We discuss the Real Filming Locations of the historic TV Show Lost. Where was Lost filmed for the most part? We delve into it below.
There is no doubt that Lost was a television cultural high point that almost became a template for many similar shows.
The show was created by Jeffrey Lieber, Damon Lindelof, and J.J. Abrams and premiered way back in September 2004, continued for six seasons, and finished in May 2010 after a staggering one hundred and twenty-one episodes.
In case you missed it, the story starts with a plane crash landing on a mysterious island in an unknown location in the South Pacific.
The ensemble cast comprised many three-dimensional complex characters, and the show would weave fantasy, science fiction, and horror elements into its intricate narrative.
The use of flashbacks, flash-forwards, and ambiguous storylines would slowly obsess its ever-growing audience, and despite the show starting to lose its way towards the end, you cannot deny that it was groundbreaking TV at the time.
The show is still available to watch on streaming platforms, in case you want to remind yourself of its ambition and wonder, but this carefully plotted article will break down the central filming locations of Lost.
Where was LOST filmed – a breakdown of filming locations
Oahu, Hawaii
The show’s first episode sets the scene for the series, and the plane crash and subsequent fallout were all filmed on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. Most of the island scenes of this episode were filmed on Mokuke’ia Beach.
The scenic paradise-like island lies on Oahu’s Northern shore. The early cave scenes were filmed in an abandoned Xerox factory. The location has not been used since a mass shooting occurred in the late nineties.
Later in season one, we get the backstory of Hurley, who has won the lottery before the crash. He would buy his mother a house, which we see is also located in the Kahala neighborhood of Oahu.
This area has some beautiful houses and is considered an up-market part of town.
Hawaii Film Studio
There was a switch in location filming for the second season, and fans will remember the Swan Station and the Hydra Station. The Hawaii Film Studio was used to film all those scenes.
Ka’a’awa Valley, Oahu’s Windward Coast
In episode two of Season 1, three of the forty-eight survivors of the crash go looking for parts of the plane, and most of the forest scenes on the island were filmed at this location.
The same backdrop would be used in episode three, where Savid, Sawyer, Boone, Shannon, Kate, and Charlie would set up camp when they return from listening to the French woman’s taped broadcast.
Waimea Valley Waterfall
Fans will remember Season Five, Episode Six, which has a scene with Hurley and Kate arriving back on the island. Jack ends up diving dramatically from the waterfall into the pond below to help the pair out, which is the exact location we see in season one.
Oahu’s Turtle Bay Resort
In season one, eagle-eyed viewers will spot a giant banyan tree. The tree would be seen several times, and there would be a situation with the character Charlie being hung there too.
The tree would be located at this resort, and the location would also be used in many other scenes too, including in Episode Fourteen of Season One, with Walt stuck inside the tree by the polar bear.
Byodo-In Temple, Kaneohe
In one flashback scene, the Korean couple, Jin and Sun, recall their wedding, and this location was used for that scene. The beautiful scene at the Byodo-In Temple was filmed in the Valley of the Temples off the Kahekili Highway 83 in Kane’ohe.
Hawaii Convention Centre
This location was used for the airport scenes in the series. In the series, the doomed Flight 815 that leaves our cast on the island was flying from Sydney Airport, but it was filmed at the convention center in Hawaii.
If you want to visit the center, you can find it at 1801 Kalakaua Avenue in Honolulu, close to the border of Honolulu and Waikiki.
World War II Bunker
Incredibly, a disused bunker would be utilized to recreate some important locations, including the Iraqi Republican Guard installation. It was also used to stand in for the enigmatic Dharma Initiative station, which is vital to the plot.
Kahala Hotel, Diamond Head
In Episode Twenty of the First Season, we see the backstory of Jack. In the show, Jack had saved the life of a woman named Sara in a car crash. Over time, the two fall in love and get married, and the wedding scene was filmed at the Kahala Hotel and Resort.
The scene was shot in the wedding gazebo, and this looks like a perfect wedding venue.
Police Beach or Papailoa Beach
The base camp of the desperately lost crash survivors was a location that was extensively used in the show. It seems that the original position of the camp became a popular venue for fans to visit, so the production company decided to move it to a less prominent location.
If you want to visit this particular set, it is a bit of a trek, as you can’t drive to the area. Instead, you have to park and hike from the end of Papailoa Road and walk the narrow public access path to the beach.
Camp Erdman, Mokule’ia Beach, Oahu’s North Shore
This was used as the Barracks or the village of the Others. This is where the Dharma Initiative would set up on the island and where, after the Purge, Ben and the Others lived.
The location is still in operation, and if you want to look around, you need to check in with the owners, but it seems that if you donate, you can have a sneak around.
Honolulu
With an international globe-trotting flashback narrative, a location had to be found that could double for all kinds of scenarios. Honolulu used to stand in for California, New York, South Korea, Iraq, Nigeria, the UK, Paris, Thailand, Berlin, and Australia.
You have to hand it to the set designers for convincing us that they actually filmed all over the world.
Los Angeles
For scenes in season three of the show, the crew would shoot in LA.
The shooting was done for the season finale, and the production team managed to secure using a set from Grey’s Anatomy to get the shots they needed.
London
Due to a clash in schedules, some filming had to be done in the UK’s capital city.
Actor Alan Dale, who played Widmore in the show, was in the show Spamalot in the West End of London and was unable to make it to Hawaii to shoot his scenes, so arrangements were made for him to capture them between shows in the UK.
What is your favorite filming location from the TV Show Lost? Comment below.
