THE ULTIMATE COZY WATCH LIST | Movies And Shows With Cottagecore And Dark Academia Aesthetic

Here is the ultimate cozy watch list of small-town-based movies and TV shows, all with a strong dark academia and cottagecore aesthetic.

There is something attractive about being in a little cozy town as the leaves change color and cafes’ finally start to serve pumpkin pie. Let’s see if we can convince you by sharing this list of the most charming small-town settings we’d all love to spend a cozy fall in.

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Check out our Charming Cottage Shoppe on Amazon for more inspirational ideas.

– TV SHOWS –

(Click titles to stream or purchase)

Gilmore Girls

The fictional town called Stars Hollow is located in Connecticut, not far from Hartford. It is one of the most obvious choices when it comes to a cottagecore atmosphere.

It portrays the life of Lorelai and Rory, a mother and daughter combo that has been on their own in this quirky small-town environment for as long as Rory can remember.

Stars Hollow seems to always have a holiday festival going on or a historical reenactment of sorts, which gives the atmosphere of a well-filled cup of pumpkin-spiced latte, or if you like Lorelai, just prefer it black. At Luke’s diner of course.

🍁☕A COZY FALL GILMORE GIRLS DAY | Real Stars Hollow Towns in Connecticut!

Once Upon a Time

TV series for fall usually take place among the fall foliage in New England. That’s why Maine is the most perfect setting for this fictional town called “Storybrooke”.

A town that appeared through a curse that put traditional fairytale characters in our world, “a land with no magic”. They no longer know they are fairytale characters. Things get interesting when Emma, the outside person, living in Boston, one day gets an unexpected visit from a little boy that claims to be her son. She drives him back to the town he claims to be from. You guessed right, “Storybrooke”.

Does he have a wild “imagination” or are the people there actually fairytale characters from the book of his? Your nerves will go like a roller coaster as the story unwraps. If you are watching this with a friend, you better get more than one apple turnover, cause they are gonna go fast.

The Good Witch

The Good Witch series follows the many adventures of a very secretive and enchanting woman, who culminates in her neighbor’s interest.

Based on the older “Good Witch” cable movies, Season One follows Cassie Nightingale and Grace, her young-teenage daughter, who also shares the same special intuition as her mother. When a New Yorker moves in next door to the Grey House, they are immediately captivated by the mother-daughter duo next door.

Anne With An E

This is a new take on L.M. Montgomery’s beloved children’s classic, Anne of Green Gables.

Follow the adventures of a young orphan girl living in the late 19th century and how she adapts to her new home called “Green Gables”. If you are familiar with the original novel, know that there are some new takes as well as characters to be introduced to, but overall the same old Anne that so many of us love.

Road To Avonlea

Another TV adaption of L.M Montgomery’s beloved novels, set on the same island as “Anne of Green Gables.”

Sarah Stanley is sent from Montreal to live with her relatives on Prince Edward Island. Set in the early 1900s. This is a perfect small-town TV show that follows Sarah and her cousin’s everyday adventures and struggles in the cozy little village of Avonlea.

P.S. Did you know that this TV show is based on the book “The Story Girl” by L.M. Montgomery

Over The Garden Wall

If you ask anyone, which ones are the best TV shows for fall? Many will answer, “Over the Garden Wall.”

Why? You would ask. Because there are few animated mini-series with the same cozy autumn vibe as this. The colors, the songs, and the settings are breathing autumn from the first minute all the way until the end.

It is Cartoon Network’s 1st animated mini-series about two brothers, Wirt and Greg, who find themselves lost in a very peculiar and odd forest. They meet a bluebird named Beatrice while they travel across this strange land in the hope of finding their way home.

Virgin River

A nurse practitioner moves from LA to a remote northern California town to search for a fresh start and is surprised by what — and who — she finds. This show has cozy sceneries and is almost like *Stars Hollow’s mountain sibling town. (*Gilmore Girls)

– MOVIES –

(Click titles to stream or purchase)

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001)

An orphaned boy enrolls in a school of wizardry, where he learns the truth about himself, his family, and the terrible evil that haunts the magical world. ….I think we all know this one!

Hocus Pocus (1993)

The Sanderson Sisters have put a spell on us since we have to watch this on repeat every October and wish we were in Salem, Massachusetts!

Mystic Pizza (1988)

A coming of age film set in a charming Connecticut ocean town in the fall.

Dead Poets Society (1989)

Robin Williams always brings feel-good vibes and so does this poetic prep school tale set in Delaware.

Little Women (1994)

What can be more charming than the March sisters and their cozy home all set in post-civil war Massachusetts.?

Did you see our post about when we visited the real Orchard House in Concord, MA?

Mona Lisa Smile (2003)

Katherine Watson is a recent UCLA graduate hired to teach art history at the prestigious all-female Wellesley College, in 1953. Determined to confront the outdated mores of society and the institution that embraces them.

The Village (2004)

An Amish-style community lives cut off from the outside world by the woods, in which they believe dangerous creatures exist.

Dan in Real Life (2007)

Widower Dan Burns gives family advice in his column but struggles with raising his three daughters alone. After arriving at Dan’s parents for a family get-together, their bickering drives him to take refuge in the local bookstore, where he meets and swiftly falls for charming Marie.

Sleepy Hollow (1999)

Set in 1799, “Sleepy Hollow” is based on Washington Irving’s classic tale “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.” Faithful to the dreamy custom-bound world that Irving paints in his story, the film mixes horror, fantasy, and romance and features an extraordinary cast of characters that dabble in the supernatural.

Have you ever visited THE REAL SLEEPY HOLLOW? Watch our YouTube video and learn how Halloween time is in the real legendary town of the Headless Horseman.

The House with a Clock in its Walls (2018)

Ten-year-old Lewis goes to live with his oddball uncle in a creaky old house that contains a mysterious `tick tock’ noise. He soon learns that Uncle Jonathan and his feisty neighbor, Mrs. Zimmerman, are powerful practitioners of the magic arts.

Beauty and the Beast (2017)

An arrogant prince is cursed to live as a terrifying beast until he finds true love. An enchanted castle with a prince under a spell in snowy France? We adore both the animated and live-action Disney tales as old as time!

The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe (2005)

Enter the magical realm of Narnia behind the wardrobe where it’s always winter and never Christmas…or is it?

The Man Who Invented Christmas (2017)

A delightful and comical look at how the real life of Charles Dickens inspired his most classic tale. In 1843 London, author Charles Dickens finds himself in financial trouble after writing three unsuccessful novels in a row. Desperate for a hit, Dickens relies on real-life inspiration and his vivid imagination to bring Ebenezer Scrooge, Tiny Tim, and other classic characters to life.

Also, Follow our journey in Sleepy Hollow during the Winter Holiday! Where we take you along through the Festive Holiday side of the spooky town, and how Charles Dickens got inspired to write his masterpiece “A Christmas Carol” by no other than Washington Irving himself, author of “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow”.

Please let us know what your favorite shows and movies are to watch in the cozy seasons.
Bye for now and happy binge-watching!
– Jonas & Lindsay Dianne

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