Harry Potter is a series of fantasy novels, written by J. K. Rowling, and made into a series of eight films from 2001 to 2011.

The Harry Potter stories are set in a fictional variant of the United Kingdom, where some locations are inaccessible or invisible to muggles (people without magical abilities).

It is possible to visit many of the places that inspired the books. The series was filmed in a variety of locations around the UK at the behest of J.K. Rowling.

Starting from 2016, a new prequel film series entitled Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is being made, with J. K. Rowling herself making her screenwriting debut for the series. The first film in the series went on to win an Academy Award for Best Costume Design, achieving what had eluded all eight films in the original series (which received a total of 12 Oscar nominations, but never won).

Themed attractions

“ You're a wizard, Harry. ”

—Rubeus Hagrid

Entrance to Warner Bros. Studio Tour

• 1 Warner Bros. Studio Tour London - The Making of Harry Potter, Watford, near London, England, WD25 7LR. Leavesden is a former aircraft factory, which was converted into a film studio. All of the Harry Potter films were made here, starting in 2000. Many of the original film sets and props were stored, and can now be viewed as part of the exhibition. £37. (updated Dec 2016)
• The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Themed areas at Universal Studios parks:
  • 2 Universal Studios Florida & Islands of Adventure (Universal Orlando, Orlando, Florida). (updated Mar 2017)
  • 3 Universal Studios Hollywood (Universal City, Los Angeles, California). (updated Mar 2017)
  • 4 Universal Studios Japan (Osaka, Japan). (updated Mar 2017)

All these themed locations are home to souvenir shops where you can purchase Harry Potter memorabilia. A real world version of butterbeer (non-alcoholic), a drink that features prominently in the books and movies, can also be drunk at all these themed locations.

Film locations

Steam train crossing the Glenfinnan Viaduct

• 1 Glenfinnan Viaduct, West Highlands. A large railway viaduct, crossed by the Hogwarts Express train in several films. During the summer you can travel on The Jacobite, a similar style of steam train which runs from Fort William to Mallaig. (updated Dec 2016)

• 2 Glen Nevis, Near Fort William. Impressive scenery including Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in the UK, used as the backdrop for several Quidditch games. (updated Dec 2016)

• 3 Glencoe. A backdrop for several scenes, including Hagrid's Hut, the set was built on the hillside close to the Clachaig Inn. (updated Dec 2016)

• 4 Black Rock Gorge, Evanton, near Dingwall. A narrow, steep-sided gorge, appears in the Goblet of Fire. (updated Dec 2016)

• 5 Alnwick Castle, Northumberland. Used as exteriors for Hogwarts School. (updated Dec 2016)

• 6 Goathland Station, North York Moors. A station on the preserved North Yorkshire Moors Railway, appears as Hogsmeade station. (updated Dec 2016)
• 7 Gloucester Cathedral (Cathedral Church of St Peter and the Holy and Indivisible Trinity), 12 College Green, Gloucester GL1 2LX (Gloucester), ☏ +44 1452 528095, reception@gloucestercathedral.org.uk. Completed in 1499, this Gothic building has a beautiful design and heritage. In popular culture, the cathedral is well known for being used for filming in several of the Harry Potter movies. Free.  
• 8 Christ Church, University of Oxford, St Aldate's, Oxford OX1 1DP (Oxford), ☏ +44 1865 276492, tourism@chch.ox.ac.uk. One of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford, founded in 1546. The staircase in front of the Hall was used as a filming location for the staircase leading to the Great Hall of Hogwarts in the films. While not actually used for the filming, the Hall itself served as the inspiration for design of the Great Hall of Hogwarts set for the films. £7.  
• 9 New College, University of Oxford, Holywell St, Oxford OX1 3BN (Oxford), ☏ +44 1865 279253 (summer), +44 1865 279555 (winter). 11am - 5pm. Despite its name, the New College is actually one of the older constituent colleges of the University of Oxford, and was founded in 1379. The cloisters of the college were used to film some of the Hogwarts cloisters scenes in the movies. £4.  
• 10 King's Cross Railway Station, Euston Rd, Kings Cross, London N1 9AL (London), ☏ +44 20 7431-4001, info@cp-plus.co.uk. The station where Harry and his friends boarded the train to Hogwarts. Of course, platform 9 ¾ does not actually exist, and the filming was actually done between platforms 4 and 5, as the real platforms 9 and 10 are separated by tracks. The magical entrance to platform 9 ¾ has been recreated at the station entrance for fans to have their photos taken, but figure on spending at least 2 hours in the queue with throngs of other fans. A Harry Potter souvenir shop is also located in the station for fans to purchase memorabilia. The exterior shots in the film were not filmed using the real King's Cross Railway Station, but rather were filmed using the adjacent St Pancras Railway Station, which is far more elaborate and impressive than the relatively plain King's Cross. free.  
• 11 Millennium Bridge, City of London/Southbank, London, SE1 9JE. Pedestrian bridge across the River Thames. In Half-Blood Prince it is attacked by Death Eaters and collapses. free. (updated Feb 2017)
• 12 Lacock Abbey, Lacock, Chippenham, SN15 2LG. A former Augustinian nunnery in the county of Wiltshire whose cloisters were used for the filming of some of the Hogwarts cloisters scenes in the movies. Some of the rooms were also used to film some of the Hogwarts classroom scenes. free.  
• 13 Malham Cove (Malham). Several scenes in the first Deathly Hallow film were shot on the limestone pavement here. free.  
• 14 Hardwick Hall, Doe Lea, Chesterfield S44 5QJ (Chesterfield). Used for the exterior shots for Malfoy Manor in the Deathly Hallows films, albeit in a digitally altered form. £15.15 (adult), £7.60 (child).  
• 15 Freshwater West. The beach that stood in for the "Cornish" beach that Dobby transported Harry and his friends escaped to from Malfoy Manor in the first Deathly Hallows, where Dobby in died in Harry's arms and was later buried. free.  
• 16 Cliffs of Moher. In Half-Blood Prince the cliffs are shown as the location of the horcrux cave. (updated Aug 2019)

Edinburgh inspiration

J.K. Rowling lived in Edinburgh while writing many of the books, and several locations in the city may have provided inspiration, especially around the historic Old Town.

• 17 The Elephant House, 21 George IV Bridge. This cafe claims to be the "birthplace of Harry Potter". Rowling wrote much of the early books in here. (updated Feb 2018)
• 18 Spoon Café Bistro, 6A Nicolson Street, EH8 9DH. Previously Nicolson's Cafe, another location where Rowling wrote the first book. (updated Feb 2017)
• 19 The Balmoral Hotel, 1 Princes Street, ☏ +44 131 556-2414, reservations.balmoral@roccofortehotels.com. Luxury hotel, overlooking Waverley Station. Rowling stayed here in 2007 while writing Deathly Hallows, the last book in the series. It is possible to stay in that room, number 552, now named the "J.K. Rowling Suite".  
• 20 Greyfriars Kirkyard (Off the Southwest corner of George IV Bridge, close to the National Museum). Historic graveyard and church, close to The Elephant House cafe. It contains the grave of Thomas Riddell, which may have provided the name of Voldemort. Nearby is the grave of the poet William McGonagall, who Professor Minerva McGonagall was named after. Also famous for the story of Greyfriars Bobby.  
• 21 George Heriot's School, Lauriston Place, ☏ +44 131 229-7263, enquiries@george-heriots.com. Prestigious private school in the city centre, may have been inspiration for Hogwarts. The Gothic-style building has several impressive towers. It is not open to the public, but can be viewed from Lauriston Place or Greyfriar's Kirkyard. (updated Feb 2017)
• 22 Victoria Street (Between George IV Bridge and the Grassmarket). A curved cobbled street, with tall buildings and a variety of colourful shops, cafes and pubs. It may be the basis for Diagon Alley. (updated Feb 2017)
• 23 J. K. Rowling Handprints (City Chambers quadrangle, off the Royal Mile). In 2008, Rowling was presented with the Edinburgh Award, from the city council. In honour of this, a cast was taken of her handprints, and set in stone in front of the city chambers. (updated Feb 2017)

Learn

Parseltongue, the language spoken by the various characters when talking to snakes, is, perhaps surprisingly, not just gibberish but an actual language that was constructed by University of Cambridge linguistics professor Francis Nolan for the films. Given the limited amount of Parseltongue dialogue in the film, the vocabulary is, of course limited, but there are nevertheless several Harry Potter fan groups who have dedicated significant resources towards learning and studying the language, and several online translators to Parseltongue are available. As snakes do not know how to write, there is, of course, no written language for Parseltongue.

See also

J. K. Rowling maintains a web-site dedicated to the Harry Potter universe with several fun activities to keep fans occupied.