His acting career spans decades, so it comes as little surprise to find that Jean-Claude Van Damme has cultivated a taste for global travel. Moving from Belgium to pursue an acting career in Hollywood in the early 1980s, the pre-CGI days of filming took him on location around the world, from the Philippines to Morocco.

Now residing in Hong Kong, Van Damme recently found himself shooting his newest film, Pound of Flesh, in mainland China, and shares just what it is about the country that he loves so much. But the Far East is just the tip of the iceberg, and he reveals where in the world he likes to check-in as well as top tips for travellers visiting his homeland.

What was it that drew you to work on Pound of Flesh?

Part of it is the script, the director [Ernie Barbarash], a small crew – it’s a tight film and not a big production. And it was very challenging in terms of physicality.

And what was it that you found most challenging while filming?

[In a scene where his character has just been the victim of organ theft] I’m waking up in a bathtub and my character doesn’t know what has happened, and I have to play it well because I’m in this tub with ice, shaking and coming out of surgery. I needed to – and I think I did – pull that off well enough for viewers to go with it and believe in it. It’s not easy to have a kidney missing! So for me as an actor that was difficult. And for the fighting techniques, I used books and chairs, because I said if I have this problem how can I do a kick with 15 stitches? So we took [my character’s medical condition] seriously.

The filming location was in China – what was that like?

We were in Guangzhou (pictured), which was great, and with a crew who was so nice. China is day and night and you have buildings filled with karaoke, disco – it’s nonstop, like Paris 20 years ago. There are so many good things in China. It’s also simply massive, in size and population. It’s so big that China is China enough; you have enough to do there. So when I go back to Belgium, I feel like it’s naked, like a farm.

How did working in China differ from Hollywood?

The Chinese people are cool – let’s say you’re wearing simple clothes or have a problem – they don’t judge you. It’s cool to be here. In Hollywood, it’s different. If you have one too many drinks – I don’t drink anymore – suddenly they point the finger and you’re an alcoholic. In Hong Kong or China, even movie stars like Jackie Chan, they are relaxed, they can go on the street, they can shake hands; it’s a different way of life. I currently live in Hong Kong, but I went there for the first time in 1982, and I think we can learn a lot from China. And of course the Chinese can learn – and they want to learn – a lot from us, too.

What is the martial arts scene like in China?

In Hong Kong they have different schools, but what’s fascinating is that kung fu – which has different styles and dialogues because it’s so big – is accepted here as an art. And I got into martial arts because of Bruce Lee; he was my god. I was skinny and I was not really gifted physically when I was born, but because of martial arts I was able, essentially, to change my life. And I’m lucky because people accept me here in China. I’m like “the white martial artist guy”.

Despite its filming location, Pound of Flesh takes place in the Philippines. Have you been there before?

Yes, the first time I was in the Philippines I was 22 years old, twenty-something years ago. I was with Chuck Norris – I was his stunt guy for a movie. At that time, there was only one hotel, the The Manila Hotel, which has upgraded a lot since then. I also did my first commercial there, for Red Bull.

What would you recommend to visitors visiting your homeland, Belgium?

In Brussels (pictured below), I like the Conrad [which has since reopened as Steigenberger Wiltcher’s] and the Hotel Metropole. It’s an old one, but it’s got a bit of mystery to it. If you go to the north, you must visit Bruges. And further, you get to Knokke-Heist, where my parents live. It’s is a city on the beach and attracts lots of people from Holland and Germany who like to visit for excellent food, and it’s very clean. Belgium is rainy and grey at times, but it has a beauty, a happy sadness. In the north, the wind is strong, and the ocean is not blue but a green colour, and the beaches are very wide and empty – at times you can see people ride by on horses. It’s beautiful.

Where is your favourite luxury getaway?

There are so many incredible places; it would be unfair to choose. I’ve been around the world and there are just too many. In Hong Kong, there’s the Four Seasons, the Peninsula, the InterContinental. In Los Angeles, again the Peninsula, the Beverly Hills Hotel, Shutters on the Beach – there are so many beautiful places.

And what about a place that feels like a home away from home?

Sometimes in life, you go through a period where you want to rethink things, and I have a hotel in Paris where I have my coffee – I love coffee – and I open the windows. It’s a small little room, but they know me there and they bring me coffee and fresh croissants. In the room, I like the location of the phone, which allows me to put my feet on the chair – of course with my shoes off – and then I know that I can make my phone calls, do business. Sometimes a hotel just fits you. It’s near the plaza with all the jewellery [Place Vendôme] and is called Hôtel Westminster. That’s my hotel. But the Bristol is also fantastic and I love Four Seasons Hotel Georges V.

Where have some of your most interesting filming locations been?

I had the chance to shoot in the desert, in Erfoud, Morocco. That was amazing because I asked the driver to drive me very far, and I stayed alone in the desert, while he drove back to the base. The silence out there is total, but it also has a very distinct sound [imitates the sound of howling wind]. I also filmed in Israel, where they put me on a mountain at five in the morning so that they could do an areal shot with a helicopter. So, I’m there at the border between Israel and Palestine and the sun begins rising and it’s just beautiful. I’ve been lucky to experience some very special moments like that because of the film business. This was before CGI existed, so we had no choice but to go on location.

Is there anywhere you’d like to shoot a film on location that you haven’t been?

I know it’s crazy, but one day I would like to shoot in the South Pole. You have months of light and it’s all white. The conditions must be hard but I love the look of it.