In celebration of Harry Potter’s 20th anniversary since its initial release, here’s a quick little post for the dedicated fan! This is a fun walking tour of Harry Potter stops in London anyone can visit – FOR FREE! Pro Tip: Do it yourself without having to spend for a guided tour.
KING CROSS STATION
One of the main train stations in London, England. Platform 9 3/4 is the iconic/magical train station where magical folk take the Hogwarts Express to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardy. (Featured in all of Harry Potter books)
ST. PANCRAS INTERNATIONAL
Not too far from King’s Cross Station is St. Pancras International where the Weasley’s magical Ford took off in the second edition of the series in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.
PICCADILLY CIRCUS
This is where Harry, Hermoine and Ron appeared and had to move out of the way before getting hit by a London bus. Great place for some shopping as well! (Featured in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows)
WESTMINISTER TUBE STATION
This was the main station that Harry Potter used during the filming of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. They had to close the whole station from the public for an entire day of filming.
CLAREMONT SQUARE
Grimmauld’s place in real life! This is the location of Sirius Black’s residence – 12 Grimmauld Place. The house was the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix which is eventually inherited by Harry after the death of his godfather Sirius Black. (First featured in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix)
TOWER BRIDGE
The tower bridge was seen in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix when Harry Potter and the members of the order were en route to 12 Grimmauld Place.
ST. PAUL’S CATHEDRAL
The staircase scenes heading to Divination was shot along the Geometric Staircase inside St. Paul’s Cathedra in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.
MILLENIUM BRIDGE
The Death Eaters destroy the Millennium Bridge in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.
We weren’t able to visit the other two but they are still popular spots!
AUSTRALIA HOUSE
Famously known as Gringotts Bank in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.
LEADENHALL MARKET
This is the Diagon Alley in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone and where the Leaky Cauldron is located.
Although we were not able to hit all of the Harry Potter spots while in London, due to time restraints, it was still fun to see the ones we saw during our quick visit. For any die hard Harry Potter fan, it will bring a sense of awe and longing for it all to be real. The best we can do is visit the real sites and what I like best about it is how easily accessible they all are as well as free – maybe a few pounds worth if you take a taxi or the popular hop on and off red bus.
1 Comment
Awesome! We had created a trip of London for the Harry Potter fan, but I think we missed some of these locations. I’ll ad them in and link back to you.