Somewhere in Northern Italy
- Gracey Bryant
- Jul 27
- 4 min read
Crema, Italy, in the Lombardy region, is hands down our favorite spot we've ever visited. We first came here because we're big fans of the movie "Call Me By Your Name" with Timothée Chalamet and Armie Hammer. Whether you're into the film or just need a break from the hustle and bustle of big cities, Crema has so much to offer beyond its friendly locals, delicious Tortellini Cremaschi, charming historic streets, and stunning sunsets. Let me take you on a tour of this hidden gem and show you how we tracked down all the filming locations we could find!
Our tour guides' information!
Website: eliooliverlovetour.com
Instagram: eliooliverlovetour
WhatsApp: +39 338 905 8811
1 person - €20
2 people - €17.50 (per person)
3 people - €15 (per person)
4 people - €12.50 (per person)
We began our trip by heading from Florence Santa Maria Novella station to Milano Porta Garibaldi, which was supposed to take around 3 hours (12:30 pm - 2:15 pm). However, we got delayed by an hour and ended up arriving at 3:15 pm. Of course, we couldn't resist stepping out of the Milan station to explore a bit and mark Milan off our list of places visited!
When we got to Crema, we walked from the train station to our rented apartment, then we headed out to explore the city before it got dark. The food was incredible, and the gelato was some of the best we've had! We’ve also never felt safer than we did in this city; the locals will greet you on the street, and there seem to be very few tourists.
Restaurant: Speranza Pizzeria & Restaurant - Via Suor Maria Crocefissa di Rosa
Gelato: Ice Cream Shop - Piazza Giovanni XXIII, 25
Note: make sure to bring some cash because a lot of places only take cash. Also, download Google Translate and the Italian language pack, as the language barrier can be a bit tricky sometimes.
The next day, we originally planned to get up early and bike to Elio's secret spot, which is about an hour from Crema, and then head to the WWI monument in the province of Pandino, another hour away. But since it rained most of the morning, we had to switch things up. Once the rain stopped around noon, we decided to explore the town instead.
*Note: make sure to visit the tourist center near the main cathedral in Crema. They'll give you a map with all the famous filming spots in and around the city. Plus, they can tell you about local tour guides who can show you around. Plus, they have the original bikes and tables/chairs that Armie and Timothee sat at!
In our case, we rented bikes and planned a 5-hour ride total to visit Elio's spot and the monument. But when in the tourist office, we found out that a tour guide was taking a group to the same spots around 3 pm! We called him, and he picked up right away and met us at the tour office to discuss availability. He suggested that seeing the monument would be crowded during his 3 pm tour and offered to take just us on a private tour right then. He shared so much history and movie trivia. As two women cautious about hopping into a stranger's car, I'd recommend him to anyone!!! He had clearly done this many times and seemed to enjoy sharing these spots with fans. Bonus points, he played the movie playlist for us while driving around!!
After that, our guide left us in the city center, and we wandered around to see the rest of the sights. We were really excited to take some photos with the famous door scene, IYKYK. We also saw that fans had covered the wall across from the door with quotes and names, so we added our names too!
From the city center, we took a 15-minute walk to the dance hall where Oliver dances with Charia. We discovered the cutest bar along the way, so we enjoyed a quick drink before going out for dinner. The following morning, we needed to be up early to travel home, so we went back to our place to get some rest.
Our walk to the train station the next morning was super chill. All the shops were shut, except for a few cafes slowly setting up their chairs and tables. The streets were empty, so we strolled down the cobblestone roads in silence, just taking in the beauty of this town. We loved every moment of this trip and are definitely planning to come back! It might be small and different from the bigger cities we've seen, but that's what we loved about it. The quiet mornings totally beat the clubbing scene in Florence. If you get the chance, check out the small towns in Italy—they have way more character than the bigger cities, friendlier people, and, dare I say, better food!
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