If you’re a fan of The Vampire Diaries, you no doubt need to attend a Vampire Diaries convention at some point in your life. Check out this complete guide on how to attend a TVD convention, including how to meet the cast of The Vampire Diaries in real life!
My obsession with The Vampire Diaries started in college.
My roommate at the time and I started watching it on the weekends, and we became immediately hooked.
We’d waste countless nights away binge watching TVD (and then The Originals, once we finished that), eating sour patch kids, and ordering copious amounts of cookies and nachos right to our doorstep (and yes, we found this much more entertaining than going to parties).
We became so engrossed in the fandom that we began looking up any information we could find on the cast and how we could potentially meet them.
Little did we know, they actually hold a Vampire Diaries convention where you can go and meet all of the actors!
So, we bought our tickets in January and, after months of anticipation, finally got to experience the convention in July 2017.
Given that neither of us had ever been to a Vampire Diaries convention before, we had absolutely no idea what to expect.
Most of our weekend went off without a hitch, but there were a few mistakes we did learn along the way that I’d want to avoid if I were going to a Vampire Diaries convention again in the future.
Keep reading to learn more about attending a Vampire Diaries convention (or an Originals convention or Legacies convention, because they have those too), so you can plan the best trip possible and of course meet The Vampire Diaries cast while you’re at it!
Make sure to read my post on visiting the real life Mystic Falls Virginia and touring all the Vampire Diaries shooting locations!
Vampire Diaries Convention: Everything You Need to Know (+ How to Meet the Cast)
Vampire Diaries Convention Locations
There are multiple locations that Vampire Diaries conventions take place at throughout the country.
We attended the Vampire Diaries 2017 convention in Whippany, NJ, simply because it was within a reasonable driving distance from where we live.
Originally we wanted to attend the Chicago Vampire Diaries convention, since we thought that city sounded more fun to explore than New Jersey.
That being said, I would recommend sticking to the location that’s easiest for you to travel to.
There’s so many convention activities going on during the day, you’re not going to be exploring outside the convention center as much as you might think.
Attending a Vampire Diaries convention is also pretty costly, so this is another reason I’d recommend attending a convention that requires less travel if possible.
As of February 2021 though, it looks like there are only conventions planned for Chicago and Whippany, NJ.
Booking Your Hotel
I was shocked when I learned this, but many people will actually reserve their hotel rooms for the Vampire Diaries convention before the convention tickets even go on sale.
We bought our convention tickets for the 2017 Vampire Diaries convention over six months in advance, and the official convention hotel was already completely sold out!
There really are that many diehard fans out there that plan their trips in advance, so keep that in mind.
For our trip during the Vampire Diaries convention 2017 though, we were still able to find a hotel room nearby the convention hotel, so it worked out.
That being said, it’s definitely more convenient to stay at the official convention hotel since that’s where all the events will be taking place.
We ended up having to drive over to the convention hotel each morning, instead of waking up and just having to walk downstairs.
The Karaoke Party
Before the Vampire Diaries convention starts on Saturday, there is usually a karaoke party on Friday night at the convention hotel.
This is a free general admission event, and you don’t even have to have a convention pass to attend!
The thing that’s really cool about this specific Vampire Diaries convention event though (besides the fact that it’s free and open to everyone), is that you don’t keep your convention seating.
The seating is basically a free for all when you get into the auditorium, so if you’re quick you can make your way to the front.
Of course everyone wants to be up front by the stage and you’re not allowed to run or push people to get there (obviously), but it’s still possible to get pretty close to the action.
Keep in mind, people get in line super early (like at least several hours early) for this event since there’s no assigned seating.
So if you’re hoping to be at the very front of the crowd, get there even earlier than you think you need to.
Regarding the party itself, I had originally imagined it was going to be kind of lame.
I was totally wrong.
Chase Coleman and Micah Parker are usually the hosts for the weekend, so they were there pumping everyone up to begin with.
Todd Lasance also made an appearance at our party and started rapping at one point (he was awesome, FYI).
Last but not least, Kat Graham even made a surprise appearance!
The bottom line is, this is definitely not an event you want to miss at the Vampire Diaries convention.
The party is pretty low key, and you can actually interact with the cast.
Sometimes you’ll wonder where Chase Coleman went, and then realize he was dancing right next to you in the crowd (this happened to me, haha).
It’s so fun getting to see the actors’ personalities a bit and just hangout with them!
Celebration Concert
Saturday night the entertainment company also puts on another event, which is called their Celebration Concert.
The concert is complimentary for Gold, Silver, and Copper Weekend pass holders, or you can purchase a general admission ticket for $35.
This is cool, since some of the actors also have musical talents and they are able to perform during this event.
Michael Malarkey did some of his new songs at the beginning of our Celebration Concert, which was great to see live.
Like the Karaoke Party, there’s no assigned seating so you have the opportunity to get closer to the front without paying extra money at the Celebration Concert, too.
People do get in line very early for this event as well though, so keep that in mind when planning your timeline of events!
Gold, Silver, & Copper Weekend Packages
When it comes to the Vampire Diaries convention, there are multiple packages you can purchase in addition to general admission tickets.
General admission tickets are the most affordable option, but you won’t get reserved seating during the panels, or pre-priority registration for photo ops and autographs.
Gold is of course the highest level Vampire Diaries convention package, and the most expensive.
Some of the highlights of the gold package include complimentary autographs from select guests, priority lines, and an exclusive panel with Paul Wesley and Ian Somerholder for Gold patrons only.
Gold patrons also get to choose their seats first, which is a big win.
The Silver Weekend Pass is the level below Gold, and it allows similar privileges.
You’ll receive complimentary autographs with a smaller select list of guests and pre-registration for photo ops and autographs.
The biggest difference between the Gold Weekend and Silver Weekend Passes though is the fact that the Gold Weekend pass holders get a special 30-minute panel with Paul Wesley and Ian Somerholder that none of the other tiers are allowed to be in on.
The Copper Weekend Pass is the last tier above general admission, which affords you (like the above tiers) reserved seats, pre-priority registration for photo ops and autographs, and admission to the Saturday Night Concert (included in all the Gold, Silver, and Copper Weekend passes).
The Copper Weekend pass is what we purchased for our 2017 Vampire Diaries convention, and I felt it was a great bargain for what we recieved.
I just chose a few photo ops and autographs a la carte, but other than that I felt everything I would want was already included in the Copper Weekend Package for a reasonable price.
What to Expect at the Vampire Diaries Convention During the Day
The first day of The Vampire Diaries convention is usually Saturday.
There will be a series of panels, where the audience typically has the entire 45 minute slot to ask questions to the actors.
I didn’t ask any questions on Saturday, but I really enjoyed getting to see Matt Davis in person (he’s super funny!).
The audience couldn’t stop laughing because he was joking around the entire time about his bald spot, and also how he fills in his eyebrows.
He seemed like such a down to earth guy, and someone I’d genuinely want to be friends with!
We also felt the same way about Riley Voekel, who seemed really nice as well.
Sunday at the Vampire Diaries convention follows a similar format, with panels running throughout the day.
At the 2017 Vampire Diaries convention, Sunday was the day when Paul Wesley was there, so you could tell everyone was really excited.
Photo Ops & Autographs (How to Meet the Vampire Diaries Cast)
After the panels, the actors usually go on to their photo ops and autograph signings.
This is pretty much the only way to meet the Vampire Diaries cast in person at the convention.
For the bigger stars, you’ll definitely want to make sure you purchase these tickets ahead of time (rest assured, they will sell out if you don’t).
Sometimes you’re able to add these options on at the Vampire Diaries convention though, which was what I did with the autographs for Michael Trevino and Steven McQueen.
Both the autographs and the photo ops go by super fast with the way they keep things moving, so you won’t really get a chance to talk to the actors very much.
Over everyone I met though, I enjoyed meeting Michael Trevino the most.
He actually looked up and talked to me while he was signing, and he even joked around about how he looks mad in our photo, even though he thought he was smiling.
Everyone else was very nice and polite as well, but I liked Michael’s sense of humor and the fact that he made it a point to talk to each person while he was signing.
The girl in line in front of me even asked him for a hug (which the entertainment company explicitly tells you not to…), and he was so cool about it and friendly.
Regardless of the fact that the meet and greets are short, getting to meet the Vampire Diaries cast in any capacity is still pretty amazing in my opinion!
Vampire Diaries Convention Final Thoughts/Tips
- Reserve your hotel rooms early…like as soon as the dates for the convention are released.
- Buy your tickets early too, especially if you’re trying to get photo ops/autographs with some of the bigger stars.
- Consider splitting the cost of photo ops with a friend and both being in the picture (make sure this is allowed though, different entertainment companies have different rules).
- If you buy a photo op, consider buying autographs too so that the actors can sign the picture you took together! This is something we didn’t even think of at first, but I was happy that I ended up doing it.
- If you’re trying to decide whether to purchase a photo op or an autograph, it might help you to know that I actually enjoyed the autograph experience better. I’m happy to have photos with some of my favorite actors, but I definitely noticed that the they took a bit more time to say hello while autographing.
- Expect to wait in (very long) lines. Some people were upset at how long it took to get through the autograph lines, but everybody wants their 10 seconds with their favorite star. Try to come prepared and not get rattled.
Have you ever been to a Vampire Diaries convention?
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