Fans of Game of Thrones have been flocking to Northern Ireland for some years now to see the filming locations for the hugely popular TV series – and more recently to experience the sensational Game of Thrones Studio Tour. But where was the exciting new prequel House of the Dragon filmed? We can show your clients the memorable locations used in the hit TV series.

Emma D’Arcy as Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen and Matt Smith as Prince Daemon Targaryen, Holywell Bay, Cornwall (photo by Ollie Upton/HBO)

When House of the Dragon premiered in August 2022, broadcaster HBO announced that it was the largest audience for a series debut in the service’s history, with 10 million viewers in the US alone. In the UK, the opening episode attracted over 4 million viewers – the biggest ever series premiere on Sky Atlantic.

Most of the series was filmed within the confines of Leavesden Studio in Hertfordshire, just 20 miles north of London, one of the largest film studios in the UK and home to Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter. However, House of the Dragon also used a number of outside locations across England, as well as in Spain and Portugal.

UK filming locations centred on popular tourist destinations Cornwall and Devon, as well as Derbyshire in central England, and Hampshire in the south.

St Michael’s Mount, Cornwall

Magical St Michael’s Mount in Cornwall

The rocky little Cornish island of St Michael’s Mount was used as the location for High Tide castle, the ancestral seat of House Velaryon on the island of Driftmark. St Michael’s Mount, with its medieval church and castle, is a much-loved tourist attraction on the south coast of Cornwall which can be reached by causeway at low tide.

Holywell Bay, Cornwall

Sunset at Holywell Bay in Cornwall

Holywell Bay, with its vast golden sands backed by grassy dunes, was perfect for many of the sweeping exterior shots in House of the Dragon and is the setting for Stepstones. The awe-inspiring north Cornwall beach is known as Poldark’s Beach, as it featured heavily in the BBC period drama, and was also used as a location for the James Bond movie Die Another Day. The view from the beach is distinctive due to the large rocks which guard the entrance to the bay.

Kynance Cove, Cornwall

One of the world’s most beautiful beaches, with its white sand and turquoise waters, Kynance Cove is situated on the Lizard Peninsula in Cornwall, the most southerly part of mainland Britain. Probably the most photographed and painted location in Cornwall, the contrast between the cove’s white sandy beach and its dark red and green serpentine rock is breathtaking. Kynance Cove appears in House of the Dragon as a Velaryon Camp and was the setting for the War of the Stepstones.

Hartland Quay, Devon

Steve Toussaint as Lord Corlys Velaryon at Hartland Quay (photo by Ollie Upton/HBO)

Located on the Atlantic coast of Devon, close to the border with Cornwall, Hartland Quay is a former harbour and boasts some of England’s roughest seas in winter. During filming of House of the Dragon, large crowds of costumed actors were seen on the hills and cliffs around the bay. The funeral of Queen Aemma Arryn and her son Crown Prince Baelon was shot in the hills around the nearby village of Hartland, in the heart of Dartmoor National Park.

Eldon Hill, Peak District

The Peak District National Park is well worth visiting on any trip to England, for its unspoilt scenery, rugged hills and lush valleys. The Stepstone's battle against the Triarchy forces led by the Crabfeeder was filmed at the Eldon Hill Quarry and the area around Eldon Hill also formed the broken landscape of Dragonpit.

Cave Dale, Castleton, Derbyshire

Cave Dale, a valley in the Peak District, close to Castleton in Derbyshire, was used to film the scene in The Vale in the fifth episode of the first series, with Castleton itself depicting the Vale of Arryn. The Peak District was the first designated National Park in England and Wales and offers miles of unspoilt countryside for walkers to explore. It is noted for its limestone features and extensive cave networks.

The magnificent Peak District

Caesar’s Camp, Hampshire

The unforgettable tournament in the first episode of House of the Dragon was shot at Caesar’s Camp, an Iron Age hill fort near Aldershot in Hampshire, just over 40 miles from London. Caesar’s Camp offers wonderful walking opportunities and the views are incredible.

Further afield, in Spain, the historic towns of Caceres and Trujillo were used to represent Kings Landing in the series. The medieval town of Monsanto in Portugal, as well as the nearby castle of Penha Garcia, were also used for filming. If you would like to extend a UK location tour to include these fantastic places in Europe too, we can help!

As filming for the second series starts, the popularity of House of the Dragon and the whole Game of Thrones franchise shows no sign of waning, and we’re sure many of your clients will enjoy visiting the memorable locations used for filming. We can put together the perfect tailor-made location tour which includes all of the main sites in England and Northern Ireland, as well as in other parts of Europe. Please do contact our friendly team for more information.