Accidental tourist



This was published 14 years ago

Accidental tourist

By David Whitley

The stunts

Where: Maui, Hawaii.

The film: Die Another Day.

What happens: Pierce Brosnan, a somewhat unlikely surf bum, makes his entrance into the North Korean demilitarised zone, riding a monster of a wave. Once he reaches the shore, he duffs up a diamond trader and takes his place to broker a deal with some dodgy North Korean military types. Understandably, the North Koreans weren't about to let the film crews in so Hawaii was used as a substitute. The massive break that Bond and his two anonymous cohorts arrive on is the infamous Jaws, known as one of the most perilous surfing spots in the world.

How to get there: For all those who aren't big-wave experts or suicidal, trying to get a tow onto the wave is ill-advised. However, you can go for the cheat's method - there are many surf schools on Maui, and a two-hour surf lesson on little baby waves shouldn't cost more than about $US60 ($80). A list of schools to choose from can be found at


Where: The Verzasca dam, Lugano, Switzerland.

Film: GoldenEye.

What happens: 007, attempting to infiltrate a Russian chemical weapons base in Arkhangelsk, Russia, bungy jumps down the face of the biggest dam you've ever seen. As he plunges 220 metres, he pulls out a grappling gun, which he uses to attach himself to a roof. He then makes his way into the building, via the gents' toilets, in the process disturbing the quiet, peaceful read of a bemused man going about his business.

How to get there: This is one of the few Bond stunts that you can replicate for yourself. One of the biggest bungy jumps in the world, you can do the full 220-metre drop. The GoldenEye jump can be booked through and costs EUR170 ($290). The dam is at the start of the Verzasca Valley, near Lugano.

The beaches

Where: Laughing Waters, Ocho Rios, Jamaica.

The film: Dr. No.

What happens: Bond is asleep on the beach and awakes to the sight of Ursula Andress walking out of the water in a bikini. While she sings Underneath The Mango Tree and collects shells, 007 has a good old-fashioned ogle - and the Bond girl tradition is born.

How to get there: The Dunn's River Falls - a series of cascades running over gleaming limestone - are Jamaica's biggest tourist attraction, and Laughing Waters is at the end of it. The river trickles down into the sea at the famous beach. Entry to the park is $US10 ($13). To go the whole hog, you can stay at the nearby luxurious Goldeneye villa where Ian Fleming wrote most of the books. However, it does cost from $US750 a night. See, phone +1 800 688 76781.

Where: Porto Cervo, Sardinia, Italy.

The film: The Spy Who Loved Me.

What happens: Being chased by a helicopter, James and his lovely companion drive off the edge of a pier. As soon as they're underwater, the Lotus Esprit turns into a gadget-laden submarine. The helicopter is blown up with a rocket while marauding divers are taken out with torpedoes, depth charges and smoke screens. Once all the evil henchmen are polished off, the car emerges from the water and drives onto a beach full of bemused tourists.

How to get there: That beach is in Porto Cervo, a hide-out for the merrily rich in north-east Sardinia. It's the sort of place where the size of your yacht counts, but the scenery and coastline was the setting for the parts of the film set in Italy. The underwater sequence itself, mind, was filmed in the Bahamas, with just the beach shots done where they were claimed to be.

The enemy lairs

Where: Tikal, Guatemala.

The film: Moonraker.

What happens: Bond follows a scantily clad, nubile thing through some Mayan ruins, where he finds more eye candy. Standing on the edge of a pool, a rock flips him into the water where he is quickly joined by a giant boa constrictor. After much fighting, Bond kills the giant snake with his pen/syringe, then ventures into madman Drax's space shuttle-launching HQ.

How to get there: Although supposedly set in the Amazon rainforest, where there aren't any Mayan pyramids, this was filmed in Guatemala. From what historians can work out, Tikal was one of the most important cities in the Mayan civilisation. A lot of the ruins remain, including six huge pyramids topped with stone temples. You can get there on a plane tour. Mayan Travel (, phone +502 2459 5727) does a one-day trip for $US175. Alternatively, you can trek through dangerous jungle for days, which is probably a less appealing idea.

Where: The Arecibo Observatory, Puerto Rico.

The film: GoldenEye.

What happens: Having chased rogue agent Trevelyan to Cuba, Bond discovers yet another underground lair. Disguised by a lake, it is really a giant radio telescope. After lots of fighting and explosions inside the nerve centre, the pair face off on top of the antenna. Bond ends up dangling off a ladder, looking certain to fall, but manages to swing things round so that he's letting his former colleague plunge to his death.

How to get there: As with the other supposedly Cuban scenes in the film, this was filmed nowhere near Havana. The Arecibo Observatory is in Puerto Rico and is the biggest single-unit radio telescope in the world. The dish itself is 305 metres in diameter and looks suitably evil in its jungle setting. Visitors are welcome. See or phone +1 787 878 2612 to tee up a visit. Entry is $US5, and the observatory is 96 kilometres west of the Puerto Rican capital, San Juan.

The restaurants

Where: Murren, Switzerland.

Film: On Her Majesty's Secret Service.

What happens: After his cover as a genealogist is blown by Blofeld, Bond has to escape the cat-stroking baldie's mountain lair. This involves climbing out along the wires of a cable car, then hurtling down a mountain on one ski while Blofeld's goons give chase, fire guns indiscriminately and crash into trees.

How to get there: Only accessible by cable car or helicopter, the Piz Gloria (+41 33 8260 007) revolving restaurant on Mount Schilthorn was named after the "allergy research centre" of the film. It was built while George Lazenby's only outing as Bond was filmed and they agreed to let it be used, so long as the producers would stump up for a helipad and the technology to make the building spin around. Given that they've milked it ever since, this has to go down as one of the smartest deals in history.

Where: Jules Verne restaurant, the Eiffel Tower, Paris.

The film: A View To A Kill.

What happens: Bond is at dinner with an informant, Aubergine, when a performer complete with floating butterflies comes on stage. Mad villainess May Day is in control of one of the butterflies. It hits Aubergine in the neck, killing him instantly. She then does a runner up the tower, eventually parachuting off and landing on a wedding barge in the middle of the River Seine.

How to get there: If you like your food seriously expensive, then this is certainly the place to go. Wedged into the second floor of the tower, the views are pretty impressive. Bookings can be taken on +33 145 556 144. If you just want to climb, it costs EUR3.80 to get up a lot of stairs.

The hotels

Where: Bangkok, Thailand.

The film: Tomorrow Never Dies.

What happens: As they make their escape from the scary, overacting media mogul Elliot Carver, Bond and his Chinese cohort fall from a giant skyscraper, desperately grabbing a poster of the man who has just tried to kill them. After ripping their way through Carver's face, they finally stop falling just in time to kick their way through an office window and make a dramatic exit from the building, so they can begin a motorbike chase.

How to get there: This was supposedly in Saigon, but the Vietnamese authorities didn't like the thought of an American-funded production so Bangkok nobly stood in. The actual building that Pierce Brosnan and Michelle Yeoh bungle their way down is the luxurious Westin Banyan Tree Hotel (, +66 2679 1200), the tallest hotel in the Thai capital. Room rates are from $US330 a night.

Where: Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic.

The film: Casino Royale.

What happens: Bond has been sent to take part in a high-stakes poker game, which has been set up so that villain Le Chiffre can raise funds for a terrorist campaign. After blowing his initial $10 million buy-in, Bond is lent money by the CIA so that he can continue the game. He later triumphs, despite attempts to sabotage him.

How to get there: The casino of the film's title is supposed to be in Montenegro but, in keeping with Bond tradition, somewhere else was used instead. The outside of the casino was actually a disused spa called the Kaiserbad. The Hotel Splendide, where Bond stays, is also in Karlovy Vary. The luxury Grandhotel Pupp (, +420 353 109 111) got a temporary celluloid facelift for the film. Karlovy Vary is a magnet for those who fancy a spot of pampering - there are more than 300 hot springs in the town.

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