Where Was Netflix’s East Of Eden Filmed & Can You Visit?

East of Eden is embedded in California’s Salinas Valley. It is where the novel’s author, John Steinbeck, grew up, and where many of his most famous novels – The Pastures of Heaven, The Red Pony, and that secondary school classic, Of Mice And Men – are set. 

It may seem strange therefore that this latest adaptation takes us far from California’s agricultural heartland – once a refuge for migrant farmers fleeing the 1930s Dust Bowl, now better known as the ‘Salad Bowl of the World’ – to the hill-framed plains of New Zealand. 

For those unfamiliar with Steinbeck’s magnum opus, East of Eden traces the intertwined lives of two farming families, the Trasks and the Hamiltons, retelling the biblical story of Cain and Abel across three generations. But its most memorable character is the sinister and conniving Cathy Ames – brought to life in this new Netflix adaptation by Florence Pugh. 

Originally published in 1952, this seven-part series won’t be the book’s first on-screen treatment – with a 1955 film and 1981 mini-series preceding it. Its writer, Zoe Kazan, will surely be familiar with the 1955 James Dean rendition, considering that her grandfather Eliza Kazan directed it. The former was filmed between the Salinas Valley and Hollywood studios, while the latter was shot across Californian and Georgian landscapes, not far from where the novel is set. 

Unfortunately costs took California out of the running this time around. As Zoe Kazan told Vanity Fair: ‘I felt as if I had been birthed from the soil like a California poppy. And the budget realities were just such that we just could not have afforded to do it [there].’

So how did they recreate Steinbeck’s world in New Zealand? Moving through different corners of the country – from heritage districts and cities to open landscapes and Victorian streets – these different puzzle pieces were fitted together to create a convincing picture of early 20th century Californian life. Here are all the East Of Eden filming locations you need to know.

East Of Eden Filming Locations

Ōamaru

Shooting for East of Eden ran from October 2024 to April 2025, with Garth Davis directing the first four episodes, and Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre directing the final three. Of all the New Zealand filming locations, the historic Waitaki District town of Ōamaru featured most heavily – its 19th-century limestone architecture redressed to pass for turn-of-the-century America.

Ōamaru’s Victorian Heritage Precinct provided the main town-street setting. Harbourside and the Ōamaru Steam and Rail yard were used, as was the historic Ōamaru Railway Station. Other confirmed spots included the Scottish Hall and the Ōamaru Squash and Badminton Club, while filming was also reported around Tyne Street and the Criterion Hotel area, where a sawmill shanty town was erected.

Locations manager Phil Turner said: ‘These are incredibly unique locations that can replicate period settings in a way that’s very difficult to achieve elsewhere. You’d almost have to build a set to match somewhere like the Ōamaru Historic Precinct.’

Central Otago

Production then moved further inland to Central Otago, where filming took place around Hills Creek near Oteake Conservation Park in The Maniototo – an elevated, flat rural region located on New Zealand’s South Island. In contrast to Ōamaru, this region provided broad, exposed landscapes for the story’s more rural scenes.

Dunedin

Another key filming location was the city of Dunedin, chosen for its old stone architecture. The Dunedin Railway Station – a Flemish Renaissance building and one of the most photographed buildings in New Zealand – acted as a background location. Queen’s Garden, the Victorian-era public park in the heart of the city, was used for promenade scenes and general exterior sequences, while the city’s hinterlands provided additional landscape shots. Filming activity was also reported around Dowling Street, Burlington Street and Lower Stuart Street. The frontage of Taste Merchants – a popular local store selling retro vinyls, antiques and Kiwiana – was transformed into the Costumers and Milliners store.

Auckland

The production later travelled north to the seaside suburb of Devonport in Auckland, for several days of filming in February 2025. Around 200 cast and crew reportedly worked in the area as residential streets and homes around Cheltenham Road were temporarily modified and repainted to fit the early 1900s aesthetic. Other reported North Island filming locations include the historic town of Thames.

All episodes of East Of Eden are available to stream on Netflix now, netflix.com