Sisters! Get ready to form a calming circle, as this year Hocus Pocus celebrates its 30th Anniversary. Hard to believe that it has been 30 years since we first saw the Sanderson Sisters run Amuck (Amuck, Amuck, Amuck) in Salem. While parts of Hocus Pocus were filmed in backlots and sound stages, many of the movie’s iconic scenes were filmed in the spooky town of Salem and the good news is that you can still visit them and celebrate 30 years of the Disney cult classic.
We headed to Salem on our Recent trip to the East Coast, to hunt out our favorite spots from the film. Salem is the perfect spooky Halloween location and hinting out some great Filming locations is the perfect addition to your Halloween plans in the City. Here are the 10 Hocus Pocus Filming locations in Salem that you can visit today.
1. House of Seven Gables
- VIEW ON GOOGLE MAPS
- 115 Derby Street, Salem, MA 01970
- Visit The House Of Seven Gables | Salem MA Historic Homes & Tours (7gables.org)
The House of Seven Gables is a restored 1668 home that inspired Disney Imagineers when building the Sanderson Sister’s House. Yes, unfortunately, the exact Sanderson Witch Museum from the Hocus Pocus movie was built especially for the movie on a Disney soundstage and it no longer exists. However, the film Set Director herself credits the House of Seven Gables as THE inspiration for the Sanderson Sisters’ home. If it’s good enough for the Disney Imagineers then it’s good enough for us! This house is practically now known as the Sanderson Sister’s House location in Salem so it is a must-visit.
Of course, the inspiration was taken from the exterior of the House of Seven Gables only, but the grounds and mansion are open daily for visits if you wish to learn more about the history of the house, outside of its film connections.
2. Max and Dani Dennison’s House
- VIEW ON GOOGLE MAPS
- 4 Ocean Ave, Salem, MA 01970
Any scenes that were filmed as the inside of Max and Dan’s house were filmed in a sound studio (considering the mess the Sanderson Sisters make when they come to get Dani, it is easy to understand that a homeowner did not want Disney Studios wrecking their home)
However, the house used as the exterior of the Dennison House is located at 4 Ocean Ave Salem. The white house with its turret is easily recognisable from the street as is the corner of Ocean and Shore Ave. The current residents do not mind Hocus Pocus fans admiring their house from a distance but please respect their privacy when visiting and keep in mind that the filming location is private property. Take all the photos and selfies you want but be respectful and keep your distance.
3. Pioneer Village AKA Salem Village
- VIEW ON GOOGLE MAPS
- 98 West Ave, Salem, MA 01970
- www.pioneervillagesalem.org
The scenes at Thackery Binx’s village were filmed at the historical site Pioneer Village. This recreation of a 16th-century village is a living history of a colonial village and looks just how Thackery’s village would have looked way back when. The Pioneer Village is open at weekends from 12th June- 29th October only so if you really want to visit this filming location, you will need to plan your trip to Salem within those dates accordingly.
4. Governor’s Faire House AKA Binx’s House
- VIEW ON GOOGLE MAPS
- Pioneer Village, 98 West Ave, Salem, MA 01970
- www.pioneervillagesalem.org
Binx and Emily’s House in the opening scene of Hocus Pocus is also located within Pioneer Village in Salem. Look out for the Governor’s Faire House which is the building used as Binx and Emily’s house. Make sure you check it out during your visit to Pioneer Village.
5. Old Burial Hill Cemetery
- VIEW ON GOOGLE MAPS
- Marblehead, MA 01945
Not far into the film, we see Max’s new neighborhood kids give him a ‘not-so-friendly- welcome’ to Salem in a cemetery. This scene was filmed in nearby town Marblehead, at the Old Burial Cemetery. Although this little town is not in Salem, it is one of the oldest New England Cemeteries and was part of Salem until granted independence in the 1640s. There is a memorial to Marblehead’s resident who was killed in the Salem Witch trials, cementing its connection with Salem.
It’s worth mentioning at this point that it was just the day cemetery scene that was filmed at the Old Burial Hill Cemetery. The graveyard scenes for Billy Butcherson’s grave were not filmed on location in Salem. Unfortunately, the night cemetery scenes were filmed at Stage 2, a very famous Walt Disney Soundstage that has also been used to film Mary Poppins and Pirates of the Caribbean.
6. Allison’s House
- VIEW ON GOOGLE MAPS
- Ropes Mansion, Peabody Essex Museum, 318 Essex St, Salem, 01970
- https://www.pem.org/visit/historic-houses/pem-walks/ropes-mansion
The exterior of Allison’s House is located at a building within the Peabody Essex Museum. The Ropes mansion within the museum’s grounds is instantly recognizable from the film as Max and Dani approach the house while trick or treating. The filming location for the interior scenes is not the actual insides of the Ropes Mansion, which was filmed elsewhere in California. The mansion is registered as a National Historic Place and is open for tours 5 days a week. The grounds and gardens behind the house are open all year round free of charge, making them worth a visit.
If you visit during Halloween, the house really embraces its Haunted Heritage and decorates itself really nicely for the Season, but it gets even better once the sun goes down as the house is lit up in demonic red light, really adding to its spooky credentials.
7. Jacob Bailey High School
- VIEW ON GOOGLE MAPS
- 56 S Washington Square, Salem, MA 01970
The filming location for the High School in Hocus Pocus was actually an old Elementary School which closed down a year earlier. The Phillips Elementary School closed down in 1992, leaving a perfect empty space for a filming location. The building is still there on South Washington Street opposite Salem Common. You can not go into the building but you can take pictures of the highly recognisable exterior.
8. Halloween Party
- VIEW ON GOOGLE MAPS
- Old Town Hall, 32 Derby Square, Salem, MA 01970
The Halloween Party scenes are probably the best scenes of the whole Hocus Pocus film, especially Bette Midler’s rendition of ‘I Put a Spell on You’ where she bewitches the whole town including Max and Dani’s parents. The outside shots for this iconic scene were filmed at the Old Town Hall on Derby Square. The inside scenes of the party were filmed in California but the exterior of the building features towards the end of the film when Max and Dani go looking for their Parents.
The Old Town Hall is a National Historic Site and the oldest municipal building in Salem. The Town Hall is nowadays used for public events including re-enactments of the Salem Witch trials- definitely worth a look!
9. Ocean Avenue/ Shore Avenue
- VIEW ON GOOGLE MAPS
- 2 Ocean Avenue, Salem, MA 01970
If you stand opposite 2 Ocean Ave, you are actually stood at the corner of Ocean Avenue and Shore Avenue. With the sea out in front of you and 4 Ocean drive to your left, Shore Avenue begins on your right. This corner is used in the scene where the children are walking, following the sound of Sarah Sanderson’s singing. You will also see this filming location from an aerial view as Sarah flies over it to approach the Dennison House. Again, if you visit this filming location please remember that all the houses are residential and therefore private property. Please keep this in mind and be respectful when visiting.
10. The Town Park
- VIEW ON GOOGLE MAPS
- Salem Common, N Washington Square, Salem, MA 01970
Near the beginning of the film, Max heads to the Town Park after school where he bumps into Allison. Here, Allison hands him the note back containing his phone number. The Town Park filming location is Salem Common, at Washington Square. The High School building used for filming is also here, when watching the scene, if you look closely, you can see the High School building in the back behind them. In real life, if you face South Washington Square, you can see the High School from the Town Park just like in the movie.
Other Key Filming Locations
If you love Hocus Pocus as much as we do, you may be wondering about a few key scenes that are not mentioned here in this article. Unfortunately, not all scenes for Hocus Pocus were filmed in Salem.
The Bus Scene where Sarah Sanderson runs over Binx the cat is filmed on the Warner Brothers Ranch in California on Blondie Street. The big house she drives past was also used as the Griswold’s family home in National Lampoons Christmas Vacation. More recently, it was used as Wanda’s House in Marvel’s WandaVision- another witchy’ connection!
The Trick or Treat Scenes with Dani and Max were also filmed at Warner Brothers Ranch in California. When the Sanderson Sisters roam the streets, they find the ‘Devil’s’ House (a poor unsuspecting homeowner and his wife). This house is actually located on Friends Street on the Warner Brothers Ranch.
The Fountain
After the Sanderson Sisters have been lured into the oven, Max, Allison, Dani, and Binx are seen celebrating in the Town’s central Park. This again, was filmed back in the 90’s at the Warner Brothers Ranch including the large fountain behind them that is also the fountain from the Friends credits. Now, the fountain has been moved to the Warner Brothers Tour circuit, so if you are ever in California and visit the Warner Brothers Tour, you may be able to see it!
Have Your Say
Did you enjoy this article about the Hocus Pocus Filming Locations? Have you visited Salem yourself and found some locations we have missed? Let us know if we have in the comments box below. Perhaps you are planning your Salem 2023 trip and are researching the filming locations to visit yourself; if so, we hope you have found this article useful. If you have any questions regarding the locations of Hocus Pocus please ask us by writing them in the comments box below.
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