visiting a christmas story house + museum

It has been a while but the memory lives on. Especially during this time of year. You may recall my blog post from way back in October, where my husband and I visited Ohio for a wedding. (If you missed it, feel free to check it out here.) Back then, I mentioned that I would be doing a full post about my visit to A Christmas Story House and Museum a little bit later. Well, the time has come! Now that Christmas is just a few days away...it seemed like the perfect time to talk about my experience. So, here are some pictures, videos, and everything you need to know about the iconic movie house.

To say I was excited would be a serious understatement. Having watched "A Christmas Story" so many times throughout my life....I was absolutely giddy at the idea of visiting the exterior home used in the actual movie. It is located in Cleveland, Ohio and has a giant gift shop, a full museum, and the house itself. Tours are given throughout the day and the admission price is quite reasonable. When we got there, parking was a bit tricky. (This is a residential area, after all.) Other than that, everything worked out perfectly. We took some pictures in front of the house and then went to the gift shop to buy our tour tickets and look around. Let me just say that the gift shop was completely and totally overwhelming. If you are a fan of the movie, you will likely want to buy everything. Though I desperately wanted to buy a full-sized leg lamp....they were pretty expensive and sadly out of the budget. That being said, I did find quite a few gifts for my family members. So that was a bonus!

Speaking of the gift shop, you can see everything I purchased at the Christmas Story House in my new YouTube video. It went up a couple of days ago and features some footage from the house and museum as well as a haul of gift shop items.



Once we dropped off our purchased items in the car, it was back to the house for our tour. Finally! It was thrilling to hear about the history of the area, the behind the scenes stories, and to walk where movie history had been made. We learned a lot of interesting facts (like why the leg lamp box said "His End Up" rather than "This End Up") before we even stepped foot inside the house. Then, it was time to enter the house. I was one of the first inside and just took a second to breathe it all in. I looked around in complete amazement. I snapped pictures. I took videos. I grinned like a kid in a candy store. I was definitely in my happy place! The attention to detail was amazing and it really felt like I had stepped foot into another time and place.

When I talk about the attention to detail, I mean it! Everything from the blue bowling ball to the crooked star on the tree to the zillion plugs in the light socket...it was all there. And it wasn't just the living room that was like this. Every single room felt authentic to the time but also had references to the movie that true fans would see and appreciate. The tour guide talked to us for a while before letting us roam free throughout the home. There was so much to see. I could've spent the entire day there if they would have let me. I think my favourite thing was sitting in the bathroom and pretending to decode Little Orphan Annie's message. (Be sure to drink your Ovaltine!) We were also able to walk around different bedrooms and the kitchen. Then it was off to the backyard, where the showdown with Black Bart took place.

The outside shed was neat because it was the original from the movie. It just had a fresh coat of paint! That was super exciting and it was really fun to be outside in the backyard where it all took place. After that, we went over to the museum. There were costumes, props, movie reviews, posters, artwork, and so much more. It was overwhelming! They even had a costume from a scene in the movie that was cut (and is sadly lost forever) that featured Flash Gordon. It was so interesting to learn more about the behind the scenes aspects of the film and to see everything that went into making it. After we finished at the museum, it was back to the gift shop. Why? I had bought all sorts of things for my family but nothing for myself. So my husband insisted that I treat myself to a couple of things. Then it was time to leave my happy place and continue on with our vacation plans.

Honestly? I never wanted to leave. It was an incredible experience from start to finish. I love A Christmas Story so much and it was an honour to spend some time at the house. It was something I will never forget. Fingers crossed, one day I will be able to visit again!

Have you ever been to A Christmas Story House?