Smoky Mountain Vacation

Quote from writetocynthia : Hi, i am planning a trip to Smoky mountains from Aug 2nd- 5th. Travelling from Minneapolis. Flight tickets seem to be expensive are the always so expensive($500). Any help is welcome related to where to stay, what to do, etc.

Are you wanting a hotel? Cabin? I go every year, so I might be able to help.

For entertainment, there's Dollywood- the regular amusement park and there's also Dollywood Splash Country, the water park. If you go to Dollywood after 3 one day, you get in the next day free. In Pigeon Forge, there are tons of places to race go carts, there are some bumper boats, things like that. There are also a lot of outlets. There's a lot of shows, too. Be careful, some are really expensive. Most restaurants have big displays with coupon booklets outside of them. You should be able to get coupons for anything. There's the Titanic Museum, too. It's awesome. Get reservations so you don't have to wait in line long.

In Gatlinburg, you park and walk up and down the strip. There are tons of shops and restaurants. There's even an alley where you can sample all kinds of moonshine, margaritas and wine, if you drink. There's wax museums, haunted houses, and the Ripley's Aquarium (totally worth it). Make sure to take the time to drive over into Cades Cove. It's an 1800's place. There are cabins and churches from the time period there and it's really beautiful. Halfway through is a place to stop with a gift shop and a working mill. We always picnic around there.

Thanks for the information. I am planning to go to. When you say expensive, how expensive can it be? I just wanna ask so I can prepare contingency funds if ever.

I drive, not fly, so I can't help with flight tickets, but the everything else can be as expensive or inexpensive as you want to make it. If we stay in a hotel, we always stay in one with some kind of breakfast. We usually eat our big meal for lunch around 1, and then a smaller dinner somewhere less expensive.

If we stay in a cabin, I'll make breakfast, or bring cereal and stop at the grocery for milk. There's a Kroger and a Walmart Supercenter in the Pigeon Forge/Sevierville area. Sometimes we'll grill for dinner at the cabin. Also, at least one day, sometimes 2, we'll picnic somewhere in the mountains.

One restaurant I recommend to everyone if you like "country" cooking is The Old Mill. You can look them up on Facebook. Go for lunch. It's cheaper and you still get a TON of food. It's in Pigeon Forge. Dollywood is fairly expensive, but like I said, if you go after 3 on one day, you can come back the next day for free, so that kind of helps. Driving through Cades Cove is free. Any and all hikes/drives/etc on the mountains are free. There is a driving nature trail behind Gatlinburg I can't think of the name (I think it's called Roaring Fork, but I can't be 100% sure) that is free. There's a short version and a long one. Take the long one. It's beautiful.

Anything you do MAKE SURE YOU GET THE COUPON BOOKS! DO NOT get them from someone on the street asking you if you are going to be in town long. They don't do that in PF anymore, but they do in Gatlinburg. They want you to tour a timeshare. They will promise you Dollywood tickets, show tickets, something to do it for a hour or two and it WILL take all day. We did it one year for the DW tickets, knowing it would take most of the day and it's totally not worth it. You can get the same coupon books almost anywhere, in front of restaurants, hotels, gas stations...

Quote from writetocynthia : Hi, i am planning a trip to Smoky mountains from Aug 2nd- 5th. Travelling from Minneapolis. Flight tickets seem to be expensive are the always so expensive($500). Any help is welcome related to where to stay, what to do, etc.

yeah you feel the same as i regarding travel expenditure. i think someone
should help us in compensating the travel expenses rather than entertainment
haha just kidding

Thanks for the elaborate explanation. Yes I am planning to fly.... Even though u can't help me with flight tickets.... Could u let me know which airport will be the best place to land.... Memphis Tennessee is pretty expensive. Another friend of. Mine suggested to land at north carolina and take a car rental and drive to smoky.... Is it worth it... I would love to stay in a cabin..... How expensive is cabin compared to hotel... I would like to get the forest feel. Though I m very inexperienced in camping...cabin seems to be a better option... As I want it to be romantic getaway.... Also what does the pigeon forge have and what does the gatlinburg have... Also do the have hiking trips with groups of people or we have to go on our own????


QUOTE=jenni.;51048360]I drive, not fly, so I can't help with flight tickets, but the everything else can be as expensive or inexpensive as you want to make it. If we stay in a hotel, we always stay in one with some kind of breakfast. We usually eat our big meal for lunch around 1, and then a smaller dinner somewhere less expensive.

If we stay in a cabin, I'll make breakfast, or bring cereal and stop at the grocery for milk. There's a Kroger and a Walmart Supercenter in the Pigeon Forge/Sevierville area. Sometimes we'll grill for dinner at the cabin. Also, at least one day, sometimes 2, we'll picnic somewhere in the mountains.

One restaurant I recommend to everyone if you like "country" cooking is The Old Mill. You can look them up on Facebook. Go for lunch. It's cheaper and you still get a TON of food. It's in Pigeon Forge. Dollywood is fairly expensive, but like I said, if you go after 3 on one day, you can come back the next day for free, so that kind of helps. Driving through Cades Cove is free. Any and all hikes/drives/etc on the mountains are free. There is a driving nature trail behind Gatlinburg I can't think of the name (I think it's called Roaring Fork, but I can't be 100% sure) that is free. There's a short version and a long one. Take the long one. It's beautiful.

Anything you do MAKE SURE YOU GET THE COUPON BOOKS! DO NOT get them from someone on the street asking you if you are going to be in town long. They don't do that in PF anymore, but they do in Gatlinburg. They want you to tour a timeshare. They will promise you Dollywood tickets, show tickets, something to do it for a hour or two and it WILL take all day. We did it one year for the DW tickets, knowing it would take most of the day and it's totally not worth it. You can get the same coupon books almost anywhere, in front of restaurants, hotels, gas stations...[/QUOTE]

Quote from writetocynthia : Thanks for the elaborate explanation. Yes I am planning to fly.... Even though u can't help me with flight tickets.... Could u let me know which airport will be the best place to land.... Memphis Tennessee is pretty expensive. Another friend of. Mine suggested to land at north carolina and take a car rental and drive to smoky.... Is it worth it... I would love to stay in a cabin..... How expensive is cabin compared to hotel... I would like to get the forest feel. Though I m very inexperienced in camping...cabin seems to be a better option... As I want it to be romantic getaway.... Also what does the pigeon forge have and what does the gatlinburg have... Also do the have hiking trips with groups of people or we have to go on our own???? QUOTE=jenni.;51048360]I drive, not fly, so I can't help with flight tickets, but the everything else can be as expensive or inexpensive as you want to make it. If we stay in a hotel, we always stay in one with some kind of breakfast. We usually eat our big meal for lunch around 1, and then a smaller dinner somewhere less expensive. If we stay in a cabin, I'll make breakfast, or bring cereal and stop at the grocery for milk. There's a Kroger and a Walmart Supercenter in the Pigeon Forge/Sevierville area. Sometimes we'll grill for dinner at the cabin. Also, at least one day, sometimes 2, we'll picnic somewhere in the mountains. One restaurant I recommend to everyone if you like "country" cooking is The Old Mill. You can look them up on Facebook. Go for lunch. It's cheaper and you still get a TON of food. It's in Pigeon Forge. Dollywood is fairly expensive, but like I said, if you go after 3 on one day, you can come back the next day for free, so that kind of helps. Driving through Cades Cove is free. Any and all hikes/drives/etc on the mountains are free. There is a driving nature trail behind Gatlinburg I can't think of the name (I think it's called Roaring Fork, but I can't be 100% sure) that is free. There's a short version and a long one. Take the long one. It's beautiful. Anything you do MAKE SURE YOU GET THE COUPON BOOKS! DO NOT get them from someone on the street asking you if you are going to be in town long. They don't do that in PF anymore, but they do in Gatlinburg. They want you to tour a timeshare. They will promise you Dollywood tickets, show tickets, something to do it for a hour or two and it WILL take all day. We did it one year for the DW tickets, knowing it would take most of the day and it's totally not worth it. You can get the same coupon books almost anywhere, in front of restaurants, hotels, gas stations...

[/QUOTE]

I drive, too. But, I assume you would want to fly into Knoxville.

Thanks for the elaborate explanation. Yes I am planning to fly....

Quote from jenni. : ... There's even an alley where you can sample all kinds of moonshine, margaritas and wine, if you drink.

I didn't know this! I'll have to keep an eye out for it next time

Quote from jenni. : Make sure to take the time to drive over into Cades Cove. It's an 1800's place. There are cabins and churches from the time period there and it's really beautiful. Halfway through is a place to stop with a gift shop and a working mill. We always picnic around there.

Hmm, my mom mentioned Cades Cove to me last year, but I didn't know about the cabins and such that you mentioned. I thought it was just a nature trail area.

We went to Clingman's Dome [clingmansdome.com] in Gatlinburg. It's the highest point in Tennessee, and it was really neat! We got there late, but managed to see a bear or two (we weren't sure if it was the same one twice...).



I don't have any info about airports or flights in the area either though.

Quote from writetocynthia : Could u let me know which airport will be the best place to land.... Memphis Tennessee is pretty expensive.

Why would you fly into Memphis? It is easily a 7-8 hour drive from there. Nashville, Charlotte, or Atlanta should all be 3-4 hour drives, and should be a lot cheaper than Memphis.

Have you checked out the deal on Groupon? There's a getaway deal for Balsam Mountain Inn in the Smoky Mountains at $169 for 2 nights (can combine the deal twice for 4 nights). There's complimentary breakfast and trip advisor rates the inn 4 out of 5 stars from 27 reviews.

Seems like a great deal and includes free wifi..doesn't sound like a big deal but I had low cell coverage at the poconos so I'm assuming the same might hold true in this area depending on your carrier.

Quote from writetocynthia : Thanks for the elaborate explanation. Yes I am planning to fly.... Even though u can't help me with flight tickets.... Could u let me know which airport will be the best place to land.... Memphis Tennessee is pretty expensive. Another friend of. Mine suggested to land at north carolina and take a car rental and drive to smoky.... Is it worth it... I would love to stay in a cabin..... How expensive is cabin compared to hotel... I would like to get the forest feel. Though I m very inexperienced in camping...cabin seems to be a better option... As I want it to be romantic getaway.... Also what does the pigeon forge have and what does the gatlinburg have... Also do the have hiking trips with groups of people or we have to go on our own????

As someone else already mentioned, you do NOT want to fly into Memphis. Memphis is literally on the complete opposite side of the state. You'll spend an entire day driving from and to the airport. From Memphis, your drive to the Smokey Mountains is easily 7 hours. It could be as many as 9 with a more conservative driver and taking into account the MASSIVE amounts of traffic you are sure to encounter as soon as you exit the interstate in Sevierville. That being said, Tyson Mcghee (TYS) in Knoxville, while the closest airport to the mountains is a very small airport, and flights will most likely be MORE expensive into this location than to Memphis. The best alternative would be to fly into Nashville. It is about a 3.5-4.5 hour drive to your desired area. The second alternative would be Atlanta, which is just a slightly longer travel time, but would probably be the cheapest. As for a cabin, just Google "Gatlinburg cabin rental," and you will come across several sights for property management companies with cabins in the Smokey Mountains. Most have 3 night minimums, although some can be found with only 2, and others with as many as 4 or 5. Most of the sites have plenty of pics. Some even have virtual tours. There are some great places to stay. I have stayed in a few cabins. I wish I could remember the companies that managed the properties I've stayed in. Be sure when looking at cabin rentals, you read the fine print for cleaning fees and factor that into your expenses. Some are significantly higher than others. Also, you want to map cabin locations and routes before booking, or call and discuss the cabin location with the management company. Just because a cabin is 1 mile from the strip doesn't mean it's easy to get to. Some of these places are WAY off the beaten path - dirt and/or gravel roads and steep inclines. If you're going to be in a car, rather than a AWD vehicle, this matters. Nothing could ruin the romance of a trip more than not being able to get to the cabin! As for Gatlinburg vs Pigeon Forge, pick Gatlinburg. There are fun things to do in both, but more in Gatlinburg, and it's closer to the park entrance, which is most convenient if you plan on exploring Cades Cove or going hiking.

If prices into Knoxville for a flight aren't good then Charlotte is just as close as Nashville is and both are a good hour closer than Atlanta (even more with traffic factored in)

Asheville also has a regional airport that's closer than either but I can't imagine that'd be cheaper than Knoxville

This was our trip in 2011.
http://www.nogodforme.com/Kentucky2011.htm
We went through Atlanta, to Ruby Falls, Dollywood, up to Lexington KY and back. We stayed at a cheap Best Western across the street from Dixie Stampede. It was just a room, but clean.

2nd The Old Mill as a place to eat. Can also park your car there and take the bus to Dollywood.

How much to spend is up to you. The road leading into the Dollywood area is filled with restaurants, hotels, shops, and other attractions.