The Holiday Season is approaching, many trips are happening and some of you might want to visit New York City. It’s one of my favorite places and it is a central hub for many films and television shows.
You can’t go wrong with either doing a self-guided tour or paying for the many different organized tours that will take you around the city to see the real-life locations where some of the most famous and beloved scenes come from.
Here are just a few from film history (I will have a future list for just television. And yes, I did bump into Law & Order: Special Victims Unit film in Chelsea, and yes, it was a scene with THE Mariska Hargitay!)
Times Square
Why explain, you know this location is in pretty much everything, here are just a few films:
Taxi Driver, Midnight Cowboy, Date Night, Captain America, Big, Vanilla Sky, Birdman
You get the picture (pun intended), the list of movies goes on and on.
Address: Neighborhood in Midtown, Manhattan
Central Park
Again, this park that goes the length from 110th to 59th Street has many moments on the silver screen. From romantic films like Maid in Manhattan, Serendipity, or Love Story to dramas like Kramer vs. Kramer, Wall Street, and Beaches to comedies like Mr. Popper’s Penguins and Ghostbusters.
Address: stretches from North 110th Street to Central Park South (59th Street), and from Central Park West (8th Avenue) to 5th Ave
New York Public Library
Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961)
It was the first major film to feature the library but it certainly wasn’t the last!
The Library continued to be featured in other films like Ghostbusters, The Day After Tomorrow, and of course, the wedding sequence where Big screwed up in the first movie version of Sex and the City (2008).
Address: 476 5th Ave, New York, NY 10018
Metropolitan Museum of Art
When Harry Met Sally (1989)
The two went walking around and had their famous “pepper, paprikash, and pecan pie” scene here.
Ocean’s 8 (2018)
The all-ladies version of the Ocean’s crew did the ultimate heist during the Met Gala.
Address: 1000 5th Ave, New York, NY 10028
Empire State Building
King Kong (1933 and 2005)
We can thank this original film for making this building so famous!
Sleepless in Seattle (1993)
Don’t let the title fool you, it’s this building where they decide to meet, it’s kinda the whole point.
Address: 20 W 34th St., New York, NY 10001
The Plaza Hotel
North By Northwest (1959)
It was the first time The Plaza was featured on the big screen.
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992)
Where most of the shenanigans of Kevin McCallister take place.
The Way We Were (1973)
Considered one of the greatest love stories ever, their final scene together was filmed in front of the Plaza’s entrance. Get your tissues ready!
Address: 768 5th Ave, New York, NY 10019
Katz’s Delicatessen
When Harry Met Sally (1989)
You can go get what Meg Ryan was having aka, this is where her fake orgasm scene takes place.
It is also where many other dining scenes were shot in films like, We Own the Night, Enchanted, and Donnie Brasco.
Address: 205 E Houston St, New York, NY 10002
Ghostbusters Headquarters
Built in 1903, it is actually a fire station that is still in use, the building’s exterior was used for the 1984 film where the headquarters is and has become one of the most popular tourist attractions.
Address: 14 N Moore St, New York, NY 10013
Basilica of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral
The Godfather Part 1 (1972) & 3 (1990)
This was a personal nerd out/must-do. Part 1’s infamous baptism scene at the end. In Part 3, it was with the family reunion in the beginning. Downstairs, there are catacombs aka The Only Catholic Catacombs in New York City which I have gone to. I love The Godfather, the book and the films, and when I learned about the catacombs plus its famous upstairs being used for such an important filming location, I had to go!
Address: 263 Mulberry St, New York, NY 10012
Catacombs Tour: https://catacombstournyc.com/
Trust me, there are plenty more locations, this list is barely covering Manhattan alone! Which have you visited?
