For the ultimate tour of England and Scotland, visit the Harry Potter film locations. Take a two-week vacation with the world’s most popular fictional hero.
Plan Your Trip.This day-by-day guide lists details on lodging, restaurants, sights, and sports & recreation described in England and Scotland: Travels With Harry. Use the websites, phone numbers and maps to plan your trip.
Learn More. The official travel, VisitBritain, provides more options on transportation and sights. The British tourist authority published a map “Harry Potter: Discovering the Magic of Britain.” London visitors can see more than 20 city locations that appear in the movies. In spring, 2012, Warner Bros Studio Tour in Leavesden, the production home of the Harry Potter films for ten years, begins selling tour tickets. For tour information, visit the Warner Bros website. They have preserved the set of Dumbledore’s office and the dining hall. The train from London Euston takes 20 minutes. The studio is 3 miles from the Watford Town Centre.
TRAVEL DAY Fly from your home gateway to Gatwick (LGW) or Heathrow airports (LHR)DAY 1 — Gatwick Airport, Heathrow Airport
Air travel is far less efficient than traveling by apparition, but the British Airways flight attendants welcome passengers with afternoon tea and good in-flight entertainment. British Airways is a major carrier at Gatwick and Heathrow. This itinerary ends in Edinburgh, so fly home from Edinburgh Airport.
Getting There British Airways 800.AIRWAYS 800.247.9297Harry Potter Film Sets In London
MORNING Arrive at Gatwick or Heathrow airports. Check into your London accommodations.DAY 2 — London
Take the ThamesLink or Gatwick Express if you arrive at Gatwick Airport. The Gatwick Express, the non stop rail-air service between Victoria Station and Gatwick Airport, departs every 15 minutes with a journey time of 30 minutes. You can buy Gatwick Express and Heathrow Express tickets online at the VisitBritain shop and save 5 pounds ($7.70USD) on the price.
Transportation ThamesLink Gatwick Express Heathrow Express Transport for London AFTERNOON Visit Platform 9 3/4 at King’s Cross Station.
Take a picture by the plaque. Also see platforms 4 and 5 and the footbridge over the main platforms where scenes were filmed. The actual platform used by the Hogwarts Express Steam Train was Platform 4.
Take the Circle Line to the Baker Street Tube stop. See the sculpture of Daniel Radcliffe.
Sight Madame Tussauds Wax Museum Marylebone Road, Westminster, London NW1
MORNING Visit Leadenhall Market. Have lunch at Lamb Tavern.DAY 3 — London
Take the Bank or Monument Tube stops. Leadenhall Market is on Leadenhall and Gracechurch Streets. Get a picture at the entrance to The Leaky Cauldron and Diagon Alley from the Sorcerer’s Stone. Have lunch at Lamb Tavern or elsewhere in Leadenhall Market. Ask the locals to recommend a good stall for treacle tarts.
Sight Leadenhall Market 1a Leadenhall Market, Gracechurch Street, London EC3V 1LR Restaurant Lamb Tavern 10-12 Leadenhall Market, London, EC3V 1LR +44 (0) 207 626 2454 AFTERNOON Visit Borough Market and Market Porter Pub.Take the Jubilee and Northern lines to the London Bridge stop. Borough Market is near Tower Bridge. The Leaky Cauldron from The Prisoner of Azkaban was filmed at the Market Porter Pub.
Sight Borough Market 8 Southwark Street, London SE1 1TL Restaurant Market Porter Pub 9 Stoney Street, Borough Market, London, SE1 9AA AFTERNOON Stop at Australia House.Located on the Strand at Temple Tube stop on Circle and District line. The interior of Gringotts Bank was filmed here. The bank heist, in Deathly Hallows part 2 in the marble hall. Access to the interior is granted one day a year, but you peak in from the outside if the curtains are open. Look through the window on the back side (Melbourne Street).
Sight Australia House Strand, London WC2B 4LA
MORNING Walk along the Thames River. Visit the London Zoo.DAY 4 — London
Get a photo along the Thames River where the flying scene from the Order of the Phoenix was filmed. Stop in and see where the scene in the Reptile House was filmed when Harry released the snake. The boa constrictor is huge. The London Zoo is within walking distance of Camden Town and Regent’s Park stations and short bus ride from Baker Street station.
Sight London Zoo Regent’s Park, London NW1 4RY +44 (0) 207 722 3333
MORNING Visit St. Paul’s Cathedral. Walk across Millennium Bridge.DAY 5 — London
Take the Central line to the St. Paul’s stop. The tower staircase at St. Paul’s Cathedral was used for filming in The Prisoner of Azkaban. Take the central line to St Paul’s station. (2 minute walk).
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince opens with a dramatic sequence of the Millennium Bridge in London collapsing. A pedestrian-only steel suspension bridge crossing River Thames, the Millennium Footbridge links Bankside with the City. The nearest Tube station is Mansion House. The north end is near St. Paul’s Cathedral.
Sight St. Paul’s Cathedral St Paul’s Cathedral, London EC4M 8AD +44 (0) 207 236 4128 recorded information Sight Millennium Bridge AFTERNOON Visit the British Museum and Piccadilly Circus.
Take the Central and Northern lines to the Tottenham Court Road Tube stop. See the original Lewis Chessmen that were used as models for the pieces in the Sorcerer’s Stone.
Take the Piccadilly Circus Tube to one of the most memorable scenes in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 where Harry, Ron, and Hermione flee to a muggle café and fight Death Eaters.
Sights British Museum www.britishmuseum.org Great Russell Street, London, WC1B 3DG +44 (0) 207 323 8299 general information Sights Piccadilly Circus & London Visitor Centre 1 Lower Regent Street, London SW1 4XT +44 (0) 870 156 6366
Harry Potter Film Sets In England
MORNING Rent a car and drive to Harrow. Visit Harrow School.DAY 6 — Harrow, Bracknell, Oxford
The drive is about 30 to 40 minutes depending on where you’re staying in London. Professor Flitwick’s classroom scene where Hermione levitates a feather: “Wingardium Leviosa!” were filmed here. Tours are expensive and difficult to book. Contact the school for tour dates. Otherwise, just drive by to see the outside.
Sight Harrow School 5 High Street, Harrow on the Hill, Middlesex, HA1 3HP +44 (0) 208 872 8000 MORNING Visit Picket Post Close.From Harrow, drive to Bracknell, arriving in about 50 minutes. Picket Post Close is where the Privet Drive scenes were filmed.
Sight Picket Post Close 12 Picket Post Close, Martins Heron, Bracknell, Berkshire, England AFTERNOON Visit Christ Church College at University of Oxford.From Bracknell, drive to Oxford, a 90-minute drive. Enter the War Memorial Gate from St. Aldates road then through Tom Gate to Christ Church College. This is the filming location for Hogwarts Dining Hall and the large stone staircase leading into the Great Hall.
Sight University of Oxford Christ Church, St. Aldates, Oxford OX1 1DP +44 (0) 186 527 6150 AFTERNOON Visit Bodleian Library and the Divinity School.Scenes from the Sorcerer’s Stone were filmed in Duke Humfrey’s Library at the Bodleian Library – Harry sneaking into the Restricted Books section and Hermione reading about the Sorcerer’s Stone. The scene in The Goblet of Fire in which Draco is turned into a ferret was filmed just outside. The infirmary scene at the end of The Sorcerer’s Stone was filmed at the Divinity School.
Sight Bodleian Library. Divinity School Broad Street, OX1 3BG. EVENING Check into a B&B in Oxford and have dinner.Wander around Oxford. Guild of Guides conduct 2-hour walking tours, departing from the Oxford Information Centre. Tickets, prices and details are available onlline. Ask about the themed tour: Walk in Harry Potter’s footsteps. Also ask about a good restaurant for dinner.
Sight Oxford Information Centre 15-16 Broad Street, Oxford +44 (0) 186 525 2200
MORNING Visit Blenheim Palace.DAY 7 — Woodstock, Gloucester, Chippenham
Drive to Blenheim Palace near the town of Woodstock, 8 miles from Oxford off the A44. The pensieve scene from the Order of the Phoenix which recalls Snape’s “worst memory” was filmed on the grounds next to a cedar tree by the lake. Blenheim Palace, birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill, and the palace tour gives an inside look at one of the greatest of Britain’s great houses.
Sight Blenheim Palace Woodstock, Oxfordshire OX20 1PP +44 (0) 800 849 6500 recorded information AFTERNOON Visit Gloucester Cathedral.
About an hour drive from Blenheim Palace, the cathedral was a major Hogwarts location for interior shots. The scene with the large troll and the scene in which the walls say “Enemies of the heir, beware” were filmed here. Also, see if the labyrinth is available (usually in August).
Chippenham lies 4 miles south of the M4, close to Lacock Abbey. Chippenham Tourist Information Centre has a list of comfortable B&Bs. Email them for suggestions in your price range: tourism@chippenham.gov.uk.
Info Chippenham Tourist Information Centre The Yelde Hall, Market Place, Chippenham, Wiltshire, SN15 3HL +44 (0) 124 966 5970
MORNING Visit Lacock Abbey.DAY 8 — Lacock Abbey Village, Virginia Water Lake
Drive south from Chippenham for 3 miles and look for signs to Lacock Abbey, located at the heart of Lacock village. Set within its own woodland grounds and built upon the foundations of a former nunnery, the Abbey is a Harry Potter gold mine. Hogwarts classroom scenes were filmed here. The sacristy was used for Potions class, the Warming Room for Defense Against the Dark Arts. The Chapter House was used for the scene with the Mirror of Erised. The scene where Harry is picked for the Quidditch team was filmed in a hallway here.
Sight Lacock Abbey Lacock, Wiltshire SN15 2LG +44 (0) 124 973 0459 AFTERNOON Visit Virginia Water Lake.Drive from Lacock Abbey to the village of Virginia Water. The drive takes about an hour and 45 minutes. The lake is on the southern edge of Windsor Great Park. Park in the car park on route A30 (London Rd,). The circuit around the lake is about 4.5 miles. Filming took place at the lake for the second task in the Goblet of Fire, as well as the hippogrif scene in the Prisoner of Azkaban.
Sight Virginia Water Lake Virginia Water, Surrey, England AFTERNOON, EVENING Return to London. Take the train to Durham and check into a B&B.Drive back to London, return the rental car. The train from King’s Cross Station north to Durham takes 3 hours on the high-speed East Coast service. Stay at a B&B for one night.
Transportation East Coast Mainline Company Info Duham Visitor Information
MORNING Visit Durham Cathedral.DAY 9 — Durham, Alnmouth, Alnwick, Edinburgh
The scene with Harry and Hedwig in the Sorcerer’s Stone was filmed in the cloister courtyard. The Cathedral houses the shrine of Cuthbert of Lindisfarne. It is also home to the remains of the Venerable Bede. Take the staircase to the tower: there are 325 steps to the top. Across the Palace Green is Durham Castle.
Option: Goathland Station in North Yorkshire, England was used to film Hogsmeade Station.
Sight Durham Cathedral The Chapter Office, The College, Durham, DH1 3EH +44 (0) 191 386 4266 AFTERNOON Visit Alnwick Castle.
Take the train to Alnmouth (about 45 minutes) and cab to Alnwick Castle (15 minutes). The castle is in the historic market town of Alnwick. Scenes of the Hogwarts flying lessons and the Whomping Willow were filmed here. Have lunch in the Treehouse, one of the largest in the world.
The train trip takes 75 minutes. Stay at a hotel in Edinburgh.
Transportation British Rail +44 (0) 871 200 2233 +44 (0) 845 748 4950 Info Edinburgh Visitors InformationEdinburgh: Harry Potter’s Birthplace
Harry Potter Film Sets In Scotland
MORNING Have breakfast at the Elephant House cafe.DAY 10 — Edinburgh
A plaque outside the building at 6a Nicolson Street honors Rowling. She wrote parts of the Sorcerer’s Stone in Nicolson’s cafe on the first floor while her baby daughter slept. It’s now a Chinese restaurant. Have lunch at the Elephant House. On the website you can watch an interview with Rowling.
The city’s top ten sights include Edinburgh Castle, The Royal Mile, Arthur’s Seat, Holyrood Palace, Whiskey Heritage Center and Mary King’s Close.
AFTERNOON Have high tea at the Balmoral Hotel tea parlor.
J.K. Rowling checked into the Balmoral to finish writing Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the last book of the series. The author permitted the hotel to rename Room 552 the J.K. Rowling Suite. It has her writing desk and a signed marble bust of Hermes. Tea is served from 2:30 to 5:30.
Check into a B&B for two nights. JK Rowling lives nearby. In a country house on the River Tay in Aberfeldy.
Info Fort William Visitor InformationALL DAY Ride the Jacobite train roundtrip from Fort William to Mallaig.DAY 11 — Scottish Highlands
This train was used for filming shots of the Hogwarts Express. You see Loch Eilt which was used as Hogwarts Lake, the Glenfinnan Viaduct which was shown in shots of the Hogwarts Express on its way to Hogwarts. You’ll recognize the 21-arched Glenfinnan viaduct, which appeared in scenic shots in most of the films. The journey is around 4 hours each way. It is regarded as one of the Great Railway Journeys of the World due mainly to the stunning scenery through which you will be traveling. A 84 mile round trip.
MORNING Rent a car in Fort William. Visit Steall Falls in Glen Nevis.DAY 12 — Glen Nevis
Steall Falls is 7.5 miles southeast of Fort William. The Steall Falls in the rugged countryside of Glen Nevis is where the first task from the Goblet of Fire was filmed. Harry outwitted an Hungarian Horntail.
The hike to the falls will take about 1.5 hours each way, and is well worth the effort.
Sports & Recreation Steall Falls Glen Nevis, Scotland AFTERNOON, EVENING Drive to Glencoe and stay at the Clachaig Inn.Check in for one night. Across the street, a trail leads to where scenes of Hagrid’s Hut were filmed in the Prisoner of Azkaban.
Lodging/Sight Clachaig Inn Glencoe, Argyll, Scotland PH49 4HX +44 (0) 185 581 1252
ALL DAY Fly home from Edinburgh Airport.Day 13 — Edinburgh Airport
The Edinburgh airport is a 2.5-hour drive from Glencoe.
—CT Editors. Photography: VisitBritain
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