We have a special place in our heart for the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. Throughout the franchise, filming locations have included some of our favorite islands, from St. Vincent and the Grenadines to Hawaii. In honor of the fifth installment, Dead Men Tell No Tales, hitting theaters this weekend, here are all the gorgeous spots where the movies were filmed.
Whitsunday Islands, Australia
In Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, Johnny Depp reprises his role as Captain Jack Sparrow, this time seeking the legendary Trident of Poseidon. (Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley are also back as Will Turner and Elizabeth Swan respectively.) The film was primarily shot in Queensland, Australia, in locations such as Moreton Bay, Hastings Point, Maudsland, Southport, Mount Tamborine and the Whitsunday Islands.
St. Vincent and the Grenadines
Jumping back to where it all began in the first film, The Curse of the Black Pearl, scenes of the fictional Rum-Rummers Isle where Jack and Elizabeth were stranded by Captain Barbossa were filmed on Petit Tabac, one of the five Tobago Cays. Scenes set in Port Royal were filmed in Wallilabou Bay in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, despite the fact that the colony it’s based on is actually located near Jamaica’s Kingston Harbor.
Dominica
The second installment in the series, Dead Man’s Chest, was mostly shot on Dominica, which served as the fictional island of Pelegosto (also known as Cannibal Island). The ruined church, graveyard and mill were already on the island, while the cannibal village spanning two hillsides was built specifically for the movie. Indian River was lit with candles and edged with tree houses for the film’s final scenes.
In At World’s End, the third film in the series, the Black Pearl approaches Shipwreck Cove on the fictional Shipwreck Island. Capuchin Point, on the northwestern point of Dominica, served as the location for these scenes. Once they land, Jack and his crew find the remains of a Kraken on a black sand beach, shot in Londonderry Bay.
The Bahamas
The beach where Norrington, Sparrow and Turner duel in Dead Man’s Chest was filmed near Little Exuma in the Bahamas. In At World’s End, the sandy spit where the pirates meet the East India company for a parlay is White Cay in the Exumas.
Molokai, Hawaii
In At World’s End, Pohaku Mauliuli Beach (aka Make Horse Beach or Dead Horse Beach) on Molokai is the setting for the final scene.
Kauai, Hawaii
Perhaps On Stranger Tides would be better named Pirates of the Hawaiian Islands, as much of the filming took place there.
Kauai’s Honopu Arch, located on the beach of the same name, served as the backdrop for Jack Sparrow discovering the Santiago. The beach, located on the Napali Coast is inaccessible by land, but you can see either via a boat or helicopter tour along coastline.
Many of the tropical landscapes were also filmed on the isle of Kauai. Allerton Garden (which has also been seen in Jurassic Park), Kipu Ranch and Grove Farm are just some of the lush landscapes that stood in for Caribbean locales. When Barbosa holds Jack captive, it’s among the coconut groves on the grounds of the former Cocoa Palms Hotel, where Elvis filmed Blue Hawaii in the 60s.
Oahu, Hawaii
On Stranger Tides used Oahu’s Halona Cove (recognizable from From Here to Eternity) as the backdrop for Whitecap Bay, where crew members are left in a row boat as bait for mermaids.
The Fountain of Youth was built on a soundstage, but the grotto that leads to was shot at Waikapalae on Kauai’s North Shore. One of two wet caves in the area, Waikapalae was formed as a sea cave, but is now fed by spring waters.
Puerto Rico
On Stranger Tides did stray from Hawaii for scenes shot at the Cadiz fort, which were filmed at Castillo San Cristobal in Old San Juan. When Angelica (played by Penelope Cruz) is stranded on a deserted island, it’s Palominito, a small cay off the eastern tip of Puerto Rico.
