Mystic Falls Is Really
Covington, Georgia
The Vampire Diaries was filmed in Covington, Georgia, a small town about 35 miles east of Atlanta that stands in as the fictional town of Mystic Falls. Nearly every iconic location — the town square, the Mystic Grill, the Gilbert house, and the Lockwood Mansion — is a real place you can still visit today.
Covington has doubled as Mystic Falls since 2009 and is known locally as the "Hollywood of the South." Some scenes were also shot in nearby Conyers and around Atlanta, but the heart of Mystic Falls is Covington's historic downtown.
Endorsed by The Vampire
Diaries Cast
"Jessica, with her Mystic Falls Tours, you know, really has allowed a lot of people to experience the sets and the feeling of what Mystic Falls is, and it's incredible, and it's been a lot of fun."
— Ian Somerhalder (Damon Salvatore)
Every Vampire Diaries Filming
Location in Covington
Mystic Falls Town Square
The beating heart of Mystic Falls. The historic courthouse and its clock tower, the gazebo, and the shops around Covington Square appear across all eight seasons, from Founder's Day parades to dozens of pivotal moments. It's open to the public and easy to explore on foot.
Exteriors in all eight seasons, including the clock face itself. Interiors were shot inside Wild Art, and inside our own shop; Vampire Stalkers is the prom dress store in Season 4, Episode 19. The courthouse interior doubled as Sheriff Forbes' office in the first two seasons, and Damon and Elena discuss taking the cure here in Season 6, Episode 20.
The Mystic
Grill
A real, working restaurant on the square, named for the show's famous hangout where Matt bussed tables. Stop in for lunch and a photo where the characters did.
Exteriors only, across all eight seasons. Stab Alley beside the grill is where Matt Donovan kills Finn Mikaelson, and the road between here and the clock tower is where Damon kills Lexi. Paul Wesley's star is set into the pavement outside.
The Gilbert House
Elena and Jeremy's family home, a real private residence just off the square. Because people live here, we admire it from the street only and ask fans to respect their privacy.
All eight seasons, exteriors only; every scene inside the Gilbert house was shot on a stage.
*Mystic Falls Tours Exclusive
The Lockwood Mansion
Home of the Masquerade ball and the Miss Mystic Falls pageant, and a filming site for Sweet Home Alabama too. It's private, gated property, so our guided tour is one of the only ways to see inside the grounds.
Interiors and exteriors across all eight seasons; unusual, since most Mystic Falls interiors were shot on soundstages. Home of the Season 2 Masquerade Ball, and Caroline and Stefan's wedding in Season 8.
*Mystic Falls Tours Exclusive
Caroline Forbes' House
Caroline's family home, another private residence we view from the street.
Exteriors across all eight seasons, interiors for the first three. The porch is where Caroline delivers "Can everyone stop kissing me today?" in Season 2.
The Donovan House
Matt and Vicki's house, a private home on the tour route.
Exteriors across all eight seasons, interiors for the first two. Stefan comes to this door to help Vicki, and Matt and Vicki sit at the kitchen table here in Season 1, Episode 7.
Grams' House
Bonnie's grandmother's house; private, viewed from the street.
Interiors in Season 1, exteriors thereafter. This is where Grams refuses to invite Damon in and burns his brain to make the point, in Season 1, Episode 14.
Isobel's House
Elena's birth mother's house, and a private residence.
Interiors and exteriors, both in Season 2, Episode 17; the episode where we learn Isobel and Katherine have been working together.
The Witch House
The ruined house where Bonnie worked her strongest magic, and where Stefan hid the Originals' coffins from Klaus.
Seasons 2 to 4, filmed inside and out.
*Mystic Falls Tours Exclusive
The Rain
Kiss Spot
The park where one of the show's most-quoted moments was filmed.
Exteriors, Season 6, Episode 7 - "Promise me this is forever."
Aunt Jenna's Trashcan
Exactly what it sounds like, and one of the stops our guests ask about most.
Used in the Season 2 finale as Aunt Jenna's burial spot.
The Salvatore Boarding House
The question we hear most. The Season 1 exterior was Glenridge Hall in Sandy Springs, which was demolished in 2015, and later seasons used a studio set. The boarding house itself can't be visited, but we tell the whole story on the tour.
We Were There When
They Filmed It
We have been running tours in Covington since before the cameras stopped rolling. Two nights we still talk about:
"We were already running tours by then, and the bonus that autumn was live filming. After our morning tour, I took my daughter Brannan and our tour guests over to the college where they were shooting, and we spent the whole evening there. It was early enough in the show's run that we nearly had the place to ourselves.
Trent Ford came over first. He introduced himself as Trevor. He couldn't tell us anything else, and we were thrilled just to get the spoiler. The downside of a spoiler like that is there are never any photos.
It was getting late, but we waited. Eventually Ian saw us and came over. Brannan had a knee injury at the time, and when Ian put his leg up around her, it made it considerably worse. She never said a word. She was so happy he was hugging her that the pain was worth it. Paul came over too, and we got photos with both of them.
What mattered most to me was that our guests got to meet them. That's why I started doing this. I loved helping fans of the show live out something they'd only imagined, and we're lucky enough to actually live here, in the real Mystic Falls, and build a business out of it."
— Jessica Lowery, Founder
"They were shooting inside a high school around the corner from the Gilbert House. It's been torn down since. They used the gym for Season 3, Episode 5, The Reckoning. The countdown clock from that episode is now at the Visitor Center. Joseph Morgan, Paul Wesley, Nina Dobrev, and Claire Holt were all there that night.
Two things happened I've never forgotten. Paul came out with little dots all over his face, and we said, "Hey, what's going on with your face?" He said, "Oh, I'm vamping out this episode." Somehow it had never clicked for me that the veins moving across their faces were CGI.
Then Nina came over while we were talking to Paul and said, "We killed Dana tonight."
Dana was a side character, a student at Mystic Falls High, around from the middle of season two, one of those people who was just always there. The fandom had running jokes about her. For Nina to say that meant she knew about the jokes and was in on them. I've always loved that she gave us that spoiler.
And as a Stefan and Elena girl, The Reckoning turned out to be my favorite episode of the whole series. The scene where Stefan fights Klaus's compulsion to kill Elena is one of my favorite scenes in all eight seasons. Wild that the whole night came together that way."
— Amber Chandler, Guide
Can You Visit Mystic
Falls in One Day?
Yes. Most of the core square locations, the Mystic Grill, the courthouse, and the shops, are within walking distance of each other and can be seen in an afternoon. The spread-out and private spots, like the Lockwood Mansion, are best reached on a guided tram tour, which covers everything in about one to two hours without the guesswork. If you have a single day in Covington, a morning tour plus an afternoon on the square is the ideal plan.
Mystic Falls Filming
Locations Map
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