Good news for fans of classic film Dirty Dancing – the lake, where Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey practiced their famous lift, is back.
The Mountain Lake in Virginia is right next to the Mountain Lake Hotel, otherwise known as Kellerman’s in the 1987 movie. It’s been basically dry for 12 years, but is now starting to fill with water again.
The lake has filled and emptied over the years, with a video posted on the hotel’s website explaining the phenomenon. In the video, Dr Jon Cawley from Roanoke College, says: “This lake basin is the only one on the entire planet that goes through this sort of cyclicity and has this sort of plumbing system.”
It means there’s no knowing whether the lake will fill up completely, or for how long it will contain water – so there may be limited time in which to nail the perfect Dirty Dancing photo opportunity.
This is by no means the only location that has film buffs flocking to recreate their favourite scenes though. Here are some more real-life locations you can visit from iconic movies…
1. Café des 2 Moulins – Amélie
Café des 2 Moulins is in the Montmartre area of Paris, and is where the titular character of 2001 film Amélie worked as a waitress. It’s probably wise to leave the waitressing to the professionals, so instead, get the perfect photo by sipping a coffee on one of the outdoor seats, while looking pensively into the distance.
2. The Rocky Steps – Rocky
For a truly celebratory snap, don your finest grey tracksuit and run to the top of the steps at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Raise two fists in the air when you reach the top, and channel Rocky Balboa. The location has become so synonymous with Sylvester Stallone’s Oscar winning boxing movie, it’s been dubbed the ‘Rocky Steps’.
3. Notting Hill Bookshop – Notting Hill
Some people are born famous and others achieve fame, but some have fame thrust upon them. So it was for the owners of the Notting Hill Bookshop – AKA Travel Books Co in the 1999 film Notting Hill starring Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts.
And, since the film celebrated its 20th anniversary last year, the owners of the Notting Hill Bookshop have enjoyed an increase of visitors and have revealed they regularly get requests from people to be able to propose in-store.
4. The blue door – Notting Hill
You can pose in front of the blue door behind which Hugh Grant’s character William lived in Richard Curtis movie Notting Hill – the one that’s swamped by paparazzi trying to catch a glimpse of movie star-playing Julia Roberts. It’s also a good opportunity to see some other sites from the London-set film, like William’s travel bookstore (now a gift shop) and Portobello Road Market.
5. Tiffany’s – Breakfast At Tiffany’s
To really get into the spirit of the 1961 movie starring Audrey Hepburn, grab a croissant and a takeaway coffee and do some window shopping at Tiffany’s flagship store in New York, on the corner of Fifth Avenue and 57th Street. It’s the perfect spot for a chic photo – black Givenchy dress optional.
6. Firehouse, Hook & Ladder Company 8 – Ghostbusters
Not only is this New York firehouse an elegant building, it’s also the Ghostbusters HQ. The interior scenes for the film might have been shot elsewhere, but it’s still the perfect place to stand outside and ask the question: who ya gonna call?
7. Hobbiton – Lord Of The Rings
The Lord Of The Rings was shot against the awe-inspiring backdrop of New Zealand’s countryside. To really get into the spirit of the films, visit Hobbiton – a permanent film set that was home to Frodo, Sam and Bilbo Baggins. Sign up to a Tolkien-themed tour and take pictures against the iconic round doors.
8. The Joker stairs – Joker
While most of the films on this list are classics, this one is more recent. Last year a flight of stairs in the Bronx, New York, was inundated with tourists dancing on the steps in a bid to recreate a scene from the Oscar-winning movie Joker. It’s when Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck truly transforms into the villainous Joker.
9. Katz’s Deli – When Harry Met Sally
Katz’s Deli is known as one of the best places to get a pastrami sandwich in New York, but it also played a part in one of the most famous scenes from When Harry Met Sally, when Meg Ryan’s character Sally has lunch with Billy Crystal’s Harry. The moment is commemorated with a plaque that says: “Where Harry met Sally… hope you have what she had!”
10. Charleston, South Carolina – The Notebook
If you’re between the ages of 20 and 35 and also have a soul, you’ve probably cried while watching The Notebook. The torrid love affair between Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams unfolds on the cobbled streets of Charleston, South Carolina, backed by dreamy antebellum architecture and crumbling, faded facades.
The iconic swamp sequence was filmed in Cypress Gardens (be sure to visit during alligator hibernation season), while the nearby Boone Hall Plantation doubled as the Hamilton’s summer home.
But the highlight is the American Theatre, which hosted the protagonists on their double date. Though no longer functional, the facility hosts events and will put marriage proposals on its iconic sign.
11. Skopelos, Greece – Mamma Mia
The island of Kalokairi is unfortunately fictional, as is the Villa Donna, but most of the Greek island scenes were filmed on the real-life paradise of Skopelos.
Dominic Cooper and Christine Baranski both recorded their big numbers on Kastani Beach, Amanda Seyfried reads to her bridesmaids at Glysteri on the northern coast, while the wedding scenes were filmed at the chapel of Agios Ioannis Prodromos, near the town of Glossa. The island is just as outrageously picturesque as it seems on screen, and, it goes without saying, a top wedding destination.
12. The Empire State Building, New York – Sleepless In Seattle
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Meg Ryan dumps her fiance in the Rockefeller Center and rushes across the road to meet the man of her dreams on the Empire State Building Observation Deck, framed against the inky New York night. For sheer scale the scene has an unshakeable place in popular culture, and cemented the status of the Empire State Building in the minds of young lovers everywhere.
In reality you must time your visit with care – the deck is open from 8am until 2am and you’d be well-advised to visit during the night shift, too. During the day there are so many tourists you’d barely have room to kneel.
13. Las Palmas Hotel, Los Angeles – Pretty Woman
Ok, for this one you have to really like the film, but do you remember that final scene from Pretty Woman? When Richard Gere climbs up the side of Julia Roberts’ apartment building to “rescue” her, before she “rescues him right back”? That’s the outside of the Las Palmas Hotel in Hollywood – by no means one of LA’s more glamorous establishments.
There is also, of course, the Regent Beverly Wilshire hotel and Rodeo Drive for the complete Pretty Woman day out. You could round it off with dinner at the Cicada in downtown LA – the art deco restaurant at which Vivian struggles with eating snails.
