Where Was Skyfall Filmed? London, Turkey and Scotland

Skyfall (2012) was filmed mainly in London, with other stops in Istanbul, Fethiye and Karaisalı in Turkey, and Glencoe in the Scottish Highlands. Sam Mendes' Bond film has 16 mapped filming locations, and London stands in for several places the story places elsewhere, including Shanghai and the MI6 headquarters. This guide goes stop by stop through the scene shot at each one and what you can realistically see today. It starts with the Scottish Highlands and Turkey, then covers the London cluster. Exact map pins are in the Go On Set app.

In this guide

Skyfall estate road Glencoe

The Scottish Road runs through Glen Etive near Glencoe in the Highlands, a 25-kilometer (15-mile) single-track route toward Loch Etive with the Buachaille Etive Mor ridge as backdrop. This is where M stands with Bond looking over the family estate. She asks what he remembers about the night his parents died, though she already knows the answers. Later Bond stands alone along the road, taking in his childhood home. It is the film's emotional core, and it is a public road in open country.

Grand Bazaar rooftop chase

The Grand Bazaar in Istanbul is the largest covered market in Türkiye, dating to the 15th century. Bond chases Patrice across its rooftops in a bid to recover a stolen hard drive, working through narrow paths and obstacles while the market runs on below. Daniel Craig and Ola Rapace play the chase.

Train viaduct fight

The Varda Viaduct is a stone arch railway bridge in the Karaisalı district of southern Turkey, built by German engineers for the Baghdad Railway. It sits 63 kilometers from Adana Central Station. Bond and Patrice fight on top of a moving train here while Eve (Naomie Harris) tries to find a clear shot. On M's orders she fires, and Bond drops into the river below.

Istanbul hotel street

The Orientbank Hotel Istanbul occupies the former Deutsche Orientbank building in the Eminönü district. The 1900s exterior is preserved, and the hotel has a copper terrace dome. In the film, Bond leaves a hotel on M's orders after finding a wounded MI6 agent and realizing the hard drive is gone. Bill Buckhurst appears alongside Craig and Judi Dench.

Bond's tropical island beach

Calis Beach is a resort district of Fethiye on Turkey's southwest coast, with sand and pebble stretches and views toward the islands of the Gulf of Fethiye. After faking his death, Bond walks the shore toward a beach bar. A CNN report interrupts his drink and tells him his time off is over. It is the only scene here where Craig is on screen alone.

Q and the London art gallery

The National Gallery sits on Trafalgar Square in Westminster. Founded in 1824, it holds more than 2,300 paintings dated from the mid-13th century to 1900. Bond meets his new Quartermaster here for the first time. Q (Ben Whishaw) hands over a ticket to Shanghai, a radio locator and a Walther PPK that only Bond can fire, thanks to its palm-print sensor. Visit the galleries as you would any museum.

Memorial Hall Greenwich

The Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich was designed by Sir Christopher Wren on the grounds of the former Greenwich Palace. Here it plays the Memorial Hall, where M (Judi Dench) pays her respects to the agents and staff killed in the attack on MI6. It is a quiet scene, and the baroque riverside estate suits it.

Ponte Vauxhall

Vauxhall Bridge is a steel and granite deck arch bridge across the Thames between Vauxhall and Pimlico. M and Bill Tanner (Rory Kinnear) hurry toward MI6 after learning someone has hacked the system through M's office computer. Then the explosion rips through the upper floors of the headquarters. The bridge is open to the public.

Vehicle entrance to MI6

Smithfield Market is officially London Central Markets, the largest wholesale meat market in the UK, in three listed buildings. After the bombing, Bond is driven to the new underground MI6 offices for a physical and mental evaluation. It is a working market, so exterior views are the realistic option.

MI6 training facility

The Old Vic Tunnels were disused railway tunnels beneath Waterloo station, about 2,787 square meters (30,000 square feet), used as an arts venue from 2009. Bond tests his marksmanship here under Tanner's supervision, trying to prove he is still fit for 00 duty. The venue closed in March 2013, so this stop is for completists only.

British Intelligence and Security Offices

The Four Seasons Hotel London opened in 1922 as the headquarters of the Port of London Authority and was later turned into a hotel. It looks out over Tower Bridge and the Tower of London. Several scenes happen here: Bond drives M away after the attempt on her life, Silva enters disguised as a police officer, and M later meets Gareth Mallory (Ralph Fiennes) about the missing hard drive of undercover agents.

Bond's garage

Bond's Garage was filmed in a New Cross alley, a residential area of south-east London near Goldsmiths, University of London, and Telegraph Hill Park. Knowing government cars can be traced, Bond takes M to a garage and reveals the Aston Martin DB5 he has kept in reserve. Craig and Dench share the scene.

Shanghai Office Building

Broadgate Tower, completed in 2008, is a skyscraper in the City of London financial district. The film uses it as a Shanghai office block, where Patrice looks for a vantage point for his next assassination and Bond follows close behind. Look at it from the Broadgate public plazas.

Rooftop swimming pool

The Virgin Active Canary Riverside Club is a fitness club on the Thames in Canary Wharf. Bond takes a late-night swim in the rooftop pool while waiting for Patrice to arrive in Shanghai, then relaxes at the poolside before the confrontation. As a working club, it is a stop for the exterior.

Westminster Station chase

Westminster Station serves the Circle, District and Jubilee lines. After Silva escapes custody and causes a crash in the Underground, Bond realizes M is his next target and races across the city, finally pushing through this station. Javier Bardem and Dench are credited on the sequence. You can pass through as a normal passenger.

London rooftop

The MI6 rooftop is in Westminster, among the government buildings of Whitehall. On the rooftop of the new MI6 headquarters, Bond looks over London and thinks about the future without M. It is the closing rooftop scene of the film. The building is best seen from the street.

How to plan the visit

Group by area. Westminster and Whitehall hold the National Gallery, Westminster Station and the MI6 rooftop. Vauxhall Bridge is a short ride away.
The City of London covers Broadgate Tower, Smithfield Market and the Four Seasons Hotel, all easy to see in one trip. The Old Vic Tunnels are in the Waterloo area but are closed.
Canary Wharf, Greenwich and New Cross are all in east and south-east London, so plan them as a separate trip.
Istanbul: the Grand Bazaar and the Orientbank Hotel are both in the old city, so they can be combined. The viaduct, the beach and Glencoe each need their own trip.
Several London stops are working offices, hotels, markets or a private club, and Bond's Garage is in a residential neighborhood. Stay on public ground, keep noise down and do not enter private areas.
Exact pins for every stop are in the Go On Set app.

Quick answers

Where was Skyfall filmed?

Mostly in London, with other locations in Istanbul, Fethiye and Karaisalı in Turkey and Glencoe in Scotland.

How many Skyfall filming locations are there?

This guide covers 16: 11 in London, 3 in Turkey plus Istanbul's two sites, and 1 in Scotland. In total, there are 11 London stops, 4 in Turkey and 1 in Scotland.

Where was the Q and Bond scene filmed?

It was filmed at the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square, Westminster.

Can you visit the Skyfall filming locations?

Many are public: the National Gallery, Vauxhall Bridge, Westminster Station and the Scottish road in Glen Etive. The Old Vic Tunnels closed in March 2013, and others like the offices, market and fitness club are exterior views only.