Calling all Potterheads! Today I want to share my top picks for Harry Potter locations in London with you. The city not only featured in the novels, but it was also used as a backdrop for many scenes in the movies. Whether you want to see Platform 9 3/4, Diagon Alley, or the Ministry of Magic, you can find it in London. My list has the best spots. I’ve included a map of all of them, too.
Harry Potter Locations in London
From the stunning sight of Leadenhall Market to the theater showing the play about the cursed child, London has an abundance of Harry Potter sites to discover. Seeing them is a great way to experience the magic of the books and movies for yourself.
If you want to find them all in one go, my free self-guided Harry Potter walking tour is a great way to (quite literally) step into the wizarding world and discover the secret lanes and hidden spaces of J.K. Rowling’s creation.
If you want to take a guided tour, GetYourGuide offers a number of fun Harry Potter walking tours in London. I’ve done walks with them in the past, and I’ve always had a good time. You can see options and book a tour here.
You can also book a trip to the Warner Bros Studio Tour – The Making of Harry Potter to see where the movies were made. I’ve done it before, and I highly recommend going. The sets are fun to see in person, and it’s an easy trip from London. You can book a tour here.
Harry Potter Sites
If you want to stay in London, there’s still plenty to see. I’ll group my list geographically so you can visit the sites that are close to you if you’re limited on time. The map below can help with that, too.
Pimlico
I’ll start my list with the Georgian House Hotel. Centrally located in Pimlico near Victoria station, this historic Grade II-listed townhouse is known for its Harry Potter-themed rooms. It’s a great place to stay while you discover the city’s magical highlights.
The individually-designed Wizard Chambers and Enchanted Chambers have stone walls, stained-glass windows, archways, trunks, cauldrons in fireplaces, four-poster beds with thick curtains, and a variety of magical paraphernalia.
If that’s not reason enough for a Potterhead to call this place Hogwarts-away-from-home, the hotel also offers an enchanted Wizard Afternoon Tea, potion classes in its Pimlico Pantry, and other spellbinding experiences.
If a Harry Potter-themed hotel in London sounds like your glass of butterbeer, you can book your stay here.
Westminster, Lambeth & Whitehall
Since it’s a popular area to visit and it’s not far from Pimlico, I’ll continue my list in Westminster. The tube station here featured in the movie Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Harry and Arthur Weasley navigate the tube barriers before heading to his hearing at the Ministry of Magic.
Not far away, Lambeth Bridge was used as a filming location in the movie Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. It’s where the purple triple-decker bus squeezes through a narrow gap between two London buses, and where Harry boards the Knight Bus that zooms around London.
Just up the road from Westminster is Whitehall, where Downing Street is another famous Harry Potter site. You can peer through the gates to see Number 10, a house that’s been the Prime Minister’s residence since 1735.
In the Harry Potter books, the muggle Prime Minister holds meetings in his office here with his wizarding counterparts to discuss issues of great national importance.
Just up the road from Downing Street, Horse Guards Avenue was used as the filming location for the staff entrance of the Ministry of Magic in the movie Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1.
Not far away, Great Scotland Yard stood in for the visitors’ entrance to the Ministry of Magic in the films Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1.
Trafalgar Square & Piccadilly Circus
Great Scotland Yard is near Trafalgar Square. This famous public space is home to the National Gallery and Nelson’s Column.
Trafalgar Square was where the world premiere of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 took place. Stars like Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson walked down the red carpet here.
Down the road from Trafalgar Square is the eye-catching facade of Australia House, the longest continuously-occupied diplomatic mission in the United Kingdom. Scenes from Gringotts Wizarding Bank were filmed inside this Grade II-listed building.
Northwest of Trafalgar Square is Piccadilly Circus. This famous place is where Harry, Ron, and Hermione apparate after fleeing the attack on Bill and Fleur’s wedding in the movie Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1. They have to jump out of the way and run to avoid being hit by a bus.
Covent Garden
Just east of Piccadilly Circus, you’ll find Cecil Court. This pedestrianized lane in Covent Garden is packed with antiquarian bookshops and other treasure troves. It’s rumored that it was used as a model for Diagon Alley in the books.
Another place that was thought to inspire Diagon Alley (or Knockturn Alley, the shopping street off Diagon Alley that was lined with stores devoted to the Dark Arts) is Goodwin’s Court. The historic brick facades in this narrow Georgian passageway will transport you back in time.
Soho
Just north of Goodwin’s Court is Cambridge Circus in Soho. You’ll spot the Palace Theatre on the northwest corner. It’s the home of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, a popular play that continues the story of Harry’s life.
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is set 19 years after the events of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. It revolves around Harry’s relationship with Albus Severus, his son.
Not far from Cambridge Circus is Tottenham Court Road. This thoroughfare is where Harry, Ron, and Hermione are sitting at a cafe in the novel Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows when Ron says the word “Voldemort” and accidentally unveils their location to the Death Eaters.
London Zoo
Up in Regent’s Park, another famous Harry Potter location in London is the zoo. In Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, Harry and the Dursleys go to the zoo. While there, Harry talks to a Burmese python in Parseltongue.
In the film adaptation, the scene is shot in the Reptile House at the London Zoo. While the actual enclosure where it was filmed is home to the zoo’s black mamba, the scene is still important in that it’s where Harry first discovers his ability to communicate with snakes.
King’s Cross
There’s another cluster of Harry Potter locations in and around King’s Cross. The eye-catching St Pancras station was used as a filming location in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.
When Harry and Ron can’t get to Platform 9 3/4, they fly a Ford Anglia to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry instead. As they lift off and start their journey, the facade of St Pancras serves as a backdrop to their adventure.
But the real Harry Potter highlight in this part of London is King’s Cross station. The barrier between platforms 9 and 10 is home to a disappearing luggage trolley and a sign that says “Platform 9 3/4”.
It marks the spot where Harry and his classmates entered the wizarding world to take the Hogwarts Express train to school.
That’s not all. Right next to Platform 9 3/4 is a famous Harry Potter shop. After taking a photo with the luggage trolley you can browse for souvenirs from Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin.
Clerkenwell
Just down Pentonville Road from King’s Cross station is Claremont Square in Clerkenwell. It was used as the filming location for 12 Grimmauld Place in the movies Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1.
12 Grimmauld Place was the ancestral home of the family of Sirius Black, Harry’s godfather. The house also served as the headquarters of the Order of Phoenix. It was unique in that it was invisible due to the Fidelius Charm, a spell that concealed its location.
City of London
There are more famous Harry Potter locations in the City of London. The best-known is Leadenhall Market.
This Victorian covered market stood in for Diagon Alley in the movie Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. The entrance to The Leaky Cauldron pub was an optician’s shop in the market’s Bull’s Head Passage.
Another famous Harry Potter filming location in this part of London is St Paul’s Cathedral. The church stood in for Hogwarts in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.
The spiral staircase the students took to get to Professor Trelawney’s Divination class was really the Dean’s Staircase in the church (also called the Geometric Staircase). If you want to go inside to see it, you can book tickets to St Paul’s Cathedral here.
Just south of St Paul’s Cathedral is the Millennium Bridge. It stood in for Brockdale Bridge in the opening scenes of the movie Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. A band of Death Eaters targets the bridge as they wreak destruction on London.
Borough
Across the Thames, another famous Harry Potter site in London is Borough Market. This is the city’s most famous food market, and it’s worth a special trip.
Borough Market was used as a filming location for the entrance to The Leaky Cauldron pub in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. The facade that featured in the film is that of Chez Michele, a (now closed) flower shop.
London Bridge
Not far from Borough Market, there are more filming locations along the river in London Bridge. One is the HMS Belfast, a navy warship that made a brief appearance in the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
As Harry and other members of the order fly on broomsticks from 4 Privet Drive to 12 Grimmauld Place, they pass over the river in London. On the way they go by the iconic ship.
Just east of the HMS Belfast, you’ll find yourself in front of Tower Bridge. This eye-catching feat of Victorian engineering featured in the same scene from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix where Harry and his companions fly over the Thames.
Harry Potter London Locations Map
As promised, I’ve created an interactive map of all the Harry Potter locations I mentioned in this blog post. You can find it here. If you click on the pins, you can see my relevant blog posts about each one. I hope it helps you plan a magical sightseeing expedition.
Harry Potter Sites
I hope my list of Harry Potter locations in London has made you look forward to seeing places from the books and movies in real life. It’s a fun way to explore the city and experience J.K. Rowling’s magical world firsthand.
If you haven’t read the novels or watched the films, you can get the books here and the movies here. Even if you’ve read and seen them, it’s worth reviewing them before you visit so they’re fresh in your mind when you get to them.
If you want more ideas, you can take a look at my list of magical places to visit in the UK. From ancient stones to whimsical villages, there are lots of fun destinations to discover.
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