Favourite Family Films Shot in Vancouver
Vancouver is becoming recognized as one of North America’s strongest film hubs, but the city has a long history of playing host to big-screen classics. Read on for a few family-favourite movies whose backdrops you’ll recognize as #VeryVancouver:
One of Adam Sandler’s most popular movies stars the comedian as a rejected hockey player who enters a golf tournament to save his grandmother’s house; the house in question is situated in Vancouver’s beautiful Shaughnessy area. Take a stroll around the quiet neighbourhood and marvel at some of the most expensive real estate in Vancouver. Then, channel the pristine golf course feel by paying a visit to nearby VanDusen Botanical Garden, a sprawling oasis home to more than 7,500 plants, flowers and other greenery. If you prefer teeing up at the real thing, you’ll find an assortment of golf courses featured in the film, including Swan-e-Set Bay Resort & Country Club in Pitt Meadows; Stanley Park Pitch and Putt; and the Stanley Park Pavilion. We recommend visiting the latter by driving up the stunningly scenic Sea-to-Sky Highway; on the way, be sure to stop at Lions Bay for lunch in the quaint village and Porteau Cove for a picture-worthy beach setting.
This board game adventure starring Robin Williams, Kirsten Dunst and Bonnie Hunt quickly became a cult classic when it hit theatres in 1995. The cast and crew spent five months filming in Vancouver during the winter with grey skies, cool winds and lush greenery perfectly supporting the movie’s jungle theme. Forests and wooded areas surrounding the city were used as backdrops to many scenes – you can explore the city’s forested areas and lush greenery yourself in Stanley Park, at Capilano Suspension Bridge Park, or on Cypress Mountain. The Parrish house in Tsawwassen was covered with fresh snow brought down from nearby mountains; today, Tsawwassen is home to Big Splash Water Park, where you can splash around at multiple water slides without having to worry about crocodiles nipping at your ankles. Maple Ridge Water Park was also used as a scene backdrop.
X-Men
Several movies in the action-adventure series were filmed in and around Vancouver, including X2: X-Men United, X-Men 3: The Last Stand and X-Men Origins: Wolverine. When Phoenix rose from Alkali Lake, the real-life body of life viewers see is Alouette Lake at Golden Ears Provincial Park, an ideal camping and hiking locale. When Logan and Victor Creed take part in a raid in “Nigeria”, they are actually battling at Buchanan Tower at the University of British Columbia; the sprawling campus is home to several visitor-friendly attractions, including the Museum of Anthropology, Beaty Biodiversity Museum and UBC Botanical Garden & Greenheart TreeWalk. The “Natural History Museum” where Pyro unleashes his fury was actually built in multiple locations, including the Plaza of Nations; the site is situated along the False Creek waterfront, close to the Aquabus mini-ferries that transport visitors to various stops around the creek.
Keen to tour more of the city using film-themed itineraries? Click here.
