# Dollywood Area



## RumpleMom (Jul 5, 2009)

Any information about visiting Dollywood would be greatly appreciated.

Where to stay for a 3 day weekend visit.

Is there a place to buy discounted admission park tickets.

Other attractions in the area...

nearest airport

Can you suggest a site to research?  TIA


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## jemmielou (Jul 5, 2009)

*Dollywood*

go to Dollywood.com


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## Lisa P (Jul 6, 2009)

This is a much broader question than most people here will try to answer.  People vacation in this area for a week or more, multiple times, and fill their stays with plenty of new things each time.  There are museums and galleries,a good aquarium, numerous shows and dinner shows, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, an Arts and Crafts Guild with numerous studios, tourist traps (theme mini-golf, go-cart, ride and game places, t-shirt shops, everything Ripley's, fudge/candy stores), restaurants, outlet malls and specialty stores galore... the list is endless!

For Dollywood, get there early in the day if you're going during the summer because it's popular and lines do get long.  Know which attractions appeal the most (from their website) and get to them early before the peak crowds build.  Give yourself up to an hour before the most popular shows to wait in line and wait at your seat.  Food is pretty good there, grounds are lovely, hills can be tiring, great mix of shows, skills demonstrations, thrill rides and child-friendly fun.  They used to have a "next day free" deal when people entered the park after 3pm and you went to guest services inside the park to get the next day ticket.

Sorry I can't help with the 3-day weekend lodging.  We prefer to stay a week in a timeshare or shorter midweek stays at the Wyndham on points.  Check out TripAdvisor or if you'll only be 2 people, try for a nicer place through Priceline.  Cabin rentals are popular for family groups - tons of websites.

Discounted park tickets used to be available through AAA and Sams Club - don't know about now.  The annual pass is cheap if you'll be back this year and the Gold annual includes free parking and discounts on food and souvies.  So if you'll be back, have one person get a Gold and the rest, regular annuals.  Dollywood runs a very popular water park, Splash Country.

We love to spend the better part of a day by driving to Cades Cove in Townsend early in the morning (before the huge crowds arrive).  This is part of the national park, under an hour's drive from Dollywood.  It's a flat valley surrounded by beautiful mountain scenery, dotted by historic landmark buildings.  The 11-mile loop road through it is one-way, slow, and closed to cars (bikes and walkers only) on Wed/Sat mornings.  Bring a picnic lunch (maybe a frisbee) to enjoy in the valley midday and a swimsuit/towel to wade in the river just outside the park afterward.  Don't be surprised if you don't get back to your room until after 6pm and it's a highlight of your weekend.

If that's too long and you've never been to the area, don't leave without spending at least a few hours driving up into the Great Smokies, from the entrance near the end of Gatlinburg's Parkway.  If staying in Pigeon Forge, take the "bypass" over there.  Stop at the Visitors Center and look at a map, bring your camera for the scenery and/or pick up sandwiches/salads in town then find a nice spot for a picnic lunch by a forested stream or overlooking the mountains.  We usually have one person drive the winding roads up and another drive down so both can see the gorgeous views.  Again, early is best, especially in good weather.

The nearest airport is Knoxville, TN, 30-45 min. drive without traffic.  Next closest is TRI in Johnson City, TN, regional, ~45-55 min.

Probably the best advice is to stay as near Dollywood as you can if you're primarily going to be there for that.  Take a look at Mapquest and try to avoid driving on Parkway through Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge to get there, if possible.  The back roads (like Veterans Blvd and Middle Creek) are much better than Parkway - at least they move during peak hours.  Traffic in the whole region is brutal during prime hours in the summer and during Autumn colors - Fri evenings, all day Sat, daytime Sun are the worst.  UT football weekends can be really rough too.  HTH!


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## RumpleMom (Jul 7, 2009)

Lisa P- thank you very much for the information.  I have never even been in Tennessee, so I have a lot to learn quickly. We are Disney World veterans, but got the idea to visit another theme park.

I have been looking at renting a cabin, since we need 3 or 4 bedrooms. 

Does anyone have experience renting a cabin?


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## wdaveo (Jul 8, 2009)

I will PM you some information about a cabin.  My friend has one she rents.  It may work for you.


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## shagnut (Jul 8, 2009)

My #one suggestion and always has been for Dollywood is see JAMES ROGERS!! He is a fabulous entertainer. Go to both shows as they are different. Plan on eating at Dollywood, it is not typical park food. Very good and more reasonable than you would expect.  All of the shows are good at Dollywood.  

The Old Mill AND THE Apple Barn are the 2 restaurants I always recommend. 

The Roaring Fork Nature Trail in Gatlinburg is also great if you have time.  shaggy


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## sfwilshire (Jul 9, 2009)

shagnut said:


> My #one suggestion and always has been for Dollywood is see JAMES ROGERS!! He is a fabulous entertainer.



Your mileage may vary. I find James Rogers pretty entertaining, but my husband would probably take a beating to avoid attending one of his shows. I haven't seen him booked at Dollywood in quite some time. I do have a picture of my now 23 yo daughter on stage with him when she was maybe five or six. Great picture.

Not sure I'd agree with eating in the park either unless you're staying all day. The prices aren't too bad, but the quality varies from mediocre to so-so. I may be a bit biased since we've been season pass holders for more years than I care to talk about and two of my kids have worked there. The only place I REALLY enjoyed eating was the host lounge when I was driving my teen there to be in the Christmas show. 

Sheila


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## RumpleMom (Jul 13, 2009)

*Country music*

Where can I find a country music show outside of the Dollywood Park?

Is there a restaurant that also has country music?


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## rod (Jul 13, 2009)

RumpleMom said:


> Where can I find a country music show outside of the Dollywood Park?


The following web sites have information on the theaters in the Pigeon Forge area:
www.mypigeonforge.com
www.smokymountainsbestreadguide.com/
www.sunnydayguide.com/smoky_mountains/
www.vgnet.com/ts/



RumpleMom said:


> Is there a restaurant that also has country music?


The Log Cabin Pancake House in Gatlinburg used to have country music on Friday and Saturday evenings.


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## tombo (Jul 13, 2009)

RumpleMom said:


> Any information about visiting Dollywood would be greatly appreciated.
> 
> Where to stay for a 3 day weekend visit.
> 
> ...



If you can only stay 3 days, you will miss a lot. The Smokey Mountain Nat'l park has so many great drives and hikes, there are a lot of good shows (Sweet Fanny Adams, Country Shows, Comedy Shows, Dollys Dixie Stampede, etc), too many great places to eat (Old Mill Restaurant which is my favorite and a must eat,Alamo Steaks, Log Cabin Pancake House, Cherokee Grill, Calhouns,Bubba Gumps (touristy), Hard Rock (touristy), and several good BBQue joints), Ripleys Museums, One of the best aquariums anywhere (a must see), Putt Putt courses, indoor sky diving, go cart tracks, ZORB balls you ride inside as you roll down a grassy hill, helicopter rides over the mountains, horseback rides, and a lot more.

Do Dollywood, The Aquarium, the old mill retaurant, and Cades Cove this trip.  Come back and do the rest the next time, or the next, or the next.


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## pcgirl54 (Jul 13, 2009)

Do eat at the Apple Barn in Pigeon Forge and visit the store while there. Yummy! http://www.applebarncidermill.com/come_visit_Smoky_restaurant.cfm


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## sfwilshire (Jul 14, 2009)

I pulled a Dollywood entertainment schedule for this week and James Rogers is back. Thinking back, I guess he has been coming for Kidsfest. He must aim his show to the younger set these days. 

May have to take my 15yo to see him. He has been experimenting with the loopback stuff that Rogers is famous for.

Sheila


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