The real Mystic Falls, Virginia is located in Georgia, Covington! But, what is Mystic Falls anyway? Well, if you’re a fan of Vampire Diaries and other similar fiction, you would know about it. For those of you who don’t know, Mystic Falls is the town where the series The Vampire Diaries takes place.
This is located 35-miles east of Atlanta, in the beautiful town of Covington, Georgia.
Covington has been a popular filming destination for years and has even been unofficially declared the “Hollywood of the South”.
What is there to see in this town?
Visitor Center
When we arrived in Covington we first stopped at the visitor center and picked up free maps. The Mystic Falls map outlines where all the scenes were filmed and the best places to visit. You can mostly walk around the square snapping photos and see majority of the houses over a span of a few blocks.
First Stop- The Clock Tower
When you arrive in Covington, you really can’t miss the famous clock tower where so many scenes from The Vampire Diaries were filmed. And right across the street is the Mystic Falls Town Square aka Covington Square.
The town square and clock tower have been home to several other TV filming sets. Of course, Legacies, the latest show in the Vampire Diaries series, is currently filmed here.
Mystic Grill
Just beside the clock tower, one can spot Mystic Grill. The great thing about the this place is that you can actually eat here like the TVD star cast did many times and look out at Covington Square.
Like most of the other locations, the inside of the Mystic Grill is not exactly as you see it on the show. This is because the inside scenes of the locations were filmed at their soundstage.
The Gilbert House
It was exciting to see the Elena Gilbert’s house in person. Though it’s just a normal residence to anyone who hasn’t watched the show, every true TVD fan knows that some pretty iconic scenes took place on this porch!
Please note that these are private residences. So, be respectful of their privacy.
Just beside the Elena’s house, there is a Caroline house.
Lockwood Manor
The Lockwood Mansion was the site of Caroline and Stefan’s wedding, as well as many, many other scenes over the years of filming. If not on tour, you can only see the place from outside the gates.
On the official Vampire Diaries tour, you will be able to go behind the gates of the Lockwood Mansion and see the place where so many of the epic parties were really staged throughout this series.
Vampire Tour
Hands down the best way to explore Covington, GA is through an official Mystic Falls Tour.
Vampire Stalkers also has an “Originals” tour now too, which takes you around to some of the most popular The Originals filming locations.
It is advisable to book the tour well in advance. Nowadays due to pandemic situation, they are running just 2 tours in a month and hence, it is really hard to get a booking.
Gift and souvenir
In addition to the many filming sites you can visit in person, there are also a few gift shops in town that sell some awesome Vampire Diaries merchandise.
One of the biggest gift shops with the widest range of Vampire Diaries merchandise is run by the Vampire Stalkers tour group and is located near the Town Square.
Among the items for sale are “fangtastic” t-shirts, life-sized cardboard cutouts of your favorite characters, and even autographed merchandise that benefits the Ian Somerhalder Foundation.
Final Thoughts
There really are a lot of things to do in Covington GA, and I’m hoping to attend the tour next time and see where some of my favorite scenes were filmed!
Let us know how do you like this post. Are you a fan of “The Vampire Diaries”? What are some of your favorite things to do in Covington GA?
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