I love London and I’m so gladi I can call this beautiful city my home. It has a unique atmosphere and it’s been the setting of so many amazing films and books. One of these is Harry Potter.
I am a Gryffindor at heart, so I was quite excited to discover all the amazing locations the books and the movies were set.
If you’re a true fan of course the Harry Potter Warner Bros Studio Tour is something you CAN’T MISS, but you can live Hogwarts atmosphere around the city as well… if you know where to go 😉
Here’s the ultimate Harry Potter London locations list. Make the most of it and don’t forget to take a look at the Google Map I have made for you, that you’ll find at the bottom of the post.
Enjoy!
1. Platform 9 and 3/4
The actual beginning of the books takes place in Privet Drive, and for the movies the location has been filmed in Bracknell, that is not actually in London. We then start from Platform 9 3/4, in King’s Cross Station. It’s not hard to spot the suitcase trolley that goes halfway in the brick wall, and take a picture with a Gryffindor scarf while trying to pass through it. Totally worth a visit!
2. St. Pancras Station
You can spot this station many times in the movies, and it’s so close to King’s Cross you won’t help but visiting both. Stunning from the outside, it hides a luxury hotel with a fabulous bar in it. Stop for a drink and you won’t regret it!
3. The real Diagon Alley
If the Diagon Alley of the movies is perfectly reconstructed at the studios, here in Cecil Court you’ll probably find its atmosphere. That’s because JK Rowling took inspiration exactly from this little street full of independent bookshops and stores to imagine the famous wizards shopping street. It’s off Charing Cross Station.
4. Diagon Alley in the movies: Leadenhall Market
When Hagrid takes Harry to Diagon Alley for the first time, here’s where they are. In Leadenhall Market, a beautiful historical market in the City, Hagrid finds the entrance to the Leaky Cauldron. You can spot the same little round shaped door nowadays, it’s just painted in blue instead of black and it’s in Bulls Passage.
5. The Ministry of Magic entrance
In Scotland Place, between Charing Cross and Embankment, you can spot a classic red phone booth. It’s not like the others though, as it is – in the movies and books – the enchanted entrance leading to the Ministry of Magic.
6. The Gringotts Bank
Near Covent Garden, take some time to have a look at the Australian House, as it has been used to film the interiors of the magic Gringotts Bank.
7. The Lambeth Bridge knight bus ride
One of the most exciting scene in the HP movies is the crazy ride of the Knight Bus, squishing between two other buses going the opposite direction. The scene takes place on this beautiful bridge over the Thames river.
8. Deatheaters assault on the Millennium Bridge
In HP and the Half Blood Prince the Deatheaters fly over London and attack one of its landmarks: the Millennium Bridge between St.Pauls Cathedrals and the Tate Gallery.
9. Speaking Parseltongue with pythons
In case you want to try to speak Parseltongue just like Harry did here, you’re welcome to visit the London Zoo and head straight to the Reptile House. You’ll find plenty of species you can say hello to, in the same location where the movie scene was filmed.
10. Piccadilly Circus
In HP and the Death Gifts, Harry, Ron and Hermione have to run across a very busy London. The scene takes place in the crowded but always beautiful Piccadilly Circus, near the tube stop.
Extra: locations outside of London
If you want to pay a visit to some other incredibly beautiful locations, including castles and many Hogwarts exteriors and interiors, take a look at these posts:
Literary Oxford: Tolkien, Harry Potter and Alice in Wonderland
Lacock – Sulle tracce di Harry Potter (ita only)
Here’s the link to the Google Map.
INFO
Pictures: 1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10
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