7 Holiday Movies with Famous Scenes Filmed at Airports All Over the Globe

As you begin to prepare for your own holiday travel adventures, you may be booking last-minute flights to see friends and family. While you’re roaming around the airport, you may want to take a moment to think back to your favorite holiday flicks. Did you know that many holiday films feature airport scenes that were filmed at airports all over the globe? You may find yourself waiting for a flight at one of these airports during the upcoming wintertime travel season.

 

Home Alone

This ho-ho-hilarious film features Kevin McCallister and his family. Kevin is accidentally left at home while his family heads to the airport to catch their holiday flight to Paris. They don’t realize he’s missing until they’re on the plane en route to the City of Light. As he’s enjoying Christmas break at home alone while battling two crooks who want to burglarize his family’s home, Kevin’s parents struggle to get a flight back home to him.

 

All of the movie airport scenes take place in Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. This includes the portions that were staged as Paris Orly Airport. Do you remember the famous scene where the family is racing through the airport to make their flight to Paris?

 

 

Home Alone 2

 

In Home Alone 2, Kevin is at it again! This time he gets lost in the airport and mistakenly boards a flight headed to NYC, while his family heads to Florida for a vacation. In this holiday sequel, we get to follow Kevin in his journeys through the Big Apple. The airport scenes in this movie are filmed at 3 different airports, all in the U.S.

 

When coming to the realization that he’s actually landed in New York and his trip might not be so bad after all, with a smirk, Kevin declares:  “Oh no…My family’s in Florida and I’m in New York. …My family’s in Florida…..and I’m in New York!”

 

The interior shots were filmed at both O’hare International Airport and Los Angeles International Airport, while the exterior airport and plane shots were taken at Miami International Airport.

 

 

Love Actually

In this Christmastime flick, we get to examine the complexity of love. The movie explores different love stories and experiences from a mix of characters. We see the characters fall in and out of love throughout the story.

 

The movie opens with views of loved ones hugging and kissing at the arrival gates of Heathrow Airport and talks about how, if we look carefully, love can be found everywhere. The airport scenes in this holiday movie were actually filmed at London’s Heathrow Airport.

 

 

Ernest Saves Christmas

In Ernest Saves Christmas, we follow Santa Claus as he travels to Florida to find his new replacement. He takes a taxi ride with Ernest and throughout the movie, they get into a bit of misadventure. Will Christmas be saved after all?

At the beginning of the movie, we see Santa Claus get off the airplane as he arrives in Orlando. The airport scene was filmed at Orlando International Airport.

 

 

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

In this classic comedy, Neal Page tries his hardest to get home to his family in time for Thanksgiving. One disaster after another wreaks havoc on Neal’s travel plans and he doesn’t make it home in time for the holiday.  He’s also forced to deal with annoying travel companion, Del Griffith.

The airport scenes in this holiday film were shot in St. Louis at Lambert International Airport.

 

 

Die Hard

While some may not consider this to be a traditional Christmas movie, the story takes place on Christmas Eve, and a big portion of the film focuses on a holiday party. In this movie, John McClane, a police officer, visits his estranged wife and children and goes to his wife’s work party. Terrorists end up taking over the building, and John must save the day.

In the movie opening, we watch John arrive in Los Angeles, as he get off his flight. This airport scene was filmed at Los Angeles International Airport.

 

 

Die Hard 2

In another holiday-themed sequel, Die Hard 2, much of the story takes place at the airport. A year later, John is mixed up in another terrorist plot while at Washington Dulles International Airport, waiting for his wife’s flight to get in. Again, he is forced to take action and save the day. While the story itself takes place in Washington DC, the airport scenes were filmed at Los Angeles International Airport.

 

 

And there you have it—many of your favorite holiday movies were actually filmed at airports that you know and love. Which holiday movie is your favorite? The next time you watch these flicks, you’ll know a bit of movie film location trivia, and will be sure to impress your friends and family.

 

Author Bio: Natasha Gabrielle is a freelance writer, blogger, and traveler. She’s previously lived and worked in South Korea. Now she lives stateside—but continues to travel the world and document her adventures.