If you could visit any fictional location from a movie, what would it be? We recently found out that Tony Stark’s lakeside cabin from Avengers: Endgame is listed on Airbnb, and that got me thinking about all the fictional movie locations we can’t visit, or the ones that in the real world that don’t match their cinematic counterparts. But if you could visit these places, if you could pull them up on Airbnb and book a trip to visit them within the worlds of the movies they’re from, where would you go?
There are likely countless answers to this question, but some places that stand out above the rest. Now, for the purposes of this exercise, we are talking specific locations. Sure we all want to go to the worlds of Middle Earth and Narnia, but where in those worlds would we stay and what sight would be at the top of our ‘to see’ list? You can only pick one location per franchise, although different superheroes we'll count as different franchises.
Also, lest this list be entirely populated by spaceships, no transportation vessels are allowed. So no Enterprise, no Millennium Falcon, no Serenity and sadly, no cruise ship on Fhloston Paradise. In addition, no TV locations, but for the record, the answer is Arnold’s room from Hey Arnold! Anyway, here are 14 fictional movie locations that'd be great to visit.
Golden City, Wakanda – Black Panther
Following the wildly successful release of Black Panther, people were apparently trying to book trips to the fictional African nation of Wakanda from the film. This may have occurred in part because of people’s nonexistent knowledge of world geography, but also because of how appealing the technological utopia immaculately realized in the film was.
The opulence of Golden City is a sight to behold, but unlike the dehumanizing fictional urban centers in movies like Blade Runner or The Hunger Games, this Afrofuturist city is a place you’d actually want to visit. It is rich with culture and history, but does not eschew modern conveniences, like the fantastic public transportation on Maglev trains.
The Toretto House – The Fast And The Furious Franchise
Olive Garden’s slogan may be “When you’re here, you’re family” but that could also be the slogan on the Airbnb page for the Toretto house, because Dom only lets real family crash at his place. This is where the family comes together to have movie nights watching Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story and summer cookouts in the backyard.
It may not be as fancy as some of the other places on this list, but it’s homey and has character that you can’t fake. Plus, you can have any brew you want. I repeat, any brew you want. Folks, that is an incredible value, literally any brew you want… as long as it’s a Corona.
Bag End – The Hobbit/The Lord Of The Rings
This is one of the few places on this list that you can sort of visit. In New Zealand, where The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings movies were filmed, the Hobbiton set is now a tourist attraction. But, while awesome, that’s only a small sampling of the magic of Bag End that you would get in the real Middle Earth.
If you could visit the fictional Shire, you could enjoy the quaint, quiet life of living in a beautiful hole in the ground, surrounded by immaculate gardens and the greenest green you’ve ever seen. Sure, you’d have cousins trying to steal the place and every once in a while you’d be roped into adventures, but you can also throw a killer birthday party and enjoy some pipe-weed with the wizard who comes around and brings fireworks.
The Continental- The John Wick Franchise
There are 5-star hotels and then there is The Continental from the John Wick franchise. The level of service The Continental offers for members of the criminal underworld are beyond compare. Beyond just being a lavish hotel, the concierge offers a wide array of services, including weapons supply, an onsite tailor specializing in bulletproof garments and even medical treatment.
Sure, like all great hotels, The Continental is expensive. You have to pay for your stay in actual gold, but it’s worth it, as long as everyone follows the rules, of course. The world of John Wick is a fascinating one and we’d love to visit one of this establishment’s locations around the world. Oh yeah, and it’s dog friendly!
The Bathhouse-Spirited Away
Hayao Miyazaki’s films are full of fantastical locations we’d love to visit, but perhaps none is more iconic than the Bathhouse from his Oscar-winning 2001 film Spirited Away. The Bathhouse is located in the spirit world that 10-year-old Chihiro finds herself trapped in.
Owned by the witch Yubaba, the Bathhouse has lavish baths and dining areas. Here is where the spirits of the world come to replenish themselves, and it is quite the sight to see. Humans get discriminated against and your parents might turn into pigs, but it is still worth visiting for the people, or more accurately, spirit-watching.
Beast’s Castle – Beauty And The Beast
Whether it's animated or in live-action, this castle from Beauty and the Beast is a gorgeous gothic structure in France that is literally right out of a fairy tale. If you’re a foodie or a reader, this is the fictional movie location that should be at the top of your list to visit.
Rather than sitting on some crowded beach reading, Beast’s incredible library can immerse you in countless incredible stories all from the comfort of a gorgeous castle. Better yet, like a great hotel the service here is incredible. The servants only live to serve, they say so themselves. They’ll give you dinner and a show like you’ve never had or seen before. Try the grey stuff, it’s delicious.
The X-Mansion – The X-Men Franchise
Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters is one of film and fiction’s most iconic learning institutions, and one of those places we wish we could have spent our school years at. The school itself is founded on the idea of being welcoming to all, so you can let your freak flag fly. This mansion in upstate New York is surrounded by gorgeous grounds and there’s plenty to do, including playing a few games on a basketball court.
Also, if you can get access, The Danger Room, while dangerous, would be a great place to get some training in, and if you can keep it on a low setting, it could almost be like a really advanced and fun obstacle course. The X-Mansion is where our favorite mutants in multiple X-Men films discovered who they are and were accepted for it and it would be a blast to visit.
Cloud City – Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back
There are lots of places we’d love to visit in a galaxy far, far away, and to be fair, Tatooine is the most important and storied Star Wars planet. But you wouldn’t really want to stay there; it’s full of sand, which is coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere.
Dagobah is a swamp and Coruscant is too crowded and likely filthy, so it's better to visit Cloud City on Bespin and enjoy the beauty of living in the clouds. Maybe you can rent out at room at the Administrator’s Palace and that magical feeling you get while flying in a plane would be right outside your window in Cloud City.
The Grand Budapest Hotel – The Grand Budapest Hotel
Do you possess an attention to detail and an appreciation for symmetry? Or, in lieu of that, are you a hipster? If you answered yes to any of that, then you definitely want to visit The Grand Budapest Hotel from Wes Anderson’s 2014 film of the same name. Wes Anderson creates incredible quirky and comedic worlds, and the famed Grand Budapest Hotel in the Republic of Zubrowka is one of his most immaculately crafted locations.
It’s an architectural marvel and a feast for the eyes. And like some of the other locations on this list, the service at the Grand Budapest is top notch, as evidenced by the rigorous process it takes for someone to become a Lobby Boy. Just don’t get framed for murder and you’ll have a splendid time.
The Gryffindor Common Room – Harry Potter
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from Harry Potter is obviously a top 5 fictional place to visit, but it’s also a big castle, so where are you staying while studying for potions classes, celebrating Quidditch victories and contemplating the wetness of kisses? Why the Gryffindor dormitories and Common Room, of course.
The Ravenclaw Common Room is posh enough to also be an option, but Slytherin and Hufflepuff? Come on, Slytherin’s is under the lake and is probably riddled with mold and Hufflepuff’s is right next to the kitchens, and thus probably smells like the back of a restaurant. In Gryffindor’s Common Room you can crash in the four-poster bed, relax by the warm fire while surrounded by the glorious scarlet and gold of Gryffindor.
The Lambda Epsilon Omega Fraternity House – Old School
There are some colleges that you go to just to party and there are some fictional movie locations that you visit to do the same exact thing: test your liver’s ability to process alcohol. This location isn’t so much about the building itself, it’s the people that make it special. and the people are open-minded and accepting, no matter who you are.
Concerts from iconic rap artists, legendary parties, hilarious games and likely illegal pledge initiation rituals are just icing on the cake for hanging out with friends and being reminded that we’re all young at heart and it’s the people that make a place special.
The Batcave – The Batman Franchise
In Shazam!, Billy Batson and Freddy Freeman inquire with a real estate agent about acquiring a lair, and if there is one fictional lair we could visit, it is unquestionably the Batcave. The Batcave is an iconic movie location and definitely a must visit if you could. And while it wouldn’t necessarily be the most comfortable place to stay, you’d want to go upstairs to Wayne Manor; it is still an unbelievably cool place seen in many Batman movies.
Here you could check out all of Batman’s clever gadgets, sit in the Batmobile (and maybe take it for a spin,)and try on the many Batsuits, including the iconic Batman & Robin one, of course. Where else can you sit alone, in the dark, spying on the citizens of a city, while still enjoying the benefits of wealth, like having a butler on standby?
The Maitland/Deetz House – Beetlejuice
Who doesn’t want to visit a properly haunted house, right? In Beetlejuice, this Connecticut house originally belonged to Barbara and Adam Maitland. When they died, the insufferable Deetz family purchased it and moved in. That’s the time when we would want to visit it though because the Deetz turn the quaint country home into a modern art piece, and it is wild, absurd and actually really fun.
The real selling point to visiting this house, though, is the opportunity to be haunted by the Maitlands and Betelgeuse who are trying to get you to leave. It might be scary and disturbing, but impromptu performances of Harry Belafonte’s “Banana Boat Song” make it worth the trip. This is a real house, but sans the hauntings it doesn’t seem nearly as appealing.
Hometree – Avatar
There is a reason that audiences experienced what was dubbed Avatar blues or the Avatar depression syndrome after seeing James Cameron’s 2009 box office king. The world of Pandora is an environmental utopia; an Eden teeming with fantastical life and the splendor of natural beauty. You know, like Earth used to be. Pandora – The World of Avatar at Walt Disney World’s Animal Kingdom is cool, but there’s no substitute for the real thing.
If we could escape to Pandora, we’d ideally stay at cinema’s greatest treehouse: Hometree. There aren’t many, if any, cooler, more blissful places to visit and from Hometree you could explore Pandora’s other wonders like the floating mountains and the bioluminescent forest. I don't doubt that the many Avatar sequels will provide even more amazing locations that could take up a few spots on this list.
The beauty of cinema is that the worlds we can visit on the big screen are limited only by the imagination of the filmmakers. This is just a small sampling of the amazing, fantastical locations from our favorite movies that we’d love to visit and no doubt there are a near infinite number of places I left out. Be sure to let us know where you’d like to go in the poll and comments below.
To see what amazing worlds are coming to the big screen this year, Check out our 2019 Release Schedule.
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