Is WHEN CALLS THE HEART’s Hope Valley a Real Place? The Answer Might Surprise You
By Movieguide® Contributor
Ever wanted to visit WHEN CALLS THE HEART’s Hope Valley? It might look a little different than you expected.
Unfortunately, Hope Valley is not a real place. The idyllic town was created by Janette Oke, the author of the book series that inspired the popular show.
However, WHEN CALLS THE HEART’s production does take place on a beautiful farm in rural Canada.
According to Good Housekeeping, most of the scenes filmed for the show take place on the family-owned MacInnes Farms in Langley, about an hour south of Vancouver. Parts of the farm are still in operation, producing honey, hops, hazelnuts and barley, as well as housing free-range chickens and 40 acres of cottonwood trees.
WHEN CALLS THE HEART’s town set turns into a bit of a “ghost town” when the cast and crew aren’t shooting.
Executive producer and writer John Tinker posted some photos of an empty Hope Valley on Instagram, writing, “I took these photos in March, early in my stay in Vancouver, and found out that, when we’re not shooting, the town ‘hibernates.’”
“All the signage, the lamp posts, flowers and other plants, every stick of furniture is gone, making Hope Valley look like a ghost town,” he continued. “But every year, before shooting begins, our crew helps ‘wake the town from its sleep’ and well… you get the picture.”
READ MORE: 5 SURPRISING FACTS ABOUT WHEN CALLS THE HEART
WHEN CALLS THE HEART isn’t the only production that works on MacInnes Farms, though.
Melanie MacInnes told the Langley Advance Times that the farm started being used as a set for movies and TV when the crew of SCARY MOVIE 4 asked if they could “build [a] temporary movie set” to film a few scenes.
“It was a total fluke,” she said, adding that the revenue from the production “allowed [her] parents to keep going” with their work on the farm, “but the movies kept coming after that.”
MacInnes continued, “The filming is a perfect compliment to the farming because it has no impact, especially WHEN CALLS THE HEART. They’ve been so supportive of our farming. They work with us. If we are doing barley, they’ll use it in the background of their scene. They are actually promoting our farming more and more.”
Even though Hope Valley isn’t real, fans are still able to visit their favorite fictional town. The Hearties Family Reunion is a three-day event for fans, giving attendees the “behind-the-scenes opportunity for fans to hear from the cast, visit the set of Hope Valley, and interact with other Hearties from around the country and globe,” per the event’s website.
READ MORE: ‘GOD USED THE HEARTIES’: WHEN CALLS THE HEART FAN ON SHOW’S REAL-LIFE IMPACT
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