Table Of Content
- Whoever lives in Max and Dani's house today has a gorgeous view of the water.
- A throwback to the original movie that bewitched us all
- Alison’s House (Interior Scene) – Crank House
- The Ropes Mansion also has a stunning garden in the back that you can visit for free.
- The wonderfully witchy Hocus Pocus Houses & filming locations for the new movie
- Explore More Trip Guides
- “The Power of the Dog” ranch was purposefully built for the movie
- Chants of ‘shame on you’ greet guests at White House correspondents’ dinner shadowed by war in Gaza

You can see the house in other movies, as well, including Catch Me If You Can, Scream 2, and Matilda, which I featured here. I just learned from a reader named Ryan that the interior of Allison’s house wasn’t a set after all. They filmed inside what is known as “The Crank House” in Altadena, California.
Whoever lives in Max and Dani's house today has a gorgeous view of the water.
Fortunately, you won't have to contend with any bullies, and you may be surprised by how much there is to see beyond what's shown in the film. With breathtaking views of both the harbor and the sea, you'll definitely be tempted to take some pictures (after you snap a few pics standing exactly where Max did in this scene, of course). Incidentally, this village is going to look more like the flashback scene in the film than you might think. That's because the museum is a model for what the town looked like back when the settlement started in the 17th century.
A throwback to the original movie that bewitched us all
Guided tours are provided if you’d like to walk the same grounds as Thackery Binx when he went darting through the village to find his sister, Emily. Whoever was the fastest to the booking button got an exclusive stay at the Hocus Pocus house on Thursday, October 20. Guests must be over age 18 and have a history of positive reviews on Airbnb in order to rent the Hocus Pocus house.
Alison’s House (Interior Scene) – Crank House
Debney released a promotional score through the internet containing 19 tracks from the film. Bootlegs were subsequently released across the internet, primarily because the promotional release missed the entire opening sequence music. And trust us, it's going to be a very big slice because the building (circa 1816) is the oldest municipal structure that still exists in Salem. That might sound like something Leslie Knope would geek out over, but we're probably not the only ones who'd love to visit this centuries-old building. Hocus Pocus begins in the distant past — specifically in 1600s Salem, Mass.
New LEGO Sets for July 2023: Disney Castle and Hocus Pocus House - IGN
New LEGO Sets for July 2023: Disney Castle and Hocus Pocus House.
Posted: Wed, 05 Jul 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]
Located in the heart of the McIntyre Historic District, the Ropes Mansion, which is featured as Allison's house, is one of Salem's most iconic buildings. The home is listed in the National Register of Historic Places for housing Nathaniel Ropes, a famous merchant and attorney in the 1700s. Out back, the mansion boasts a gorgeous garden and greenhouse that is also welcome to visitors. As for Max’s house where he and Allison foolishly explored the Sanderson sisters’ spell book, that home is actually located at 4 Ocean Avenue, also in Salem. In the original Hocus Pocus film, Allison’s house takes center stage. And you’ll be happy to learn it’s not a fake movie setting but rather a real house that’s located at 318 Essex Street in Salem, Massachusetts.
ET, the space will occasionally be used for performances of the interactive play Cry Innocent, which is based on the Salem witch trials. For even more Hocus Pocus fun, check out these filming locations from Salem, MA. So without further ado, I bring you the Los Angeles filming locations from Hocus Pocus.
This is where we first see Thackery Binx (Sean Murray) frantically searching for his sister Emily (Amanda Shepherd). The novel covers both the story from the movie and what happens 25 years later when Max and Allison’s daughter Poppy has her own run-in with the Sanderson Sisters. In October 2019, a sequel was announced to be in development as a Disney+ exclusive film, with a screenplay written by Jen D’Angelo.
“The Power of the Dog” ranch was purposefully built for the movie
While the exterior shots of Jacob Bailey High School were all filmed in Salem, the interior scenes were shot at East Whittier Middle School in Whittier, CA. It’s quite common for film and television shows to film on location at various schools throughout California during the summer months when school isn’t in session. If you look at the photos below you can see some of the exact school rooms used in Hocus Pocus. As you can see in the screen captures below, the interior shown in Catch Me If You Can matches the inside of Allison’s mansion perfectly! I had always wondered where the interiors of Allison’s residence were shot, so I am floored to have finally figured it out!

This beautiful house is where Winifred sang a rendition of "I Put a Spell on You" that we've spent the last few decades recreating in the shower. Legend has it you can still hear Winifred's voice singing "I Put A Spell On You" echoing from the building where the town's Halloween party took place. Find out for yourself, because you can visit the Old Town Hall that is now home to The Salem Museum. Visitors can try enchantments from the sisters' ancient spell book.
The events in the movie take the six main characters — the three Sanderson sisters, Max and Dani Dennison, and Allison Watts — all over town. I visited the city over a month before Halloween and in the middle of the week, so I was able to avoid all pedestrian gridlocks. Before engaging in any travel during the coronavirus pandemic, please refer to safety precautions outlined on the Centers for Disease Control website. My first Airbnb during the trip was about a five-minute walk from a memorial to the victims of the witch trials. In 2023, Disney re-released the film in select theaters on October 6 to commemorate its 30th anniversary. The musical score for Hocus Pocus was composed and conducted by John Debney.
The city, overall, is very walkable and I walked to and from every spot. If you wanted, you could probably visit all the locations on the same day instead of spreading it out over several days as I did, especially if you're driving. I made a trip to the stately red building on my very first night and then the following day during a historical walking tour where I learned that it is one of the oldest government buildings in the city. Three centuries later, on October 31, 1993, teenager Max Dennison has recently moved to Salem from Los Angeles. After reluctantly agreeing to take his younger sister Dani out trick-or-treating, they meet Max's new classmate Allison Watts, whom Max is attracted to. The three visit the former Sanderson cottage, now an abandoned museum, where Max inadvertently resurrects the witches by lighting the Black Flame Candle.
According to Zillow, the house was built in 1870 and is currently estimated to be worth over $553,000. Initially built in the Georgian style, Allison’s Hocus Pocus house was later renovated in 1894 in the Colonial Revival style, and later listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Max, Dani, and Allison's mission to save Salem involves a talking cat named Thackery Binx, a scorned zombie ex-boyfriend, salt circles, and a kiln-turned-weapon. At its heart, though, "Hocus Pocus" is all about embracing the Halloween spirit and believing in magic, which is a big reason why it's one of the most popular non-horror Halloween movies.
However, its daytime scenes were filmed in Salem and Marblehead, Massachusetts, during two weeks of filming with principal cast. On October 31, 1693, in Salem, Massachusetts, Thackery Binx discovers that his younger sister Emily has been whisked away to the woods by the three witches Winifred, Mary, and Sarah Sanderson. Binx confronts the Sanderson sisters at their cottage, but fails to stop them from draining Emily's life force to restore their youth. To punish him for interfering, the witches transform Binx into a black cat and curse him to live forever by turning him into a black cat with his guilt for not saving Emily. When it comes to the actual story of Hocus Pocus, some of the locations are subtly important.
Billy returns to his grave, and Binx's curse is broken and his soul is freed due to the death of the witches, allowing him to reunite with Emily in the afterlife. The adults at the party finally leave, no longer under the witches' curse. Back at the cottage, Winifred's spellbook opens its eye once more, meaning that the witches will return again someday. Most of the 1993 cult classic was filmed on location in Salem, Mass., and you can even visit many of the historic sites today.