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Two ivory paper doves rest on a snowy holly-covered railing beside a golden Christmas tree, with stepped city towers and an open snow-covered plaza behind.

Essential Christmas · 1992

Home Alone 2: Lost in New York

83/100Festive FactorWhy it scores 83 ↓
UK certificate Parental Guidance120 min
Comedy · Family

The same film again in a bigger city, which works better than it has any right to.

On Disney+ · UK subscription →
Plan this film night ↓Can the kids watch? ↓
Explore this film 12 sections

The CineClaus Christmas score

Festive Factor

Christmas, right to its heart.

Two paper elves inspect paired ivory dove ornaments on a miniature snowy plaza, with a golden Christmas tree, tiny skaters and stepped city towers behind.

A little magic in the making.

Five ingredients make the Festive Factor.
Open an ingredient to find out more.

Christmas in the storyChristmas drives it, firmly.25/30

What we ask: Take Christmas out. Does the plot survive? Worth up to 30 of the 100 points.

A world dressed for ChristmasVisibly Christmas for effectively all of it.20/20

What we ask: How much of the running time is visibly Christmas? Worth up to 20 of the 100 points.

The little seasonal details8 of the 10 kinds of Christmas icon we count turn up on screen.12/15

What we ask: How many kinds of Christmas icon turn up on screen: trees, lights, snow, carols and the rest? Worth up to 15 of the 100 points.

A Christmas heartHow far the ending rests on goodwill, family and belief: substantially.15/20

What we ask: Does the ending depend on what Christmas means: goodwill, family, redemption, belief? Worth up to 20 of the 100 points.

A returning traditionEveryone looks it up in December (250,000+ searches).11/15

What we ask: Is it actually watched at Christmas in the UK? Worth up to 15 of the 100 points.

77/100

Cosiness Rating Rating

Warm in tone. Real jeopardy, but survivable. A happy ending.

How we score →
What do these scores mean?

Festive Factor measures how Christmassy a film is. Five ingredients add up to 100: story (30), setting (20), seasonal details (15), emotional heart (20) and returning tradition (15).

Cosiness is a separate score for warmth of tone, sense of safety, visual comfort, a reassuring ending and how easily you can settle into it.

How the Festive Factor works →
Your next film night

Where to watch

United KingdomChecked

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Streaming changes constantly and we cannot promise it is still right - check the service before you settle in. Streaming availability information provided by Streaming Availability API by Movie of the Night (opens in a new tab). Sky and Rakuten TV data by JustWatch.

The story

About Home Alone 2: Lost in New York

A year on from being left behind at home, an eight-year-old boards the wrong aeroplane at the airport and lands in New York while his family flies to Florida. Loose in the city with his father's credit card, he checks into a grand hotel and lives extravagantly until two familiar burglars turn up. He ends up drawing them into a booby-trapped townhouse.

The CineClaus verdict

The same film again in a bigger city, which works better than it has any right to.

The hotel stretch is the good part - all room service and unearned luxury - and the traps in the last half hour are meaner than the first film's.

It is longer, louder and considerably less surprising. If the original is the fixture, this is the one you put on afterwards, and nobody minds.

The family desk

Can the kids watch?

PG

Our take: fine from about six. Slapstick violence played for laughs, one or two moments of real menace, and a soft landing.

BBFC advice: Mild comic violence, language.

Content advice & accessibility
Where the advice comes from
The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC).
Our age guidance
Editorial, separate from the official PG certificate, and never looser than it.

The series

The Home Alone films

3 films, in release order

The people behind the film

Cast and crew

The faces in front of the camera, and the people who brought the story to life.

Main cast

In billing order
Macaulay Culkin at a Los Angeles anniversary question-and-answer event in 2025.Macaulay Culkinas Kevin McCallister
Joe Pesci photographed in 2009, in a dark jacket.Joe Pescias Harry Lime
Daniel Stern at a press event in July 2014.Daniel Sternas Marv Merchants
John Heard in 2010, an older man with grey hair at a public event.John Heardas Peter McCallister
Devin Ratrayas Buzz McCallister
Tim Curry at a question-and-answer event in 2025.Tim Curryas Mr. Hector, Hotel Concierge
Brenda Fricker in 2014, an older woman with short grey hair smiling at the camera.Brenda Frickeras Central Park Pigeon Woman

Behind the camera

Directed by
Chris Columbus
Original score
Composer John Williams in 2024, seated, in a dark jacket.John Williams
Writing & production credits
Producer
John Hughes
Photo credits

Portraits via Wikimedia Commons, each under its own licence, approved for this page by a person. Sources and full photographer credits:

Macaulay Culkin · Kevin Paul · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY 4.0 (opens in a new tab).

Joe Pesci · yausser · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY 2.0 (opens in a new tab).

Daniel Stern · Mingle Media TV · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY 2.0 (opens in a new tab).

Catherine O'Hara · Harald Krichel · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab).

John Heard · AA911Truth · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY 4.0 (opens in a new tab).

Tim Curry · Kevin Paul · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY 4.0 (opens in a new tab).

Brenda Fricker · Dublin Film Festival · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY 3.0 (opens in a new tab).

Chris Columbus · Kevin Paul · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY 4.0 (opens in a new tab).

John Williams · Lindseysharpe · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab).

Keep the Christmas feeling

Music & soundtrack

That tune you recognised. That score you loved. Take a little of the film into the rest of your Christmas.

Every track on the soundtrack album, in album order.

Behind the music. John Williams composed the score.

About this music list

These are the songs and soundtrack we hold for the film, not a complete cue sheet, and they give no scene timings. Album track lists and durations come from MusicBrainz. Spotify and Apple Music links open the matched recordings; links marked Search open a search on that service. Album covers are each release's own, from the Cover Art Archive, credited under the cover.

Movie Wave (score album review) ↗ (opens in a new tab) Wikidata ↗ (opens in a new tab) MusicBrainz ↗ (opens in a new tab) MusicBrainz ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Step into the story

Filming locations

The real places behind Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. Choose one to explore.

Find it on the mapThe Plaza Hotel, Fifth Avenue

© OpenStreetMap contributors (opens in a new tab)

Open larger map ↗ (OpenStreetMap, opens in a new tab)

Map shows the selected place. Drag to explore; use + and − to zoom.

Choose your next scene

Photographs of the real places

There’s more behind the film.
Explore the next place.

Photo credits & location sources

These are photographs of the places, not film stills. Dates vary; photographs do not show current conditions or guarantee access.

The Plaza Hotel, Fifth Avenue · Daniel Dimitrov · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab) · On Location Tours (opens in a new tab)

Rockefeller Center · MBurch · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab) · On Location Tours (opens in a new tab)

Wollman Rink, Central Park · Florent Pécassou · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab) · On Location Tours (opens in a new tab)

Bethesda Terrace, Central Park · Daniel Dimitrov · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab) · Your Brooklyn Guide (opens in a new tab)

Gapstow Bridge, Central Park · spurekar · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY 2.0 (opens in a new tab) · Your Brooklyn Guide (opens in a new tab)

Queensboro Bridge · King of Hearts · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab) · Your Brooklyn Guide (opens in a new tab)

Empire Diner, Chelsea · Jim.henderson · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC0 (opens in a new tab) · On Location Tours (opens in a new tab)

Carnegie Hall · Your Brooklyn Guide (opens in a new tab)

The Rookery Building, Chicago · Marlene Calderon · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY-SA 3.0 (opens in a new tab) · Your Brooklyn Guide (opens in a new tab)

Map pins mark the place, not a camera position or a route. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), including any pin positions read from OpenStreetMap.

A little more Home Alone 2: Lost in New York

Film facts &
behind the scenes

For the fans who stay after the credits.

On set

A hotel owner's cameo that was never planned

To shoot in the lobby of the Plaza Hotel, the production approached its owner at the time, who also paid no special favour on the fee. According to the director, the owner pushed his way into a brief on-screen appearance, which had not been in the plan, and the director has said he would have cut it if he could.

Read the story

Source: Irish Post ↗ (opens in a new tab) · Far Out ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Movie magic

A New York townhouse built in California

The exterior of the relative's New York townhouse was not shot in New York at all. It was filmed on the Brownstone Street set on the Universal Studios backlot in Los Angeles.

Read the story
On your next watchThe row of brownstones: it reads as Manhattan but is a studio street.

Source: Your Brooklyn Guide ↗ (opens in a new tab)

On set

Part of the 'New York' trip was shot in Illinois

The family's home and the airport scenes at the start were filmed in Illinois, around Winnetka and Chicago's O'Hare, before the production moved to Manhattan for the street, hotel and park locations.

Read the story

Source: Find That Location ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Bloopers & near misses

The pigeon attack used real birds and a lot of birdseed

For the park scene where the two burglars are swamped by birds, Daniel Stern and Joe Pesci were coated in birdseed from head to toe before trained pigeons were released on them. Stern has said a bird flew into his mouth during a take, which may explain how convincing his scream sounds.

Read the story

The coverage describes hundreds of trained pigeons rather than an exact count, so treat any precise number you see elsewhere with care.

On your next watchMarv's reaction as the birds land on him.

Source: Mental Floss ↗ (opens in a new tab)

And at a glance

The Christmas in it
Carols and songs heard: Somewhere in My Memory, Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas, Star of Bethlehem. John Williams's score brings back the first film's Christmas songs and adds a new carol written with Leslie Bricusse, which carries the finale.
Releases and certificates
: In cinemas (US). Original US cinema release. The UK opening followed in December 1992.
: Back in cinemas, rated PG. Back in UK cinemas for Christmas 2018 after a fresh BBFC classification that November.
On television
: Channel 4. Christmas Day showing at 5:50pm.
Past showings, not tonight’s listings.
Sources & a note on these facts

Each production story is linked to its source, in our own words. Ending details stay behind a spoiler reveal.

Gifts for film lovers · Home Alone 2: Lost in New York

Something for the Home Alone 2: Lost in New York fan

Little gifts for someone whose Christmas always includes Home Alone 2: Lost in New York.

As an Amazon Associate, Cine Claus earns from qualifying purchases. Buying through a link helps pay for the site - it never changes a score.

More for the Home Alone 2: Lost in New York fan

2 more ideas
For the fan who watches it every Christmas.Sold by the linked retailer
Good to know

Questions about Home Alone 2: Lost in New York

Is Home Alone 2 a Christmas film?

Yes. We class it as an essential Christmas film: the whole story runs over the Christmas holiday in New York.

What age rating is Home Alone 2?

It is a PG in the UK, for mild comic violence and language.

How long is Home Alone 2?

It runs for 120 minutes, two hours.

Where was Home Alone 2 filmed?

Largely in Manhattan: the Plaza Hotel, Rockefeller Center, Central Park's Wollman Rink, Bethesda Terrace and Gapstow Bridge, and Carnegie Hall. The toy shop's frontage was the Rookery Building in Chicago.

Is Home Alone 2 a sequel?

Yes. It is the direct sequel to Home Alone, the second film in the series, with the same family and cast.

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Festive Factor 88 out of 100: Christmas at its heart.
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