Villa Donna is the name of the hotel run by Meryl Streep’s character Donna in the film version of Mamma Mia. In the story, she and Sam Callahan sketched it on a napkin during their love affair twenty years earlier. But does Villa Donna really exist in Greece?
The answer is no, and yes. Unfortunately, the Villa Donna in Skopelos was a movie set and that exact hotel does not exist. While some exterior sets were built on the site in Skopelos, they were removed after filming was completed. It is said that only one gateway remains.
In the movie, Villa Donna was located on the cliffs above Glysteri Beach. But don’t trust everything you see. When the dancers pass through the olive groves, they are actually strolling through Douchari, in the Mouresi area of Greece, along the coast of Pelion, just outside Volos.
But, happily, the Villa Donna is typical of seaside hotels in many ways. While you won’t find the exact Villa Donna in Greece, you will find many others that share a similar look and energy throughout Greece.
A profitable home, the Villa Pyrgos, offered by Thalpos Holidays, sits higher up on the same cliff where Villa Donna sat, so dedicated fans can enjoy a stay there. It’s where Meryl Streep went to rest between scenes while filming on the set of the movie Villa Donna.
More about Mamma Mia
Mamma Mia filming locations are always of interest to fans planning a trip to Greece. More details on the film version of Mamma Mia! can be found on the Mamma Mia Movie Data Base website.
This article has some entertaining details about the locations in Skopelos, including where Meryl Streep should have had an ouzo: Telegraph: Unfazed by the uproar in Skopelos. You will discover things like the fact that Kalokairi , the fictional name of the island in the film, means “summer” in Greek.
If you want to see more great movies shot in Greece, we suggest you rent Summer Lovers and High Season or other movies shot in Greece
Momma Mia 2 locations
For the filming of Momma Mia 2, the cast and crew were not in Greece. Filming moved to Vis, off the Dalmatian coast of Croatia. Vis is a remote island and served as a military base until 1983. Today, it is one of the least explored islands and has little for tourists except natural beauty: the cliffs surrounding the cove and beach of Stiniva create an environment Surreal, and a popular attraction is The Blue Cave on the nearby islet of Biševo with magical reflections on the cave walls.
Vis Town has a pleasant promenade and is the first village on the island, while the picturesque Komiža is a fishing village in a small bay. There is only one simple hotel on the island, so the movie stars stayed on yachts and rental villas like Villa Serena that can be booked through VisVillas.com. Much of the set was put together for the film, so while Vis is beautiful, your visit to this Croatian island will not provide you with the same experiences that you will see in the 2018 film.
