Where was Jungle Cruise filmed? La Luna Rota, the River & all the Filming Locations

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There are movies based on books, video games, songs... like Pirates of the Caribbean, Jungle Cruise is also based on a theme park attraction.

The classic riverboat ride, opened in 1955, was the star of the original Disneyland park in California.

The movie is set in 1910's London and the Brazilian Amazon river, but Jungle Cruise was entirely filmed in Hawaii and Georgia.

Where was Jungle Cruise filmed

As Captain Jack Sparrow's saga, the film is destined to become a franchise. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson plays steamboat captain Captain Frank "Skipper" Wolff and Emily Blunt, the star of A Quiet Place, is the adventurous scientist searching for the mythical Tree of Life, Dr. Lily Houghton.

Johnson, who is also producing the project, in interviews has said that the movie pays homage to African Queen, the 1951 Katherine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart classic, the Indiana Jones movies, and also the 80's romantic comedy Romancing the Stone with Kathleen Turner and Michael Douglas.

Welcome to La Luna Rota and our spoiler-free guide to the filming locations of Jungle Cruise.


Jungle Cruise Locations

Royal Anthropological and Diverse Adventures Society
Most of the scenes taking place at "The Royal Anthropological and Diverse Adventures Society" in London, were filmed at Atlanta’s Blackhall Studios.

The exterior facade of the building was erected on a set and the busy London street was basically done with CGI.

Also, according to Reel News Hawaii, film crews and extras dressed in 1910s gear were spotted at Oxford College of Emory University, so maybe some interior scenes were also recorded here.
(You can open all the locations on Google Maps by clicking on the links below in the captions ↴)
Image courtesy of Disney - Emory University Map


Jungle Cruise River
Kauai, probably the most beautiful island of the Hawaiian archipelago, served as the perfect backdrop for the jungle scenes in the Amazon.

Some sections of the movie with the boat sailing in the Jungle Cruise river were filmed at Huleia Stream, a waterway full of wildlife which was also featured in Jurassic Park and the unforgettable opening of Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Image courtesy of Disney - Map

The Porto Velho town in Jungle Cruise

Jungle Cruise Porto Velho
Reel News Hawaii also reported on the shoot in Hawaii. The short scene when Lily and her brother MacGregor (played by Jack Whitehall) arrive at Porto Velho was filmed on location in Kauai.

The railroad station was shot at the Kilohana Plantation Railway near Lihue, a modern reconstruction based on historical 1880s Hawaiian trains.
Image courtesy of Disney - Map


Porto Velho Brazil set
Porto Velho, Brazil, is the capital city of the state of Rondônia, located in the upper Amazon River basin.

However, the movie built a massive set that took like six months to complete at Kapaia Reservoir near Wailua Falls on Kauai.
Image courtesy of and Map


Hotel de Ferreira
Filming took place in May/June 2018. After the shoot, the set was demolished and the area, which serves as a water reservoir for the adjacent towns, was restored.

Most of the town, including the Hotel de Ferreira, the large staircase, and the Nilo's River Adventure docks, was built on location.

The "Fabrica de Borracha" (which translated from Portuguese means "rubber factory", but from Spanish it would be something like the “drunkard factory”) and some other elements, like the church's belfry, were added digitally in post-production.


Jungle Cruise drehorte
Rather than Portuguese Colonial style, the design of Porto Velho (the colors, the roof) seems inspired by the Spanish Colonial architecture in Mexico, like the magnificent Basilica of Our Lady of Guanajuato (pictured), or the old haciendas in Veracruz harbor.
Image courtesy of JLRSousa - Map


Ucayali Cove
The Ucayali Cove is a fictional place, but the scene was filmed at Opaekaa Falls, located near the lush environment of Wailua River State Park in Kauaʻi.

The awesome 151-feet tall (46 meters) waterfall usually flows in a double cascade unless heavy rains turn the stream into a big one.
Image courtesy of Disney - Map


La Luna Rota Falls

La Luna Rota
But, where is the stunning La Luna Rota (the Broken Moon) fall? Unfortunately, this gorgeous spot doesn't exist in the real world.

This is a digital creation that seems inspired by the colossal Devil's Throat, a U-shaped series of cascades located at the Iguazu National Park.


Jungle Cruise falls
Situated at the border of Argentina with Brazil, Iguazu is an awe-inspiring sight that everybody should visit once in a lifetime.

In our humble opinion, Iguazu (sorry Niagara and Victoria Falls) are the greatest falls in the world, and probably on this side of the galaxy.


Posters of the movie

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3 comments:

1- Guilherme - August 2, 2021 at 8:00 PM
Fábrica de Borracha is Spanish for Drunkard Factory, but in Portuguese, (the official language of Brazil), it means "rubber factory" which makes a lot more sense.

2- Poppy - August 7, 2021 at 17:31 PM
This movie is set during the time of World War 1, which took place 1914-1918. So not in the 1920s as this article says. Also just look at the women’s clothing and you can tell the time period. Not the roaring twenties for sure.

3- Anonymous - Dec 28, 2021, 2:19 PM
In early homage mentions, you forgot "Raiders of the Lost Ark".

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