UNITED KINGDOM – London, Canary Riverside Spa // Skyfall (2012)

Want to relax like James Bond at a Shanghai rooftop pool? Just visit Londons Canary Wharf instead!

Why Bond was here
A list with undercover alias from numerous agents got stolen. James Bond (Daniel Craig) hunts down the man behind it in China. But before the action, he takes a dip in a Shanghai rooftop pool. You know, flexing the muscles.

How you gonna get there
You don’t need to travel to Shanghai, go for London instead. The Shanghai rooftop pool had been staged at the Canary Riverside Spa. That’s a luxury gym club run by Virgin Active at Canary Wharf, East London. The closest tube station is “Westferry”, closest bus stop is “Westferry Circus Canary Wharf Pier”. At the pier, also ferries by the London River Services embark. The Virgin Active Spa is based inside the Canary Riverside Plaza Hotel, facing the Thames.

The pool at the Virgin Active Canary Riverside in London

Good to know
For the movie, the large window view had been digitally altered. Instead of a view of the London City including the famous Shard it is a view of the Shanghai night sky including all its far-east skyscrapers.

So how can you visit the Londonish Shanghai rooftop pool?

Virgin Active is a membership club, so you can’t just walk in. The window front is visible from the outside, that is one option. But if you want to splash around like Bond in the pool, you have to become a Virgin Active member – or ask politely for a one time visit.
We were allowed in one wonderful afternoon to visit the spa and pool area. It was a great relaxing stay. Virgin Active carved out a first-class gym at the Canary Riverside Plaza. You’ll find a sauna and a steam room, a luxury gym and – of course – the luminous blue pool.

Thanks to Virgin Active for the invitation.

Virgin Active adds a nice touch to your James Bond location hunting. Many action sequences from the boat chase in The World Is Not Enough had been filmed around the corner at the Isle of Dogs and the Wapping neighborhood. So to relax at that “Shanghai rooftop pool” after a long day of location hunting is just gold.

© 1977 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation (1), Virgin Active (2), HuntingBond (3)