Film tourism in Spetses
The last time I visited Spetses was in 2011. I returned in 2024 and what has changed is that two Hollywood movies with well-known casts of actors have been filmed on the island and as a cinephile I visited the places where they were filmed. Fortunately I m familiar with the island like my home, so I am the most suitable person for this tour!
Both are Netflix movies "The Lost Daughter" of 2021 and "Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery" of 2022. The Lost Daughter was filmed entirely in Spetses, while Glass Onion only a few minutes of the movie.
The big names that appear are former James Bond Daniel Craig, Dave Bautista, Kate Hudson, Oscar winner Olivia Colman, Dakota Johnson, star of 50 Shades of Grey, and the great Ed Harris. In Glass Onion the even greater Edward Norton also plays but he does not appear in Spetses, he appears on the opposite coast of the Peloponnese at Amanzoe Hotel in Porto Heli.
On my tour I visited the locations where most of the movie footage were filmed, I didn't go to locations where individual scenes were filmed. These spots are Poseidonio Square, Kounoupitsa and Zogeria beach.
I admit I was surprised that there isn't any announcement to inform the public that the actor who played agent James Bond was there.
I want to emphasize that the choice of Spetses for Glass Onion is not just random. The movie is inspired by Agatha Christie's mystery novels so the setting had to be pre-war and Poseidon was built in 1914 so what better than that.
I start with Glass Onion in Poseidon Square and the dock located there. Daniel Craig in the lighthouse with the pink shirt.
Also on the dock but with the footage towards Poseidonion are Dave Bautista and Madelyn Cline.
I also spotted the green tricycle that was used, it belongs to Poseidonion Hotel. Kate Hudson is in the footage.
Daniel Craig and Janelle Monae sat on the bench at Bouboulina statue. I omitted to photograph it due to the general inconvenience of this little adventure.
We now pass to The Lost Daughter and a little further down in Kounoupitsa I came across the booth where Ed Harris was sitting.
Olivia Colman stopped at this point to gaze at the strait of Spetses.
The mansion that Olivia Colman stayed in is next door. Although it does not appear on the movie from the outside, the balcony only appears so it was not difficult to locate it due to the characteristic shape of the pine tree.
I continued to Zogeria where many scenes were shot. The bus doesn't reach there and I don't drive a motorbike or an ATV so I trusted my legs. I hiked 9 kilometers, come and go 18. I could have saved most by going by bus to Vrellos beach but I wanted to admire the landscape of Spetses. I wouldn't have another chance like this.
It was the first time I went to Zogeria and it is a peaceful and full of greenery beach. In the tavern I bought some water and coffee and watching the film again I noticed that Olivia Colman had stood at the exact same spot as me over the fridge.
Ending I want to say one last thing. The Lost Daughter is based on a book that takes place in Italy but Spetses was chosen for filming. Nowhere in the film is this mentioned except in the end credits. However a reference is made that only those familiar with the area can understand.
Ed Harris says, "Leonard Cohen used to come here and we were hanging around and write lyrics." Leonard Cohen lived in nearby Hydra island, so he used to go all the way to Spetses to visit his friend!
