Warning: This post contains spoilers for Book Club: The Next Chapter

Book Club: The Next Chapter sees the characters traveling to Italy, and the filmmakers and cast were on-location for the majority of the shoot. Directed by Bill Holderman, who co-wrote the screenplay with Erin Simms, Book Club 2 takes the decades-long friends to a place they’ve always wanted to visit, but never got a chance to because things would come up.

Vivian (Jane Fonda), Diane (Diane Keaton), Carol (Mary Steenburgen), and Sharon (Candice Bergen) decide to be adventurous after lockdown, flying to Italy ahead of Vivian’s (surprise) wedding in Tuscany. Between having their luggage stolen, meeting new people, and shopping for a wedding dress, the lifelong friends have quite a memorable time. Book Club: The Next Chapter was actually filmed in Italy, with production primarily taking place in and around Rome, with some scenes shot in Venice as well. Between the cast visiting the Spanish Steps and the villa where Vivian’s wedding takes place, the Book Club sequel made the most of the gorgeous on-location filming.

Musei Capitolini, Rome

Book Club: The Next Chapter sees the characters heading to the Musei Capitolini, a museum in Rome that overlooks the Roman Forum. This is during the first day or two of their vacation. Inside, Vivian, Diane, Carol, and Sharon admire marble statues. After, four friends walk along the Roman Forum, the plaza that holds the ancient architectural ruins from the Roman civilization. Holderman didn’t think they would be able to film there, but the production team managed to make it work (via Condé Nast Traveler).

Via Dei Coronari & Piazza San Simeone

The sequel was also filmed at Via de Coronari, which is a historic street in Rome and a major tourist attraction. The location is used when the characters walk down the street, right before they arrive at the wedding dress shop in a surprise reveal for Vivian. Nearby the Via dei Coronari, Book Club: The Next Chapter filmed at the Piazza San Simeone, a beautiful square holding a fountain. It’s in that square that the production team set up a café for the characters to sit at while discussing the next stage of their trip.

Villa Parisi, Rome

The Villa Parisi is a villa just outside Rome’s city center, and it’s where Diane, Carol, and Sharon take Vivian wedding dress shopping. She tries on multiple outfits before finding the perfect one. The Villa Parisi is just one of many villas where Book Club: The Next Chapter filmed.

Castello della Castelluccia

Although the characters visit Tuscany as their final stop in Italy, and where Arthur is hosting a surprise wedding for Vivian, the sequel didn’t actually shoot in Tuscany at all. Holderman used drone shots of the area for the view — all of which can be seen during the helicopter ride the characters take to get to the villa in Tuscany. For the sequel’s ending — wedding itself — the director opted to use Castello della Castelluccia, a castle surrounded by beautiful grounds that is just outside of Rome. The location is scenic, but grounded as it’s away from the noise and crowds of the city center, and lends itself to the lavish and sophisticated wedding venue.

Scalinata della Trinità dei Monti

The Scalinata della Trinità dei Monti, otherwise known as the Spanish Steps, is perhaps one of the most famous attractions in Italy. Located in Rome, the iconic steps can be seen in one of the first scenes in Rome, where the longtime friends are standing at the base of the steps. Holderman and the cast had to film very early on that day because the Spanish Steps see so many tourists and locals passing through during regular hours.

Grand Plaza Hotel & Hotel Danieli

The inside of the Grand Plaza Hotel in Rome was used for the inside of the Venice hotel the characters stayed at. Meanwhile, the Hotel Danieli in Venice was used for the exterior shots, including one where Vivian, Carol, Sharon, and Diane have breakfast outside on the hotel’s terrace. This is the moment in Book Club: The Next Chapter in which the characters have lost their luggage, but end up staying in a nice hotel upon arriving in Venice thanks to Vivian’s business connections.

Piazza Della Rotonda

The Piazza della Rotonda, the fountain of the Pantheon, is glimpsed briefly in the film, as the characters walk alongside it while eating ice cream and chatting during the montage. It’s a beautiful, open square that is very picturesque.

The Trevi Fountain

The Trevi Fountain, one of Rome’s most recognizable, is also a location used in the sequel, and it’s where the characters stop to take a selfie in front of during the montage.

Grand Canal, Venice

The Grand Canal is one of the most beautiful locations in Venice, and it’s showcased in Book Club: The Next Chapter. When the characters arrive at the train station in Venice, which was actually filmed inside the city’s station, called the Stazione di Venezia Santa Lucia, they exit onto the Grand Canal. The characters end up taking a boat to their hotel, which gives them (and the audience) some nice views of the canal and its immediate surroundings. Sharon is later caught on a boat after a late-night tryst with Ousmane, having been found by Venice’s police chief.