Back to the Future (1985)

A tour of the filming locations for the first film of the Back to the Future trilogy will take you all over the Los Angeles area. A few of the locations were later re-used for the other two films.

In the opening scene of the film, Marty leaves Doc's garage in 1985 & skates through what is a Burger King parking lot. This is actually in Burbank at 545 North Victory Boulevard.

As Marty enters downtown Hill Valley, he is smack-dab in the middle of the Universal Studios backlot in what is known as "Courthouse Square." It famously burned down in 2008, though it has burned down & been rebuilt twice prior to that. If you take the backlot tram tour they often take you through this area.

GPS Coordinates:

34.141397,-118.349772

Marty & Jennifer's (and George & Lorraine's) high school is actually Whittier High School. The entrance is on the south side, at 12417 Philadelphia Street.

The "Battle of the Bands" was filmed in the McCambridge Park Recreational Center in Burbank at 1515 Glenoaks Boulevard.

After the audition, Marty and Jennifer talk in Courthouse Square at Universal Studios.

The entrance to Lyon Estates in 1985 was in Arleta, at the corner of Kagel Canyon Street & Sandusky Avenue (the shot is looking south).

Marty's house is at 9303 Roslyndale Avenue in Arleta.

The "Twin Pines Mall" where the time travel experiment is successful is actually Puente Hills Mall on the east side of LA. Marty enters the parking lot through the south entrance.

GPS Coordinates:

33.991052,-117.926653

The time travel event & subsequent chase ensue in the south parking lot outside what is now Macy's & 24 Hour Fitness.

GPS Coordinates:

33.991865,-117.927471

The "Twin Pines Ranch," where Marty crashes into the barn after a successful time-travel - is located on Golden Oak Ranch north of LA on Placerita Canyon Road. This is a studio backlot privately-owned by Disney with no access for the public. The barn is called the "Ragwing Barn" and is partially visible from a vantage point on the road.

GPS Coordinates:

34.377393,-118.47725

I'm a little unsure where the entrance to Lyon Estates in 1955 was. Different sources put Cucamonga Road off the Chino-Corona Road outside Chino, CA as the location where the road veers off into the farm field. Toward the end of the road it is gated private property, and I think beyond the gate is where the location would likely be. By matching up the trees & hills in the background, I think a more probable location is a gated road off Pine Avenue in the same area. In any case, its not a very exciting location to visit (hence the reason I haven't driven all the way out there to find out).

Marty wanders into a strangely-familiar place: Courthouse Square.

Lorraine lived at 1727 Bushnell Avenue in South Pasadena. Interiors were supposedly filmed inside the house as well. Coincidentally, this was also Michael J. Fox's house in Teen Wolf, which filmed earlier in the same year.

Right across the street, you'll see the tree George spied from.

Doc's house in 1955 is the Gamble House at 4 Westmoreland Place in Pasadena. It was only used for exterior shots, the interiors were sets.

If you visit the Gamble House, you may wonder why the front door looks slightly different than in the film. That's because this scene (and the interior house scenes) were filmed instead at the Robert R. Blacker House at 1177 Hillcrest Avenue in Pasadena.

Doc and Marty go to see George and Lorraine who coincidentally go to Marty's future school at Whittier High.

George (Marty's dad) lives right down the street from Lorraine, at 1711 Bushnell. The backyard of this house was also used in the scene where George is hanging laundry & talking to Marty.

George meets with Marty back in Courthouse Square.

George and Marty lay out their plans while hanging laundry behind George's house at 1711 Bushnell.

The "Enchantment Under the Sea" dance scene was filmed inside the gymnasium of Hollywood United Methodist Church at 6817 Franklin Avenue in Hollywood.

The side entrance to the school where Marty parks the car and George later lays out Biff is on the east side, off of Whittier Avenue.

The location of the start line where Marty started his run into Hill Valley in the DeLorean is on Vermont Canyon Road near Griffith Park, across from the Greek Theater.

Marty arrives back in Courthouse Square in 1985.

He arrives back at Puente Hills Mall just in time to see himself time travel.

Doc safely delivers Marty back to his house at 9303 Roslyndale Avenue in Arleta.

The final shot takes place on Roslyndale Avenue in front of Marty's house.