Experience like a super-spy from Monaco to Morocco, traveling first class all the way.
Some like the iconic Ocean Club in the Bahamas and Cala di Volpe in Sardinia are world famous. Others, in far-flung places, from Thailand to India, are a little more discreet. But all of them have in common the honor of having hosted James Bond, in one of his many incarnations, at some point during his six-decade film career.
Whether it's Sean Connery, Roger Moore, Daniel Craig or one of the 'middlemen', 007 has signed the guest register at some of the most impressive hotels, in some of the most breathtaking locations around the world .
As 007 producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli of EON Productions note in the introduction to James Bond Destinationsin an impeccably illustrated new book from a luxury French publisher Assouline, “These destinations aren’t just backgrounds, or even backgrounds that simply inform the characters. In our films, they are characters.
As such, many locations from the famous film franchise have become iconic in their own right; Think of the famous car chase through the Swiss Alps, with Connery as confident as ever behind the wheel of his frenetic Aston Martin, or the even more seductive encounter with Ursula Andress on that beach in Jamaica.
“When James Bond first saved the world on the big screen in 1962 Dr. Noit set a cinematic standard: 007 would forever be a traveling secret agent,” as author and EON editorial contributor Daniel Pembrey writes in the book’s introduction.
“He shows up in London but is quickly sent to Jamaica to fight evil in paradise. From these sugary sandy beaches and light-reflecting waterfalls, he ventured to the volcanic islands of Japan, the crystalline alpine peaks, the exotic palaces of India, the underwater kingdoms of the Mediterranean, the lush forests Brazilian tropical and even space.
And while other productions relied solely on studio soundstages, “EON Productions put Bond at the forefront of an atlas of real-world destinations, around the world and beyond,” he points out.
So, what exactly makes a James Bond destination worthy of 007? “The locations aren’t just beautiful, glamorous places,” Pembrey notes. “These are places that lend themselves to fantasies, that we too long to explore, knowing in our hearts that we will never be able to do it like 007,” although the inspiration is certainly there.
“Bond takes part in secret operations with dizzying stakes. He must defeat his enemies while saving the world and, ideally, without compromising his Savile Row suits. (Therefore) its ultra-high octane missions involve scenic environments uniquely guaranteed to deliver captivating cinema on a truly transporting scale.
Over the course of more than 60 years of Bond films, the world's most famous secret agent has visited more than a hundred destinations, always in great style. The book follows “007's well-trodden footsteps in some of the world's most striking and iconic settings, through both behind-the-scenes shots and the sumptuous vistas themselves that inspired the filmmakers.” »
Ranging from “romantic hotel suites and surreal villain lairs” to “big cities and the most remote places on earth”, the variety of locations suggests that “Bond is, after all, a creature of both the mountains and the the sea, just like its creator, British author Lan Fleming, who attended boarding school in the Austrian Alps and spent much of his career in London, but later found his true home in Jamaica.
Each chapter of the book details a different 007 location: Jamaica, Venice, Rome, Bahamas, Istanbul, Egypt, Udaipur, Morocco, Greece, Lake Como, Mexico, Brazil, Sardinia, Scotland, London, the Alps, French Riviera, Hong Kong and Thailand. Some of the hotels he visited – frolicking with countless beautiful Bond Girls, always in the best suites – include the one mentioned above. Ocean Club in the Bahamas and Cala di Volpe in Sardinia.
Then there is the Taj Lake Palace in Udaipur, the Fontainebleau in Miami, the Atlantic Kempinski Hotel in Hamburg, the Danieli Hotel in Venice, the Stoke Park in the United Kingdom, the Peninsula Hong Kong, the Hotel du Cap Eden Roc in the south of France, the Langham London, and the Palazzo del Duca in Matera, Italy, from No time to die.
EON has sometimes gone to extreme measures to ensure that moviegoers are captivated by the scenery. Venice's Grand Canal was closed for the first time in 300 years to film Daniel Craig's sailing boat scenes in “Casino Royale.” Even the legendary and frenetic Las Vegas Strip was closed for five entire nights for the filming of “Diamonds are Forever.”
From the start of the franchise, audiences couldn't get enough of it. Barbara Broccoli, the daughter of original Bond producer Albert “Cubby” Broccoli, says her father “wanted to take people out of their lives and transport them on an adventure to something magical.”
“It is easy to forget that in the early and mid-1960s, international travel was relatively rare,” Pembrey writes. “That’s not to say that some people haven’t attempted these trips. The Bond films not only inspired audiences to dream of glamorous and exciting locations; they provided a plan”, of the Fontainebleau Miami Beach hotel presented at the beginning of The golden fingerto elegant Estoril on the Portuguese Riviera, where McLaren recently organized his revelation of the incredible new 750S supercar, where George Lazenby frolicked in his underrated 007 guise in On Her Majesty's Secret Service.
“At the same time,” notes Pembrey, “the price of a cinema ticket has proven to be remarkably advantageous. Bond has become moviegoers' trusted concierge in an increasingly global array of settings, immersively and vicariously (also safely), in a way that no travel package could imagine imitating, although some have tried.
From the beginning, “Bond traveled differently. “He was equipped with tools, trick boxes and inventive modes of transportation” – the most iconic being his series of sensational Aston Martin supercars, starting with the DB5, and that famous amphibious Lotus – which uniquely served his missions. Regardless of the firepower or sharp objects in his possession, he was not detained at airports or on trains. The previous films set another marker: Bond is always a traveler, but never a tourist per se, even if he sometimes adopts the disguise of one.
And as travel became more accessible, Bond's excursions became more and more exotic, the filming scenes more and more elaborate. “You have to find places that haven't been seen, or you have to think about doing something spectacular in a known place, like we did with the Aston Martin DB10 car chase through Rome in 2015 . Spectrum”, as Bond producer Michael G. Wilson told Pembrey. “The scene involved hundreds of blockers along two miles of main road to make sure no bystanders entered the shot,” adds associate producer Gregg Wilson.
“This travel destination 'DNA' is unique to the Bond franchise,” Pembrey points out. “You can't find it anywhere else, and that's a big part of the reason we keep coming back for the next Bond film in the series: to be surprised and captivated.” And while for 007 fans, “visiting the locations can be a conundrum”, i.e. “how do you avoid disappointment with what they experienced on the big screen?” »
EON recently named first player luxury travel agency Black Tomato, known for its incredibly luxurious adventures, to create officially sanctioned and beautifully curated 007 travel experiences, designed to bring all of Bond's locations to life. They haven't closed the Grand Canal yet, but we wouldn't be at all surprised if that was in the works.
In the meantime, don't forget to pick up a copy of this epic book about the world of Bond. As we all wait to see who will officially be chosen to succeed Daniel Craig as 007, this is an armchair adventure of the most sublime kind.
This article originally appeared in the March/April 2024 issue of Maxim magazine.
