Lacock Village
Being a HUGE Harry Potter fan I was intrigued to visit the village of Lacock in the English countryside near Bath. Locations in and around the village were used when filming the first two Harry Potter movies and visiting does not disappoint. In addition to Harry Potter, the series Cranford was shot there and also Emma and Pride and Predjudice. This village was super cute and (surprise!) people actually live there!
To make getting to Lacock easier, my sister and I hired a driver to chauffeur us for the day. Graham, a simply wonderful gentleman, pickied us up at our hotel in Bath and drove the half hour to Lacock. We had a good hour and a half to explore the village and Lacock Abbey.
The village was simply beautiful. There were gorgeous flower baskets on the doors and windows, little shops to stop in and quite a few teashops and bakeries. We walked up the High Street, enjoying the sites and then wandered into the Abbey.
Cute shops Beautiful Flower Baskets High Street Lacock Adorable Tea Rooms and Bakeries
Lacock Abbey, where “Harry Potter” was filmed!
Lacock Abbey is where Harry Potter was shot. It is way smaller than you would think. The cloisters, where some of the outside shots were filmed in the first movie, is just a small yard. Very small.
The corridors are also quite small and not nearly as long as you would think. Production also used many of the rooms adjoining the corridors as classrooms and one of the rooms housed the Mirror of Erised.
There is a cauldron in one of the rooms which you would think was left by the production company, but it is actually part of the Abbey. It was as if Professor Snape would appear at any moment.
The Abbey is easily accessible and you can spend as much time as you would like exploring the interior and the grounds.
When we left Lacock, Graham stopped so we could see the house Slughorn lived in from Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. We parked just across the street and I quickly popped out to snap a photo as any true Harry Potter fan would! I sure hope the current owners didn’t mind!
Castle Combe
Graham had shared there was another village he thought we should visit. This was Castle Combe, where Warhorse was filmed. There was a wedding getting ready to happen in the church and there were all kinds of people dressed up with beautiful hats. The Brits sure know know how to do fancy dress!
We walked down the high street and came across a table with little cakes for sale. You just take the one you want and put your money through the mail slot! Awesome! This cake smelled so good and it did not disappoint in taste either!
Visiting both Lacock and Castle Comb was simply delightful. I highly recommend getting a driver if you can swing it. We booked ours through the concierge at out hotel. We didn’t have to park or know how to get anywhere, Graham did all the work. It was a wonderful day exploring the countryside that we would never have seen otherwise. It illustrates again how if you can get yourself out of the main tourist sites, there are so many amazing places to see off the beaten path!
Take Z Challenge: If you’re a Harry Potter fan, visit the filming sites outside of London. You won’t be disappointed!
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