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Gatlinburg in Tennessee

Thursday, 17 October 2024 - 11:00 am (CET/MEZ) Berlin | Author/Destination: North America / Nordamerika
Category/Kategorie: General Reading Time:  3 minutes

🔊 Listen to this Post Gatlinburg is a mountain resort city in Sevier County, Tennessee. It is located 39 miles (63 km) southeast of Knoxville and had a population of 3,944 at the 2010 Census and a U.S. Census population of 3,577 in 2020. It is a popular vacation resort, as it rests on the border of Great Smoky Mountains National Park along U.S. Route 441, which connects to Cherokee, North Carolina, on the southeast side of the national park. Prior to incorporation, the town was known as White Oak Flats, or simply White Oak.

Bordering Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Gatlinburg is an important tourist destination in Tennessee, with many man-made attractions. The Gatlinburg Trolley, a privately funded public transit system, caters to area tourists. The Gatlinburg SkyLift takes visitors up 1,800 feet (550 m) to the top of Crockett Mountain, to the longest footbridge in the US which spans two mountains.

Ober Mountain is the only ski resort in the state. It has eight ski trails, three chair lifts, and a wildlife encounter area and is accessible by road or aerial tramway. Originally known as Ober Gatlinburg, it was rebranded following its purchase in 2022 by local entrepreneur Joe Baker.

Gatlinburg Space Needle provides views of the Smoky Mountains.

The Gatlinburg Arts and Crafts Community is an 8-mile loop located on the north side of town that focuses on preserving traditional mountain crafts.

The Ripley’s group of attractions includes Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies and a number of themed exhibits.

Theme parks Dollywood and Dollywood’s Splash Country—both named for Dolly Parton—are located in nearby Pigeon Forge.

Museums include the Museum of Salt and Pepper Shakers.

Gatlinburg has numbered intersections in the core of the town. The numbers hang from traffic lights or signs and are written on official tourist maps. A similar idea was tried in Niagara Falls, New York, after the mayor of Niagara Falls visited Gatlinburg and took the idea back to Niagara Falls. The idea was short-lived in New York and was scrapped due to budget issues.

During the Christmas season, the downtown area is decorated with lights for a “Winterfest Celebration”, with a trolley service and shuttle bus available.

Read more on gatlinburg.com, Wikivoyage Gatlinburg and Wikipedia Gatlinburg (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.