-photographer

‘Casey, Crime Photographer’ (1951-1952)

Jack Casey is, as the title suggests, a crime photographer, who pretty much captures images at crime scenes and works with the police to solve what happened. In season 1 the character was played by Richard Carlyle , with Darren McGavin (who many years later would play reporter Carl Kolchak in The Night Stalker ) taking over in season 2. Casey was the subject of books, a radio drama and films in addition to this show.

1950s-tv-mr.-district-attorney

‘Mr. District Attorney’ (1951-1952, 1954)

A crusading district attorney tries his best to help those in legal need. Jay Joslyn played the title role, as he did on the radio show that preceded it.

1950s-tv-red-skelton

Mgm/Kobal/Shutterstock

‘The Red Skelton Show’ (1951-1971)

This former vaudeville comedian served as host on his own comedy/variety show which provided him with the opportunity to play a wide variety of beloved characters, among them Clem Kadiddlehopper, Freddie the Freeloader and Cauliflower McPugg. The show lasted an incredible 20 years.

1950s tv death valley days

Flying A Productions

‘Death Valley Days’ (1952-1970)

On both radio and television, this show was an anthology bringing to life supposedly true stories of the Old West, with the focus being on southeastern California’s Death Valley. Different characters would host the episodes. The radio show, created by Ruth Woodman , ran from 1930 to 1945.

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Moviestore/Shutterstock

‘Adventures of Superman’ (1952-1958)

Not too much has to be said about this one as actor George Reeves personified the Man of Steel for a couple of generations. He first played the character on the big screen in 1951’s  Superman and the Mole Men . George was subject of a previous exclusive in-depth profile from  Closer .

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Warner Bros/Kobal/Shutterstock

‘Our Miss Brooks’ (1952-1956)

Yet another radio sitcom that made the leap to television. Eve Arden is the title character, actually Constance “Connie” Brooks, an English teacher at the fictional Madison High School. Lucille Ball’s longtime foil Gale Gordon is Principal Osgood Conklin.

1950s-tv-abbott-and-costello

ANL/Shutterstock

‘The Abbott & Costello Show’ (1952-1954)

Much like Bud and Lou’s vaudeville and big screen adventures, this sitcom was more about setting up their famous gags than any sort of real plot. Jerry Seinfeld has credited the show as being a major influence on the creation of Seinfeld .

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Official Films

‘My Little Margie’ (1952-1955)

Gale Storm is Margie Albright, who lives with her father, Vern ( Charles Farrell ), and creates comic mishap usually involving Vern and his boss, George Honeywell ( Clarence Kolb ).

1950s tv adventures of ozzie and harriet

American International Television

‘The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet’ (1952-1966)

Long-running show featuring the real-life Nelson family (though they were given the sitcom treatment), parents Ozzie  and Harriet Nelson and their sons, David and Ricky . They did have a next door neighbor in the form of Don DeFore ‘s Thorny. Try not to be shocked, but this one began as a radio show too.

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Nbc Tv/Kobal/Shutterstock

‘The Ernie Kovacs Show’ (1952-1956)

So difficult to describe, but suffice to say that Ernie Kovacs was a comic genius who insisted on bending and twisting the television medium as much as he could, revealing himself to be a true pioneer in every sense of the word (though he was reportedly very difficult to deal with).

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CBS Television Distribution

‘I Married Joan’ (1952-1955)

In some ways a variation of  I Love Lucy in terms of the leading character, Joan Davis plays Joan Stevens, who is described as manic and scatterbrained, and who is the wife of the Honorable Bradley Stevens ( Jim Backus , the voice of Mr. Magoo and who would, of course, go on to play Thurston Howell III on Gilligan’s Island ). Needless to say, chaos rules.

1950s-tv-jackie-gleason-show

John Lent/AP/Shutterstock

‘The Jackie Gleason Show’ (1952-1970)

The classic comedy variety show that had a near 20-year run (with a brief break for  The Honeymooners ‘ “Classic 39”). Although it featured quite a number of memorable characters, none has had the longevity of Ralph Kramden and Ed Norton , who were introduced as part of skits on the show.

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‘Mister Peepers’ (1952-1955)

Wally Cox (the voice of Underdog, for those curious about such things) is the title character, a shy science teacher at Jefferson High School who always manages to outwit those who throw problems his way. Co-starring is Tony Randall , who Classic TV fans would come to know as Felix Unger on the TV version of Neil Simon’s The Odd Couple .

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‘Police Story’ (1952)

An anthology series focusing on true crime stories from around the country. A total of 24 episodes were produced.

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‘The Red Buttons Show’ (1952-1955)

In the 1950s, the networks certainly loved their comedy/variety shows, and this one, featuring the former vaudeville performer, was one of them. The show consists of monologues, comic sketches and dance numbers. Because of low ratings, it was turned into a sitcom midway through its run.

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Marterto Prods/Kobal/Shutterstock

‘Make Room for Daddy’ (1953-1965)

Danny Thomas is Danny Williams, a successful nightclub singer, who has to deal with challenging and funny situations involving his career and family. Lots of great supporting characters in what is yet another terrific example of a show that deserves to be called a classic. Oh, and Danny is father to That Girl star Marlo Thomas .

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‘Where’s Raymond’ (1953-1955)

In between playing the Scarecrow in  The Wizard of Oz and Shirley Jones ‘ father on  The Partridge Family , Ray Bolger starred in this show (among many other things) as Raymond Wallace, a song-and-dance man who, through the comic misadventures in his life, is never on time for his performances.

1950s-tv-larry-storch-show

Dan Grossi/AP/Shutterstock

‘The Larry Storch Show’ (1953)

You probably know him primarily as Corporal Agarn on the ’60s sitcom  F-Troop , but here Larry Storch hosts a comedy variety show which was a summer replacement series for The Jackie Gleason Show . Along with his guests, he played a number of different characters.

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‘The Life of Riley’ (1953-1958)

William Bendix reprises the role from the radio series and feature film of Chester A. Riley, a malaprop-ridden worker at a California aircraft plant, though the focus is heavily on his home life and various zany situations. He’s best known for the expression, “What a revoltin’ development this is!’ An earlier version of the series actually starred Jackie Gleason in his pre-Ralph Kramden days.

1950s tv life with elizabeth

Guild Films

‘Life with Elizabeth’ (1953-1955)

Betty White (yes,  that  Betty White) is the Elizabeth of the title, who, along with her husband Alvin (played by Del Moore ) are pretty much your average suburban couple, but she tends to get them into various predicaments. Notes Wikipedia, “In the end, Alvin, in variable degrees of frustration, would say, ‘I shall leave you at this point, Elizabeth,’ and would walk out of sight. The announcer would say, ‘Elizabeth, aren’t you ashamed?’ She would slowly nod, but then, with a slightly devilish grin, would vigorously shake her head to indicate she wasn’t.” Described as “incidents,” each episode would be divided into three shorts.

1950s tv the man behind the badge

NBCUniversal

‘The Man Behind the Badge’ (1953-1954)

This police drama was based on real crime stories from around the world with the focus alternating between police, public defenders, judges, park rangers, parole officers and others.

1950s-tv-my-favorite-husband

‘My Favorite Husband’ (1953-1955)

Based on the Lucille Ball radio show that, itself, was turned into I Love Lucy . That’s why the TV version feels like there are many similarities, with Joan Caulfield as the wacky Liz Cooper, who is married to Barry Nelson ‘s George Cooper, a bank executive. Their best friends are an older couple not  named the Mertzes. The show was successful in its own right.

1950s tv private secretary

Television Programs of America

‘Private Secretary’ (1953-1957)

Ann Sothern plays Susan Camille “Susie” MacNamara, who serves as the devoted secretary to Peter Sands ( Don Porter ), a handsome talent agent. The conflict of the show comes from the fact that her actions keep complicating his personal life.

1950s tv topper

‘Topper’ (1953-1955)

Based on the 1937 film of the same name, banker Cosmo Topper ( Leo G. Carroll ) finds his life complicated by the ghosts of George and Marion Kerby ( Robert Sterling and Anne Jeffreys , respectively), part of the complication coming from the fact that he’s the only one that can see or hear them.

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Annie Oakley Prods/Kobal/Shutterstock

‘Annie Oakley’ (1954-1956)

The life of legendary Wild West sharpshooter Annie Oakley ( Gail Davis ) is given the fictionalized treatment as she takes down outlaws that enter the town of Diablo.

1950s tv public defender

Interstate Television Corporation

‘The Public Defender’ (1954-1955)

Based on actual court cases from around the country, the show stars Reed Hadley as Bart Matthews, who takes on those who are too poor to afford an attorney.

1950s-tv-mickey-rooney-show

‘The Mickey Rooney Show’ (1954-1955)

Mickey Mulligan is an aspiring actor who gets a job as a page at a Hollywood television studio, which leads to his getting into a variety of misadventures. Mickey is played by frequent Judy Garland costar Mickey Rooney . As successful as he was on the big screen, this show only lasted a single season.

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Wrather Prods/Lassie Tv/Kobal/Shutterstock

‘Lassie’ (1954-1974)

The adventures of the world’s most famous Collie and her human master, Timmy ( Jon Provost ), Lassie had an incredible run  before  the TV series with novels, films and — believe it or not — a radio show. And then there was this show, which actually had a 20-year run.

1950s-tv-father-knows-best

Screen Gems/Kobal/Shutterstock

‘Father Knows Best’ (1954-1960)

The quintessential ’50s family sitcom starring Robert Young   ( Marcus Welby, M.D. ) as Jim Anderson,  Jane Wyatt  as his wife, Margaret;  Lauren Chapin as youngest child Kathy (aka “Kitten”), Billy Gray as son James (“Bud”) and  Elinor Donahue as daughter Betty (“Princess”). It was wholesome without being cloying, and still remains a wonderful reminder of a bygone era.

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‘The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin’ (1954-1959)

From 1954-1959 the show Rin Tin Tin  followed the adventures of the title German shepherd. The premise is that young Rusty was orphaned in an Indian raid and, in the aftermath of that, he and Rin Tin Tin were adopted by the troops at Fort Apache in Arizona, working together to help establish order in and around Mesa Grande. The canine was a big screen star first.

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‘December Bride’ (1954-1959)

Spring Byington is Lily Ruskin, a woman who lives with her daughter and son-in-law. They, along with her friends, are constantly trying to find suitable men for her — often to comic results. The premise may sound paper thin, but they got five seasons out of it, so what do we know?

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Shutterstock

‘Passport to Danger’ (1954-1958)

U.S. diplomatic courier Steve McQuinn travels to different countries in order to bring important messages to the allies of America while doing his best to elude enemy agents. Playing the lead role is actor Cesar Romero , who would go on to be the first actor to play Batman’s arch enemy the Joker in the Adam West TV series of the 1960s.

1950s-tv-sherlock-holmes

Timeless Video

‘Sherlock Holmes’ (1954-1955)

Not much to say about this one beyond the fact that it’s (naturally) set in London and follows the adventures of the world’s greatest detective ( Ronald Howard ) and Dr. John H. Watson ( Howard Marion-Crawford ).

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Laurelproducttions/Kobal/Shutterstock

‘The Bob Cummings Show’ (1955-1959)

The romantic misadventures of Bob Collins ( Robert Cummings ) is the focus of the show. The actor’s co-stars include Ann B. Davis (Alice from  The Brady Bunch ), Rosemary DeCamp and Dwayne Hickman ( The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis ).

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AP/Shutterstock

‘Gunsmoke’ (1955-1975)

In Dodge City, Kansas, Marshall Matt Dillon ( James Arness ) attempts to keep the peace. This, television’s longest-running Western, had its beginning as a popular radio show.

1950s-tv-cheyenne

SNAP/REX/Shutterstock

‘Cheyenne’ (1955-1962)

A survivor of the Civil War, Cheyenne Bodie ( Clint Walker ) makes his way from territory to territory in the West looking for adventures, meeting many women, and getting involved in fights with the outlaws that he encounters.

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Warner Bros

‘Jungle Jim’ (1955-1956)

“Jungle Jim” Bradley is an explorer, hunter and guide in Africa, which leads to a variety of adventurers. Playing the title role is Johnny Weissmuller , the big screen’s Tarzan.

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Jackie Gleason/Kobal/Shutterstock

‘The Honeymooners’ (1955-1956)

We’re trying not to say the “C” word again, but we can’t help ourselves. So sorry: Classic! Whew. Glad we got that out.  The Honeymooners  is a perfect example of Classic TV, starring Jackie Gleason as bus driver Ralph Kramden; Audrey Meadows  as his long-suffering wife, Alice;  Art Carney  as dim-witted but lovable best friend and sidekick, Ed Norton; and the last living member of  The Honeymooners   Joyce Randolph as his wife, Trixie. There were hundreds of skits featuring the characters on  The Jackie Gleason Show , but only 39 actual episodes.

1950s-tv-alfred-hitchcock-presents

Revue/Shamley/Universal/Kobal/Shutterstock

‘Alfred Hitchcock Presents’ (1955-1962)

The Master of Suspense, Alfred Hitchcock , served as host, producer and occasional director for this anthology series focusing on stories of the macabre, non-supernatural horror and suspense.

1950s-tv-casablanca

‘Casablanca’ (1955-1956)

Charles McGraw is Rick Blaine, Marcel Dalio is Captain Renaud, Dan Seymour is Ferrari and Clarence Muse is Sam. Those were the people who attempted to bring the characters from the 1942 Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman film to television. Unfortunately, the audience didn’t care.

1950s tv highway patrol

MGM Television

‘Highway Patrol’ (1955-1959)

Broderick Crawford is Dan Mathews, a cop utilizing all of the tools at his command — from patrol cars, two-way radios and fast motorcycles — to fight crime on the open roads of America.

1950s-tv-the-millionaire

‘The Millionaire’ (1957-1959)

Marvin Miller is Michael Anthony, the title character who enters the lives of people he doesn’t know to give them an endowment of $1 million and the episodes follow the impact this has on their lives.

1950s-tv-phil-silvers-show

‘The Phil Silvers Show’ (1959-1961)

Ernie Bilko ( Phil Silvers ) has been placed in charge of the motor pool at a U.S. Army Camp in Kansas. He also happens to be one of the world’s great con men, who is always coming up with get-rich-quick schemes.

1950s tv sheena queen of the jungle

Columbia Pictures Television

‘Sheena, Queen of the Jungle’ (1955-1956)

The title character lives in the Congo where she protects the natives and the animals. She was played by model Irish McCalla , a model who explained that while she really wasn’t an actress, she  could  effectively swing through the trees. Sheena became the subject of a 1984 feature film (with Tanya Roberts playing her) and a 2000 syndicated series (starring Gena Lee Nolin ).

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‘Tales of the Texas Rangers’ (1955-1958)

While on the surface it seems like just another TV Western of the time, the show would travel from the Old West to the present to tell different stories about the Rangers, though every story starred Willard Parker and Harry Lauter with their characters being set wherever the story is.

1950s tv gale storm show

Independent Television Corporation

‘The Gale Storm Show’ (1956-1959)

My Little Margie  star Gale Storm is back, this time playing Susanna Pomeroy, cruise director of world-traveling luxury liner S.S. Ocean Queen. Needless to say, there are comic misadventures at every port of call.

1950s-tv-adventures of-fu-manchu

Hollywood Television Services

‘The Adventures of Fu Manchu’ (1956)

Sax Rohmer ‘s villainous character is brought to life by Glen Gordon , whose Fu Manchu plots to bring down Western civilization, but is constantly thwarted in his efforts by Sir Dennis Nayland Smith ( Lester Matthews ) of Scotland Yard.

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20th Century Fox Television

‘Broken Arrow’ (1956-1958)

Indian Agent Tom Jeffords ( John Lupton ) makes friends with Chief Cochise Michael Ansara (first husband of I Dream of Jeannie star Barbara Eden ), becoming a blood brother of the Apache. Working together, they take on white schemers and renegade Indians.

tv-westerns-circus-boy

Sony Pictures Television

‘Circus Boy’ (1956-1957)

A pre-Monkees Micky Dolenz starred in this show playing the character of Corky, whose job is to bring elephants their water. The show, which lasted two seasons, was actually an action/adventure drama set in the 1890s.

1950s-tv-stanley

Columbia/Kobal/Shutterstock

‘Stanley’ (1956-1957)

Stanley Peck ( Buddy Hackett ) is a friendly New York hotel newsstand operator who is always reaching out to people — both residents and tourists — and finds himself getting involved in their lives.

1950s tv the west point story

Ziv-United Artists

‘The West Point Story’ (1956-1958)

Stories based on the people and events taking place at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. Among the writers for the series was Gene Roddenberry , creator of  Star Trek .

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‘Have Gun Will Travel’ (1957-1963)

Back in the Old West, Richard Boone plays a a man who goes by the name “Paladin,” and is an investigator/gunfighter who travels around working for people who hire him to help them out of the dilemmas they find themselves in.

1950s-tv-perry-mason

‘Perry Mason’ (1957-1966)

Raymond Burr plays defense attorney Perry Mason, whose track record of winning cases for his clients is almost 100 percent. Years later, the actor who reprise the role in a series of TV movies.

1950s-tv-maverick

‘Maverick’ (1957-1962)

The Maverick boys — over the course of the series Bret (a pre -Rockford Files James Garner ), Bart ( Jack Kelly ), Beau ( Roger Moore ) and Brent ( Robert Colbert ) — are a clan of well-dressed gamblers would prefer to make their money playing cards than actual work.

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Abc/Kobal/Shutterstock

‘Leave it to Beaver’ (1957-1963)

A gentle comedy that found its plots drawn from the experiences of real kids — admittedly set in a sitcom world — and parents who raised them with words of encouragement, while also being firm when necessary. Hugh Beaumont  and  Barbara Billingsley  played the Beav’s parents, Ward and June Cleaver, with  Tony Dow  as big brother Wally, and Jerry Mathers as the Beaver himself.

1950s-tv-zorro

Walt Disney Tv/Kobal/Shutterstock

‘Zorro’ (1957-1959)

Guy Williams ( Lost in Space ) plays Don Diego de la Vega, who takes on the guise of the masked and sword-wielding Zorro to take on corrupt leaders of Spanish California. The show was produced by the Walt Disney company.

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Anonymous/AP/Shutterstock

‘Bachelor Father’ (1957-1962)

When the parents of Kelly ( Noreen Corcoran ) die in a car crash, her uncle, Bentley Gregg ( John Forsythe , playing a wealthy Beverly Hills lawyer) takes her in. With the help of his “houseboy” Peter Ton ( Sammee Tong ), he attempts to raise her while she attempts to help him find a wife. John Forsythe, of course, would go on to provide the voice of Charlie in  Charlie’s Angels  and star in  Dynasty  as Blake Carrington.

1950s tv blondie

King Features Television

‘Blondie’ (1957)

Based on the newspaper strip of the same name,  Blondie  was a series of feature films starring Arthur Lake as Dagwood Bumstead and dealing with his wife (the title character) and kids. Arthur brought the role to the small screen in what was more or less a domestic comedy. Pamela Britton played Blondie.

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‘Colt .45’ (1957-1960)

Wayde Preston is Christopher Colt, who passes himself off as a gun salesman, but is actually working for the government, tracking down those operating outside the law.

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MCA Television

‘Date With the Angels’ (1957-1958)

Betty White is back as Vickie Angel, who is married to Gus ( Bill Williams ). The concept of the series, which was loosely based on the play Dream Girl , is that typical sitcom set-ups would take a detour with Vickie’s tendency to daydream, resulting in fantasy sequences.

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‘The Eve Arden Show’ (1957-1958)

In a role very different from her previous series,  Our Miss Brooks , Eve Arden plays Liza Hammond, a widowed mother of twin girls who earns money for the family by writing books. Also starring, playing Eve’s mother and housekeeper, is the future Aunt Bee from The Andy Griffith Show , Frances Bavier .

1950s tv m squad

‘M Squad’ (1957-1960)

Detective Lt. Frank Ballinger ( Lee Marvin ) leads an elite unit of crimefighters who are a part of the Chicago Police Department, taking on the toughest cases.

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Nara Archives/Shutterstock

‘The Real McCoys’ (1957-1963)

The show is officially described as follows: “From the hills of West Virginia, Amos McCoy moves his family to an inherited farm in California. Grandpa Amos is quick to give advice to his three grandchildren and wonders how his neighbors ever managed without him around.” Walter Brennan plays Amos, with costars including Richard Crenna , Kathleen Nolan , Michael Winkelman and Lydia Reed .

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20th Television

‘Richard Diamond, Private Detective’ (1957-1960)

Richard Diamond is a New York, eventually relocating to Los Angeles, private investigator played by David Janssen , later of, among other shows,  The Fugitive . During the third season, his secretary, whose face the audience never saw — only her sexy legs — was played by Mary Tyler Moore .

1950s tv the thin man

‘The Thin Man’ (1957-1959)

Fancying themselves as amateur detectives, Nick and Nora Charles ( Peter Lawford and Phyllis Kirk )  begin investigating and solving crimes. The characters were created by Dashiell Hammett in a novel, which spawned six films prior to the television series.

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‘Wagon Train’ (1957-1965)

In the aftermath of the Civil War, a wagon train departs from Missouri and must travel across the plains, deserts and Rocky Mountains on its way to California. The show focuses on a core group of main characters who, each week, interact with different people who are a part of that wagon train and those they encounter. Stars include Frank McGrath , Terry Wilson , Robert Horton and John McIntire .

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United Artists/Kobal/Shutterstock

‘Sea Hunt’ (1958-1961)

Lloyd Bridges is former U.S. Navy frogman Mike Nelson, who is now a freelance scuba diver using his boat, which he has christened the Argonaut, for salvage missions (the quests being as large as a nuclear missile and as small as a bike).

1950s tv peter gunn

‘Peter Gunn’ (1958-1961)

Created by Blake Edwards (director of  The Great Race  and most of the  Pink Panther  films), the show, which is shot in a noir style, stars Craig Stevens as private detective Peter Gunn. Music is by Henry Mancini .

1950s-tv-the-donna-reed-show

Screen Gems

‘The Donna Reed Show’ (1958-1966)

Another great domestic family sitcom presenting us with life as we wished it could be. Donna Reed ( It’s a Wonderful Life , among many others) is Donna Stone, who is married to Dr. Alex Stone ( Carl Betz ), and mother to their children played by Shelley Fabares and Paul Petersen .

1950s-tv-bat-masterson-1

‘Bat Masterson’ (1958-1961)

The well-dressed Bat Masterson ( Gene Barry ), adorned in a derby and carrying a cane, is a gambler and a lawman who travels the Old West where he defends the unjustly accused and charms the ladies. As to his choice in weaponry, he’d prefer using his cane to a gun.

1950s-tv-lawman

‘Lawman’ (1958-1962)

When the marshal of Laramie, Wyoming is murdered, Marshal Dan Troop ( John Russell ) takes over, assisted by an orphan he’s become caretaker to, Deputy Johnny McKay ( Peter Brown ). Together they try and keep order at an unlawful time.

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Abc-Tv/Kobal/Shutterstock

’77 Sunset Strip’ (1958-1964)

The setting is Los Angeles and an office located at 77 Sunset Strip, from which works private detectives Stu Bailey and Jeff Spencer as they’re hired to to solve a wide variety of crimes and mysteries. Efrem Zimbalist Jr. (who, in the 1960s, would star in Quinn Martin’s The F.B.I. ) plays Bailey, with Roger Smith as Jeff Spencer.

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‘The Ann Sothern Show’ (1958-1961)

Ann Sothern plays Katy O’Connor, assistant manager of New York City’s Bartley House Hotel, interacting with various guests and, of course, the hotel’s staff. One of her co-stars is Don Porter , who had previously starred with her in the series Private Secretary .

1950s-tv-man-with-a-camera

MWC Productions

‘Man With a Camera’ (1958-1960)

Having served as a combat cameraman, Mike Kovac has decided to take his skills to civilian life, working as a New York City freelance photographers. Mike has a knack for getting the sort of photos that other photographers either can’t or won’t. What’s most amazing about the series is not that it stars Charles Bronson (whose many film credits include  Death Wish ), but that, as evident in the photo above, he can actually smile. Holy crap! Who would have thunk it?

1950s-tv-mickey-spillanes-mike-hammer

‘Mickey Spillane’s Mike Hammer’ (1958-59)

For the time, the critics felt this was the most violent show on television. By today’s standards, not so much. Still, an effective adaptation of Mickey Spillane ‘s private eye character, brought to life in this incarnation by the pre-Kolchak and A Christmas Story  Darren McGavin , who’s always so good.

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‘Naked City’ (1958-1963)

Like the 1948 film that inspired it,  Naked City  is presented in a semi-documentary format and tells the story of the cops in New York’s 65th Precinct. The show would spawn the spin-off series  Route 66 .

‘Wanted Dead or Alive’ (1958-1961)

Early in his career, following a few film roles, actor Steve McQueen appeared on an episode of the TV Western  Trackdown , playing bounty hunter Josh Randall, who was spun off as his own CBS series, Wanted Dead or Alive. In terms of what it taught him about acting and the industry, this series was extremely valuable to his movie career.

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‘Yancy Derringer’ (1958-1959)

The “secret identity” of Yancy Derringer is that of an ex-Confederate soldier who had taken up a life of gambling and being a lady’s man in New Orleans, Louisiana. The truth, however, is that he was actually working for the city’s civil administrator, John Colton, to prevent crimes and, when necessary, take on the bad guys. Yancy is accompanied by the mute Indiana, Pahoo-Ka-Ta-Wah. This show is a little gem in the history of TV and worth checking out. Jock Mahoney is Yancy with X Brands as Pahoo and Kevin Hagen as John Colton.

1950s-tv-rawhide

Snap/Shutterstock

‘Rawhide’ (1959-1965)

The setting is the 1860s and Clint Eastwood plays Rowdy Yates who, in the 1860s, plays one of the people in charge of moving stock over long distances. It was this show that first brought Clint to the attention of Hollywood and propelled him into a movie career.

1950s-tv-bonanza

‘Bonanza’ (1959-1973)

One of television’s most beloved westerns, it ran on NBC for 14 seasons from 1959-1973, producing a total of 431 episodes. Google describes the show like this: “Ben Cartwright ( Lorne Greene ) is the patriarch of an all-male Nevada ranching family. Set during and after the Civil War, Bonanza is the story of life on the family’s thousand-acre spread, known as the Ponderosa, near Virginia City.”

the-twilight-zone

‘The Twilight Zone’ (1959-1964)

The greatest anthology series of all time, and one that is  still  touching the audience 60 years later. Writer Rod Serling , chafing from battles with networks and sponsors about content, discovered that he could write about virtually anything he wanted by setting it in this fantasy realm known as The Twilight Zone.

1950s-tv-dennis-the-menace

Columbia Tv/Kobal/Shutterstock

‘Dennis The Menace’ (1959-1963)

Based on the newspaper comic strip by Hank Ketchum . In it, Jay North played the title character of Dennis Mitchell, described as a good-natured kid who inadvertently finds himself in trouble pretty much all the time, particularly with next door neighbor George (“Good Old Mr. Wilson”) Wilson.  By the end of its run, the show was losing its appeal with viewers because Jay was, obviously, getting older and Dennis’ antics were not as cute as they had once been.

1950s tv bourbon street beat

‘Bourbon Street Beat’ (1959-1960)

On TV in the 1950s, you were either a cowboy, a private detective or a lawyer. This show has two out of the three, with Richard Long ( Nanny and the Professor ) as private eye Rex Randolph and Andrew Duggan as lawyer Cal Calhoun, who work together for the clients that hire them. When this show ended, the Rex Randolph character would become a part of  77 Sunset Strip .

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‘Hawaiian Eye’ (1959-1963)

No shock, but the show is set in Honolulu, Hawaii and is focused on Hawaiian Eye, a combination detective agency and security firm run by investigator Tracy Steele ( Anthony Eisley ) and Tom Lopaka ( Robert Conrad , later of  The Wild Wild West ). They’re hired primarily by Hawaiian Village Hotel, which provides them a private compound from which to work. Also starring is Connie Stevens .

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‘The Untouchables’ (1959-1963)

The series took its title from the memoir of the real-life Elliot Ness and Oscar Fraley . Set in Chicago in the 1930s, it fictionalized Ness’ adventures as a Prohibition agent at the time. Robert Stack (who would later serve as host of  Unsolved Mysteries ) plays Ness. The show would inspired the 1987 film starring Kevin Costner and Sean Connery ; and a 1993 syndicated series that ran for two seasons.

1950s-tv-the-many-loves-of-dobie-gillis

‘The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis’ (1959-1963)

The series focused primarily on a teenager named Dobie Gillis ( Dwayne Hickman ), who was all about achieving popularity, money and catching the attention of beautiful girls — and his failure to do so was at the heart of the show.  Bob Denver  (perhaps you know him as Skipper’s little buddy, Gilligan) played his best friend (and apparently television’s first beatnik character), Maynard G. Krebs, a bongo-playing jazz fan. The show ran for 144 episodes, and was the subject of an unsuccessful 1977 pilot reboot that brought the cast back together called  Whatever Happened to Dobie Gillis? , and the 1988 TV movie,  Bring Me the Head of Dobie Gillis .

1950s tv the detectives

‘The Detectives’ (1959-1962)

Robert Taylor stars as Detective Captain Matt Holbrook, who is in charge of a police investigative unit consisting of specialists who are more concerned with solving crimes than having personal lives. Also starring are Tige Andrews (later of The Mod Squad ), Mark Goddard ( Lost in Space ) and Adam West ( Batman ).

1950s tv hennesey

‘Hennesey’ (1959-1962)

Now here’s the flipside of a child actor who was able to successfully transcend from child actor to more adult roles, and became a television director, producer and executive. Jackie Cooper got his start in films, most notably  Skippy  (1931), which garnered him an Academy Award nomination; and he was also well known for his role of Jackie in Hal Roach’s  Our Gang  (aka  The Little Rascals ) comedy shorts.

On this show, he plays Lt. Charles W. “Chick” Hennesy, a United States Navy physician who is assigned to the U.S. Naval Station in San Diego, California along with Abby Dalton as Navy nurse Lt. Martha Hale.

tv-westerns-johnny-ringo

Peter Rodgers Organization

‘Johnny Ringo’ (1959-1960)

Johnny Ringo ( Don Durant ) is not a member of The Beatles, but he is a former gunfighter who takes on the mantle of sheriff in a small Western town, and, along with his lady love, Laura Thomas ( Karen Sharpe ); and his deputy, Cully (Mark Goddard — seriously, we had no idea he was in all these different shows prior to Lost in Space ), tries to keep the peace.

1950s-tv-men-into-space

‘Men Into Space’ (1959-1960)

There were a lot of science fiction TV shows in the ’50s, and, to be honest, most of them were pretty much kiddie fare, but this one was different in that it took a more adult approach, with genuine characterizations, extrapolations of real technology and scientific theories, and intelligent scenarios. At the center of it all is William Lundigan ‘s Colonel Edward McCauley, who heads America’s space program and, while stationed in space, must deal with malfunctioning equipment, budget cuts and saboteurs, among other things.

1950s tv mr lucky

‘Mr. Lucky’ (1959-1960)

Professional gambler “Mr. Lucky” ( John Vivyan ) operates a floating casino in the form of the ship Fortuna, which he utilizes as a base of operations. The show would deal with the interactions between he and his friend Andamo (The Wild Wild West’s Ross Martin ) and those who would come to the Fortuna.

1950s-tv-philip-marlowe

California National Productions

‘Philip Marlowe’ (1959-1960)

Not a lot to say about this one, except for the fact that it was just one of many takes on Raymond Chandler ‘s Philip Marlowe character. In this instance — a half-hour TV show — he’s played by Philip Carey .

1950s-tv-riverboat

‘Riverboat’ (1959-1961)

Grey Holden wins a river boat in a poker game, which he then pilots, along with his crew, in various adventures along the Mississippi River. Set in the 19th Century, it stars Darren McGavin ( The Night Stalker, A Christmas Story ) as Holden, with  Burt Reynolds as Ben Frazer. Reportedly there was a falling out between the two actors, resulting in Reynolds being released from the show. Rumors are he made out OK, though.

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The 25 Best Time Travel TV Shows, From ‘Doctor Who’ to ‘Timeless’

Author image: nakeisha campbell bio

There are a few reasons we’re obsessed with time travel TV shows. For one, the high-stakes adventures promise plenty of mystery and thrills. And better yet, they span across a variety of genres, from historical dramas and comedies to mystery thrillers.

So, for our next binge-watching session, we're living vicariously through our favorite characters as they journey through time, whether they're exploring a major period in history or visiting a futuristic society. From Doctor Who to Timeless, keep reading for the best time travel TV shows you can stream right now.

The 20 Best Time Travel Movies to Stream Right Now (That Aren’t ‘Back to the Future’)

1. Dc’s Legends Of Tomorrow

  • Rating: TV-14
  • Who’s in it: Victor Garber, Brandon Routh, Arthur Darvill. Caity Lotz, Franz Drameh

Set in the Arrowverse, this superhero series includes several familiar DC characters, like White Canary, Captain Cold, Firestorm and Vixen. But fortunately, you don’t have to be well-versed on all things DC comics to enjoy this one. The CW series documents the adventures of a diverse team of superheroes as they travel through time to prevent disasters. And naturally, there’s no shortage of epic combat scenes.

2. Doctor Who

  • Rating: TV-PG
  • Who’s in it: Jodie Whittaker, Peter Capaldi, Matt Smith, David Tennant

Given that Doctor Who has become synonymous with time travel, it would be a crime to not include this classic. Over the span of 13 seasons, the show offered several versions of the Time Lord as they step into the infamous TARDIS and get swept through time. Seeing these heroes fight to save humanity and protect history just never gets old.

3. Timeless

  • Who’s in it: Abigail Spencer, Matt Lanter, Malcolm Barrett

An unlikely team travels through time to stop the criminal mastermind, who stole an experimental time machine. And as they pursue him, they learn that he plans to change the course of history. Though it's not 100 percent perfect in terms of historical accuracy, it delivers plenty of action and thought-provoking themes.

4. Outlander

  • Rating: TV-MA
  • Who’s in it: Caitriona Balfe, Sam Heughan, Sophie Skelton

Set during World War II, Outlander tells the story of a married army nurse named Claire, who time travels to the year 1743 while in Scotland and starts a passionate relationship with a Highlander. Steamy intimate scenes, feminist themes and breathtaking scenery are just a few things you can expect from this beloved period drama.

5. Manifest

  • Who’s in it: Melissa Roxburgh, Josh Dallas, Athena Karkanis, J. R. Ramirez

Can you imagine hopping on a plane and landing five and a half years in the future? That’s exactly what happens to the passengers of a turbulent flight in this gripping supernatural drama. When they all return, they discover that their plane went missing and mysteriously returned years later. But what really happened? (You’ll have to wait until season 4 to get that answer, but until then, enjoy the first three seasons on Netflix.)

6. Beforeigners

  • Who’s in it: Krista Kosonen, Nicolai Cleve Broch, Stig R. Amdam

HBO Nordic's first-ever original series follows a group of people from different time periods, who mysteriously land in 21st-century Norway. Dubbed the "beforeigners," these migrants attempt to blend in with the modern-day world—although it proves to be more challenging for some than others.

  • Who’s in it: Anna Torv, Joshua Jackson, Lance Reddick

A cross between The X-Files and The Twilight Zone , Fringe follows the FBI's Fringe Division, where the team uses fringe science (a branch that explores the most bizarre or far-fetched theories) to investigate a series of mysterious cases—some of which are connected to alternate timelines. Fun fact: The show spawned three novels and a comic book series.

8. Quantum Leap

  • Who’s in it: Scott Bakula, Dean Stockwell, Deborah Pratt

Bakula plays the iconic Dr. Sam Beckett in this five-time Emmy Award-winning series, and his random adventures will give you major Doctor Who vibes. Join the physicist as he “leaps” through time to fix historical errors.

9. My Only Love Song

  • Who’s in it: Lee Jong-hyun, Gong Seung-yeon, Lee Jae-jin

Soo-jung (Seung-yeon), a self-obsessed movie star, accidentally time travels to 6th-century Gogurye after falling into a portal. There, she meets the handsome On-dal (Jong-hyun), a guy who appears to be just as obsessed with his wealth as she is. But his generosity towards people in need forces her to reconsider her own values.

  • Who’s in it: Yuki Furukawa, Mio Yuki, Jin Shirasu

Based on Kei Sanbe’s Japanese manga series of the same title, Erased revolves around a man named Satoru Fujinuma, who has the ability to go back in time and stop life-threatening events right before they happen. But when his mother gets murdered, he’s sent back nearly two decades, giving him the opportunity to save even more lives.

  • Who’s in it: Tom Hiddleston, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Wunmi Mosaku, Eugene Cordero

Loki picks up right where Avengers: Endgame left off, with the God of Mischief accidentally creating a new timeline as a result of stealing the Tesseract. And now, the authorities present him with two options: to either accept his punishment or to travel back in time to correct his mistakes. Almost any Marvel fan will agree that this series is full of charm and a welcome change from the pacing and tone of the Marvel films.

12. Terra Nova

  • Who’s in it: Jason O'Mara, Shelley Conn, Christine Adams, Allison Miller

Humanity gets a major do-over in this fascinating series, and there’s more than enough compelling themes to keep you invested (like Utopias gone terribly wrong). Terra Nova follows the Shannon family as they flee from a dying Earth in 2149 and travel to prehistoric Earth, where they join a colony of people known as Terra Nova and attempt to rebuild a civilization.

13. 11.22.63

  • Who’s in it: James Franco, Sarah Gadon, Cherry Jones

Inspired by Stephen King’s novel 11/22/63 , the show details one time traveler’s efforts to go back in time and stop the assassination of former president John F. Kennedy. But when he goes to the year 1960, he builds a new life that could threaten the success of his mission. It’s worth noting that James Franco gives an unforgettable performance as Jake Epping/George Amberson.

14. Making History

  • Who’s in it: Adam Pally, Leighton Meester and Yassir Lester.

Pally, Meester and Lester star as three friends from different time periods, who take full advantage of their ability to time travel—until they realize the ramifications of their adventures. The show is humorous and silly in the best possible way.

15. Somewhere Between

  • Who’s in it: Paula Patton, Devon Sawa, JR Bourne

Laura Price (Patton) has it all: a successful career, a loving husband and a delightful young daughter. But when a serial killer murders her child, she falls into depression and attempts suicide. After the incident, Laura is stunned to find that she time traveled to the week before her daughter’s death. Can she save her daughter?

16. Umbrella Academy

  • Who’s in it: Elliot Page, Tom Hopper, David Castañeda, Emmy Raver-Lampman

The Haragreeves have become our favorite dysfunctional family, and for good reason. In this Netflix series, the seven adopted superhero siblings team up to investigate their father’s death and save the world from an apocalypse. But when they try to travel back in time, they end up in different periods, which only complicates things.

  • Who’s in it: Natasha Lyonne, Charlie Barnett, Greta Lee

Amy Poehler teamed up with Natasha Lyonne ( Orange Is the New Black ) and Leslye Headland ( Bachelorette ) to create this critically acclaimed comedy drama. The series follows a game developer named Nadia (Lyonne), who finds herself trapped in a time loop after she dies at a party. As she tries to escape this trap, however, she discovers that she isn’t the only one. Yes, it sounds a bit like a modernized version of Groundhog Day , but trust us, it’s unpredictable and incredibly refreshing.

18. Travelers

  • Who’s in it: Eric McCormack, Mackenzie Porter, Jared Abrahamson

A surviving group of humans, who live centuries in the future, have figured out how to send their consciousness back in time. Known as “Travelers,” they all go back to the 21st-century and assume the identities of random people with one mission in mind: to save the future of humanity.

19. Continuum

  • Who’s in it: Rachel Nichols, Victor Webster, Erik Knudsen

The year is 2077, and the U.S. has officially become a corporatocracy. But three criminals, known as Liber8, are determined to go back in time and change the course of history by stopping corporations from replacing the government. As they time travel to the year 2012, a police officer joins them and does everything in her power to stop their violent plans—all while hiding that she’s from the future.

20. 12 Monkeys

  • Who’s in it: Aaron Stanford, Amanda Schull, Barbara Sukowa

Follow the exploits of scavenger James Cole (Aaron Stanford) as he time travels from 2043 to the year 2015 to stop a deadly virus from wiping out most of the human race. Expect plenty of twists and complex themes that’ll spark interesting convos, from corporate greed to the downsides of technological progress.

21. The Ministry Of Time

  • Who’s in it: Cayetana Guillén Cuervo, Juan Gea, Francesca Piñón

Welcome to The Ministry of Time, a top-secret Spanish organization that’s responsible for guarding the doors of time and reporting all time travel incidents to the Prime Minister. The series focuses on the Ministry’s patrol as they carry out their assignments, and while there’s no shortage of thrills, the show also does a phenomenal job of weaving in bits of Spain's history.

  • Who’s in it: Louis Hofmann, Julika Jenkins, Andreas Pietschmann, Maja Schöne

Set in the fictional German town of Winden, Dark centers on four families who are connected to the mysterious disappearance of two children. Aside from exploring their relationships, the show takes viewers on a wild journey that involves a major time travel conspiracy—one that spans multiple generations.

23. Always A Witch

  • Who’s in it: Angely Gaviria, Sofia Bernal Araujo, Dylan Fuentes, Valeria Henríquez

The Colombian series follows Carmen, a 19-year-old 17th-century witch who gets sentenced to death for falling in love with her master's son. However, she escapes her fate by time-traveling to modern day Cartagena as part of a deal with a wizard. Her task? To help him break his curse.

24. Voyagers!

  • Rating: TV-G
  • Who’s in it: Jon-Erik Hexum, Meeno Peluce, David Cadiente

Phineas Bogg (Jon-Erik Hexum) and his partner in crime, Jeffrey Jones (Meeno Peluce), are members of a secret group known as the Voyagers, who are tasked with making sure that history doesn’t change. The feel-good cult classic only lasted for one season, but all 20 episodes are simply delightful and worth the watch.

  • Who’s in it: Rosa Salazar, Angelique Cabral, Constance Marie

This animated drama revolves around a young woman named Alma (Rosa Salazar), who, per the official logline , explores "the elastic nature of reality" after surviving a dangerous car accident. She then uses her newfound ability to investigate her father's death. (Psst, look out for the second season, which premieres on April 29 on Amazon Prime.)

The 15 Best Action Movies on Amazon Prime Right Now

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Associate Editor, News and Entertainment

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IMAGES

  1. 80 of the Best Entertaining Time Travel TV Shows You Need To Watch

    old travel shows on tv

  2. 10 Of The Greatest Time Travel TV Shows Ever Made

    old travel shows on tv

  3. 80 of the Best Entertaining Time Travel TV Shows You Need To Watch

    old travel shows on tv

  4. 22 Best Travel TV Shows you'll want to binge watch!

    old travel shows on tv

  5. The Best Travel TV Shows

    old travel shows on tv

  6. 10 Of The Greatest Time Travel TV Shows Ever Made

    old travel shows on tv

VIDEO

  1. State Plate

  2. State Plate

  3. These Vintage Shows Would Be Censored And Cancelled By Networks Today

  4. Phil Serrell and Tim Medhurst

  5. LONDON Travel Vlog 🇬🇧: All That You MUST See!

  6. CLASSIC TV SHOW COLLECTION

COMMENTS

  1. 50 Best Travel Shows Of All Time (& How To Watch Them)

    26. Globe Trekker. One of the longest-running travel shows from the United Kingdom is "Globe Trekker," originally broadcast from 1994 to 2016. With a rotating set of hosts for each episode, the British series highlights a different region and provides audiences with a thorough guide to the sights and culture.

  2. 50 of the Best Travel-ish Shows to Watch When You Can't Travel

    3. The Layover. This one is made for travelers who love to maximize every. single. second. when they travel, including the time in between flights (looking at you, Type As). In "The Layover," the late Anthony Bourdain uses every travel trick in the book to do—and eat—as much as he can within 24-48 hours.

  3. The 75+ Best Travel TV Shows Sure To Give You The Travel Bug

    Latest additions: Talking Sabor, The Express Way With Dulé Hill, Conan O'Brien Must Go. Most divisive: The Getaway. Over 4.1K Ranker voters have come together to rank this list of Excellent TV Shows About Travel. Travel shows, a captivating genre on television, have been inspiring wanderlust for decades.

  4. The Best Travel Shows Of All Time (TV, Netflix, Amazon Prime & More)

    The best travel shows on TV combine travel with a little relaxing in the armchair! Here are some of the best on TV, DVD, Netflix and Amazon Prime right now. ... remote locations like seashores, lakes, and mountains. This is a little like Gordon Ramsay's old show Kitchen Nightmares, but more travel related. The goal of the visits on this show ...

  5. 8 Old Travel Shows On TV For A Nostalgic Trip

    8. The Thirsty Traveler (2002 - 2006) The Thirsty Traveler was a show to see how host Kevin Brauch quenched his thirst for ale and travel. While spanning the globe, Kevin is seen to be on a quest of finding the best tasting spirits. For the beer, wine, and bourbon lovers, this is one of the must-watch travel shows broadcast on television.

  6. The 40 Best Shows On Travel Channel, Ranked By Fans

    Passport to Europe is a television show on the Travel Channel. The show follows the bubbly and upbeat television host Samantha Brown around Europe visiting various popular European cities, including prime travel destinations such as Berlin, Munich, Amsterdam, Venice, Florence, Rome, Paris and London, as well as smaller cities such as Stratford-upon-Avon, Penzance and Oxford in England.

  7. Best Travel Shows

    TV-14 | 43 min | Documentary, Adventure, Comedy. British comedy duo Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant send their simple and closed-minded friend Karl Pilkington on a trip around the world to experience a variety of people and cultures. Stars: Karl Pilkington, Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant, Richard Yee.

  8. The 8 Best Travel Shows (To Binge When You Can't Travel)

    3. Long Way Round. This one is many years old now, but it's a timeless classic. In Long Way Round, Ewan McGregor and Charlie Boorman decide on a lark to ride their motorbikes from London all the way around the world through Europe, Russia, Mongolia, crossing the Bering strait and through Canada and the US.

  9. Around the world in 50 series: the best TV travel shows of all time

    Around the world in 50 series: the best TV travel shows of all time — and how to watch them. Take a 50,000-mile odyssey with Michael Palin, revisit some classic Attenborough and tackle Patagonia with the Top Gear team.

  10. 34 Best Travel TV Shows you'll want to binge watch!

    27. Iain Robertson Rambles. If you watch Iain Robertson Rambles, you'll see one of the most fascinating documentary travel TV shows ever. As its name suggests, this captivating series is hosted by Iain Robertson, a Scottish presenter and broadcaster widely recognised for his love for nature and the outdoors.

  11. 26 of the Best Travel Shows to Stream Right Now

    The Best Travel Shows to Stream Right Now. Enjoy the thrill of the chase in Paris, a Stanley Tucci tour of Italy, and a puppet's-eye view of global cuisine with these streaming TV shows. In "Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy," the actor lives the dream by exploring the best of Italy's food and wine. Courtesy of CNN.

  12. The 85+ Best Travel Food Shows, Ranked By Fans

    Vote up the best TV shows that blend food and travel. Latest additions: Thirst With Shay Mitchell, Selena + Restaurant, Talking Sabor. Most divisive: Gordon, Gino and Fred: Road Trip. Over 500 Ranker voters have come together to rank this list of The 85+ Best Food & Travel Shows, Ranked.

  13. Best Travel Shows to Watch on TV, Netflix, Amazon Prime & Other

    Best Travel Shows on TV, Amazon Prime Video and Other Streaming Services. The following travel shows and series are available on TV, Amazon Prime Video and/or various streaming services (such as Hulu). ... Where to Watch: This show is a few years old, so it is not currently airing anywhere in the US (it was created for Sky TV in the UK).

  14. What is shoulder season? Experts weigh in with tips to save on airfare

    The upcoming shoulder season in Europe, for example, during early autumn -- September to October -- "offers favorable weather without the high prices and large crowds of peak season," she said.

  15. 20 Best Time-Travel Shows Ranked

    17. Fringe. Fox. Like "Lost", "Fringe" is considered one of the most binge-worthy sci-fi shows of all time but the fact that it isn't exclusively about time travel means it lands near the tail end ...

  16. 32 TV Shows That Went On Way Too Long

    There are those shows that ended long before we wanted them to, from '90s one-season wonders like Freaks & Geeks and My So-Called Life to perfectly timed dramas like Succession and Breaking Bad ...

  17. Category:British travel television series

    Around the World in 80 Days (2009 TV series) Around the World in 80 Treasures; B. Bargain-Loving Brits in the Sun; The Big Trip Travel Show; Britain's Best Drives; By Any Means (2008 TV series) C. Celebrity Five Go to... The Charlotte Crosby Experience; Coastal Railways with Julie Walters; E.

  18. 15 Travel-Themed TV Shows You Can Stream Right Now

    Game of Thrones. Credit: HBO. STREAM: HBO Now. Yes, we know - Game of Thrones is not exactly a travel-themed TV show. But, to be fair, the show was famously shot on location, showcasing the historical and natural attractions of Northern Ireland, Croatia, Spain, Malta, Iceland, and Morocco.

  19. Globe Trekker (TV Series 1994- )

    Globe Trekker: With Ian Wright, Justine Shapiro, Megan McCormick, Zay Harding. The hosts travel to various destinations around the world. As they do, you view their experiences and listen to their critiques along the way.

  20. Money blog: Pubs want 'disgraceful' Co-op TV advert taken off air

    Daniel says most travel policies will pay something towards the cost of the holiday if it must be cancelled for a reason that is not your fault. He adds: "For example, if you unexpectedly fall ill ...

  21. Celebrity Doppelgangers From the Past

    Are celebrity doppelgangers from the past proof that time travel exists? Eerie photos show striking resemblances.

  22. Watch Classic TV Shows Online

    Classic-tv.com is your home for classic TV show info, theme songs, episode guides, series DVDs and more! ... This site is dedicated to the best old TV shows to air on television. Featured are series guides, theme songs, DVDs and more from the last 6 decades of primetime. Site Navigation.

  23. All Episodes of Star Trek: Prodigy Season 2 Now Available

    211 - "Last Flight of the Protostar, Part I". After a brush with the Loom, the Prodigy crew find the lost Protostar on a deserted ocean planet, but their only hope to fix the timeline is in jeopardy when its captain refuses to leave.. 212 - "Last Flight of the Protostar, Part II". After convincing Chakotay to help repair the Protostar, the Prodigy crew now need fuel for it to fly — which ...

  24. Here Are All the Travel Channel Shows You Can Watch (for Free!) Right Now

    From Ghost Adventures and Kindred Spirits to Bizarre Foods and No Reservations, head to Travel Channel Go to stream some of your favorites, new and old! March 16, 2020 Whether you don't have access to cable or are looking to revisit some of your favorites, here's a list of everything you can watch right now!

  25. Japanese mother and child stabbed in China in front of school bus

    A Japanese woman and her child were among three people stabbed by a man on Monday in front of a school bus at a bus stop in eastern China, according to Japanese authorities. A Chinese woman school ...

  26. 1950s TV Shows: A Guide to 101 Classic TV Shows From the Decade

    But the true arrival of Classic TV would come in the 1950s. The 1960s: Your Guide to 101 Classic (and Not-So-Classic) TV Shows From Your Youth. When we think of that term — Classic TV ...

  27. Curious Traveler

    Christine van Blokland gets curious about the world's hidden histories and mysteries. Curious Traveler is presented by your local public television station. Distributed nationally by American ...

  28. 25 Time Travel TV Shows to Stream Right Now

    From Doctor Who to Timeless, keep reading for the best time travel TV shows you can stream right now. RELATED. The 20 Best Time Travel Movies to Stream Right Now (That Aren't 'Back to the Future') 1. Dc's Legends Of Tomorrow. Rating: TV-14. Who's in it: Victor Garber, Brandon Routh, Arthur Darvill.

  29. Shows A-Z

    Linbergh: Mysteries at the Museum. Lincoln Assassination: Mysteries at the Museum. Loch Ness Monster: New Evidence. Loch Ness Monster: The Search for the Truth. Lonely Planet: Odyssey with Graham Hughes. Lost Amazon: Project Z. Lost Gold. Lost Secrets. Lost in the Wild.