Dollywood in Pigeon Forge

Monday, 7 March 2022 - 11:00 am (CET/MEZ) Berlin | Author/Destination:
Category/Kategorie: General
Reading Time:  5 minutes

Lightning Rod entrance © McDoobAU93/cc-by-sa-3.0

Lightning Rod entrance © McDoobAU93/cc-by-sa-3.0

Dollywood is a theme park jointly owned by entertainer Dolly Parton and Herschend Family Entertainment. It is located in the KnoxvilleSmoky Mountains metroplex in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Hosting nearly 3 million guests in a typical season from mid-March to the Christmas holidays, Dollywood is the biggest ticketed tourist attraction in Tennessee. It has won many international awards.

In addition to standard amusement park thrill rides, Dollywood features traditional crafts and music of the Smoky Mountain area. The park hosts a number of concerts and musical events each year, including appearances by Dolly Parton and her family as well as other national and local musical acts. It was also the site of the Southern Gospel Museum and Hall of Fame.

The theme park is the anchor of Parton’s 150-acre (61 ha) Dollywood amusement destination, which also includes the 35-acre (14 ha) sister water park Dollywood’s Splash Country, the 20-acre (8.1 ha) Dollywood’s DreamMore Resort and Spa, and the 5-acre (2.0 ha) Dolly Parton’s Stampede Dinner Attraction.

Dollywood sign © Brian Stansberry/cc-by-2.5 Barnstormer © flickr.com - anjanettew/cc-by-sa-2.0 Daredevil Falls © flickr.com - Jared/cc-by-2.0 Dizzy Disk © flickr.com - Chris Hagerman/cc-by-2.0 Dolly Parton, 2014 © Kris Harris King/cc-by-sa-3.0 FireChaser Express © flickr.com - Martin Lewison/cc-by-sa-2.0 Lightning Rod entrance © McDoobAU93/cc-by-sa-3.0 Mystery Mine © Gerstlauer Amusement Rides GmbH - Justin Garvanovic/cc-by-sa-3.0-de Tennessee Tornado © flickr.com - Martin Lewison/cc-by-sa-2.0 Thunderhead © Coasterman1234/cc-by-sa-3.0 Timber Tower © WillMcC/cc-by-sa-2.5 Wild Eagle, America's first wing coaster © McDoobAU93/cc-by-sa-3.0
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Mystery Mine © Gerstlauer Amusement Rides GmbH - Justin Garvanovic/cc-by-sa-3.0-de
Dollywood hosts six of the South’s largest festivals between the months of March and December:

  • Running normally from mid-March to mid-April, Festival of Nations offers cultural events by performers from around the world.
  • From late April until mid-May the Barbeque & Bluegrass presented by Bush Brothers and Company is a bluegrass music and barbecue festival.
  • Starting in 2021 (originally 2020), and scheduled to run from mid-May and running until early June, is the Flower and Food Festival.
  • Summer Celebration (formerly Great American Summer) includes Night of Many Colors, a nightly fireworks display set to music; 3D Light and Drone Show, Night Experience, night performances and rides in the dark; and new shows, such as DRUMLine Live! and iLuminate.
  • Harvest Festival presented by Humana features Southern Gospel music, professional craftsmen, and Great Pumpkin LumiNights.
  • Smoky Mountain Christmas presented by Humana is a 13 time award winner of Golden Ticket’s Best Christmas Event and features seven holiday performances, 5 million Christmas lights, Glacier Ridge (in which part of the park has frozen over), and a nightly parade.

In 2017, Dollywood won Golden Ticket Award from Amusement Today for Friendliest Park, Best Christmas Event, Best Food and Best Show. In 2018, Dollywood received a Golden Ticket award from Amusement Today – a leading trade publication for the amusement park industry – in the Best Food category, marking the park’s fourth win in seven years. In addition to three dinner show options, more than 25 vendors serve meals and snacks, ranging from barbecue ribs, pizza, corn dogs, and pork rinds to cinnamon bread, funnel cakes, cotton candy, and banana pudding made using Dolly’s recipe. The park also received Golden Tickets for Best Shows, Friendliest Park, and Best Christmas Event and was ranked the third best park in the world. In the 2018 USA Today 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards – awards voted on by the general public – Dollywood was ranked as the sixth Best Amusement Park in the U.S. Additionally, Dollywood’s DreamMore Resort and Spa was ranked first in the Best Amusement Park Hotel category, and Aunt Granny’s Restaurant was ranked first in the Best Amusement Park Restaurant category. DreamMore focuses on the themes of family and storytelling and has a zero-entry (beach-style) pool, transportation to the park, and a splash pad. Aunt Granny’s opened the first year the park operated as Dollywood. It uses an all-you-can-eat buffet format with comfort foods like chicken and dumplings, tacos, and steaks along with a salad bar and health-conscious choices. Dreamland Drive-In was ranked third in the Best Amusement Park Entertainment category, and Dollywood’s Splash Country was ranked sixth in the Best Outdoor Water Park category. In 2019, Dollywood won Golden Ticket awards for Best Kids’ Area, Best Guest Experience, and Best Christmas Event of 2018. Lightning Rod won the Wooden Coaster of the Decade in 2019. In 2021, Dollywood’s Smokey Mountain Christmas won the Golden Ticket Award for Best Christmas Event for the 13th straight year.

Read more on Dollywood, MyPigeonForge.com – Dollywood and Wikipedia Dollywood (Smart Traveler App by U.S. Department of State - Weather report by weather.com - Global Passport Power Rank - Travel Risk Map - Democracy Index - GDP according to IMF, UN, and World Bank - Global Competitiveness Report - Corruption Perceptions Index - Press Freedom Index - World Justice Project - Rule of Law Index - UN Human Development Index - Global Peace Index - Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index). Photos by Wikimedia Commons. If you have a suggestion, critique, review or comment to this blog entry, we are looking forward to receive your e-mail at comment@wingsch.net. Please name the headline of the blog post to which your e-mail refers to in the subject line.






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