Hollywood of the South

Downtown Covington is less than an hour outside Atlanta, and a 10-minute drive from Covington Municipal Airport (CVC). Once you arrive in the picturesque town square, with its iconic clocktower, you may recognize familiar sights from The Heat of the Night, The Dukes of Hazzard, and Sweet Magnolias, to name a few. There are many wonderful places to stay, including hotels and Airbnbs. You can even stay in homes that you may have seen in a favorite movie or TV show. We took a tour centered around The Vampire Diaries and visited familiar locations and homes that offered the backdrop for our show. How exciting to stand where some of our beloved characters had been!

Afterward, we enjoyed lunch at the Mystic Grill, a restaurant from The Vampire Diaries brought to life. The chicken and waffle sliders and the clocktower burger were delicious. The town square and beyond is full of gift shops, stores, coffee shops, restaurants, and even an axe throwing center. The visitor center doubles as a museum filled with memorabilia from the various television shows and movies filmed here.

If vampires aren’t your thing, ghost tours and historic home tours are among the many ways you can explore. No matter how you choose to explore, remember to look down often, as you may come across a few recognizable names written in the sidewalk stars. Possibly our favorite stop was the Scoops ice cream and candy store. We sat on their front porch, rocking in their chairs while eating our ice cream as the sun set. Since returning home, we have watched a few episodes of our show. Scene after scene, we laugh with each other saying, “Hey, we’ve been there!” as we recognize the now familiar places that we have visited.

[email protected]