9 Ontario Small-Town Stops with Gilmore Girls Vibes

Have you ever wished you could order a coffee at Luke’s, brows the crowded aisles of Kim’s Antiques, or arrive in town just in time for one of Stars Hollow’s wonderfully specific community events? If there is one TV series that inspired a love for the quirks and fun of small-town life, it’s Gilmore Girls. 

Stars Hollow may be fictional but its winning combination of local characters, independent businesses, town traditions and walkable streets feels familiar. You’ll find plenty of those Gilmore Girls vibes in the small towns of Ontario’s Highlands (although sightings of Kirk working his 63rd job cannot be guaranteed).

Here are eight places where you can create your own Stars Hollow moments.

Luke's Diner: Perth

There may not be a handwritten “no cell phones” sign on the wall, but Peter’s Restaurant and Bakery has the home-style food, diner booths and atmosphere required for a Luke’s-inspired breakfast.

Order eggs, pancakes, French toast or a three-egg omelette, settle into a booth and imagine Lorelai asking for her third coffee refill before you have finished your first. Peter’s also serves classic sandwiches, burgers and homemade dinners, making it the kind of dependable local restaurant you could return to again and again.

The Stars Hollow Gazette: Eganville

Rory Gilmore would feel right at home in Eganville, where The Eganville Leader has been reporting on life in the Ottawa Valley since 1902. The independently owned weekly newspaper has covered everything from municipal decisions to community celebrations, documenting the stories that matter to the people who live here.

The newspaper even survived Eganville’s devastating fire of 1911 and continued publishing when the community’s other newspaper did not. If Stars Hollow had a real-world sister publication, this resilient local paper could be it.

Town Centre and Gazebo: Smiths Falls

Some of Stars Hollow’s biggest moments happen around its gazebo, from festivals and fundraisers to conversations that really should have taken place somewhere more private. Smiths Falls offers its own version of that community gathering place in the Town Square.

Opened in 2023 beside the historic Carnegie library, the square features a bandstand, public seating and pollinator gardens. It has all the ingredients for a Stars Hollow-style town centre. 

If Kim's Antiques Met Luke's Diner: Haliburton

What would happen if Kim’s Antiques added a coffee counter? You might end up with something like Castle Antiques & Café in the village of Haliburton.

Here, antiques from around the world share space with local art, vegan and gluten-free food, coffee roasted in-house and a kombucha brewery. You can browse historic furniture and curious collectibles before sitting down with a coffee and something freshly made. Mrs. Kim might question the café, but Lorelai would know immediately where to find the coffee.

Kim's Antiques: Arnprior

Anyone who enjoyed the treasure-packed rooms of Kim’s Antiques will want to spend some time exploring Arnprior. Start at Antiques, Treasures & Treats, where furniture, china, vintage lamps, collectibles and art mingle with chocolate, gifts and gourmet treats.

Continue your treasure hunt at The Vintage Crate in historic downtown Arnprior, where antiques and vintage finds sit alongside home décor, artisan goods and gifts. You never know what you’ll uncover—and unlike Lane, you won’t need to hide your purchases under the floorboards.

Miss Patty's: Bancroft Village Playhouse

Stars Hollow would not be Stars Hollow without Miss Patty, her dance studio and her enthusiastic commitment to putting on a show. In Bancroft, that community performance spirit lives at Tweed & Co.'s Bancroft Village Playhouse.

The intimate theatre has been presenting plays, musicals and concerts since the early 1990s. Its historic building has lived several lives—it was previously a community hall, jail, courthouse and library—and now welcomes professional productions, musicians and local arts groups. Miss Patty would certainly approve of the drama.

A Stars Hollow Community Movie Night: Arnprior

In Stars Hollow, movie night might mean squeezing into a bookstore-turned-cinema or gathering in the Town Square for the annual film festival. Arnprior offers a more permanent (and considerably grander) place to catch a movie at the historic O’Brien Theatre.

Films have been shown at this downtown location since 1906, while the current theatre dates to 1919. Today, it continues the small-town movie-night tradition with current releases, popcorn and plenty of historic atmosphere. A surprise screening of A Film by Kirk is unlikely, but not impossible.

The Stars Hollow Museum: Cloyne

Remember Stars Hollow’s unconventional museum, complete with lovingly recreated scenes from town history? Cloyne takes its local stories just as seriously (although its exhibits are considerably more authentic).

The Cloyne Pioneer Museum and Archives preserves the history of northern Lennox and Addington and North Frontenac. Its collection includes more than 1,000 artifacts connected to pioneer life, mining, logging, tourism and the Addington Colonization Road. The museum is filled with the stories, objects and memories that explain how the surrounding communities took shape.

Stars Hollow-Style Events All Year Long

Stars Hollow always had a reason to gather, and so do the small towns of Ontario’s Highlands. Winter brings cardboard-toboggan races and a parade at the Dorset Snowball Winter Carnival. In spring, Perth’s Festival of the Maples features sap-tapping and cross-cut-saw competitions, while Wilno celebrates its Polish-Kashub heritage with food, music and dancing. Summer brings puppet parades to Almonte during Puppets Up!, followed by Carleton Place’s pumpkin-filled Pumpkinfest in fall.