Less than a week from now, the wait will be over, and the world will have their chance to form their own opinions about Star Wars: The Force Awakens. By this point, one has to wonder if there is any other way to still ride the hype train until then, and they can by taking a look at some of the locations around the world that were used to film the movie.

When George Lucas and crew were creating the original Star Wars films back in the ’70s and ’80s, they filmed the scenes set on the desert planet Tatooine in Death Valley, CA and Tunisia. While the setting for the new film happens to be another desert planet, J.J. Abrams chose to film in Abu Dhabi. This could have been a choice to help solidify the fact that Jakku is a different planet from Tatooine, and therefore should be a different desert. It could have also been the monetary incentives put forth by the government in the United Arab Emirates. Most likely, it was both.

Outside of the desert, filming brought the cast and crew to all sorts of climates, including the snowy reaches of northern Iceland. The areas around Krafla Volcano and Myvatn Lakes played host to snow covered battle between the First Order and the Resistance. These locations have been previously seen on HBO’s Game of Thrones where they served as areas north of the Wall for Jon Snow and crew to explore.

The movie also has several scenes that were filmed in the fable-like Puzzlewood, located in the Forest of Dean near Gloucestershire, England. This location was first noticeable in the international trailer that showed Rey being held at bay by Kylo Ren. Puzzlewood has also been used as a filming location for several episodes of Doctor Who, and was said to be a major inspiration for Tolkien’s version of Middle-earth as he wrote The Lord of the Rings.

[Image – RachelP16//DeviantArt]

There has also been filming at Greenham Common, an old Royal Air Force base in Berkshire, England, which appears to be some sort of base for the Resistance. This is the general idea one can draw from all of the crew, pilots, and X-Wings that seem to be docked there in a quick shot from the film’s trailer. Fans first found out about this location when aerial drone pictures discovered the unmistakable shape of the Millennium Falcon sitting on the base last year.

Finally, one of the last places many people knew was being used as a filming location was Skellig Michael in County Kerry, Ireland. A craggy-rock island off the coast of Ireland, that was once home to a monastery, Skellig Michael is also the only filming location where Mark Hamill was confirmed to be on set. Rumors have been flying around since then as to what significance the locations will hold in the film.

[Image – Arian Zwegers]

Planning your trip to visit some of these locations? Let us know in the comments below!

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HT – Curbed

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