Country · 8 locations
James Bond filming locations in Italy
8 James Bond locations you can visit in Italy: Cortina d'Ampezzo, Villa del Balbianello, Lake Garda, Grand Canal, Piazza del Campo, Tiber & EUR, Sassi di Matera, Gravina Bridge. Where to stand, how to get there and the story behind each.
Cortina d'Ampezzo, Dolomites, Italy
The queen of the Dolomites, host of the 1956 Winter Olympics and again in 2026, ringed by pale limestone peaks that glow pink at sunset.
In For Your Eyes Only: The ski chase, the ski jump, the bobsleigh run and the ice rink.
Where to stand: On the Corso Italia in the town centre, with the peaks all round. The ice stadium and the bobsleigh track are a short way out of town.
Best time: January to March for snow, or June to September for the peaks.
Villa del Balbianello, Lake Como, Italy
Built in 1787 on a former monastery. Its last owner, explorer Guido Monzino, left it to the nation with his polar and Everest collection.
In Casino Royale: Bond recovers here after the poker game.
Where to stand: Climb to the loggia at the top of the garden and look out across the lake.
Best time: Morning, before the boats arrive.
Lake Garda, Limone sul Garda, Italy
Italy's largest lake, where cliffs drop straight into the water and Limone still has the stone lemon houses that gave it its name.
In Quantum of Solace: The opening car chase: Bond's Aston Martin through the lakeside tunnels.
Where to stand: On the lakeside road near Limone, where it threads through short tunnels in the cliff above the water.
Best time: Spring or September, before and after the summer crowds.
Grand Canal, Venice, Italy
Capital of a maritime republic that lasted 1,100 years, now charging day-trippers a fee to survive its own popularity.
In Casino Royale: The sinking palazzo finale.
Where to stand: Stand on the Rialto Bridge and look south down the Grand Canal.
3 filming spots: Grand Canal at the Rialto fish market; St Mark's Square, north-west corner; Palazzo Pisani, the music conservatory.
Best time: Dawn, before the crowds.
Piazza del Campo, Siena, Italy
Home of the Palio, a bareback race between the city's 17 neighbourhoods, run in its current form since the 1600s.
In Quantum of Solace: The rooftop foot chase during the race.
Where to stand: Sit on the sloping shell of the square, facing the Palazzo Pubblico and its tower.
2 filming spots: Piazza del Campo; Fonte Gaia.
Best time: Palio days, 2 July and 16 August, or a quiet evening any time.
Tiber & EUR, Rome, Italy
EUR is a district Mussolini built for a 1942 World Expo that never took place, and the clearest view of Fascist architecture in Italy.
In Spectre: The night car chase along the river, and the funeral scene.
Where to stand: Walk the Lungotevere embankment at Ponte Sisto at night, then take the metro to EUR for the Museo della Civiltà Romana, the funeral scene.
4 filming spots: Museo della Civiltà Romana, EUR; Fontana dell'Acqua Paola, Gianicolo; Largo del Colonnato, by St Peter's; Ponte Sisto, on the Tiber.
Best time: After dark on the river; daytime in EUR.
Sassi di Matera, Basilicata, Italy
Cave homes inhabited for 9,000 years, called the 'shame of Italy' and emptied by law in 1952. Now UNESCO-listed and reborn.
In No Time to Die: The opening chase through the Sassi.
Where to stand: Stand in Piazza San Pietro Caveoso, below the rock church, with the Sasso Caveoso rising behind.
6 filming spots: Piazzetta Pascoli; Piazza San Pietro Caveoso; Cathedral square (Piazza Duomo); Via D'Addozio, by Sant'Agostino; Piazza San Giovanni Battista; Murgia Timone, across the ravine.
Best time: Blue hour, when the Sassi light up.
Gravina Bridge, Gravina in Puglia, Italy
A two-tier stone aqueduct-bridge 37 m above a limestone ravine, rebuilt in the 1700s to carry spring water into town and lead pilgrims to the rock church of the Madonna della Stella.
In No Time to Die: Bond leaps from the bridge as the chase out of Matera begins.
Where to stand: Walk onto the bridge from the town side, then cross to the Madonna della Stella church and look back along the arches to the old town on the cliff.
2 filming spots: The middle of the bridge; The far side, by Madonna della Stella.
Best time: Late afternoon, when the stone glows. The bridge is lit after dark.
Quick answers
Where were James Bond films shot in Italy?
Places you can visit in Italy include Cortina d'Ampezzo (For Your Eyes Only); Villa del Balbianello (Casino Royale); Lake Garda (Quantum of Solace); Grand Canal (Casino Royale); Piazza del Campo (Quantum of Solace); Tiber & EUR (Spectre); Sassi di Matera (No Time to Die); Gravina Bridge (No Time to Die).
Which Bond films have locations in Italy?
For Your Eyes Only, Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace, From Russia with Love, Moonraker, Spectre, No Time to Die.