Harry Potter's London

On arrival to London you will be met in the arrival hall by your driver who will be holding a Meet & Greet Board, you will then be transferred to your central London Hotel, where you can check in and relax, or start exploring your Harry Potter film sites.

Majestic London Tour. Full Day.

This tour starts and finishes at Victoria Station, which is 2 minutes from your hotel. (08.45 to 17.30).  First-class luxury Motor-coach and the services of a professional Tour guide, this can be done as a Private Tour also!

Westminster Abbey and Parliament Square

The tour begins with a panoramic drive around parliament Square, to see Westminster Abbey, where many of our Kings, Queens, Statesmen, poets and writers are buried. See Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament.

London's West End, Buckingham Palace and the Changing of the Guard

Enjoy a fascinating panoramic tour, seeing Trafalgar Square, Downing Street, London's Theatre District and Piccadilly Circus.

Then to Buckingham Palace to see the colourful ceremony of the Changing of the Guard. We will then have a chance to enjoy lunch at a traditional London Pub.

St Paul's Cathedral

A guided tour of Sir Christopher Wren's masterpiece – St Paul's Cathedral - crowned by the magnificent dome that is so much a part of the London skyline. The Cathedral was rebuilt after the Great Fire of London in 1666. In recent years it has seen the wedding of Charles, Prince of Wales, to Lady Diana Spencer and, most recently, the thanksgiving services for both the Golden Jubilee and 80th Birthday of Her Majesty the Queen.

The Tower of London and Crown Jewels and Thames River Cruise

Founded by William the Conqueror in 1066-7 and enlarged by successive sovereigns, the Tower of London is one of the world's most famous and spectacular fortresses. Over the past 1000 years it has been a Royal Palace, an armoury and a place of imprisonment and execution. The Beefeaters who guard the Tower will regale you with stories of its past. We will visit the Crown Jewels, including the magnificent solid-gold crown used at the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, the enormous Cullinan diamonds and the extraordinary Koh-i-Noor.

You have the choice to take the River Cruise and end your tour at Westminster Pier, or take the cruise on another day and go with your guide back to Victoria Station.

* Occasionally there may not be a Changing of the Guard, on these occasions we will visit Horse guards Parade.

Sunday in London - Due to church services, St Paul's Cathedral is closed to visitors on Sunday. We will stop for photographs and spend longer in the Tower of London.

Take yourselves on this prepared Self-Guided Tour of London Harry Potter Sights.

Optional:  Upgrade and include a Blue Badge Guide

So whether you’ve memorized the books, seen the films, or proudly own every bit of Potter paraphernalia around – you can now dive into the magical world of Harry Potter! This particular route will focus on film sites to the north part of London, so grab your travel card, lace up your trainers (or grab your broom!) and follow the tour...  We have broken this town into 3 days but you can of course adjust to your preference!

START: Liverpool Street Station

Take the Exit for Bishopsgate and when you step out of the station, turn RIGHT onto Bishopsgate. Continue walking in this direction until you reach Leadenhall Street and turn LEFT. Take the first RIGHT into Leadenhall Market.

STOP 1 – Leadenhall – Diagon Alley/Leaky Cauldron 1

Leadenhall Market has sat in this location since the 14th century! However, most of what you can see today dates from the late 1800’s and served as another filming location for Diagon Alley and the Leaky Cauldron.

In Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, this is the location that was used for the filming of Diagon Alley. In fact, at 42 Bull’s Head Passage you will spot a storefront for an optician.

However, this shop front – painted blue – was used to serve as the entrance to the Leaky Cauldron in the first Harry Potter film.  

 Take either Ship Tavern Passage or Bull’s Head Passage onto Gracechurch Street and turn LEFT. When the road ends and runs into Monument Station/Boots the Chemist, continue FORWARD veering slightly RIGHT to walk pass Boots. This will take you to King William Street which will then turn into London Bridge.

Continue across the River Thames. The bridge will turn into London Bridge Road, and continue to walk FORWARD. The road will begin to curve toward the RIGHT. Stay on the right side and then turn RIGHT onto Stoney Street. Walk until you get to Number 7.

STOP 2 – Borough Market, 7A Stoney Street Diagon Alley/Leady Cauldron 2

In the muggle world, this shop is a charming florist with a prime location in the historic and popular Borough Market. But in the world of Harry Potter, this is actually the entrance to the Leaky Cauldron, as seen in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

It is just outside of this shop that the Knight Bus slams to a halt and drops Harry off (via Palmers Green and Lambeth) just outside the pub on Diagon Alley, setting off a car alarm in the process!

The interior shots of the Leaky Cauldron were filmed on a soundstage, however, so it’s just the facade that was used during filming.  

From here, continue walking down Stoney Street until the road dead-ends at Clink Street. Turn LEFT and follow the path which will take you to the banks of the River Thames. Walk along the river until you get to the Tate Modern Museum. From here you walk onto Millennium Bridge.

STOP 3 – Millennium Bridge – Site of Death Eater Attack

Watch out for Death Eaters as you make your way from the North to the South bank of the Thames over the Millennium Bridge. Originally intended to be opened in the year 2000, the bridge was not structurally sound and it had to be closed for a further 2 more years.

From 2002 it remained in place, spanning the river until a gang of Death Eaters battled on top of it and completely destroyed the entire structure! Well…in the Harry Potter universe that is.

This bridge served as one of the scenes of the dramatic air-borne broomstick battle in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.            

Walk across Millennium Bridge. When you get to the other side take the stairs onto the Thames Path running underneath the bridge. Standing under the bridge and facing the River Thames, walk to the RIGHT. Continue walking, keeping the River on your left until you reach Temple Underground Station.

Turn RIGHT and walk past the entrance of Temple Station and up the stone steps. Continue going in that direction up Arundel Street. At the top of the street, on the right, is the Australian Embassy.

STOP 4 – Australia House Gringotts Wizarding Bank

The longest continuously occupied diplomatic mission in the U.K. (and built entirely with marble shipped all the way from Australia), Australia House served as the setting for Gringotts Wizarding Bank.

Unlike others on our list, it is the interior of this building that served as the filming set. Long rows of wooden benches and dozens of goblins working away under heavy, sparkling and cob-webbed chandeliers is the site that greets Harry as Hagrid takes him to the wizarding bank for the very first time in  Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.

The actual room used for filming is The Exhibition Room which is, unfortunately, not open to the public. A polite word with the security officers at the door may reward you with a peek through the windows, but this is not always guaranteed. 

Facing Australia House, go to the RIGHT and follow the road around the building. Take a RIGHT onto Kingsway (the largest road here). Walk along for a few minutes then take another RIGHT onto Sardinia Street. This will take you to Lincoln’s Inn Fields.

STOP 5 – Lincoln’s Inn Fields – Number 12 Grimmauld Place 1

A charming square with buildings now occupied by lawyers and surgeons, many believe that Lincoln’s Inn Fields holds the inspiration for the outside of Number 12 Grimmauld Place. Muggles may have trouble viewing the house, of course, since there are a number of charms placed on it to protect its’ exact location. However, if you take a look near number 13 you may just see a glimmer out of the corner of your eye that will clue you into the houses’ precise location.

Go to the northwest corner of Lincoln’s Inn Fields. At the junction of Lincoln’s Inn Fields and Remnant Street, keep Remnant Street on your LEFT but walk STRAIGHT. This road will turn into Gate Street and curve to the left. When you come back out onto Kingsway, make a RIGHT to Holborn Underground Station.

Here take the PICCADILLY LINE going WEST. Get off the train at PICCADILLY CIRCUS STATION. Take the SHAFTESBURY AVENUE EXIT and find a good place to stand when you walk up the steps out of the station.

STOP 6 – Piccadilly Circus – Where the Trio Go On the Run

On the run from Death Eaters at Bill and Fleur’s wedding in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Harry, Ron and Hermione apparate straight to central London. In the books, they arrive on Tottenham Court Road and go into a nearby restaurant.

For the Deathly Hallows Part, I film, however, the trio turn up right in front of a passing No. 19 bus in the middle of Piccadilly Circus (Hermione tells us “I used to come here with Mum and Dad.”). They arrive at night with Piccadilly’s world-famous electric lights on display; which lend a little magic of their own to this popular London destination! 

Just off Piccadilly Circus up Shaftesbury Avenue, you can spot a row of stone pillars that the trio walk past as Hermione explains to the boys where they are. Somewhere along this road is the cafe where the trio stops to have a rest and end up in a violent duel with Death Eaters…so mind your step!

Stand to face the Ripley’s Believe it or Not! Museum and walk to your RIGHT. The road turns into Coventry Street and leads you into Leicester Square. Walk STRAIGHT along the top of Leicester Square until you get to the main road – Charing Cross. Here turn RIGHT. Take the second LEFT onto Cecil Court. Stop here to soak up the atmosphere and then continue in the same direction until you get to St. Martin’s Lane and turn LEFT. Make the first RIGHT onto Goodwin’s Court.

STOP 7 – Cecil Court and Goodwin’s Court – The inspiration for Diagon Alley? Or…the REAL Diagon Alley?

A small alleyway just off the bustling Charing Cross Road, Cecil Court is believed by many to have been the inspiration for Diagon Alley. The Court here is lined with original Victorian shop fronts and sells a wide variety of antique books, with a few shops fittingly providing a supply of books on the subject of magic! In fact, the first shop on the right is actually called The Witch Ball!

On Cecil Court, you will also find Watkins Books which claims to be the oldest occultist and mystical bookshop in the entire world! Keen Harry Potter fans with an eagle eye may also spot a large display of Gringotts banknotes located in one of the shop windows here. It is safe to say that Cecil Court has a touch of magic to it, easily believable as the entrance into Harry’s world on Diagon Alley.

Goodwin’s Court is much smaller and the buildings are kind of wonky – giving it a surreal feeling. It’s easy to imagine that this little courtyard path could be an entrance into Harry’s magical world. Because of this, many people believe that this is the exact place Rowling was trying to recreate in the Potter books.

Harry and Hagrid walk down Charing Cross Road itself in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. Whilst Harry is on the Knight Bus in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban he travels down Charing Cross, and Ministry cars drive down the road inHarry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

Walk BACK on yourself onto St. Martin’s Lane and turn LEFT. Walk down until the road dead-ends on William IV Street and turn RIGHT. The road will dead-end back at Charing Cross and here take a LEFT. This road will take you to Trafalgar Square.

STOP 8 – Trafalgar Square – Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II Film Premiere

It was here in Trafalgar Square on the 7th of July 2011 that the final Harry Potter film began its’ premiere celebrations. On a huge stage erected near Nelson’s Column stood Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, J. K. Rowling and dozens of others who spoke to the crowd of thousands. A huge screen was erected where clips and trailers could be shown to members of the public.  

From the Square, the cast and Rowling herself then walked the world’s longest red carpet to Leicester Square where the film debuted simultaneously at three different cinemas!

Trafalgar Square is also glimpsed during the opening flight battle of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince as the Death Eaters fly over central London.

Just across the street from Nelson’s Column is a statue of King Charles I on horseback. He is facing down a long main road – Whitehall – and this is the road to walk down first. Keep Trafalgar Square BEHIND you and walk STRAIGHT AHEAD. Turn LEFT onto Great Scotland Yard and stop at the corner of Scotland Place on your RIGHT.

STOP 9 – Old Scotland Yard – The Ministry of Magic

Home to muggle politicians, Whitehall and Old Scotland Yard were used to represent the magical counterpart to our muggle organisations. Here you will find the exteriors used for the Ministry of Magic during filming for the Polyjuice potion scenes in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Shots taken here are also used for the trip that Mr. Weasley and Harry Take in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.

In the books – and the films – there is a red telephone box outside the Ministry of Magic that wizards use to access the Ministry. From the phone box, one must dial ‘62442’ and the phone booth acts as a lift, taking visitors down underneath the ground to the Ministry. The red phone box used in the film was actually a prop brought in specifically for shooting so sadly, no journeys to the Ministry can be made any longer!

Warner Bros Studio Tour...

*Experience filmmaking magic at Warner Bros. Studio Tour London - The Making of Harry Potter

*Step into the Great Hall, walk down Diagon Alley™ and visit Dumbledore’s office

*See actual costumes and props from all eight Harry Potter™ films.

*Return transport from central London departing every hour

*Watch Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone™ on board the branded bus

*Choose your departure point from Victoria, Baker Street, Kings Cross or Paddington

*Get your hands on some of the most coveted tickets around and experience the truly incredible Warner Bros. Studio Tour London. Explore grandiose sets, get up close to your favourite props and discover the craftsmanship and talent that went in to creating the iconic films.

*Your foray in to the Wizarding World begins where Harry’s did, in the cupboard under the stairs then, after an introductory video featuring some of your favourite characters, you are welcomed in to the Great Hall, set up for a feast. Here you can see the actual costumes and wigs worn by prominent members of the cast, before walking through to the first studio where you’ll find sets costumes props and Death Eaters.

The Sets

After you leave the Great Hall you’ll soon find yourself entering the Forbidden Forest through a gate flanked by masked Death Eaters, right in to the lair of Aragog. The Forbidden Forest seen in The Philosophers Stone was a mixture of location and studio shooting, whereas the Chamber of Secrets was all done in the Studio. The creepy set is complete with light and sound effects, as well as some unwelcome guests.

Move on to the iconic Platform 9¾ and walk through the Hogwarts Express, taking a look at well-known props from each film. The Hogwarts Express provided the background for the first ever shot captured for Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone and then, 10 years later, for the very last shot during Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2.

Possibly the most exciting part of the tour is Diagon Alley. We won’t give much away however; the dusty Ollivanders wand shop was home to more than 17,000 individually labelled wand boxes during the film!

The Animatronics

The terrifying Basilisk that lived within The Chamber of Secrets was created with a mix of practical and visual effects, and a full sized mouth was created, measuring 30ft long with jaws 3ft deep. An aquatronic model was also made that could slither up a track and get close to Harry. 

Buckbeak the Hippogriff, one of books most loved creatures (after Hedwig, of course), had three incarnations; one standing, another rearing and a third lying down, all with moving parts and each feather was individually glued on!

The Art Department

On your tour you’ll come across the incredible Hogwarts Castle model. A team of 86 artists and crewmembers built the first version of the castle, which was enhanced with digital effects to create the unforgettably realistic views of the school. With 2,500 fibre optic lights, which flicker to give the illusion of students walking through corridors, real gravel and plants, if you calculated all the man hours that went in to making the model, you’re talking 74 years!

Potions textbooks, acceptance letters, sweet wrappers, and the Daily Prophet were all hand designed and hand-made! All potions bottles were also all hand illustrated.

The Props

We’ve covered sets and costumes, so now on to props. There sheer volume of original props in the Studios is impressive in itself and it’s incredibly satisfying when you spot your favourite, whether it’s the Elder Wand or the Golden Snitch. Over 950 potion jars line the walls of Snape’s dungeon, each with unique props inside them and all with hand written labels.

Over 130 plates were made to decorate the startingly pink office of everyone's least favourite teacher, Professor Umbridge, which involved filmmakers having to photograph and film real kittens with crystal balls, witches hats and balls of wool. Sounds like a fun day in the office!

The Special Effects

It may come as a surprise to many fans to learn that their favourite special effects were actually real! For example the slithering door to the Chamber of Secrets is often mistaken for a visual effect but it is actually a fully operational door, as is the incredibly intricate Gringotts bank door.

As you would imagine, green screen played a huge part in creating the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Quidditch, for example would have been a tricky one to film without green screen! Why not hop on to a broom yourself and try your hand at the magical game?

Make sure you re-fuel with a tasty butter beer, just like Harry, Ron and Hermione would have done in the Leaky Cauldron.

STOP 10 – Number 10 Downing Street – Direct link to the Minister for Magic

It is inside the Prime Minister’s office that the first chapter of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince takes place. It is revealed that there is a portal from the wizarding world to that of the muggle world so that the Prime Minister of the U.K. and the Minister for Magic can occasionally speak. It is also here that Kingsley Shacklebolt works during his time as bodyguard to the Muggle Prime Minister.

Facing Downing Street, walk to your RIGHT, continuing down Whitehall. Walk straight down the road until you get to the entrance to Westminster Underground Station. Take the steps down and follow the signs to the ticket hall.

STOP 11 – Westminster Underground Station – Tube Station for Ministry of Magic

It is to Westminster Underground Station that Mr. Weasley and Harry go to when visiting the Ministry of Magic in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. At the station, Mr. Weasley struggles at the barriers, not sure how to work the exits properly – much like many of us during our first visit to London!

For the filming of this scene, Westminster Underground Station was closed for an entire day (a very rare occurrence)!

Go through the barriers and take the CIRCLE AND DISTRICT LINES going EAST. Alight at MONUMENT STATION and change trains to the NORTHERN LINE. Get the train going north and get off at Angel Station.

When you exit Angel Station you will be on the main road. Turn LEFT and walk until you get to the big traffic junction next to The Angel Pub. Cross the street SOUTH and then RIGHT so that you are on the opposite diagonal corner. Start walking with Jamie’s Italian restaurant on your left. Continue down the main road – Pentonville Road – until you get to Mylne Street. Turn LEFT here and this will take you to Claremont Square.

STOP 12- 23 – 29 Claremont Square [No. 12 Grimmauld Place 2] 

Tucked away on an unassuming street in Islington lies Claremont Square, the location of Sirius Black’s familial residence; Number 12 Grimmauld Place. The house eventually is inherited by Harry and used as the headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix. This square was used for filming on Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

The muggles that live in the square have long come to accept the mistake in numbering the buildings here, what with 11 and 13 being right next to each other. Don’t feel bad if you can’t spot Number 12, it’s kept under wraps by the Fidelius Charm, meaning only Secret-Keepers can access the building.

Get back onto Pentonville Road and turn LEFT. Continue down the road until you get to King’s Cross Station. Go through the MAIN ENTRANCE – with the brownstone – and into the atrium where the shops and the departures boards are. Once you’ve stepped into the Hall, walk STRAIGHT AHEAD. Right before you reach the edge of the station, Platform 9 ¾ will be on your RIGHT.

STOP 13 – Kings Cross [Platform 9 ¾] 

Every Potter-head knows that Platform 9 ¾ is the location of Kings Cross Station that the Hogwarts Express departs from (on the 1st of September every year) and arrives to. In fact, the very final scene in the last book/film is set right here on the most famous train platform in the world. For Harry Potter fans, a visit to London wouldn’t be complete without a visit to Kings Cross – and the station does not disappoint.

Now, owing to the layout of the station, it’s not actually possible to pass through a barrier between platforms 9 and 10. Firstly, for those muggles among us – we would never be able to see it! But the second (and more likely) reason is that there is no actual barrier between the two platforms. Fret not, however, as the designers of the new Kings Cross Station have got us covered, having installed an entrance to Platform 9 ¾ around the corner from the platforms being used for other railway traffic.

Luckily for us, the Ministry of Magic has come up with a clever way to allow visitors to experience the magic of Platform 9 ¾ as it is here that they have frozen a luggage trolley partially the way through the magical barrier. Those of us who have sought out the platform will be rewarded with an opportunity to get their photographs taken right outside the barrier.

Next to the photo opportunity is the fabulous Platform 9 ¾ shop, full of sweets and scarves, wands and wizards, books and bludgers! To check out what’s on offer inside, take a peek at their website.

FINISH: Kings Cross Station

Optional Bonus Stop – London Zoo

At Kings Cross, take the CIRCLE, HAMMERSMITH & CITY, and METROPOLITAN LINE going WEST until you get to GREAT PORTLAND STREET. When you come out of the station, cross the road ahead of you and turn LEFT. This will take you to the edge of Regent’s Park. Check out the map at the entrance of the park and follow the pathway through until you reach LONDON ZOO.

In the book Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, it is a local zoo that Harry is taken to for his cousin Dudley’s 11th birthday. At the zoo, Harry comes face-to-face (literally!) when the glass separating him from a boa constrictor disappears and the snake spills out onto the floor. Harry accidentally causes the removal of the glass as well as speaking to the snake in the rare language known as parseltongue (although Harry has no idea about this until much later on in the series).

It is the reptile house at the London Zoo that was used during the filming of this scene. This has led many people to – incorrectly – assume the Dudley family had taken Harry to London Zoo. However, when Harry travels to Diagon Alley with Hagrid for the first time, Harry tells him that he has never been to London before, which means the zoo must’ve been somewhere else. The actual tank used for filming currently holds a black mamba, although in the film the snake is said to be a Burmese python, with a strange departure from the original text.

For those who have made the effort to both get to the zoo and pay for entry, you will be rewarded with a small plaque placed inside the Reptile enclosure that commemorates the spot where the actual filming took place.

This morning after breakfast, you will be picked up from the hotel by your driver/guide for the day, who will whisk you away to the stunning city of Oxford, which on its own is historic and fantastic, but in recent years the huge success of that boy Harry Potter and his friends have added another twist to the cities huge popularity.

Explore the magical world of Harry Potter in Oxford, a fun adventure for Muggles and Wizards alike! Oxford is a great place to discover the secrets of Hogwarts and walk the same mysterious hallways Harry, Hermione and Ron once did.

Walk through the historic University City of Oxford and find the famous film locations inside the colleges that were featured in many of the early Harry Potter movies and learn about the places across the city that inspired the movies.

Bodleian Library – Divinity School: The gothic vaulted ceiling of the Divinity School was used as Hogwarts Infirmary in Harry Potter and The Philosopher’s Stone.  Can you imagine the hospital beds lined up along the walls with young Harry lying in bed after his first big confrontation with Voldemort?

Bodleian Library – Duke Humfrey’s Library: Remember when Harry walked through the Hogwarts library hidden underneath his invisibility cloak with the intention to steal a book; this scene was filmed in the Duke Humfrey’s Library, part of the Bodleian Libraries and is only accessible with a private tour.

New College Cloisters: In the movie Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry comes face to face with Malfoy who is sitting on a gigantic oak tree and where Malfoy was then turned into a ferret by Mad-Eye Moody. This particular tree nestles in the New College Cloisters.

Christ Church: Christ Church College provided the location for many Harry Potter scenes. The staircase was used to film the famous entrance scene where Professor McGonagall meets Harry, Ron and Hermione. The staircase leads then up to the Tudor Great Dining Hall which was used as an inspiration for the great Hogwarts Dining Hall. The hallways of Christ Church were also used to film the scene in which Hermione shows Harry the Quidditch trophy his father won.

But there are many more similarities between Oxford and Hogwarts to explore; did you, for example, notice the many grotesques along the walls of the college buildings, and their resemblance to the statues Professor McGonagall awakes to defend Hogwarts?

Your driver/guide will offer you some recommendations for lunch, you will return back to London around 3pm.

Sadly today is departure day, your driver will arrive at the hotel in plenty of time to transfer you to the airport, so you can check-in and get through all the checks, so you can catch your flight home or onwards.