The smell of coffee drifted down South Main Street as strangers stopped to talk, visitors ran between storefronts and fans dressed like their favorite “Gilmore Girls” characters.
From Sept. 25-27, Versailles looked a little less like Kentucky and a little more like Stars Hollow, Connecticut.
Downtown Versailles traded its usual small-town routine for a weekend inspired by the fictional town from “Gilmore Girls,” bringing fans together for a celebration of the beloved series.
The weekend featured several small businesses transforming to mirror the show.
The Amsden, a local coffee shop, became a fan favorite as Luke’s Diner. The line wrapped around the block, with some fans waiting nearly three hours to make their way inside. Once inside, attendees could order drinks inspired by the show and choose from Team Dean, Team Jess and Team Logan pins.
Along with several other local businesses who went all out Stars Hollow, My Darling and Company transformed into Doose’s Market and Kristen’s Kreations became Sookie’s Kitchen, each offering specialty themed treats and merch in homage to the show.
Even 26 years after the show initially premiered, it’s still a fall favorite according to Hannah Allen, native of Greenup, Kentucky, University of Kentucky alumna and medical student at Marshall University Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine.
“I love to watch it in fall because most of the episodes of ‘Gilmore Girls’ take place in fall,” Allen said. “You can actually line it up with seasons and stuff if you start at a certain time, and it’s just like that cozy feeling.”
Once fall starts, Allen watches four episodes a day, allowing the seasons of the show to change alongside the seasons outside her window. Once a year, she shares that tradition with her mother, who joined her at the event.
Allen began watching the show with her mother when she was a kid, both finding love for the show because they’re also from a small town. She said they enjoy seeing people on the show live freely without worrying about what others think, particularly because their relationships feel genuine and unfiltered.
The weekend included the appearance of Stars Hollow’s very own Hep Alien, or at least half of it.
John Cabrera and Todd Lowe, who played founding members of Hep Alien, Brian Fuller and Zack Van Gerbig respectively, made an appearance to host meet-and-greets, trivia, play music, and chat with fans.
“They have two of the guys from the band on the TV show performing tonight at the church since they performed at the church on the ‘Gilmore Girls,’” Allen said. “So we got tickets … I’m very excited.”
Show-inspired decorations lined the streets, live acoustic music performed by musicians filled the streets, and attendees gathered around a gazebo designed to mirror the one at the heart of Stars Hollow in the show.
On Saturday, Sept. 26, Versailles held its very own Stars Hollow dance marathon, bringing another part of the fictional town to life for attendees. Afterward, several awards inspired by the show were presented to participants who demonstrated true Stars Hollow spirit.
Ardmore, Alabama native and ASL interpreter Kaitlyn Gregory, a fan of the series for several years, traveled just over four hours to witness the spectacle.
“I love all of it,” Gregory said. “Doose’s Market. I mean, that’s probably my favorite.”
Gregory attended the festival with her family and found refuge in several of the themed shops in town, including Tiny Bird Books which was themed to represent Rory’s, the main character of “Gilmore Girls,” love of reading.
According to Gregory and her family, the festival reminded them of Season 1, Episode 7, “Kiss and Tell,” when Rory shared her first kiss with Dean in Doose’s Market.
The small-town charm of Versailles matched that of Stars Hallow, Gregory said.
Kayla Gray, resident of Elizabethtown, Kentucky, shared that same sentiment.
“They did a good job capturing the essence of Stars Hollow,” Gray said. “It’s very cozy. I really like how they really turned all of the storefronts into the different stores.”
Gray attended with her mother, who shares her love of the show. The weekend also coincided with Gray’s birthday, making the festival a celebration of more than just “Gilmore Girls.”
They first watched “Gilmore Girls” in 2016 after the release of “Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life.”
“It’s become my show that I just have on in the background all the time and when I’m going to sleep,” Gray said. “I could probably quote it now, beginning to end, I hate to admit it.”
Gray and her mother have attended other “Gilmore Girls” events, the last one occurring last year in Monticello, Kentucky. However, according to Gray, none have compared to that of the festival in Versailles.
For Gray, the highlight of the festival was getting to spend time with her mother and enjoy the celebration together.
Beyond the costumes, music and familiar references to Stars Hollow, the festival offered something less tangible: time together. Families used the weekend to step from everyday life and enjoy an experience built around a show that brought them together.
The weekend was about more than recreating a beloved fictional town. It was about the people who came together to experience it. Families shared traditions, introduced one another to a nostalgic show and made new memories along the way.
Even if just for a few days, Versailles became a place where Stars Hollow existed beyond the screen and fostered connections built from a love of “Gilmore Girls.”