Poughkeepsie named No. 1 city in New York for a Hallmark movie

POUGHKEEPSIE — With historic streets dusted in snow, lively independent shops and riverfront scenery, the city of Poughkeepsie would make a great setting for a Hallmark movie.

At least, that’s what one recent study says.

The Hudson Valley city was named the No. 1 city in New York for a Hallmark movie to take place and the third most likely city nationwide by The Action Network, a media company that focuses on data analysis and research. Researchers examined data from 3,000 towns across the U.S., weighing factors including population size, the number of small businesses and historic sites, and December snowfall amounts by state.

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To ensure the communities were big enough to have a true Main Street but small enough to still feel neighborly, the study focused on cities with populations between 3,000 and 50,000 people. Cities without historic places were excluded.

“We can’t promise a big-city professional is about to return home for the holidays and fall in love at a Poughkeepsie winter festival — but statistically speaking, Poughkeepsie gives them a remarkably good shot,” Action Network Digital PR Specialist Kathy Morris said in an emailed statement.

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With a state-level average snowfall of 18 inches in December, thousands of small businesses and 2.93 historic places per 1,000 residents — one of the highest in the country — Poughkeepsie ranked No. 1 in New York, followed by the city of Kingston. The Hudson Valley had two other contenders in the top 10: Middletown, ranked fifth and Newburgh, ranked eighth. Other local honorable mentions include Saratoga Springs, ranked sixth and Hudson, ranked 10th.

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At the national level, Poughkeepsie took third place, following Puyallup, Wash., and Farmington, Mich. 

“Hallmark movies tend to revolve around places that feel lively but familiar — towns with history, walkable streets and just enough winter atmosphere to make everything feel a little more magical,” Morris said. “Poughkeepsie checks all of those boxes. Between its historic density, active small-business scene and consistent December snowfall, it has the kind of built-in setting where a holiday story naturally makes sense.”

While Morris hasn’t visited Poughkeepsie herself, she said it is definitely on her list.

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Scenes from around Poughkeepsie.

TW Farlow/Getty Images; Kelly Marsh/For the Times Union; Maxwell Alexander/Eastdale Village; Lana Bellamy/Times Union

Poughkeepsie resident Zyon Baggett said that from the outside looking in, he can see why Poughkeepsie made the list.

“We definitely have the nice scenery,” he said. “If I were to travel to Poughkeepsie and I just spent a day here, I would definitely feel that Hallmark kind of vibe. … It does feel like home. There are some rough areas of the town, but it does feel welcoming.”

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Baggett, whose favorite holiday movie is “Elf,” said his favorite holiday tradition growing up was driving around the neighborhood with his family to see Christmas lights.

Over the years, several Hallmark movies have been filmed in the Hudson Valley. The 2022 film “A Holiday Spectacular” was filmed in Hyde Park, Newburgh and included shots from Everyready Diner. “One December Night,” released in 2019, was filmed in Orange County and several local businesses were featured in a tree-lighting scene. While set in Vermont,  the 2018 film “Last Vermont Christmas” includes scenes from East Market Street in Rhinebeck. “Christmas Camp,” released in 2019, was filmed in Kingston and Rhinebeck.