Game of Thrones Film Locations

Game of Thrones is one of the most popular and successful fantasy TV series ever made. Filming of seasons one to eight took place in around 25 locations around Northern Ireland including Titanic Studios in Belfast, Cushendun Caves, Murlough Bay, Ballintoy Harbour, Larrybane, Antrim plateau, Castle Ward, Inch Abbey and Downhill Strand. Get the full experience and tour the HBO Game of Thrones Northern Ireland filming locations while you are here. Our rugged coast lines, historic castles and breathtaking scenery is the perfect setting for the epic story. All of these locations are within easy reach of Belfast.

Castle Ward is an 18th-century National Trust property located near the village of Strangford, in County Down, Northern Ireland, in the townland of the same name. It overlooks Strangford Lough and is 7 miles from Downpatrick and 1.5 miles from Strangford. The Georgian farmyard and lough shore at this National Trust property set the scene for Winterfell. Find the Whispering Wood and key scenes including Robb Stark’s Camp, the Baelor battle and when Brienne confronts the Stark men. Discover Winterfell for yourself!

This medieval building was used as the set for the Riverlands scenes, where Robb Stark’s army wait at the Trident to cross. As well as being the camp of The Houses of the North and the Riverlands in Game of Thrones, Inch Abbey is home to a breathtaking view of the River Quoile – in the distance you can see Downpatrick Cathedral, burial place of St Patrick, Ireland’s patron saint.

Walk deep into this enchanting forest and be transported to Winterfell. Remember the opening scene of Game of Thrones®? Rangers of the Night’s Watch find dismembered bodies in the snow. Fans will also recognise the woodland where Nightwalkers were spotted and the Direwolf pups were found in Tollymore Forest. Tollymore Forest Park is open all year and offers extensive facilities for touring or camping.

The Sallagh Brae is part of the Glens of Antrim and an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty offering dramatic scenery. Close to the village of Ballygally, Sallagh Brae can be accessed by following the Ulster Way footpath. You’ll recognise the landscape from Game of Thrones Episode 7 Season 6: The Broken Man when Sandor Clegane, the Hound, after survived being left to die by Arya Stark now lives a peaceful existence with a band of villagers in the Riverlands.

Magheramorne is a hamlet in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is about 5 miles south of Larne on the shores of Larne Lough. Magheramorne is a small hamlet of about 75 people that’s home to an old stone quarry. The cement plant closed in 1980, and the quarry acted primarily as Castle Black and the Wall in the award-winning television series. If you drive north from Carrickfergus on the A2 you turn right just past Whitehead and drive on Low Road past Islandmagee. After a couple of miles you get a great (if distant) view across the Lough to the quarry.

The Cushendun Caves are located in County Antrim in Northern Ireland. Cushendun is just an 82km drive north of Belfast. The most direct route is to head to Ballymena and then onto Cushendall. Although the caves are very old, they acted as a key location for HBO’s Game of Thrones series. A must for fans, and lovers of unsuspected tourist treasures! Find the caves here where Melisandre gave birth to her ‘shadow baby’ along the Antrim Coast in an area portrayed as the Stormlands.

The Dark Hedges is an avenue of beech trees along Bregagh Road between Armoy and Stranocum in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The trees form an atmospheric tunnel that has been used as a location in HBO’s popular television series Game of Thrones. Drive along the King’s Road which led Ned Stark to his death and Arya Stark away from King’s Landing. This location is probably one of the most photographed landmarks on the Game of Thrones Map and a hidden road on the way to Bushmills.

Larrybane bay on the North Antrim Coast, protected by Sheep Island and a shallow reef, is one of the most sheltered and scenic locations along the Causeway Coast. From the cliffs above Larrybane the magnificent coastline can be viewed including Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge. Its old quarry set the scene for our introduction of Brienne of Tarth in season two, when she fought Ser Loras Tyrell in a tournament in front of King Renly in front of his new wife and queen, Margaery Tyrell.

The harbour in the small village of Ballintoy, County Antrim, featured as the Free Cities where Varys was born and as the coastal nook where Theon Greyjoy arrives back in the Iron Islands, admires his ship and where he first meets his sister Yara. It is the most northerly point of the Antrim Coast and Glens coastline which is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Downhill Strand in County Londonderry, a scenic beach dominated by the elegant 18th century ruins of Mussenden Temple. At 7 miles (11 km) long it is one of the longest in Northern Ireland. The exterior beach scenes of Dragonstone island. Where Melisandre and Stannis Baratheon burn the statues of the Seven in the Season 2 premiere, “The North Remembers”; later on the same beach Davos talks with Salladhor Saan, and in Season 3 this beach of Dragonstone is where Davos sends Gendry away on a rowboat.

On the edge of the Antrim plateau, Binevenagh boasts panoramic views stretching for miles. The location was chosen for the Dothraki Sea far above the city of Meereen, where Daenerys is rescued by her dragon Drogon and brought to his lair.

Find a full list of filming locations on ireland.com >>