Horror Movie Locations

From The Exorcist stairs to Pyscho's Bates mansion, take a closer look at the film locations of the some of the scariest horror movies ever made.

Hitchcock fans can see the famous Psycho film set for themselves with a visit to Universal Studios Hollywood theme park in Los Angeles, where the signature Studio Tour takes visitors by the legendary Bates Motel and Bates mansion.

In the sequel to the chilling Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal Lecter moves his killings abroad to Florence, Italy. Hannibal becomes a curator of the Capponi Library, and lives in Palazzo Capponi, a Florentine palace that dates back to the 1400s and holds some of the city’s most impressive pieces of art. Across the Arno River, the gruesome balcony scene at Palazzo Vecchio was inspired by real-life killings that took place here in medieval Italy.

Remember the scene from the original Omen in which a priest gets impaled by a lighting conductor? It was filmed in London’s All Saints Church, an Anglican church located in Bishop’s Park on the banks of the River Thames.

If you dare, you can drive by the seemingly-perfect-turned-nightmare house from the 1979 classic The Amityville Horror. The Long Island colonial house is said to now only be haunted by film fans who like to ring the doorbell … and run!

In the horror movie Rosemary's Baby, the Dakota (known in the film as The Bramford) was the Gothic building where newlyweds Rosemary and Guy Woodhouse made a home and encountered their satanic neighbors. The Dakota was built in the 1880s. It is located at 72nd St. and Central Park West in NYC. The apartments vary from 4 to 20 rooms, and have high ceilings and hardwood floors. Famous residents have included Lauren Bacall, Connie Chung, Paul Simon and John Lennon.

Griffith Park in LA was used as the wooded backdrop for the killing of school bully Wesley by 10-year-old Michael Myers in the horror movie, Halloween. This moment started his killing spree. Griffith Park has more than 4,210 acres of land, which includes picnic areas, hiking trails, mountain roads, playgrounds and tennis courts.

In the 1957 horror movie The Undead, 2 psychics send a woman back in time. She finds that one of her past lives included a woman in medieval times, named Helene, who is accused of being a witch. She lived in this house. The Spadena House, now known as The Witch's House, is located in Beverly Hills, CA. Its odd-shaped roof and color looks like something out of Hansel and Gretel. The house is privately owned and was also seen in the movie Clueless.

The Exorcist steps are located at the end of M Street in Georgetown in Washington, DC. In the movie, Father Karras is possessed by the demon while trying to save Regan. While the demon has control of Karras' body, he throws himself out the window and tumbles down the stairs to his death. The stairs were padded with rubber so the stuntman, who performed 2 takes, was protected.

Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles is the story of vampire Lestat who transforms a man named Louis into a vampire. When Lestat first encounters Louis in Louisiana, he is living on a beautiful estate. Louis's home is actually Oak Alley Plantation on the Mississippi River in Vacherie, LA. Originally a sugar cane plantation, the estate is now open to the public and run by a non-profit. It is protected as a National Historic Landmark.

The Blairstown Diner in New Jersey was used in the filming of the horror movie Friday the 13th. In the movie, the owner of Camp Crystal Lake goes into town to get supplies and stops at the diner. Little does he know his entire staff is being sliced up by an unseen killer. The Blairstown Diner is a traditional diner that serves up American fare, including burgers, sandwiches, fries and shakes. It is family-friendly and has reasonable prices.

The Blair Witch Project is the story of 3 filmmakers who traveled to Burkittsville, MD, to do a documentary on the legend of the Blair Witch but were never heard from again. The film is their lost footage. Some of the movie was shot in the real town of Burkittsville. Located in Fredrick County, MD, it is a small town with less than 200 residents.

In 2010, a remake of the 1941 film The Wolfman was made. In the film, the Talbot family lives on an estate called Talbot Hall. Members of this family end up becoming the murderous Wolfmen. Talbot Hall is really the Chatsworth House in North Derbyshire, England. It is home to the Duke of Devonshire and his family. The estate has 35,000 acres and includes gardens, towers, stables and shops. The eleventh duke has opened the estate up to the public, granting much wider access to the property.

The British-American horror film An American Werewolf in London is the story of 2 Americans who end up being attacked by a werewolf. The result is the death of one (Jack) and the other (David) gaining the ability to turn into the animal at night. David, Jack and the victims of David's werewolf murder spree, meet up in a movie theater in West London's Piccadilly Circus. The theater was a recreation of the old Eros News Cinema which is now a GAP clothing store on the corner of Shaftesbury Avenue in Piccadilly Circus.

In Silence of the Lambs, Jodi Foster plays an FBI agent who enlists the help of a serial killer named Hannibal Lecter in order to catch another killer. During her investigation she visits the Carnegie Museum of Natural History to meet up with an entomologist. The museum is in Pittsburg. It is organized into 20 galleries and has exhibits on insects, mammals, botany, dinosaurs and fossils, gems, minerals, geology and several areas of anthropology.

Writer and director Wes Craven created the popular horror movie series A Nightmare on Elm Street In it, a group of high school kids' dreams are invaded by a man named Freddy Krueger who slashes and kills them. That dream soon becomes a reality. John Marshall High School was used for the exterior shots of the high school that the kids attended. The LA school serves grades 9-12 and has an enrollment of 4,500 students. The school has been used in numerous other movies, as well as TV shows and music videos.

The horror movie The Shining is about a writer, played by Jack Nicholson, who takes a job as the winter caretaker of a hotel. He comes under the influence of the ghosts that haunt the hotel and tries to kill his wife and son. The movie is based on the book by Stephen King, who was inspired by the Stanley Hotel in Colorado. For the movie, exterior shots of the fictional Overlook Hotel were actually the Timberline Lodge in Mt. Hood, OR. The lodge is a popular ski destination. In addition to The Shining, several other movies have been shot at the Timberline.