12 cottage movies for your next night in at the lake

Watch Steve Martin and Eugene Levy at their most absurd as they lead their two enormous families headfirst into a lakeside rivalry. A great cottage movie option for the family.

The Way Way Back is a comedy-drama and a summer vacation coming-of-age story set in a seaside town near Cape Cod, Mass. It's got a charming cast (critics praised Steve Carrell, Sam Rockwell, and Toni Collette for their performances), and it does a great job at balancing tender moments and light-hearted humour.

If you’re looking to make your next cottage trip as frightening as possible, check out this 1981 cult classic about a group of friends who accidentally awaken a flood of evil at an isolated cabin. It's long been regarded as the original and scariest "cabin in the woods" horror movie. Watch it at the cottage…if you dare!

Watching this Japanese animated flick set in the quiet countryside is like walking right into a fairy tale. Two young girls move into a country home with their father where they meet magical spirits and a fantastical creature named Totoro. It’s short and sweet and might even have you feeling some unexpected emotions by the end of it.

How could you not be at least a little intrigued by a mid–2000s time-travelling romance movie starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock at the height of their careers? It'll set the tone for a cozy night in at the cottage.

Watching chaos ensue as Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Kevin James, David Spade, and Rob Schneider return to their childhood cottage is perfect for some easy laughs, especially if you’re watching with the family. It just might be a little too relatable!

This fantastical 1996 classic about a young girl with psychic powers is well worth watching at the cottage, if only for a little bit of comforting ‘90s movie nostalgia. Miss Honey’s cozy-looking cabin might end up being your next cottage inspiration.

This John Candy and Dan Akroyd-led comedy may be the ultimate cottage movie classic—two families butt heads on their weekend away at the cabin. Candy and Akroyd are at their best, making the movie over the top and ridiculous with a downright hysterical watching experience.

Much like Cheaper by the Dozen 2 and The Great Outdoors, this 2019 feature is a spin on the classic "family rivalry at the cottage" genre, only this movie is absolutely horrifying. A family’s vacation takes a terrifying twist as they’re forced to fight for their lives against a group of lookalike invaders. Seriously, this may be the scariest film on the whole list. Viewers beware!

While this may be the only film on this list that's not strictly cottage-based, it certainly feels like it is—it takes place on a quaint island with beautifully designed cottage-like coastal homes, and it's also full of camping and adventure. It’s a quirky, warm, and whimsical look at young love with a star-studded cast.

There’s just something about an isolated cabin that makes for a great scary movie setting, isn’t there? In many ways, this aptly-named movie serves as an homage to other scary cottage movies. Without giving too much away, this flick is full of twists, some good scares, and even a few good laughs. It’s truly a rollercoaster!

Snow White singing to the birds from the Seven Dwarfs’ cottage is maybe the most iconic cottage scene of all time. This classic fairy tale adaptation is Disney’s very first animated feature—maybe this is your sign to introduce your family to a piece of cinema history.