☰Day Trips

The obvious day trip from Gatlinburg is into the Great Smoky Mountains — and calling it a "day trip" is generous, since the park entrance is literally at the end of the main strip. Pigeon Forge, home of Dollywood, is five miles up the road and a very different experience: bigger, louder, and anchored around Dolly Parton's theme park rather than nature. Knoxville is 45 miles west and offers the welcome contrast of a real city with a genuine downtown, good restaurants, and the University of Tennessee.