28 Movie Locations You Can Visit in the U.S.

It's no wonder filmmakers spend so much time trying to find the perfect shooting locations for their movies. After all, the willingness of an audience to suspend their disbelief can depend largely on how well a movie's set matches its story. But due to production constraints, filmmakers often have to get creative in choosing locations, especially when a movie takes place in a medieval city, or on the fictional planet of Pandora. If you've ever been curious about where some of your favorite films were shot, check out our list of iconic movie locations in the U.S. that you might want to add to your travel bucket list.

Related: 26 Stunning 'Game of Thrones' Filming Locations Worth Visiting

"Groundhog Day"
The Victorian bed-and-breakfast from Harold Ramis' 1993 comedy "Groundhog Day" still serves as an actual B&B. Previously known as the Royal Victorian Manor, it was finally sold in 2017 for $695,000, and its current name echoes the name of the establishment where Bill Murray stayed in the film: The Cherry Street Inn. Though the real Groundhog Day festival is a tradition in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, some 500 miles away from Woodstock.

Related: 22 of the Smallest Towns in America

"Die Hard"
The Fox Plaza in Los Angeles was completed in 1987. Just one year later, the postmodern building served as the exterior of the fictional Nakatomi Plaza, in which John McClane spent most of "Die Hard" hunting down German terrorists. Former President Ronald Reagan also had offices in the building after leaving the White House, and today Fox Plaza is still in operation.

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"When Harry Met Sally"
At 205 E. Houston St. in Manhattan sits Katz's Delicatessen, the lunch spot featured in the unforgettable "I'll have what she's having" scene from "When Harry Met Sally" (1989). It's also one of America's most iconic restaurants.

"The Amityville Horror" (1979 and 2005)
One of the scariest places in America, it's rumored to be haunted and was the place where a disturbed young man killed six of his family members in 1974. The lore behind the house at 112 Ocean Ave. in Amityville, New York, inspired two movies with the same name, as well as several sequels. The house featured in the 1979 film is at 18 Brooks Road in Toms River, New Jersey, (shown above) while the 2005 remake featured a home at 27618 Silver Lake Road in Salem, Wisconsin.

"Sideways"
Anyone who's seen Alexander Payne's 2004 dark comedy "Sideways" will likely remember The Hitching Post II, the restaurant where Miles, a wine enthusiast and struggling writer, was a regular. Next time you're visiting California's Central Coast, consider stopping in for some California-style barbecue and wine — just not merlot, if you want to follow in Miles' footsteps.

Related: Not Just Napa: 30 American Wineries With Good, Cheap Wine

"RoboCop"
The imposing, modernist features of Dallas City Hall appealed to the filmmakers of 1987's "RoboCop," who turned it into the headquarters of Omni Consumer Products — the corporation that created RoboCop. Most visitors haven't gone to gawk, though, but to pay a ticket.

"The Truman Show"
Seaside became famous after serving as picturesque Seahaven Island in 1998's "The Truman Show." In real life, Seaside is a planned community that was designed in the New Urbanist style, which emphasizes walkable neighborhoods.

"Forrest Gump"
The park bench where Forrest Gump sits and tells his life story throughout most of the 1994 box-office hit was in Chippewa Square in the downtown historic district of Savannah, Georgia. The square is still there the bench moved to the Savannah History Museum.

"Close Encounters of the Third Kind"
The first United States National Monument, Devils Tower is a massive rock formation — more technically known as a laccolithic butte — in the Bear Lodge Mountains of Wyoming. It was featured in Steven Spielberg's famous 1977 alien flick "Close Encounters of the Third Kind."

Related: 32 National Monuments Everyone Should Visit at Least Once

"The Graduate"
The modernist church featured in 1967's "The Graduate" was perfect for the film's famous final scene in which Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) convinces the woman he loves not to marry another man through brilliant use of the art of persuasion. Actually, he just shouted her name over and over and banged his fists on the second-story glass wall. The church remained open for worship after its star turn — even for weddings.

"Ghostbusters" (1984), "Ghostbusters II" (1989), and "Ghostbusters" (2016)
The Tribeca firehouse featured in the "Ghostbusters" movies was built in 1903 and has remained in operation throughout the years. In fact, the firefighters of Hook & Ladder Company 8 were some of the first responders on Sept. 11, 2001. The historic firehouse has received a $6 million upgrade in recent years and remains a popular place for passersby to snap photos.

Related: 10 Historic Firehouses Across America

"Field of Dreams"
The famous baseball diamond featured in "Field of Dreams" was built for the movie, but it was left behind for the landowners after the film's completion. It became a multimillion-dollar baseball complex called All-Star Ballpark Heaven.

"Home Alone"
The iconic Georgian house featured in "Home Alone" is at 671 Lincoln Ave. in this village a little north of Chicago. In 2012, it sold for around $1.6 million after being on the market for about a year.

"Jurassic Park" franchise
Kauai's striking mountains and lush landscapes served as the backdrop for scenes throughout Steven Spielberg's "Jurassic Park" franchise. The locations are inaccessible to tourists except by guided tours, when they run.

"The Shining"
Perched at an elevation of 6,000 feet in Mount Hood National Forest lies the Timberline Lodge, which served as the exterior of the fictional Overlook Hotel in Stanley Kubrick's 1980 "The Shining." It gets at least a 4 out of 5 review across most major hotel rating services.

Related: 21 Horror Movie Locations You Need to Visit

"Good Will Hunting"
South Boston's L Street Tavern was the local hangout for Will and his friends in the 1997 Oscar-winning film "Good Will Hunting." After the death of Robin Williams, who appeared in the film, the bar released a statement saying he was very kind and "certainly put us on the map, as we have visitors all over the world to see the little corner tavern where they filmed the Academy Award-winning film. He will be missed."

"A Christmas Story"
"A Christmas Story" (1983) is based in Indiana, but the exterior shots of the Parker family's house were filmed in Cleveland, where the house stands today — with a leg lamp proudly displayed in the front window. It's since been renovated to match the interior of the home shown in the film and opened to the public, a complement to the A Christmas Story House Museum across the street.

"The Graduate"
Although it had an all-white exterior when "The Graduate" was filmed, the Robinsons' house featured in the film still stands today, with a pool in the back, at 607 N. Palm Drive in Beverly Hills.

"Breakfast at Tiffany's"
Located at Fifth Avenue and 57th Street in Manhattan is Tiffany' & Co., the luxury department store where "nothing very bad could happen to you," or so said Holly Golightly in 1961's "Breakfast at Tiffany's." The store opened an on-site cafe in 2017 so that, finally, visitors could actually have breakfast at Tiffany's, but a renovation meant its Blue Box Cafe couldn't seat guests until 2022.

Related: Exceptional Restaurants and Cafes In Your Favorite Stores

"The Warriors"
"The Warriors" was filmed in many locations throughout New York City, but some of the most memorable scenes were shot in Coney Island, including the 1979 film's climactic final battle sequence.

"Gattaca"
The pink stucco walls and peculiar balconies of Frank Lloyd Wright's Marin County Civic Center complex served as the set for some memorable interior shots feature in 1997's "Gattaca," a sci-fi film in which eugenics has become a widespread practice. These buildings are the only government facilities designed by Wright that ever saw construction.

"Hunger Games: Catching Fire" and "Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 1"
Some scenes that took place in the Capitol in "Hunger Games: Catching Fire" and "Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 1" were shot in the Marriott Marquis, a hotel famous for its 50-story atrium that was once the largest in the world.

"Jaws"
There was maybe no better place to set this classic monster movie than the affluent summer colony of Martha's Vineyard, where the biggest threat to inhabitants before Steven Spielberg's 25-foot shark had likely been experiencing a sunburn. Some locations featured in the film have remained basically unchanged, such as the Amity Gazette Building in Edgartown.

Related: This Was the Scariest Movie the Year You Were Born

"Avatar"
James Cameron's "Avatar" was created using a mix of CGI and real-life shots. Some of the latter were filmed on the Hāmākua Coast on the Big Island of Hawaii.

"Rain Man"
In an attempt to win big by counting cards in blackjack, the long-lost brothers played by Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman in "Rain Man" decide to visit Caesars Palace on the west side of the Las Vegas Strip. The casino remains open, but counting cards is just as much a no-go as it was in 1988.

Related: 22 Must-See Vegas Attractions That Aren't on the Strip

"The Shawshank Redemption"
The Ohio State Reformatory operated as a prison for almost a century until closing its doors in 1990, just a few years before the filming of "The Shawshank Redemption" (which came out in 199). In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, producer Niki Marvin said she chose the site because it had the two qualities she was looking for: a timeless style and being absolutely empty. The reformatory went on to provide "Shawshank" tours most of the year.

"Rocky"
The Philadelphia Museum of Art is the third-largest art museum in the country and has been one of the most popular attractions in the city. But what drew in many tourists besides the art were the museum's steps, which Sylvester Stallone climbed in the iconic training scene from the 1976 film "Rocky." Jogging the steps is free, while admission to the museum is $25 for adults.

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"The Birds"
In Alfred Hitchcock's "The Birds" (1963), Melanie Daniels (Tippi Hedren) is terrorized by a massive flock of aggressive birds that descend on the seaside town of Bodega Bay. Bodega Bay is a real town, and between Bodega Bay and nearby Bodega lies the restaurant, schoolhouse, and other locations featured in the film.