Star Wars Filming Locations from Above

Papa.drone gives us a drone's eye view of the Star Wars Islands, two islands off the coast of southern Ireland.  Great Skellig (aka Skellig Michael) and Little Skellig are located southwest of the Iveragh Peninsula in County Kerry.  Once primarily known for Skellig Michael's 6th-century monastery, the islands burst into public consciousness in 2015 as the shooting location for Jedi Master Luke Skywalker's hideaway in Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), appearing again in The Last Jedi (2017). 

In this special AirVuz Originals production, a group of FPV pilots head to the Redwood Forests of California to re-create a famous movie scene using racing drones.  One of the most memorable scenes from the 1983 Star Wars film Return of the Jedi (the third to be released but officially Star Wars VI) was the speeder bike chase scene on the planet Endor.  In this video, the racing drones are decked out to look like speeder bikes, and the "race" is held in the California's Redwood Forest, the same location where the movie was filmed.

Top AirVuz contributor nevinxavier brings us this fantastic drone video of Bolivia's Salar de Uyuni, the world's largest salt flat.  The flats cover an area of about 10k square km (around 3.6k square mi.) of the Bolivian Antiplano (itself part of the Andes system) in the Potosi Department in the southwestern corner of the country.  In effect a giant mirror, the Salar de Uyuni was used as a filming location for the Star Wars film the Last Jedi (2017), the eighth installment in the series; the flats "played the role" of Planet Crait.

Using a DJI Mavic Pro drone, contributor Chris Berg created this stunning aerial video of Italy's Mt. Etna, one of the world's most well known active volcanoes.  Situated on the giant island of Sicily, the mountain stands about 3.3k meters (around 10.9k ft.) above sea level.  The mountain is in a near-constant state of eruption and is considered quite dangerous.  Famously, Mt. Etna "played the role" of Planet Mustafar in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005), the last of the "prequel" trilogy.

Rub' al Khali or Liwa Desert (also known as the Empty Quarter) is the largest contiguous sand desert in the world.  Part of the Arabian Desert, it covers much of the Arabian Peninsula, including most of the United Arab Emirates.  The UAE portion of the desert became much more well known following its appearance as the dusty world of Jakku in Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), the first of the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy.  In this video, you'll get an epic bird's eye view of Planet Jakku, courtesy of content creator and drone pilot Verano47.

High above the karst peaks that line the Li River, contributor haussmannvisuals reveals the beauty of Yangshuo in Guilin, China.  The iconic topography of this county are often seen in calligraphic ink paintings but this drone footage takes the remarkable scenery to a whole new level.  Situated in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in southeastern China, Guilin was a filming location for Star Wars Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith (2005); it "played the role" of  the Wookiee planet Kashyyyk.

Wadi Rum is a desert valley lying in the southern portion of the Middle Eastern nation of Jordan.  Known for its spectacular rock formations, it was chosen as the primary shooting location for the legendary 1962 film Lawrence of Arabia starring Peter O'Toole. In later years, Wadi Rum "stood in" for the desert moon of Jedha in the 2015 Star Wars film The Force Awakens and the 2019 installment, the Rise of Luke Skywalker.  Award-winning contributor Fabio Knoll created this marvelous drone's eye view of the great desert.   

Tunisia has a long connection with the Star Wars series.  It was a primary filming location for the original Star Wars film (1977, now called Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope) and Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999).  A district called Tataouine in south-central Tunisia inspired the fictional Planet Tatooine, one of the main locations of both episodes.  In this video, contributor Thevmaker created this surreal drone's eye view of this now-famous piece of the Sahara Desert. 

Pascalimhof.com created this beautiful drone video of the iconic town of Grindelwald, in central Switzerland.  Situated in the Bernese Alps, Grindelwald was given some extra exposure by appearing in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005); the footage of the Swiss mountain was used to create the fictional planet Alderaan.  It wasn't the first time in the movies for Grindelwald; the town also appeared in the 1969 James Bond film On Her Majesty's Secret Service, the series' #7 installment.

Reynisfjara is one of the most well known of Iceland's famed black sand beaches.  It's located near the town of Vik in the southern part of the island.  The beach and the basalt rock formations just offshore have caught the attention of TV and movie producers: the beach has appeared in HBO's Game of Thrones series and also in the Star Wars movie Rogue One (2016), in the latter case as Planet Eadu.  Check out the famous beach from above, compliments of top contributor and drone pilot Minglam.   

This drone video by content creator and pilot Shane McGrath Photography showcases some of the best aerial views we've seen of the magnificent western coastline of Ireland, otherwise known as the Wild Atlantic Way.  The crazily-jagged shape of the coastline led to the Way being a primary filming location for the 2017 installment of the Star Wars series, The Last Jedi. For example, the first shot in the video is of Loop Head Lighthouse in County Clare; the cliffs here appear in a scene in the movie.

Gustavoaguiar used a drone to create this beautiful aerial of Italy's Lake Como.  The initial shot is of Villa Balbienello, perhaps the most well known spot on the famous lake.  The villa has made well-noted appearances in two blockbuster movies.  In the 2002 film Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, the villa "played the role" of Planet Naboo.  Then, in 2006, the villa made an appearance in the film Casino Royale, the 23rd James Bond movie; it's the spot where 007 recovers after being tortured. 

Theperspectiveexperiment created this beautiful drone video of one of the most beautiful parts of the Lakes District in Northern England.  The video was shot in the Catbells, a series of hills overlooking Derwentwater, one of the main lakes in the region. The stunning and unusual natural scenery has caught the attention of filmmakers, most notably those producing the Star Wars series: Derwentwater features prominently as a filming scene for Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens (2015).

Laamu is a group of small islands within the Indian Ocean island nation of the Maldives.  One of 26 atolls which make up the country, it's essentially a group of coral reefs, some of which are large enough to be islands.  In 2016, Laamu was seen by millions around the world as the jungle world Scarif as Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, one of the stand-alone films in the Star Wars series.  In this video, you'll get a bird's eye look at Planet Scarif, courtesy of AirVuz contributor and drone pilot mikkobey. 

Dubrovnik, the famed medieval town on Croatia's Dalmatian Coast, has been on a run.  The one time capital of the Kingdom of Ragusa gained worldwide recognition by appearing as King's Landing in HBO's Game of Thrones.  Then, in 2017, its star shot even higher by appearing in Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi, the eighth episode in the series. In the film, Dubrovnik serves as the "casino planet" Canto Bight.  Check out this Adriatic Sea gem from a drone's eye perspective, courtesy of contributor Jaap.   

The Forest of Dean is a wooded area in County Gloucester in southwestern England bounded by the Rivers Wye and Severn.  The iconic forest was the inspiration for J. R. R. Tolkien's forested Middle Earth worlds in his famed book series.  Some decades later, the forests here served as a filming location for Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens (2015).  In this video by contributor Ro_jo Goes, you'll get a bird's eye view of this famed woods, courtesy of contributor and drone pilot Ro-Jo Goes.

Death Valley is located in the Mojave desert of southeastern California.  It's a land of extremes - the lowest point in the USA, and home of some of the hottest temperatures ever recorded.  In the 1970's, the other-worldly look of the place caught the attention of a filmmaker named George Lucas.  The result was that Death Valley was used as a filming location for the first Star Wars movie, now called Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.  In this video, EUCORP gives us a bird's eye view of the famous valley.

Skycamguatemala created this beautiful aerial tour of Guatemala, the most populous of the Central American countries.  The video covers many of the most popular sights in the country, including Antigua, Atitlan, and Panajachel.  At about the 1:30 mark, you'll get a look at one of the country's most well known spots: the ruins of Tikal.  The ancient Mayan city was used for establishing shots to create the fictional Planet Yavin in the original Star Wars movie, now retitled Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (1977).

Take in these marvelous aerial views of Italy's Royal Palace of Caserta, compliments of AirVuz contributor Mario Penny.  Located about 25 mi. (around 40 km) north of Naples in the region of Campania, the palace was built for the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies in the 18th century.   The Baroque masterpiece is the largest royal residence in the world, covering over half a million square ft. (just under 50k square m).  The palace "played the role" of the Theed City Naboo Palace in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999). 

In this Drone Video of the Week nominated video, top contributor Scientik takes us on a glorious aerial tour of Ireland's west coast, otherwise known as the Wild Atlantic Way.  Shot on a DJI Inspire 2 with the incredible X7 camera, this piece the country's rugged coast line, green fields, and miles of undeveloped land.  The other-worldly look of the coastline led to the Wild Atlantic Way being a primary filming location for the 2017 blockbuster Star Wars: The Last Jedi, the eighth in the series.  

AirVuz contributor and pilot Wedroneasia created this remarkably beautiful drone video of Phang Nga Bay in southern Thailand.  The beautifully shaped islands of the bay have caught the attention of both beach-seeking travelers and movie makers.  The bay is the home of a tiny islet called James Bond Island,  which was featured in the 1974 film the Man with the Golden Gun.  Then, in 2005, Phang Nga Bay appeared in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith: shots of the area were used in the Battle of Kashyyyk.

AirVuz contributor Clandestino Productions brings us this drone video of Chott el Djerid, a giant saltwater lake in southern Tunisia.  It's basically a giant salt pan, the largest in the Sahara Desert.  It was one of several unusual geological features that drew Star Wars creator George Lucas to the region in the mid-1970's.  The result was that Chott el Djerid was used as a filming location for planet Tattoine; the scene where Luke Skywalker takes his  landspeeder to search for R2-D2 was filmed here.

Check out this outstanding first person view (FPV) drone video of a famous landmark of southern Spain, compliments of AirVuz contributor and FPV pilot L. Morandini.  He used a FPV mini-drone to film the public square known as the Plaza de España in the great city of Seville.  It was built in connection with the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929.  It's been used as a filming location for numerous movies, including Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002), in which it appeared as the City of Theed on Planet Naboo.

Merry Christmas from the Emerald Isle!  AirVuz contributor and pilot Drone Photography Ireland brings us this excellent Christmas morning drone video from Ireland's famous Loop Head Lighthouse.  The lighthouse is located on a promontory in County Clare on the island's southwestern coast.  Situated in the heart of the Wild Atlantic Way, Loop Head was named the Best Place to Holiday in Ireland by the Irish Times in 2013.  Loop Head was used as a filming location for the 2017 blockbuster Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi.