Review: Harry Potter Bus Tour of London Locations

Although most of the Harry Potter films were shot at Leavesden Studios, the production team used locations all throughout London. And now, with the help of Brit Movie Tours, you can visit those locations, too!

The bus tour is two and a half hours long, but the time will quickly pass as you’re whisked around central London. There are five opportunities to leave the bus and see locations up-close, but on particularly cold days you can still see the sights from the comfort of the heated bus.

We stopped at Great Scotland Yard (Visitor’s Entrance to the Ministry of Magic), the Millennium Bridge (which collapses in the Half-Blood Prince), and Borough Market and Leadenhall Market (both of which were entrances to the Leaky Cauldron).

We also drove past Claremont Square (12 Grimmauld Place), Australia House (Gringotts), St. Paul’s Cathedral (the Divination stairwell), and Lambeth Bridge (included inPrisoner of Azkaban). Our tour ended at King’s Cross station, where our guide showed us to Platform 9 ¾ and gave us some suggestions on how to spend the rest of our day.

While we drove between locations, our very knowledgeable guide, Nicola, told us about the behind-the-scenes of the films as well as London’s history, so there wasn’t a dull moment. The bus also had two TV screens, which our guide used to show clips from the films before and after every stop. This was useful if you haven’t seen the films recently, and if you bring along friends or family who aren’t Potter nuts, they’ll still have fun, too. Our guide also pointed out non-Potter sights like the Monument to the Great Fire of London, the London Eye, and the Bank of England, so if it’s your first time visiting London, you’ll get a taste of what the city has to offer.

If you’re visiting London, this tour is a fantastic opportunity to see some of London’s historic landmarks. If you’re a Harry Potter fanatic, you’ll be able to literally walk in the footsteps of the actors and see some of the film’s most famous locations.

You can book a Harry Potter tour, or one of the many other tours that Brit Movie Tours has to offer, here.