Hotel Transylvania Movies in Order: Getting to Know Drac and Friends

There would be very few people who do not know about Bram Stoker’s Dracula. We all are well acquainted with the blood-sucking vampire who broke havoc across humanity until Dr. Van Helsing invented a way to get rid of him and his evil ways. However, with time, the concept of Count Dracula has changed.

Especially in Genndy Tartakovsky’s Hotel Transylvania series, the tables turn completely. The lines between the good side and the bad side, the horrifying and the humane, get blurred out completely. The movie series Hotel Transylvania attempts a fun take at the changing relations between the human world and the supernatural world with evolving technology and progressing times.

There are a total of four movies in the Hotel Transylvania film series. If you are a new fan or even an old fan who wishes to binge-watch the entire series then we have a guide that might be of help.

What are the Hotel Transylvania movies and where to watch them?

There are some short films and even animated series but there are only four full-length films in the Hotel Transylvania series. 

• Hotel Transylvania (2012)
• Hotel Transylvania 2 (2015)
• Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (2018)
• Hotel Transylvania: Transformania (2022)

1. Hotel Transylvania (2012)

This is the first movie in the series and introduces the entire cast of characters to the audience. The film shows how, even though the external spooky appearance remains intact, Count Dracula has become our friendly neighborhood vampire Drac. Drac is a grieving widower (which is only revealed later), a loving father, and a responsible Count who takes care of his kind.

It is revealed that Drac had built Hotel Transylvania for the supernatural creatures. They could safely enjoy vacations in Transylvania without fearing the tyrannical intrusions of humans. Things turn upside down when Jonathan ends up in Hotel Transylvania and hits it off instantly with Mavis, Drac’s daughter. 

The beautiful tale then follows the struggles of a cautious and anxious father as he shifts his ideologies to fit his daughter’s wishes and we all get to have a satisfying happy ending. You can watch the movie on Hulu. 

2. Hotel Transylvania 2 (2015)

The charming Drac and his mates are back and now Drac has become a grandfather. Opening a few years after the conclusion of the first movie, this instalment shows the married life of Jonathan and Mavis as they try to fit into the role of new parents. Everything seems to be going alright unless an emotional dilemma sets in. 

Drac becomes concerned when he gets to know that Mavis has been planning for Dennis, her and Jonathan’s son, to shift to California. It turns out Mavis prefers a more “normal” lifestyle for her son while Jonathan, who has lived that “normal” life believes Dennis would be much happier at Transylvania. After a variety of turns of events, it is finally on Dennis’s birthday when a quarrel breaks out. 

The movie ends on a much lighter note as a natural conclusion is reached. It turns out Dennis could live both a “normal” life as well as the vampire life; and in the end, the important thing is to accept someone as they are. This particular installment is available on Netflix. 

3. Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (2018)

One of the best things about the Hotel Transylvania series is that it offers all the old flavors in new wrappings. The tussle between Van Helsing and Dracula has not been cleaned out of the board. Van Helsing’s character plays the perfect antagonistic villain to the friendly and laidback character of Drac. 

In this particular movie, Helsing has a rather important role to play. The entire Hotel Transylvania is out on a cruise ship, enjoying a much-needed vacation, but they have little idea that trouble is brewing. While Dracula is under the false assumption that he has been successful in deceiving the ever-prodding Van Helsing, he could not be more wrong. 

The movie is full of surprising twists and turns and there is also a brewing romance between Dracula and Ericka. Moreover, Ericka has a rather pivotal role to play as she falls in love with Drac while initially only pretending to lure him in with her charm. If you want to find out why exactly Ericka would play such tricks you can watch the movie on Hulu. 

4. Hotel Transylvania: Transformania ( 2022)

Hotel Transylvania: Transformania (2022) is the most recent and the concluding installment in the Hotel Transylvania movie series. This movie goes back to a rather immature story narrative. The fact that Adam Sandler too was replaced as the voice of Drac did not sit right with fans. However, all in all, the movie managed to do well enough for itself. 

Hotel Transylvania: Transformania revolves around the “Monsterfication Ray”. The machine does just as its name suggests. Due to this machine, a terrific as well as terrible transformation comes over the characters of Hotel Transylvania. The humans, only Jonathan in this case, turn into monsters of sorts while Drac and his gang turn human. Even though this shift clearly is shown to be no less than a curse to Drac, Jonathan seems quite content with the shift. 

The gang has only a limited time before the transformations become irreversible. They must work together to bring back things to normal, which becomes a chaotic yet comedic turn to the events that unfold. This movie is available on Amazon Prime Video. 

What are the Hotel Transylvania Short Films?

Apart from the movies mentioned above, the title of Hotel Transylvania also features a variety of short films and animated series. You can watch these on YouTube only because these are not streaming on any other streaming platforms.  

• Hotel Transylvania: The Series – This was a prequel introductory television show. You can watch this to get an idea about who the cast is and what it looks like. 
• Short film: Goodnight Mr. Foot – In this movie, Bigfoot travels from North America to the haven of Transylvania and one thing leads to another. 
• Short film: Puppy! – A rather fun and delightful inclusion to the list, Puppy! Tells the story of the time when Drac wanted to gift a pet to his grandson. When the pet is bigger than the Master and filled to the brim with magical powers it cannot even handle, trouble is sure to unfold. 
• Short film: Monster Pets – Soon enough Dennis’s monster puppy feels lonely and this movie explores the process of searching for other monster pets to play with so that it doesn’t become lonely. The hilarious attempts of Drac to tackle the pets are sure to tickle your funny bones. 

The cast and characters of Hotel Transylvania

The characters that make a whole experience out of fragments of an old Goth classic should not be forgotten. Here we are going to take a brief look into the main characters of the movie.

• Count Dracula: The character has been predominantly voiced by Adam Sandler in the first three movies, and then by Brian Hull in the last movie. He is our friendly neighbourhood Dracula and all he wants is to protect his family. He is a rather soft-hearted man. After his wife is killed by a human mob, he builds Hotel Transylvania and keeps Mavis protected from humankind. Only when he gets to know Jonathan and befriends him in a way, does his speculations and traditional beliefs against humans change.
• Mavis Dracula: This character has been voiced by Selena Gomez and she is the little rebel of the Dracula family. She challenges the norms of the day and paves her path. She falls in love with a mortal, Jonathan, and they start a family thereafter.
• Jonathan Loughran: Jonathan, voiced by Andy Samberg, is the happy-go-lucky human who unwittingly ends up in Hotel Transylvania. He and Mavis get “zinged” (a term in the movie that denotes falling in love). Drac and Jonathan share a wholesome bitter-sweet relationship throughout the series which gives a conventional father-in-law and son-in-law relationship vibe. 
• Doctor Van Helsing: Doctor Abraham Van Helsing is voiced by Jim Gaffigan and with utmost brilliance. He is similar to the original Van Helsing, except that in the Hotel Transylvania movie series, Helsing is presented as more antagonistic than ever. Being Dracula’s arch nemesis, Van Helsing is depicted to be obsessed with catching and eliminating Dracula and his friends. 

However, apart from these loveable characters, there are many more that deserve a mention. Drac’s best buddies, Frankenstein’s monster, the Werewolf, the Mummy, and Griffin, the Invisible Man, to name a few are the ones who add much warmth to the screen. 

Moreover, the character of Drac’s father is a hilarious one. Too traditional in his initial outlook, he is eventually revealed to be a rather soft fellow. The most honorable mention perhaps should be of Martha, Drac’s wife, who is ruthlessly killed by humans. This is what leads Dracula to build Hotel Transylvania, a haven for any and every monster seeking refuge.