10 Feel-Good Holiday Shows And Movies You Can Stream This Year

2020 has been a difficult year, so it’s time to treat yourself to a feel-good Christmas movie or show. Here are 10 movies and shows available to stream right now on Netflix, Hulu, and Disney+.

A Christmas Prince (Netflix)

Though this movie is a few years old, it’s Netflix’s first attempt to top The Hallmark Channel in cheesy, romantic, and predictable Christmas movies — and they nailed it. In a storyline that could have been picked out from my 12-year-old self’s diary (I never grew out of my princess phase), Amber (Rose McIver) is a journalist traveling to the fictional European nation of Aldovia (which sounds an awful lot like Genovia, but I digress) to cover the story of Richard (Ben Lamb), the soon-to-be king.

Richard is highly sought after by the press after his father’s death and rumors of his playboy ways, so he doesn’t want to interact with the press. Amber refuses to leave Aldovia without a story and poses as Richard’s little sister’s tutor. I won’t give out any spoilers, but there are two sequels titled, A Christmas Prince: The Royal Wedding, and A Christmas Prince: The Royal Baby.

The Princess Switch: Switched Again (Netflix)

What’s better than two characters played by Vanessa Hudgens in one movie? Three! The Princess Switch premiered in 2018, in which Stacy (Vanessa Hudgens) enters a Christmas baking competition in the fictional kingdom of Belgravia (again, sounds a lot like Genovia). In Belgravia, she meets Lady Margaret, Duchess of Montenaro (also played by Vanessa Hudgens). Margaret is engaged to Prince Edward of Belgravia (Sam Palladio) and wants a few days to take a break from royal life, so she suggests that she and Stacy switch places.

When they switch places, Stacy falls for Edward, and Margaret falls for Stacy’s best friend Kevin (Nick Sagar). Stacy ends up marrying Edward, and Margaret and Kevin end up together. 

In the sequel, Kevin and Margaret are broken up, and Stacy, Edward, and Kevin visit Margaret for her coronation. Stacy and Margaret agree to switch places again so Margaret and Kevin can figure out where their relationship went wrong. Things go awry when Margaret’s cousin Fiona (also played by Vanessa Hudgens) makes an unexpected visit and wants to take Margaret’s place as Queen.

Operation Christmas Drop (Netflix)

Erica (Kat Graham) is a congressional assistant forced to cancel her family Christmas to investigate a U.S. Air Force base in Guam that uses military planes to drop off Christmas presents to remote islands. She travels to Guam with the intention of shutting down the base but is charmed by the handsome captain, Andrew (Alexander Ludwig), who shows her around the community to convince her to keep the base open. During her investigation, she discovers that there’s much more to the military base and Andrew than she originally assumed.

Dash & Lily (Netflix)

The only miniseries on this list is co-directed by Fred Savage and co-produced by Nick Jonas, and they don’t fail to bring the cutest romantic comedy of the Christmas season. Based on the young adult series, Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares, the story follows two high school seniors during Christmastime. Still a cynic from his breakup the year before, Dash (Austin Abrams) finds a red book of dares in his favorite local bookstore. On the other side of the book is Lily (Midori Frances), an eternal optimist who loves everything about Christmas. Despite their personality differences, Dash and Lily bond through the book of dares and bring out the best in each other, falling for each other in the process.

Dolly Parton’s Christmas on the Square (Netflix)

Three of my favorite things are Christmas, musicals, and anything with Dolly Parton. Luckily, this movie has all three. Regina (Christine Baranski) is a modern-day Ebenezer Scrooge and is about to evict the entirety of her small town on Christmas Eve. She’s visited by an angel (Dolly Parton) who shows her the true meaning of Christmas and leads Regina to her redemption. With 14 original songs all written by Dolly Parton, this is a must-watch for any country music and Christmas fans out there.

Christmas Belle (Hulu)

Did you really think I wasn’t going to toss a couple of cheesy Hallmark movies on here? Leaving her boyfriend behind in her hometown, Belle (Haylie Duff) works with the difficult Hunter (Nicholas Gonzalez) to sell his family estate. Though the two start off on the wrong foot, Belle discovers that there’s more to Hunter than she initially perceived and discovers the sentimental value of his estate. Despite how much money the sale would make her, Belle becomes determined to convince Hunter to keep his family estate.

A Dogwalker’s Christmas Tale (Hulu)

After maxing out her credit card, Luce (Lexi Giovagnoli) takes a job as a dog walker to finish buying Christmas gifts for her friends and family. She meets fellow dog walker Dean (Jonathan Bennett, aka Aaron Samuels from Mean Girls) at the dog park and discovers her boss is trying to tear the park down to build a salon. Going against her boss, Luce teams up with Dale to convince her boss that the dog park is worth saving.

Home Alone (Disney+)

I had to throw this John Hughes classic on the list. 8-year-old Kevin McCallister’s (Macaulay Culkin) dream comes true when he discovers that his family has disappeared (they really forgot him on their Christmas trip to Paris, but you get the gist). Initially excited by his newfound freedom, Kevin discovers that a duo of burglars (Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern), known as the Wet Bandits, plan to rob his family’s home on Christmas Eve. Kevin takes it upon himself to stop the burglars by setting traps around the house and hilarity ensues.

Noelle (Disney+)

Noelle (Anna Kendrick) is the daughter of Kris Kringle, so the love of Christmas runs through her blood. After her father’s death, her brother Nick (Bill Hader) is terrified of failing to fill his father’s shoes. Noelle recommends that he take a weekend for himself to destress, but he doesn’t return home. It’s up to Noelle to find her brother and convince him to return to the North Pole to save Christmas. 

Miracle on 34th Street (Disney+)

In this 1947 classic, Doris (Maureen O’Hara) is the event director at Macy’s and doesn’t believe in Santa Claus. When the man who is supposed to be Santa in the Thanksgiving Day parade gets too drunk, she finds a kind old man named Kris (Edmund Gwenn). After he succeeds at the job, he becomes the Macy’s Santa Claus for that year. While Doris refuses to believe in Santa, her young daughter Susan (Natalie Wood) becomes convinced that Kris is the real Santa Claus. Doris fires Kris for saying he’s the real Santa Claus, but more and more evidence shows that she may have been wrong about him and the existence of Santa Claus all along.

Closing Thoughts

Whether you want to watch a classic like Miracle on 34th Street or something cheesy like The Princess Switch: Switched Again, there’s something for everyone in the catalog of Christmas movies and shows available to stream on Netflix, Hulu, and Disney+.

Also, check out our classic Old Hollywood Christmas movie recommendation list.