To all the Harry Potter fans…
Welcome to the world of Harry Potter fans! These are people who eat, drink and sleep Harry Potter (I mean this in an innocent way, kindly do not take otherwise!). They are the ones who have read all the Harry Potter books countless times, seen Harry Potter movies over and over again till their family got sick of them, been to every possible Harry Potter themed restaurants, bought HP stationary, own at least one HP keychain and have bought endless t-shirts of the spectacled, unruly haired wizard. If you’re getting excited reading this, you are definitely one of them! Since you’ve done all possible stuff that you can while still in India, how about going even further and visiting the locations where the iconic Harry Potter movies were shot? Would that fit into your travel plan?
Plan a trip to the United Kingdom, and include the below locations in your itinerary, to enter the magical world of Harry, Ron & Hermione!
King’s Cross Station, London:
The most popular and the most visited location is of King’s Cross station which is the iconic platform 9 ¾ where Harry makes his way to The Hogwarts Express. Remember the only way to get to Hogwarts is the Hogwarts express and getting to the platform of the Hogwarts express is no child’s play! Situated in the arched wall between platforms 9, 10 and 11, the disappearing trolley provides the perfect picture opportunity for all the Harry Potter fans.
Alnwick Castle, Northumberland
Remember the shots where Harry and his classmates took their flying lessons with Madame Hooch. The scenes were shot outside the Alnwick castle. Alnwick castle is very famous in Hollywood and many other Hollywood movies too are shot here. It is home to the Duke of Northumberland and his family. It is the second largest inhabited castle in England after Windsor Castle.
So famous has become this place now that the castle now offers a whole lot of magical activities including Broomstick Training classes in summer. So would you like to try one and get a chance to join the Quidditch team?
Christ Church College, Oxford:
The Hogwarts hall in the film is the Great Hall of the Christ Church College. And don’t forget to take a photo on the 16th-century staircase, where Harry and the rest of the freshers are greeted by Professor McGonagall. As you wander around in the college, you will see many places where the Harry Potter scenes were screened.
Australia House, London:
Remember Gringotts Wizarding Bank, the only Bank of the wizarding world? The beautiful marble columns and chandeliers that it showcased. This is in fact Australia House in central London. The Exhibition Hall of this house was used as the interior of Gringotts bank.
London Zoo, London:
This is the place where it all began. This is where Harry Potter realises that he is not a common school boy as the snakes speak with him. Err… that won’t happen to you in real life but nonetheless you can still enjoy the Reptile house in the zoo, and imagine the boa constrictors talking back to you about its life in Brazil!
The Warner Bros. Studio, Leavesden:
This is truly the Mecca for all the Harry Potter lovers. All the movies have been shot in these studios. If you take the tour of this studio, you would get to see the sets, the costumes and the props used in the movie. Also they explain you how the special effects and the scenes are shot. A real treat for any HP lover!
There are several other locations as well where the movies are shot. A single blog definitely won’t be enough to cover them all.
So a shout out to all the Harry Potter fans, how many of you have seen these places? And how did you feel on seeing them in real life? And honestly, how many of you are checking the cost of a trip to the UK at this instant, to check if you can afford to go there any time soon!!
Did you check our travel suggestions for Croatia – Game of thrones travel? Do not miss it too!