Real Life Towns like Stars Hollow

A list of small towns that look like a real life Stars Hollow from Gilmore Girls

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As an avid Gilmore Girls fan, I have been all over the world (well…mostly all over the north east) to find the perfect town like Stars Hollow. The majority of my search has taken place in Connecticut, but I have also found Stars Hollow towns in other states in the New England area, as well as across the states AND in Canada!

I have ranked for you in order the towns most like Stars Hollow, and why they qualify to be on this list.

There are so many adorable small towns in the US and Canada, that you can find a Stars Hollow wannabe almost anywhere! So feel free to comment below if you have any towns you think should be included. But this is my list, based on my research and travels, of the best real life towns like Stars Hollow.

Psst: If you love Gilmore Girls, check out my favorite Gilmore Girls themed merch!

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#1: Unionville, ON

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Unionville, ON is my number one real life town like Stars Hollow, because for a minute there, it really was Stars Hollow!

Many scenes from the pilot episode of Gilmore Girls were filmed in this small Canadian town just outside of Toronto. Unlike other towns that claim parts of the episode were filmed there, you can easily recognize landmarks from the first Gilmore Girls episode here.

The original Luke’s Diner, Miss Pattie’s, and the church from the opening scene are among the iconic Gilmore Girls spots you can see in Unionville.

In addition, it also has a perfect gazebo, a coffee shop, lots of good restaurants, and an old-fashioned soda shoppe! No other town I’ve been to has really encompassed a real life Stars Hollow for me like Unionville, despite its being in Canada.

See where Gilmore Girls was filmed:

South Royalton, VT

What does South Royalton, VT have to do with Gilmore Girls, you ask? Well, South Royalton, VT, despite being in Vermont, and not Connecticut, is actually the town you see in the opening credits of Gilmore Girls!

So whenever you see Stars Hollow at the beginning of any Gilmore Girls episode, you are actually looking at South Royalton, VT. And truly South Royalton is one of the most authentic Stars Hollow-esque towns I’ve ever visited!

They have a coffee shop, a burger shop, a Mexican restaurant, a local market, a church, a gazebo, town green, a bookstore (sort of), and all for a town of about 600 people!

It was ABSOLUTELY. MAGICAL. to enjoy my coffee in the town green with a perfect view of the gazebo, the white steeple church, and the local kids playing hide and seek!

#3: New Milford, CT

My number three spot on this list is one of the first Gilmore Girls towns I visited. We had just come from Washington Depot, and were a little disappointed, but our AirBnB hosts pointed us in the direction of New Milford, and I was much happier!

This is one of the few Stars Hollow towns I’ve found that has an actual gazebo, in the actual town green, in the actual center of town, which is why this town ranks so high on my list. It is purely magical to sit in the fall decorated gazebo, sipping pumpkin spice coffee, and gazing out at the white steeple church across the town green.

It also gets more Stars Hollow points for being actually in Connecticut.

#4: Old Wethersfield, CT

Someone commented on my original Gilmore Girls article to visit Old Wethersfield, CT, and I am so glad I did! This small town suburb of Hartford felt so magical, walking the streets lined with cafes, Revolutionary War history, a dance school, and homemade scarecrows for the town scarecrow contest.

It even had an adorable gazebo, although it wasn’t actually in the town green (that was one block over), just attached to one of the restaurants.

Old Wethersfield, CT is just outside of Hartford (a city with which Gilmore Girls fans will be very familiar), and truly felt like a magical Stars Hollow town to me when I walked through it, so it earns a top spot on this list.

#5: Guilford, CT

I found out about Guilford, CT by reading another blog by some Gilmore Girls fans who had also visited Washington Depot and been disappointed (sorry Washington…), but had then stumbled on Guilford.

To them, Guilford was the epitome of a Stars Hollow town. It is not far from New Haven, so I made a point to visit Guilford on my way to New Haven (to visit Yale!).

They didn’t have the gazebo, but they had a beautiful town green (full of their scarecrow contest entrants), a bookstore, a market, an adorable hardware store, and multiple restaurants with windows that look just like Luke’s Diner.

#6: Washington Depot, CT

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Finally we come to Washington Depot. Washington has to be on any list of real life towns like Stars Hollow, because it is the place where Amy Sherman-Palladino was staying when she developed the idea for Gilmore Girls.

Many Gilmore Girls fans have traveled to Washington Depot in search of Stars Hollow and been disappointed. Because there is no magical gazebo. The town green is 5 minutes up the hill. The one cafe in town is nothing like Luke’s Diner (though maybe 20+ years ago it was…).

But, when I gave Washington a second chance, I discovered it was a lot more like Stars Hollow than I first gave it credit for. It is one of the only towns to actually have its own little grocery store. It has a school right by the town center. It has a footbridge dedicated to Henry David Thoreau, that is the perfect place for Rory to sit and read the classic books she bought from the bookstore that Washington Depot also has.

And most importantly, it is the home of the Mayflower Inn, the inspiration for the Independence Inn.

#7: Kent, CT

Kent, CT is another one of the main Connecticut towns that served as inspiration for Stars Hollow (or so the theory goes). It is close to Washington Depot and New Milford, and has A TON of antique stores nearby.

Kent is a good place for that small-town Connecticut feel. They also have one of the better Stars Hollow-y bookstores, a gazebo, a candy/ice cream shop, and a tiny library that periodically hosts GIANT book sales.

Overall, it doesn’t quite have that magical Stars Hollow feel, but it makes a good effort, landing it pretty much in the middle of my list.

#8: Niagara on the Lake, ON

Back to Ontario, Canada, and not far from Unionville is Niagara on the Lake, the prettiest town in Canada.

When I first saw pictures of Niagara on the Lake, I immediately thought of Stars Hollow, especially when I saw “Taylor’s Ice Cream.” Unfortunately, Taylor’s Ice Cream didn’t survive 2020, but you can visit the adorable Olde Tyme Candy Shoppe (with 2 P’s!) or one of the many ice cream shops in downtown NOTL instead.

You can also visit a completely Stars Hollow-esque bookstore, tons of cozy inns, the famous Shaw Festival Theatre, or relax in the gazebo looking out over the Niagara River.

Niagara on the Lake doesn’t exactly feel like Stars Hollow; it is far too busy and popular for that (I’d call it Stars Hollow on steroids…), and the gazebo is a bit too far from the main center of town. But it is one of the prettiest towns you will ever see, with lots of small town charm.

Oh, and Niagara Falls is a short drive away. So there’s that, too.

#9: Litchfield, CT

When I first went to Connecticut to visit the real life towns like Stars Hollow, my AirBnB hosts listed off four towns in the area to visit. These four are the generally accepted “inspirations” for the show, although the only one officially mentioned by Amy Sherman-Palladino is Washington Depot.

Litchfield, CT is the fourth town on that list (besides Washington, Kent & New Milford). Of the four towns, Litchfield definitely has the least Stars Hollow vibe. But it does have a strong Connecticut Colonial vibe going for it.

They have a huge town green, lots of antique shops, local fall festivals, a white steeple church overlooking the town green, and coffee shops and restaurants on the other side of the green.

The town is even referenced in Gilmore Girls. It’s the place where Luke “moves” with Nicole.

So… we can’t exactly call Litchfield Stars Hollow. But we can call it Stars Hollow’s neighbor.

#10: Essex, CT

There are tons of small towns scattered around Connecticut (and all of New England) that could be described as real life Stars Hollow towns. So I’m only including ones on this list that either have overwhelming Stars Hollow vibes, or have some sort of Gilmore Girls connection.

I read an article that said parts of the pilot episode of Gilmore Girls were filmed in Essex, CT and Collinsville, CT. As I said above, the pilot episode of Gilmore Girls was filmed in Unionville (and you can recognize the landmarks!), but I decided to explore Essex and Collinsville to see if I could recognize any filming locations.

To be fair, it’s been more than *gasp* twenty years!!! since the pilot episode was filmed, so chances are things have changed a bit…

I didn’t find any recognizable filming locations in Essex, but it is a cute Connecticut town, with a town green, a gazebo, and lots of shops, restaurants and historical connections.

It’s definitely not my favorite town on the list, and I don’t think I would actually visit it if all you’re looking for is a town like Stars Hollow. But it is a popular tourist destination, with an inn from 1776 and a famous steam train!

Oh, and truffle shots.

#11: Collinsville, CT

Collinsville, CT is my least favorite town I visited. There were not a lot of cute shops to explore, and the downtown area felt very lacking, especially compared to everywhere else I’d been.

Collinsville is probably the least tourist oriented town, and the most true small-town Connecticut life sort of town. It had a nice little green, and a couple of restaurants, but I would not suggest visiting Collinsville unless you are really into antiqueing, which is the biggest draw for the town.

The main street was supposedly used as a filming location for the first episode of Gilmore Girls, but I can’t find any recognizable spots, other than the striped awnings over one of the downtown shops resembling Doose’s Market.

I had to include Collinsville on this list, because of the filming connection, but I would say to skip it. It doesn’t really feel like Stars Hollow.

#12: Stowe, VT

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Based on photos of the picture perfect Stowe, VT, I decided it was another New England town that was a real life Stars Hollow. However, having actually been there now… I have to say that if Niagara on the Lake is Stars Hollow on steroids, Stowe is NOTL on steroids!

It is extremely busy and popular. Downtown Stowe is, presumably, what Stars Hollow might actually look like in the days of Instagram (once its charming town square went viral!).

I’m still including it in the list, because even though it is too crowded for authentic Stars Hollow vibes, I mean, that view though! The white steeple church against the fall foliage backdrop (even with the scaffolding they so rudely put on the steeple right when I visited!)!

Plus, if you head off the beaten path towards the library (like Rory), you lose the crowds and find the perfect gazebo to enjoy your coffee in (they even have free coffee in the library)!

Not to mention the perfect cozy inn I stayed in!

watching-gilmore-girls-in-a-cozy-cottage-in-connecticut — *Watching Gilmore Girls at my cozy cottage in* *Connecticut.*

Those are all the towns I’ve visited in my quest for the real life Stars Hollow! Even if they don’t all feel quite as magical as Stars Hollow, there are a lot of cute small towns to visit and enjoy.

Any more questions?

If you have any questions about visiting any of these towns, or have any suggestions of Stars Hollow towns I should visit, feel free to email me or comment below.