00-heaven! Inside the actual spectacular areas utilized in James Bond blockbusters from mountain prime lair to a tropical island

A filming location for legendary James Bond film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service has inspired a new book by bestselling author Ruth Kelly. 

Kelly’s new novel The Ice Retreat sees her reimagine the setting of Blofeld’s Lair from the movie – which was released back in 1969 and stars George Lazenby in his one and only screen appearance as the legendary spy. 

Indeed, the spot is not the only breathtaking location to feature in Bond films over the years with a number of unusual and breathtaking spots also appearing on set. 

Read on below for a look at some of the most stunning sites to have been used as filming sites in James Bond movies.  

Piz Gloria, Switzerland (On Her Majesty’s Secret Service)

The first site on the list houses a revolving restaurant at the 2,970 m (9,740 ft)-high summit of the Schilthorn in the Bernese Alps in Switzerland that is only able to be reached by cable car. 

this spot was used in Her Majesty’s Secret Service as the base of Spectre boss Ernst Stavro Blofeld, who was played by Telly Savalas. 

Appearing as an allergy clinic to outsiders, the venue is disguised so it can be secretly be used as his training base for ‘angels of death’ in biological warfare – which Bond visits to investigate.

Filmmakers helped contribute to the final stages of the building’s construction so that it would be complete and available to use in the picture. 

Fast-forward to today and the site is still in use tourist destination with an 007 exhibition.

Seeking a location for her book that would be ‘sinister and chilling’ to readers, Ruth visited Piz Gloria and says she relived her ‘fear and terror of the altitude and isolation within the pages’ of her novel. 

Atlantic Ocean Road, Norway (No Time To Die)

Originally proposed as a railway line in a plan that was later abandoned, this five mile-long route connects a series of Norwegian islands. 

In No Time To Die, the path was used in a thrilling chase scene that saw an Aston Martin V8 Vintage used. 

Built in 1989, the location now benefits from over 250,000 visitors every year and is often used by car companies to film TV adverts to promote the release of new vehicles. 

According to The Guardian, Norway gave producers a £4.2million tax break to convince them to film there.

Villa Balbianello, Lake Como (Casino Royale) 

Overlooking Lake Como, this magnificent villa is famous for its sprawling terraced gardens and has been featured in numerous films along with Casino Royale. 

In his maiden appearance as James Bond, Daniel Craig is able to recover sufficiently from being beaten by Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelson) to make a choice to risk it all for  Vesper (Eva Green) – which plays out to viewers on the magnificent grounds of the Villa Balbianello. 

Operating as a Franciscan monastery as far back as the 13th century, the villa is open to the public.

The villa would also be recognised by avid Star Wars fans, as it was used for the lake retreat scenes in Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones, released in 2002, with computer-generated imagery used in place of the building’s actual exterior. 

Taj Lake Palace, India (Octopussy)

Two different former Royal palaces, which are both over 300 years old – the Jag Mandir and the Taj Lake Palace in Lake Pichola, Udaipur, India – were used in the filming sequence of Octopussy. 

In the film, the splendid palace serves as the grand home of Octopussy, a jewel smuggler and cult leader played by Maud Adams. 

However, after Roger Moore’s Bond is able to infiltrates the palace, he successfully seduces Octopussy. 

Today, the Taj Lake Palace serves as a luxury hotel, with former guests of note including the likes of Queen Elizabeth II and US First Lady Jackie Kennedy.

Hemingway House, Florida, USA (Licence To Kill) 

Situated on the island of Key West in Florida, this location was not made famous due to featuring in a Bond film, but for being the residence of famed American author Ernest Hemingway. 

In Licence To Kill, the house is used as a base for MI6, with Bond also meeting M on the property’s veranda and resigning as an agent, with M revoking his ‘licence to kill’. 

The house and adjoining museum are open to the public to visit, with visitors able to catch site of over 60 six-toed cats that have an unusual link to the film. 

These cats are all descendants of Hemingway’s pet cat, with some of the unusual creatures also visible in Licence To Kill.

Phang Nga Bay, Thailand (The Man With The Golden Gun) 

Located in the Andaman Sea between the island of Phuket and the mainland of the Kra Isthmus of southern Thailand, a large section of the bay has protected status as the Ao Phang Nga National Park since 1981. 

Just off the coast of the bay is a rock island an imposing 20 metres in height that juts out of the sea. 

So well known is the island for being used in The Man With The Golden Gun that it is now often referred to ‘James Bond Island’. 

While it is now a popular tourist destination, it rose to fame as the evil lair of Scaramanga, the character from which the film takes its title, who was played by Christopher Lee. 

Lee and Roger Moore – appearing as Bond for the second time – face off on the beach’s white sands at the end of the film before Moore seduces his lover Goodnight on a boat that takes a journey through the bay. 

Ocho Rios, Jamaica (Dr. No)

In Dr. No, the real-life location of Ocho Rios, a small town in the Jamaican parish of Saint Ann, is the setting for the fictional location of Crab Key. 

The first-ever James Bond film to be released sees Honey Ryder (Ursula Andress) is introduced as she dives for shells on Crab Key, the secret stronghold of the film’s villain, Dr. Julius No. 

Laughing Waters Beach is located around 10km away from the town in the picturesque Oracabessa Bay. 

In similar fashion to the so-called ‘James Bond island’ featured in The Man With The Golden Gun, the golden sands have become prominent for their role in the maiden Bond picture – with Laughing Waters often dubbed as ‘James Bond beach’.