Star Wars: 10 Locations You Could Visit in Real Life
While many of the planets visited in Star Wars look alien and galaxies away, many of the scenes were actually shot on location in various places around the world. George Lucas certainly had an eye for the otherworldly as he chose some of the most exotic places on Earth.
Star Wars fans wishing to travel the world to these locations have it easy as other dedicated fans have even created tourism maps, via wikivoyage, showing all the possible Star Wars places to visit on all of planet Earth.
10 Skellig Michael, Ireland (Luke’s Island on Ach-To)
Named after the angel Michael, Skellig quite literally translates to “splinter of stone.” Skellig Michael is a beautiful island off the coast of County Kerry, Ireland. The location was used in the sequel trilogy as Luke Skywalker’s island where he went into exile. The island is also home to puffins, which likely inspired Porgs.
While his death alone on the island is one of the worst things to happen to Luke, it’s still a really neat place to visit as the “Jedi” temples around the island are actually ancient ruins created by monks in the 6th century, according to Skellig Michael Cruises.
9 Royal Palace of Caserta, Italy (Naboo Royal Palace)
From the exterior, fans of Star Wars probably wouldn’t recognize the Caserta Palace as the Naboo Palace from the prequels. However, the inside is a completely different story. Fans who have played Star Wars Battlefront II will be familiar with the layout as only the interior of the palace was used.
Not only is the architecture just spectacular, but the palace has beautiful grounds called “The Park,” which includes five unique fountains and a botanical garden.
8 Redwood National Park, California (Forest Moon of Endor)
Redwood National Park is the location where the forest moon of Endor was shot. It is a national park preserved by the United States government. It features amazing trails where Ewoks once roamed in Return of the Jedi.
There are also beaches along the coast as the park rests next to the Pacific Ocean. Interestingly, during filming, per CultureSlate, Peter Mayhew was required to have extra security due to concerns hunters may confuse him for Bigfoot.
7 Hardanger Glacier, Norway (Hoth)
The Battle of Hoth was an unforgettable skirmish. Included in arguably the greatest entry of the whole saga, The Empire Strikes Back, Hardanger Glacier is a pretty cool place to visit. However, as its name implies, there is danger to be found.
Some areas of the glacier are not very safe to travel as it requires proper equipment and expert hiking skills. While where the battle was filmed isn’t very safe to walk on, there are other areas surrounding it that are okay to see. It’s a beautiful area that will remind anyone of Star Wars.
6 Canary Wharf Tube Station, England (Scarif Imperial Base)
While most of the Scarif scenes for Rogue One were filmed in the Maldives, some scenes for the inside of the Imperial Security Complex were filmed inside the Canary Wharf Tube Station, part of the London Underground.
Due to how busy the station is, the crew would shoot the scenes from 12-4 AM during closing hours, according to Movie-Locations. The entire station was also dressed to look more “Star Wars-y”. It’s cool how even mundane locations potentially close to home can make it into Star Wars.
5 Wadi Rum, Jordan (Jedha and Pasaana)
Wadi Rum has become a very popular filming location, featuring in many big projects as of late. Poe Dameron actor Oscar Isaac has filmed his last three major projects there; Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Dune, and Moon Knight.
Rogue One introduced audiences to the moon of Jedha, one of the oldest moons/planets in the Star Wars galaxy. Jedha has an interesting history as it was an important place for the early Jedi and another place that was rich in Kyber crystals. While Jedha had a lot of personality to it, Pasaana was pretty much just another generic desert planet.
4 Phang Nga Bay, Thailand (Kashyyyk)
Although some of Kashyyyk was created through digital trickery, much of it was also filmed on location in Phang Nga Bay near the popular tourist area of Phuket. Many Star Wars fans have said it would make a great tourist destination, and indeed it already is.
The scenes featuring the Wookiees attacking the Separatist Droids were filmed along the beach. Along the bay, there’s also several caves that can be explored and the water is pretty shallow, via Vogue. It is just the perfect beach vacation spot.
3 The Plaza de España Seville, Spain (City of Theed on Naboo)
The gorgeous Plaza de España in Sevilla was mainly used in Attack of the Clones when Padme and Anakin arrive in Naboo for protection. While its appearance is brief, the location has some of the most beautiful architecture in the world. Interestingly, the location was only built in 1928.
The square was purposely intended to look less modern with an emphasis on Baroque and Renaissance styles. It’s definitely a place worth visiting even for those not familiar with Star Wars.
2 Tikal, Guatemala (Yavin IV)
The Battle of Yavin is easily still the saga’s greatest space battle. The most exciting thing about Tikal is that fans can go visit the ancient Masassi Temple base used by the Rebels. Interestingly, in real life, the ruins of Tikal were actually built by the ancient Mayan civilization.
Since Oscar Isaac was born in Guatemala, the Lucasfilm story group made the really cool addition of making Poe Dameron’s homeworld Yavin IV. However, the last time the planet was seen in a film was Rogue One.
1 Chott el Djerid, Tunisia (Lars Homestead on Tatooine)
Tunisia is home to Tatooine in real life. Many of the locations shot in the Original Trilogy and Prequel Trilogy are still intact (although abandoned) including Mos Espa and the famous Mos Eisley Cantina. The most iconic of all is the Lars homestead, where Luke famously looked onto the twin sunset.
While the set was left abandoned, it was in disarray and began falling apart. In 2012, six massive fans volunteered and restored the set, making it look fresh off the screen from 1977. Tunisia is definitely the best place to visit as so many important locations from Star Wars are all accessible within the same country. More info can be found on the official Tunisia travel website.
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