Explore the real-world places that appear in Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. Each location on the map shows what happens there in the novel, the real history of the place, and what's there today. Featured locations include Chatham Islands (Wharekauri), Bay of Islands, Bruges (Zedelghem region), Ghent, Edinburgh and 8 more.
Pacific Ocean east of New Zealand — Adam Ewing's journal begins
The Pacific Journal of Adam Ewing opens here. Ewing, an American notary from San Francisco, records his stay on the Chatham Islands while settling a business matter for his father-in-law Bryan Busby. He meets the Moriori, the Indigenous people enslaved by Maori invaders, and witnesses the cruelty of the slave Autua's treatment. Dr. Henry Goose and the ship Prophetess become part of his journey home.
The Chatham Islands (Rekohu in Moriori) were home to the Moriori for centuries. In 1835 Maori iwi invaded and enslaved much of the Moriori population, who had a tradition of pacifism. Whaling and sealing ships frequented the islands in the 19th century.
The islands form part of New Zealand and have a small population engaged in fishing and farming. Moriori culture has undergone a revival, with the Hokotehi Moriori Trust preserving heritage sites such as tree carvings (dendroglyphs).
Visit: Chatham Islands (Rekohu) Moriori dendroglyphs at Hapupu National Historic Reserve (historic site)
Northland, New Zealand — Ewing's voyage and the missionary settlement
Adam Ewing's journal describes the Prophetess's stay in the Bay of Islands. Ewing is nursed by the manipulative Dr. Goose while his health declines, and he is aided by Autua, a Moriori stowaway he befriends. The area represents the colonial missions and trade of 1850s Pacific life that frame the first story.
The Bay of Islands was an early center of European contact with Maori, a whaling port, and the site of the Treaty of Waitangi signing in 1840. Russell (Kororareka) was once known as the 'hellhole of the Pacific'.
The region is a major tourism destination for sailing, fishing, and heritage tours. The Waitangi Treaty Grounds are open to the public as a museum and historic site.
Visit: Waitangi Treaty Grounds (historic site)
Belgium — Robert Frobisher's 1931 exile
In 'Letters from Zedelghem', young English composer Robert Frobisher, fleeing creditors, takes a job as amanuensis to the ailing maestro Vyvyan Ayrs. He writes letters to his friend Rufus Sixsmith and begins composing his masterpiece, the Cloud Atlas Sextet. He also becomes entangled with Ayrs's wife Jocasta and daughter Eva.
Bruges is a medieval Flemish city famed for its canals and preserved architecture. Between the wars it was a quiet, somewhat faded town, drawing English expatriates and artists. Mitchell's Zedelghem is based on a real village near Bruges.
The historic center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a popular tourist destination. Visitors can walk the canals, belfry, and Market Square.
Visit: Historic Centre of Bruges (landmark)
Belgium — Frobisher's flight and the city of his early travels
Frobisher travels in Belgium during his time with Ayrs, and the region's cathedrals and cafes color his letters. His creative life and eventual despair are tied to this landscape. In a hotel he completes the sextet before his suicide.
Ghent was a major medieval cloth-trading city and the home of the Ghent Altarpiece in St. Bavo's Cathedral. Its architecture reflects its centuries of mercantile wealth.
Ghent is a lively university city with preserved medieval buildings such as Gravensteen castle. St. Bavo's Cathedral displays the Ghent Altarpiece.
Visit: St Bavo's Cathedral (landmark)
Scotland — Timothy Cavendish's escape in 'The Ghastly Ordeal'
Timothy Cavendish, a London vanity publisher, flees the gangster brothers of his client Dermot Hoggins by hiding in what he thinks is a hotel but is actually Aurora House, a nursing home. He plots his escape with fellow residents Ernie, Veronica, and Mr. Meeks. Their breakout journey ends in the Scottish north, where Cavendish finally writes his story.
Edinburgh has been Scotland's capital since the 15th century, known for its Old Town and New Town, both a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is a center of publishing, literature, and the arts.
Edinburgh is the first UNESCO City of Literature. It hosts annual festivals including the Edinburgh International Book Festival.
Visit: The Writers' Museum (museum)
Northern England — Cavendish's home region and the Hoggins plot
Cavendish's story begins in London, but his escape takes him north through England toward Scotland, passing through places like Hull. His editor's misadventure is a comedy of fraud and flight. He reflects on a manuscript, 'Half-Lives: The First Luisa Rey Mystery', which links to another narrative.
Hull, officially Kingston upon Hull, is a major port on the Humber estuary. It was the UK City of Culture in 2017.
The city has museums on the River Hull, including The Deep aquarium and Wilberforce House, the birthplace of the abolitionist William Wilberforce.
Visit: Wilberforce House Museum (museum)
California — Adam Ewing's origin and the 1975 narrative region
Adam Ewing's journal ends with his intention to return to San Francisco to take a stand against slavery. In the 1970s thread, journalist Luisa Rey operates across California, investigating a nuclear power plant scandal connected to the Seaboard Corporation. The city links the 1850 and 1975 narratives.
San Francisco boomed during the 1849 Gold Rush and grew into a major Pacific port. In the 1970s it was a center of counterculture and political activism.
San Francisco is a major tech and cultural hub with landmarks such as the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz.
Visit: Golden Gate Bridge (landmark)
Fictional California coast — Seaboard's nuclear reactor, modeled on Central Coast sites
In 'Half-Lives: The First Luisa Rey Mystery', journalist Luisa Rey investigates the Swannekke Island nuclear reactor run by Lloyd Hooks of Seaboard. Physicist Rufus Sixsmith tries to give her a report on the reactor's flaws, but is killed by hitman Bill Smoke. Luisa survives attempts on her life, including having her car forced off a bridge, and exposes the conspiracy.
California's Central Coast hosted the Diablo Canyon nuclear plant, built in the 1970s amid protests over seismic risk. Mitchell's fictional plant draws on this era of nuclear controversy.
Diablo Canyon Power Plant remains operational near Avila Beach, with plans to continue operation. Public access is restricted.
Highway 1 coast — Luisa Rey's car is forced off the road
Luisa Rey is chased by Bill Smoke on a coastal road and her car plunges off a bridge into the water. She survives and keeps pursuing the Seaboard conspiracy. The scene is one of the thriller's central set pieces.
Bixby Creek Bridge on Highway 1 in Big Sur, completed in 1932, is one of the most photographed bridges in California.
The bridge is a famous scenic landmark visited by many drivers and photographers, with pullouts on Highway 1.
Visit: Bixby Creek Bridge (landmark)
Corporate Korea — Sonmi~451's world in 'An Orison of Sonmi~451'
In a dystopian future Korea called Nea So Copros, Sonmi~451 is a genetically engineered fabricant who serves at Papa Song's dinery. Awakened by intelligence, she is helped by Hae-Joo Im and joins a rebellion. Interviewed by an archivist before her execution, she recounts her life and her declaration of rights for fabricants.
Seoul has been Korea's capital for over 600 years and rebuilt rapidly after the Korean War. It is now a global city of technology and culture.
Seoul is a metropolis with royal palaces such as Gyeongbokgung. Visitors can tour the palace, museums, and markets.
Visit: Gyeongbokgung Palace (historic site)
Hawaii — Zachry's valley in 'Sloosha's Crossin' an' Ev'rythin' After'
In a post-apocalyptic future, Zachry, a goatherd of the peaceful Valleysman tribe, lives in a world after the Fall. He meets Meronym, a woman of the advanced Prescients, who comes to study his people and reaches the Mauna Kea observatory. The warlike Kona raid Valleysmen, and Zachry must choose between vengeance and mercy.
The Big Island is the youngest of the Hawaiian Islands, formed by volcanoes including Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa. Native Hawaiians have lived there for over a thousand years.
The Kona Coast is a popular destination for coffee farms, beaches, and astronomy. Mauna Kea hosts observatories and a visitor center.
Visit: Maunakea Visitor Information Station (landmark)
Summit of Mauna Kea — Meronym's Prescient mission and the Orison
Zachry guides Meronym up Mauna Kea, where she reaches the old observatory to send a message to other survivors of the Fall. On the mountain, Zachry confronts the Kona warrior Old Georgie in his fear. The observatory's Orison of Sonmi~451 is a key to humanity's memory.
Mauna Kea's summit, at 13,803 feet, hosts one of the world's major astronomical observatory complexes, established in the 1960s. The mountain is sacred to Native Hawaiians.
The summit has telescopes operated by international institutions. Visitors can stargaze at the Visitor Information Station.
Visit: Maunakea Observatories (landmark)
England — Frobisher's creditors and Cavendish's publishing house
Timothy Cavendish runs his vanity press in London, and the Hoggins affair sends him running. His story links to Luisa Rey's mystery manuscript. Frobisher also flees London creditors before sailing to Belgium.
London has been a publishing and cultural center for centuries, home to Fleet Street and the British Library.
London's literary heritage can be explored at the British Library, which holds treasures such as Magna Carta.
Visit: British Library (library)
More by David Mitchell: All David Mitchell books