Valentine’s Day is one of my favorite romantic comedies. I love that it was filmed all over LA, has such a great cast, and was directed by Garry Marshall. This movie came out before I moved back to Southern California and gave me some great ideas of places to check out when I returned. Below are some of my favorite Valentine’s Day Movie Filming Locations in Los Angeles.
One of my favorite Instagram and Tiktok accounts to follow for filming locations is TheFilmTripper. The blog and social media accounts are run by Becca who joined me on the LA Dreaming Podcast to discuss the filming locations from Valentine’s Day. You can follow The Film Tripper on Instagram and Tiktok. You can listen to the podcast through Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, Stitcher, or Podbean.
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Valentine’s Day Movie Filming Locations
This movie was Garry Marshall’s chance to do a love letter to LA and I appreciate that so much. There are so many fun and recognizable locations showcased in this movie. Some of the locations play themselves, while others were dressed up to become something else. One of the many things I really like about this movie is how many of the places are real-life locations that you can go and visit. Not only can you visit so many of the filming locations but you can actually have experiences there as well. I really hope this post encourages you to rewatch the movie and visit some of the locations yourself.
If you want a refresher on the movie, or need to see it for the first time, you can stream it on HBO Max or rent/buy it on Amazon.
As the movie opens up we immediately see the iconic Santa Monica Pier followed by some views of DTLA from what I believe is a trail in Griffith Park. We then see Ashton Kutcher and Jessica Alba inside a house that turns out to be located in the beautiful Venice Canals.
The Venice Canals
The Venice Canals are a popular place to visit in the Los Angeles area. While the canals were man-made by Abbot Kinney they are still a magical and romantic place to visit which makes it a perfect location for characters in a romantic comedy to live. The white bridges add a picturesque touch to this area. It is fun to walk around here. Just be respectful of people’s yards and homes. In the movie the canals are where Ashton Kutcher lives. Becca shared on the podcast that it was also used in an 80’s cop show called Simon & Simon.
Address for Ashton Kutcher’s House in the Valentine’s Day Movie: 2604 Grand Canal in Venice.
I also love visiting the Naples Canals in Long Beach where you can enjoy a gondola ride through the canals. They also put up incredible decorations for the holiday season here. You can also find canals in Orange County in Newport Beach.
If you are interested in other things to do in the Venice Beach and Santa Monica area please visit this post.
The Los Angeles Flower Market
The Los Angeles Flower Market is such a unique place to visit in Downtown Los Angeles. It is the second-largest flower market in the world. The market plays itself as a Valentine’s Day Movie Filming Location. Ashton Kutcher goes here for flowers for his shop near the beginning of the movie. This is a flower lover’s dream as you can find all types of flowers and plants here and at pricing that might make you feel like you’re at Costco. It is $2 to enter on weekdays, and $1 on Saturdays. The market is closed on Sunday. Public hours are M-Thursday 8 am to 12 pm, Fridays 8 am to 2 pm, and Saturdays 6 am to 2 pm.
The other filming location blogger that we talked about in the podcast episode is Lindsey Blake of iamnotastalker.com which is a great resource for discovering filming locations.
The address for the Los Angeles Flower Market is 745 Wallstreet in Downtown Los Angeles.
The Flower Shop
The shop where Ashton Kutcher and George Lopez work in the movie is called Siena Bouquet. In the movie, it is a coffee and florist shop but these days if you visit the location you’ll find it is a vintage clothing store called Playclothes. Playclothes is located on Magnolia Blvd in Burbank. Magnolia Blvd is filled with interesting and unique stores like It’s a Wrap where you can find clothes used in tv shows and movies. We also talked about estate sales and I mentioned how Vintage Los Angeles has been a good resource to find out about Hollywood-related ones.
Address for Siena Bouquet aka Playclothes: 3100 West Magnolia Boulevard
The High School
This is one of the most interesting Valentine’s Day Movie Filming Locations for me but not because of the actual location. It’s because of the name of the high school, the name of one of the teachers, and the fact that one of the actors was someone I actually went to high school with myself. I went to high school with Taylor Swift. We attended Hendersonville High School in Tennessee. In the movie, the school that Taylor’s character attends is called Henderson High School which is a fun easter egg. Another easter egg is that Taylor’s favorite teacher was the criminal justice teacher Mr. Schwabe.
Becca shared a list of famous people that actually attended school at University High School which played Henderson High in the movie. Some of the coolest names of people who were students at this school are Judy Garland, Randy Newman, Elizabeth Taylor, and Marilyn Monroe.
The address for University High School is 11800 Texas Avenue.
Lake Hollywood Park
When I watched Valentine’s Day for the first time there were two filming locations that I was most excited to visit. The first was the Los Angeles Flower Market and the second was Lake Hollywood Park. The park is shown during a soccer game in the movie and I remember thinking how cool it was that this game was taking place with the Hollywood sign in the background. I have loved coming here because it is a chance to get semi-close to the sign without having to do a long hike to get there. It’s a cute spot for photos and a picnic. Plus, a lot of locals love doing the Lake Hollywood Reservoir Trail or starting a hike to the Hollywood sign from here.
Address for Lake Hollywood Park: 3160 Canyon Lake Dr
Walt Disney Concert Hall
The Walt Disney Concert Hall is one of the most stunning buildings in Downtown Los Angeles. It makes a brief appearance in the background of a scene in Valentine’s Day when Eric Dane rear-ends George Lopez while he is out delivering flowers. I wish we could have seen more of this amazing building in the movie. The building was designed by Frank Gherry and is open for free self guided tours most days. You can find more details about the tours here.
One of my favorite things that I have done at the Walt Disney Concert Hall is visiting the Blue Ribbon Garden. The garden is located on the backside of the building up the stairs and through a gate/door. There is a gorgeous fountain that is dedicated to Lilian Disney, Walt’s wife. As amazing as the interior of the building is, there are so many beautiful photos you can take of the exterior and the garden. Definitely allow yourself some time to explore this amazing spot. The concert hall is also located close to some other cool places to see like The Broad Museum or the observation deck at Los Angeles City Hall.
Address for the Walt Disney Concert Hall: 111 S Grand Ave
Bob’s Big Boy
Bob’s Big Boy is another iconic place that we see briefly in the movie. When the little boy Edison is riding his bike we see this place in the background. This is a popular diner located near Walt Disney Studios and Warner Bros Studios in Burbank. You never know who you might see while dining here. Friday nights are extra exciting with a classic car show.
Address for Bob’s Big Boy: 4211 W Riverside Dr
Bistro Garden
One of my favorite types of filming locations to visit is restaurants. I love getting to have a meal while also checking out a filming location and if I can even sit where they filmed a scene, it is even better. The Bistro Garden, where Jennifer Garner confronts Patrick Dempsey, was on my to-do list for a while since it looked like a beautiful restaurant. I was so devastated that the restaurant closed down due to the pandemic. In addition to the Bistro Garden being used as a Valentine’s Day Movie Filming Location, it was also used for other productions like The Office.
The Bistro Garden is currently Barry’s boot camp. I am planning to try and go inside to see what you can still see left of the restaurant’s decor.
If you are a big fan of The Office be sure to check out this post.
Address for Bistro Garden: 12950 Ventura Blvd, Studio City
The I Hate Valentine’s Day Restaurant
Jessica Biel’s character hosts an I hate Valentine’s Day dinner in the movie. In the movie it is an Indian restaurant but in reality, it is multiple businesses in that location none of which are Indian restaurant. When you are in front of the building you’ll see the Diaghilev restaurant, Shanghal Rose, and Valley Eye Professionals. I had previously read online that this location is a Russian Restaurant called the Romanov but I didn’t see any signs for that on the front of the building.
Address for this filming location: 12229 Ventura Blvd, Studio City
The filming locations for Bistro Garden and the Indian Restaurant are down the street from each other so it’s easy to see both of these together. They are also really close to an old theatre that has been turned into a Barnes and Noble.
Beverly Wilshire Hotel
As you might know, Valentine’s Day is not the first movie that Garry Marshall has filmed at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel. This was also used in Pretty Woman with Julia Roberts and Richard Gere. In Valentine’s Day, this is where Topher Grace and Anne Hathaway go for dinner and then we also see Jessica Alba checking in at the front desk. If you are going to be in or near Beverly Hills this would be a great place to stop by even if you only get to see the lobby.
They do in fact have a Valentine’s dinner at the hotel’s restaurant, The BLVD, that has four courses and includes an Instagramable photo op. It is $165 a person so it is very pricey but definitely sounds like a special experience.
Address for the Beverly Wilshire Hotel: 9500 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills
Hollywood Forever Cemetery
One of the most unique and fun ways to watch an outdoor movie in LA is with Cinespia at the Hollywood Forever cemetery. In the movie, we see Hetcor Elizondo and Topher Grace come here to watch a movie. Typically, the movie screenings only take place during the summer but there are some special events hosted at the cemetery throughout the year. When you see a movie at the cemetery you are not sitting on top of the graves. They have a special event space that has no bodies buried in that area.
While it may seem like an odd thing to do, these events are so much fun. People love bringing picnics to enjoy at the events and Cinespia always has a great photo op. Even if you don’t watch a movie here you can still visit the graves of some of your favorite stars like Judy Garland, Toto the dog from the Wizard of Oz is buried here too, Mickey Rooney, Estelle Getty, and Johnny Ramone just to name a few.
Address for Hollywood Forever Cemetery: 6000 Santa Monica Blvd
