The Hallmark Channel is far and away the best place to find the corniest, cheesiest holiday movies.
And during the Christmas season, that’s just what many people are looking for. They want to light a Yankee candle, brew some peppermint tea and sink into a world where beautiful people get just what they want for Christmas.
Watch With Us loves a good Hallmark Christmas movie, so we decided to do a civil service and rank the very best ones you can watch right now on Hallmark+.
Did your favorites make the cut? Read on to find out!
Humble seamstress Emily (Lacey Chabert) devotes herself to her family’s Philadelphia business, but she finds her world turned upside-down when she discovers that her European boyfriend, Leopold (Stephen Hagan), is a royal prince and heir to the throne of a small sovereign country. Leopold takes Emily back to his home to met his family for Christmas with intent to marry her. However, Leopold’s mother has other plans for him.
With some The Princess Diaries sprinkled in, A Royal Christmas hits all the notes you want from a royalty-themed Christmas Hallmark movie: everyone learns a lesson, everyone looks beautiful, love prevails and, of course, the beautiful gowns. Plus, Chabert and Jane Seymour shine in the film.
Estranged identical twin sisters Kate and Christ Lockhart (both played by Candace Cameron Brue) are stuck planning their respective holiday parties when they decide to switch things up. In order to see if one twin has things better than the other — and unbeknownst to their families — the twins swap lives, and the lessons they learn from the experience may just make for the best Christmas they’ve ever had.
Switched for Christmas makes for an adorable Christmas tale of family, friendship and learning to understand and appreciate your loved ones — and what would a Hallmark movie be without a little romance as well? It doesn’t hurt that the movie has a good sense of humor too, and with Cameron Brue playing an impressive dual role.
In a gambit to give his parents a good Christmas, speech writer Jaime (Tyler Hynes) makes a deal with his ex-girlfriend Emily (Bethany Joy Lenz) to come home with him for the holidays and pretend that they’re still together. However, it doesn’t take much before the act starts to unravel — especially when they realize their dormant feelings for one another are coming back.
This is a great Christmas Hallmark movie to watch for some silly antics, as Jaime and Emily do their best to maintain their week-long ruse in front of Jaime’s family, but it ends on a heartfelt note when the two exes realize they still love each other. Lenz and Hynes have wonderful, believable chemistry, and the film sports the perfect warm and festive holiday atmosphere.
Bachelor Zachary Stone (Brandon Routh) is only committed to one thing, and that’s being single. But when a stray cat winds up on his doorstep, he starts to realize that a little company in his day-to-day life might not be so bad. However, things take an unexpectedly romantic turn when he meets Marilee (Kimberly Sustad), a veterinary student who helps teach him how to take care of his new feline friend. Can the two make it work despite their differences?
The Nine Lives of Christmas is a fun rom-com with the perfect amount of schmaltz, made all the more enjoyable by Routh and his dynamic with Sustad. The movie is an ideal, easy Christmas watch, with some critics even feeling that the script and characters were better written than the book it was based on.
Hardworking single mom Jennifer (Brooke Burns) has become a bit of a Scrooge around Christmas, and her young son barely believes in Santa Claus. However, when her Uncle Ralph (Henry Winkler) brings over a man named Morgan (Warren Christie) whom he met on his flight, Jen and Morgan hit it off, but Morgan doesn’t like Jen’s attitude towards the holiday. For them to make it work, Morgan has to teach Jen how to get into the Christmas spirit.
While The Most Wonderful Time of the Year features a fairly familiar premise, it’s executed in a refreshing way through its smart scriptwriting, genuinely funny moments and the inclusion of Happy Days legend Henry Winkler. With fun, mismatched chemistry between Burns and Christie and a brisk script, The Most Wonderful Time of the Year is a Christmas movie highlight.
The premise of the 1987 Tom Selleck movie Three Men and a Baby gets a Christmas twist in Three Wise Men and a Baby, when three brothers named Stephen (Paul Campbell), Taylor (Hynes) and Luke (Andrew W. Walker) find themselves stuck caring for a baby over the holidays. After an abandoned infant is left at the doorstep of Luke’s work, the brothers, who have grown apart over the years, must now work together in an unexpected situation.
Well-written, genuinely funny and featuring a terrific cast, Three Wise Men and a Baby is a Hallmark holiday favorite for a reason. The characters are believable and have well-developed relationships with one another, and the movie balances the perfect mix of humor and heartfelt moments.
Screenwriter Lucy Hardgrove (Joy Lenz) has been hired to write the script for a remake of a beloved Christmas classic filmed at the historic Biltmore house. However, when Lucy’s script isn’t up to studio standards, she’s sent to the house for inspiration — where she finds herself traveling back in time to 1947 when His Merry Wife! was filmed. As she uses it as a chance to learn more about the film, she gets cozy with one of the stars, but her presence in the past threatens the film’s future.
Many consider A Biltmore Christmas to be the ultimate Hallmark holiday classic, but also a fantastic Christmas movie in its own right. The plot frees itself from many tired Christmas tropes while still hitting the right beats and heartfelt moments. The music, sets, costuming and performances all come together to make A Biltmore Christmas can’t-miss during the holidays.














