Inside Bates Motel: Photos From The Show’s Set

Last October, KSiteTV was one of the outlets given the opportunity to visit the Vancouver-based sets of the A&E drama Bates Motel, which sees its third season premiere TONIGHT (March 9) at 9PM.

One thing that will probably surprise very few people is that the exteriors for the show are generally in a very different place than the interiors. While the interior of the Bates house, for example, is on a soundstage, a replica of the classic Bates home overlooking the motel – and the motel – can be found outside of the city. The day chosen for our set visit was a drizzly, somewhat cold day – perfect for setting the mood.

The reception area at the Bates Motel is exactly as it looks on the series, as is the office right behind it. You’ve seen that set many times on the show, and it will be seen again in tonight’s premiere. For all intents and purposes, the Bates Motel really looks and feels like a motel – which surely must confuse cars that drive by in the real world. We even saw some rooms that seemed complete.

As mentioned above, the house itself and the walkway leading up to it are just like what you’d expect from the classic Psycho – except, of course, the insides aren’t a match. For the insides, we had to head to the stages for the show, where one might think that Norman and Norma Bates live in a TARDIS from Doctor Who, as there are many more rooms than one would expect from what you see on the outside. Oh, TV magic.

But what a detailed inside it is. My favorite room in the Bates house remains the kitchen, as it has appliances and a look that are clearly from a different time. Sprinkled throughout the house are real pictures of the actors in younger days – for likeness rights reasons, we couldn’t take photos of them. Still, look below and you’ll see some of the great things we saw there. Unfortunately, our camera had no flash so some things weren’t totally possible to get on camera, and we apologize for the bad lighting for that same reason. Not professional photographers over here!

No creepy house would be complete without a creepy basement, and Norman Bates’ basement is creepier than most. Even if it is a film set, I would not want to be left alone down there.

All in all, the attention to detail is symptomatic of this show in general – if you haven’t sampled it, there are only two seasons to catch up on, but it might be worth giving a chance.

Bates Motel Season 3 premieres tonight (March 9) at 9PM on A&E. Here are some photos that we took up at Bates Motel, mixed with some official photos A&E has released of the show’s sets:

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