Hallmark Channel has filmed 47 movies taking place in and around Connecticut to be shown on their networks this winter.
Attempting to ditch the green screen, producers wanted to go to real locations, from Connecticut shorelines to the colors of the fall leaves; places like Old Lyme and Mystic were staples for filming.
Hallmark Christmas movie fanatic, Heather Schwartz, also a Connecticut resident, has a strong love for these movies. “I love that Hallmark movies are an escape from daily life.”
Some of the locations used during filming are able to be visited, examples being The Pemberley Manor, located in Old Lyme, the Cardone and Daugther car garage, which is in Old Saybrook, and the Rinconcito Peruano resteraunt in Hartford.
“It’s been fun recognizing many popular CT sites that I’ve been to.” Schwartz has been fawning over the Hallmark Xmas movie franchise since she was young, even owning a shirt that reads, “Don’t bother me, I’m watching Hallmark Movies”.
Another location, which has its name featured in the title, Mystic Christmas, was released just a year ago, in 2023. Many locations in Mystic were used for the movie, and shares quite a bit about the town of Mystic. Four locations straight from Mystic’s Main Street were featured as well, attempting to capture the feeling of Mystic.
“I’ve visited a few of the spots that were filmed in Mystic. I was also at spots before they were filmed there for a couple of the more recent movies.” Schwartz has found enjoyment in visiting filming spots while she is on vacation.
Holiday in Harlem, One Royal Holiday, Ghost of Christmas Always were filmed in Hartford. One of which was labeled as a top Hallmark movie.
As well, Where Are You Christmas, and Sugar Plum Twist were filmed in Old Saybrook. Both include shots of Main Street, which is often a shot directors use in holiday films. As well, certain locations drew producers near.
One location crucial to the plot of Where Are You Christmas is a family owned car garage, “When I saw how open Cardones is with all the beautiful cars and colors, I was blown away,” Andrew Gernhard, the owner of a production company, said in an interview with CT Insider.
One movie filmed in Woodstock was set in an imaginary town called Kentsbury, which was imagined to be a mix of Simsbury and Kent. This was called, One Royal Holiday.
Essex, known for its old, rich style buildings, uses a hotel called The Griswold Inn, a staple Christmas location due to the fact it is decked out for the holiday season.
Another shoreline location, Old Lyme, had a couple of movies filmed there. The Pemberley Manor, the main filming location of the recently released movie, Christmas in Pemberley Manor, is available as an Airbnb, which is similar with a few other locations used during filming.
Wethersfield is a popular filming location as well during the holidays, the farm-to-table markey used in both films due to its festive holiday decor. Two popular places in Wethersfield, being the Silas W. Robbins House Bed and Breakfast, as wel as the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum, were used in the movies, Rediscovering Christmas, and Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane.
The movie Sugar Plum Twist, formerly mentioned as having scenes from Old Saybrook,had the main filming location of Norwich. The movie director had his opinions about the movie needing to use downtown Norwich and Norwich City Hall during filming.
Other movies that put the town of Norwich on display are, Next Stop, Christmas, and Holiday for Heroes. These movies feature cafes, museums, and breweries throughout the town. There are some cafes that have kept decor from filming the Christmas movie year round.
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