Hallmark filmed a Christmas movie in my hometown. It's even more festive in real life.

The Inn at Woodstock Hill looks very similar in real life to the shots from "One Royal Holiday."

Hallmark Channel; Erin McDowell/Business Insider

• The Hallmark holiday movie "One Royal Holiday" was filmed in my hometown.
• The movie paints the fictional Kentsbury — actually Woodstock, Connecticut — as an idyllic town.
• In some ways, my hometown is even more quaint and festive than what's shown in the movie.

Hallmark's "One Royal Holiday" is set in a fictional town called Kentsbury — but in reality, the 2020 movie was filmed in Woodstock, Connecticut, where I grew up.

Many of the movie's locations look quite different in real life, and some are even more festive in reality.

Here's what the town is actually like this time of year.

I grew up in Woodstock, a small town located in northeast Connecticut near the Massachusetts border.

The author in front of one of the filming locations in "One Royal Holiday."

Erin McDowell/Business Insider

Part of the "Quiet Corner," Woodstock is one of a few towns located in a historic region of the state of Connecticut. Woodstock was settled in 1686 as New Roxbury and is still home to many historic landmarks, including the Quasset School, a preserved schoolhouse from 1858, and Roseland Cottage, built in 1846.

When I was growing up, people from outside my town were surprised to learn that Woodstock has no major grocery stores and only one gas station. What it doesn't have in modern amenities, however, it makes up for in stunning landscapes, charming historic homes, and a lot of history. 

Therefore, when I heard the Hallmark Channel had filmed a Christmas movie in Woodstock, I wasn't totally surprised.

"One Royal Holiday," which was released in 2020, was filmed in Woodstock, although the movie is set in a fictional town called Kentsbury.

James, played by Aaron Tveit, and Anna, played by Laura Osnes, in "One Royal Holiday."

Hallmark Channel

In the film, a nurse named Anna, played by Laura Osnes, offers a snowstorm-stranded mother named Gabriella and her son, James, shelter at her family's inn in Kentsbury, Connecticut. She soon learns they are the king and queen of Galwick, a fictional European country, and falls in love with James, played by Aaron Tveit.

After watching the movie, I determined that many of the locations looked quite different in real life — some seem even more festive in reality. 

In "One Royal Holiday," the cast is shown traveling through snow-capped mountains to get to Kentsbury.

A scene from "One Royal Holiday."

Hallmark Channel

The story begins in Boston, where Anna is working as a nurse. She says that her hometown of Kentsbury is about an hour from Boston, which is relatively accurate. The journey from the real-life inn to Boston is about 1 hour and 45 minutes. 

To get into the center of Woodstock, you certainly won't travel through any majestic mountains.

A road in Woodstock, Connecticut.

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While you may go over a couple of hills, there are certainly no snowy mountain passes within a 10-mile radius of the town. 

As Anna, James, and Gabriella enter Kentsbury, they pass by a large building, meant to be the town hall, with a sign that reads "Welcome to Kentsbury" in front.

A scene from "One Royal Holiday."

Hallmark Channel

While the town appears to be the picture of winter and is covered in snow, the movie was actually filmed during a heat wave in June 2020.

It was reportedly the first movie to go into production on the East Coast during the COVID-19 pandemic. The film crew and post-production crew used creative methods to make the film look normal, such as digitally reproducing 20 people in a crowd to look like 200 people, the film's producer, Andrew Gernhard, told the Hartford Courant in December 2020.

While the building in the background is very much real, it's actually Woodstock Academy, the local high school.

The Woodstock Academy in Woodstock, Connecticut.

Erin McDowell/Business Insider

The Woodstock Academy was founded in 1801 and welcomes students from the Connecticut towns of Brooklyn, Canterbury, Eastford, Pomfret, Union, and Woodstock.

When I went to photograph the school in December 2022, much of the front of the building was covered in tents and scaffolding, and students were milling around everywhere in the cold — a contrast with the scene from the movie, in which there is not a soul or sign of life anywhere around. 

Anna's family inn is called the Kentsbury Inn in the movie.

A scene from "One Royal Holiday."

Hallmark Channel

The sign features a picture of oak leaves and states that it is open for dining and lodging. 

The sign looks practically identical in real life, which leads me to believe "Kentsbury" was superimposed onto the real sign in post-production.

The Inn at Woodstock Hill in Woodstock, Connecticut.

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Even the font used for the word "Inn" is exactly the same. However, I liked how the real-life Inn at Woodstock Hill decorated its sign with a festive garland. 

The Kentsbury Inn is a large white colonial-style building with a red door.

A scene from "One Royal Holiday."

Hallmark Channel

It has been in Anna's family for generations, and she returns home to spend Christmas there every year.

The Inn at Woodstock Hill looks very similar in real life.

The Inn at Woodstock Hill in Woodstock, Connecticut.

Erin McDowell/Business Insider

The Inn at Woodstock Hill was built in 1816 and is a popular destination for lodging and events. The movie kept many of the exterior shots identical to how the inn looks like in real life, from the garland over the red front door to the festive wreath. 

Towards the end of the movie, James and his family return to their fictional castle in Galwick.

A scene from "One Royal Holiday."

Hallmark Channel

The castle appears to be straight out of a movie set or Disney World, complete with a bridge-covered moat, towers, and turrets. 

But the castle in "One Royal Holiday" is actually a private residence just down the road from my childhood home.

Chris Mark Castle in Woodstock, Connecticut.

Erin McDowell/Business Insider

Growing up, I drove past the castle every day as it was being built. The gigantic home, which can be seen clearly from the road, was completed in 2010. Known as the Chris Mark Castle, or just "the castle" to locals, the home belongs to Christopher Mark, the descendant of steel tycoon Clayton Mark.

In 2022, the 18,777-square-foot, nine-bedroom castle was listed for $60 million, up from a previous price of $35 million, but it was taken off the market in August 2022, the listing history shows.

At one of the town's many Christmas events, Anna and James grab a hot cocoa from a quaint rolling cart.

A scene from "One Royal Holiday."

Hallmark Channel

I've never seen anything like this in my real town.

While that wasn't exactly realistic, there's a selection of cute coffee shops, an antique store, and restaurants about a 10-minute drive away.

Saw Dust Coffee House and the author holding a coffee cup.

Erin McDowell/Business Insider

I visited Saw Dust Coffee House in downtown Putnam, Connecticut, and decided to grab a peppermint mocha latte to see if I would feel like I was in a Hallmark movie myself — and, to be honest, I really did. 

In the movie, Anna and James go shopping at The Christmas Barn.

A scene from "One Royal Holiday."

Hallmark Channel

The outside of the store looks like a historic barn, with festive decorations like a wreath and snow-dusted Christmas trees leaning against it. 

The Christmas Barn actually exists, and it's even more festive than it looks in the movie.

The Christmas Barn in Woodstock, Connecticut.

Erin McDowell/Business Insider

The outside of The Christmas Barn, located on Route 169 in Woodstock, is easily spotted from the road thanks to its gingerbread men and snowflake decorations, the same painted American flag from the film, and its huge red barn doors. 

James and Anna do some shopping at The Christmas Barn and run into a few locals while they're there.

A scene from "One Royal Holiday."

Hallmark Channel

I'm not sure if it's just the lighting, but the store doesn't look quite as cozy and historic in the movie as it does when you actually visit in real life.

The real-life Christmas Barn is a true hidden gem, with lots of festive decorations, small-batch candles, and a whole room devoted to ornaments.

The Christmas Barn in Woodstock, Connecticut.

Erin McDowell/Business Insider

While visiting The Christmas Barn in 2022, I spoke with Jotham Reynolds, whose family has owned and operated The Christmas Barn for generations. The barn itself, Reynolds said, has been in his family for almost 300 years, though the location of the store has changed over time.

"As I understand it, it was built sometime around 1726," he told me. "It was originally used for hay, which is why it's in really good condition because any animal barn gets worn down. Eventually, my family started an apple orchard and started selling apples out of the back."

Reynolds' grandparents, Jotham G. Reynolds and Kristin Reynolds, were the ones who started the business.

"My grandmother did craft classes, and my dad said he can remember when traveling salesmen would come to sell my grandparents items for the store out of the back of their car," he continued. "It expanded over the years, and we've tried to source from as many of the same vendors as we can."

When Reynolds' father, the current owner, was born, the family stopped selling just apples and started what would become The Christmas Barn. The business, which is open seasonally, has now been in operation for 59 years and is well known within the Woodstock community and Connecticut as a whole. 

At The Christmas Barn in Kentsbury, you won't find any mentions of the real town where the store is located.

A scene from "One Royal Holiday."

Erin McDowell/Insider

Reynolds said that while the business was allowed to sneak in a few signs that read "The Christmas Barn," they couldn't show any bags or merchandise that would say the store's real location in Woodstock, Connecticut. 

"My dad found one of our old Christmas Barn signs and stuck it in there," Reynolds said. "That was really nice."

Years after the production team left, he continued to find remnants of fake snow inside the building. 

"It's like its own kind of confetti," he said. 

I decided to pick up a candle from the store, but what I really walked away with was feeling more connected to my community.

The Christmas Barn in Woodstock, Connecticut.

Erin McDowell/Business Insider

Reynolds and I agreed that while Woodstock may not be quite the town that's shown in the Hallmark movie, it's definitely a great place to spend the holidays. 

"If you watch a Hallmark movie, you should go into it with the mindset that there's nowhere like this ever [in real life]," Reynolds said. "Santa's not going to appear out of nowhere, there's not going to be little hot-chocolate carts everywhere, but at the same time, we do a pretty good job here, especially at the barn, of getting into the Christmas spirit."

Reynolds mentioned the holly bushes outside the barn. 

"When I see the snow still clinging to the holly bushes, to me, that's Christmas," he said. "That makes me feel good. I don't need to see every tree lit up."

After taking a festive tour of my hometown, I've decided that the reality of Woodstock, Connecticut, is perhaps even better than the fictional town of Kentsbury.

A Woodstock, Connecticut, Christmas ornament.

Erin McDowell/Business Insider

While the town may not have spontaneous carol-singing, hot-chocolate carts, or visiting royalty, I realized that many of the locations around town are even more beautiful when they haven't been staged by a film crew. 

After wandering the streets outside my local high school and chatting with a local business owner about just how magical Woodstock is, I stepped away knowing that no movie can ever really capture the magic of my hometown, as hard as they may try. 

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