Last weekend I had a chance to do the TWD Studio Tour in Senoia, Georgia! It’s a 2-hour guided bus tour through Riverwood Studios, which is where The Walking Dead is currently filmed.
I bought tickets for the last tour time of the day at 5:20pm. My husband and I had just got in from a 12 hour drive from Dallas, so we were a bit late and missed the last group bus. But they were nice enough to put us on a bus anyway and we had our own private tour! We took a ride around the inside and outside of the studio lot in Senoia to visit various filming locations, including Alexandria, Hilltop, the Sanctuary (formerly the Prison), Oceanside, Woodbury, and even the trash heap. We didn’t get to see inside any buildings, though. I also didn’t get to take pictures of a lot of things because they’re working on the sets for season 10, and they don’t want us to share anything that could be an accidental spoiler. That’s cool, I’m just glad I got a chance to see it. ?
Hilltop was pretty damn cool. It’s such a breathtaking sight as you pull up to this huge building with a fence all around it. It looks real because it is real (although the house is actually hollowed out inside). I wasn’t allowed to take photos of it though.
Alexandria was my absolute favorite part of the tour. If you know me, you know I’m a HUGE Rick and Michonne fan, so seeing their community was so much fun for me — as you can tell by the amount of pictures I took! I wasn’t allowed to take photos of the houses, but I got what I could.
By the way, I had no idea that Alexandria is a real community (not originally called Alexandria, but nicknamed that since the show started filming there) and people really live there. And it really does have a gate around it and you really can’t get in without permission unless you live there or are part of the tour. Pretty crazy, right? The houses that the characters live in on the show are real but vacant, and the interior shots (Rick and Michonne’s house, the prison, etc.) are real as well. Mind blown.
Visiting the trash heap was pretty fun. We walked through the shipping container tunnel right into Jadis’ community. What you’re seeing below is the actual “pit” where Rick fought off the spiked walker. We didn’t get to walk further than this, but you could see from another angle where Rick was held captive. Pretty cool.
Below, you can see the river where Rick and Aaron fought off walkers in the water to get to that boat with supplies on it. Of course, those aren’t bodies in the water, ?they’re pool noodles with clothes on them. Gives it the same eerie effect when you’re there, though!
This tour was so much fun! Our tour guide gave us lots of trivia, which made it fun to reminisce on seasons past. When it was over we had time to go see Woodbury (although I didn’t take any photos of that), and then we made it just in time to eat at Nic and Norman’s right before they closed for the night. The food was really good! I didn’t get to check out any more of Senoia because we had other plans, but I loved this tour and I highly recommend it for anyone who’s a big fan of the show or if you just love to see filming locations. ?It’s currently only set to run through June 2019 though so make sure you go see it! Get more info here.
Wow this looks so cool! It must be crazy visiting all those sets that you have seen in the TV show, they look so realistic!
Yes it was amazing! Being on the sets where so many iconic moments were filmed is so crazy!
June 2019 tours have been cancelled.if you booked a tour,make sure your checking your email for the cancellation notice.my tour was booked for the 16 of june.this is how i know.
I heard about this on Twitter! It sucks for everyone who didn’t get a chance to see it. I hope they open it back up next summer. At least you could visit the town and still see some other cool stuff, though.
Where can I get the phone number for the tour please help me I want to see this….
Unfortunately the tour isn’t running right now, and I have no idea if or when it’ll start up again. Sorry!
Its a shame that they did not do the tours this year. I was fortunate to do it twice last year, the first week they started the tours in Dec, 2018 and late Spring 2019. Our second tour guide’s parents actually live in Alexandria, across from some of the cast houses, actually next to where the pool table was outside. She was able to view much of the filming and told us what they were told by the studio and asked to do. Definitely, do not talk to the actors, though she said the actors would strike up a conversation with them every now and then. I hope they start up the tours at some point again. There are many tours, but this was the only one where you can enter the gates of Alexandria as well as go on the studio property and see the sets, Heaps, Oceanside, place where Glen and Abraham died (also the location of Gabriel’s Church), Hillside, Sanctuary and Prison.
I agree! It was really cool and I hope they do it again.