The Vampire Diaries: Mystic Falls in Covington, Georgia

Mystic Falls has a clock tower, a gazebo and a courthouse, and Covington still has all three around its square. The 1884 Newton County Courthouse, designed by Bruce & Morgan in the Second Empire style, supplies the tower; the square appears across all eight seasons, from Founder's Day parades to the show's last goodbyes. In the season one finale the town fills the square with a parade in period dress, and the mayor marks its 150th anniversary before the fireworks start.

Visitor guidance: Covington's square is public and walkable; the courthouse is still a working court, so check before going inside.

Every small-town drama needs a diner, and this is Mystic Falls': the Grill, where Matt bussed tables and the founding families traded news. In the Founder's Day episode the mayor storms in looking for Tyler, and Elena and Stefan meet here at the end of the night. The Clark Street building used for the on-screen Grill caught fire on 10 May 2012; in February 2014 a real Mystic Grill opened in Covington, inspired by the show and still serving lunch to fans.

Visitor guidance: A working restaurant on the square; book ahead on weekends and during fan conventions.

Elena and Jeremy grew up in this house, and after their parents die in a car crash their aunt Jenna moves in as their guardian. It is the show's most ordinary address, the place the supernatural keeps intruding on. Only the exterior was ever filmed here; every interior was shot on a stage. The house is a private home on Floyd Street, next door to the one used as Caroline's.

Location precision: The Gilbert house is fictional; the pin marks the private Covington house used for its exterior on Floyd Street.

The Salvatore brothers' boarding house is the show's gothic heart, and the season one exterior was a real mansion: Glenridge Hall, a Tudor Revival house built in 1929 in Sandy Springs. In the pilot, Stefan's relative Zach is living there when Stefan returns to Mystic Falls; later seasons moved the boarding house onto a studio set. Glenridge Hall had already appeared in Driving Miss Daisy when the show filmed there, and it was demolished in 2015, so there is nothing left to visit.

Location precision: The boarding house is fictional; the pin marks the Glenridge Drive address of Glenridge Hall, its season one exterior, demolished in 2015.

Worthington Manor, an 1850 house on East Street, plays the Lockwood family's mansion. It hosts the season two Masquerade Ball, where Katherine arrives disguised as Elena and Tyler's werewolf curse is triggered, and it is the home of the Miss Mystic Falls pageant; in the final season Stefan and Caroline marry here. The house is private and gated, so the grounds are seen only on a guided tour, though the facade can be photographed from the street.

Location precision: The Lockwood Mansion is fictional; the pin marks Worthington Manor at 2129 East Street, the house used for it.

Whitmore College is where Elena and Caroline go after high school, and the show found its campus at Oxford College of Emory University, 38 miles east of Atlanta. Elena leaves for Whitmore at the start of season five; the library, quad and theater at Oxford stood in for the college, so the arches and lawns the characters cross are those of a working liberal arts college rather than a set. It is a quiet, small campus just north of Covington.

Location precision: Whitmore College is fictional; the pin marks Oxford College of Emory University, its on-location campus.

Visitor guidance: The college is active; keep to public paths and avoid buildings during term.

The Covington Visitor Center holds the only TV and Movie Museum in Georgia, with props from the show: the room Katherine was locked in during the Masquerade episode, the dress she wore, and items from Stefan and Caroline's wedding. It is the practical last stop, a place to see the objects up close after a day of looking at facades.

Visitor guidance: The Visitor Center is at 1143 Oak Street SE, a short walk from the square.