AUSTRIA – Vienna, Sofiensaal // The Living Daylights (1987)
In “The Living Daylights”, James Bond visits the Bratislava opera. The exterior is the easy to find Vienna Volksoper, but you have to try hard to get into this interior filming location.
Why Bond was here
James Bond (Timothy Dalton) is assigned on a mission in Bratislava. He is helping Soviet renegade general Koskov (Jeroen Krabbé) entering Vienna via a smuggling sledge. Both meet at the Bratislava opera – though the film crew never filmed there.
The exterior of the opera is the Vienna Volksoper (that we visited here), but as interior they used the Sofiensaal.
The Sofiensaal prepped as the Bratislava Opera
How you gonna get there
The Sofiensaal is located at Marxergasse 17 in the center of Vienna. Nearby subway is “Wien Mitte” that can be reached via U3 and U4. From there walk north along Invalidenstraße and then turn right into Marxergasse. Also nearby is tram station “Hetzgasse”, operated by tram line 1.
Good to know
The Sofiensaal is part of a bigger historic complex. The building started as a steam bathhouse in 1826 and had then be converted into a concert and dance hall. In 2001 a fire consumed much of the place, parties came to an end. Luckily the façade was still intact, so the Sofiensaal could be restored.
Today the building hosts the “Ruby” design hotel and the luxury restaurant “The Room” as well as some luxury apartments. The ballroom itself is used for occasional parties and events.
We were invited by the event company, that now organizes concerts and parties at the ballroom to take a look. Normally, it is not open to public. Your best shot to get in is to ask politely the Sofiensaal-Team or to check for one of the events. There is a regular Afterwork Party and concerts some times a year.
Since the fire destroyed a lot, the interior is not as it was back in “The Living Daylights”. What was a concert hall is now a ballroom, but you can still see parts of the old structure. If you like to stay at the “Ruby” hotel, ask for a room with a view – as some have windows to the ballroom.
© 2015 Huntingbond (1,3), © 1987 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation (2)