Our trip to the Pigeon Forge area was one of a kind. Five days just wasn’t enough to fit everything, but we still packed A LOT into this vacation. There was a good mix of relaxation, excitement, scenery, and something for everybody in the family. If you’re planning your next vacation, and you’re at least willing to consider some place in Tennessee that’s not exactly known for its music roots – keep this post in your back pocket.
First, we (Gabrielle, Ollie, and my friend Pepper) left New Jersey and made our way down to Lynchburg, VA to visit my (online) college, Liberty University. The trip in total took about 9 hours, but that includes stopping for food, multiple potty breaks, some traffic, and several scenic overlooks along Route 81 through the Shenandoah Valley/Blue Ridge Trail. I’ll have to write up another post about this because I think western Virginia is a hidden gem most travel sites won’t highlight. We only stayed in Lynchburg for about 18 hours (partially due to this being our second time there in the past year and partially because it was only a rest stop on our way to Tennessee), which gave us a chance to stay in the Homewood Suites by Hilton Lynchburg at 4021 Wards Rd, Lynchburg, VA 24502.
Overall, the hotel was nice and clean, but what we won’t forget was the humungous bedroom/bathroom area separated by a smaller, but still cozy living room/kitchen. We checked in pretty late and left relatively early, so unfortunately there wasn’t much more to add other than – yes, there was a continental breakfast included and the staff was very friendly. I’m not a hotel reviewer, but I will say that my two most important characteristics lie in how nice the staff is and how clean the room is.
In the morning, we headed over to Liberty University to pick up some merch, and it gave me a chance to show Pepper around. One of my favorite things to do there is go up Freedom Tower (the tallest building in Lynchburg standing at 275 feet). But we also checked out some of the Biblical artifacts in the Rawlings School of Divinity, the athletic stadiums, and the bookstore (where we bought merch). After Liberty, we continued our journey southwest to the Pigeon Forge area.
We technically stayed in a VRBO in Sevierville, but we were only minutes from Pigeon Forge. The house we stayed at had tremendous views. It sat near the top of Blackberry Mountain where we saw really cool sunsets and dark skies at night, heard coyotes in the distance at night, saw a bear in the back yard, and experienced a kind of quiet you can only find in the mountains. When we first showed up, I thought the trash direction picture below was odd. After leaving - it makes total sense. This trip was mostly relaxing and a chance to hang out with the whole Brocious family, but I’m going to walk through some of the other memorable parts of the trip for us.
We mostly hung out at the house. I had a chance to put the drone in the air and get some pictures and videos. The house had a pool table, arcade game, indoor pool, outdoor hot tub, and a really nice deck to relax on. The deck was my favorite as we had such a nice view of the mountains and the sky at night.
Green Olde Deal Antique Mall at 1442 Winfield Dunn Pkwy, Sevierville, TN 37876
Definitely a must-see if you’re into antiquing. Gabrielle is more into this than I am, but even Pepper and I were drawn in to the massive amount of antiques this place had on display. I wouldn’t say this is a place necessarily for families. For example, Ollie wanted to touch everything and we had to keep him from a lot of it. Nevertheless, if you can make the trip, I would highly recommend going. They had so much there with just about anything you could want – from dolls, to posters, to autographed memorabilia, to decorations. I wish I had planned for going here because I would’ve brought more money!
Smoky Mountain Knife Works at 2320 Winfield Dunn Pkwy, Sevierville, TN 37876
Deemed the “World’s Largest Knife Showcase”, this place was worth the stop. I’m not really even into knives, but the headline drew Pepper and me into the store. We saw dozens of different manufacturers who all had great displays of knives. I don’t know much about the different designs or styles, but there were plenty of cool ones to check out. Not only were there cool knives, but there were also swords, axes, armor, gear, accessories, and clothing. I left with one knife and almost bought a Spartan helmet but saved that for another time.
Pirates Voyage Dinner and Show at 2713 Parkway, Pigeon Forge, TN 37863
Not my favorite part of the trip. That being said, it was certainly one of Ollie’s favorite parts – his eyes were glued to what was going on. As a parent, that’s all I could ask for and is something I’ll remember for a long time in the most positive way. The kids in the crowd also seemed to love what they saw with the pirate show. It’s hard to explain exactly what went on, but essentially there were dueling pirate teams competing for Davy Jones treasure. They would do acrobatics, dance, sing, and compete in various ways. There were even animals performing! All the while, you are being served dinner, drinks, and a dessert. Most of my family was not a fan of the food, but I felt okay about it. It’s a pricy show, but the people performing (on “stage” and serving dinner) earned every cent. While I probably wouldn’t go again, and certainly wouldn’t go without children, everybody involved was extremely talented.
There is A LOT to do in Gatlinburg. There’s a little bit of everything for everybody. This includes eating/drinking, museums/attractions, scenery, outdoor activities, shops, and more. Our time was limited to only a few hours, but that gave us a chance to stop at The Village 27 Unique Shops which was my favorite part. With 27 stores, I’m sure you will find something you like, but I really enjoyed the art gallery which has some really cool paintings and the Celtic Heritage store where we found gifts imported from Ireland, Scotland and Wales. They also had family heraldry there which is something I’ve been really into learning about lately. We also ate at Bennetts’s Pit Bar-B-Que for some good food and stopped in Dude's Daiquiris for a quick non-alcoholic drink (which they were able to make in this bar).
While it was a short trip for us, I would certainly go back to visit more, especially everything you see on the Parkway (the main road). If we were going back (take notes if you’re thinking about going), I would have looked up places to park prior to arriving. Gatlinburg was very cool, but the area around the Parkway made parking difficult (as one might expect in a city atmosphere). I encourage preparing ahead of time because you might drive by a lot that’s full and you can easily move on to the next one you’ve identified. It cost money to park in most places we saw near the Parkway.
Goats on the Roof at 1341 Wears Valley Road • Pigeon Forge, TN 37863
At night we took a trip over to Goats on the Roof which was perfect for kids and adults. We fed goats (which was inexpensive), shopped in the store for some souvenirs, did some gem mining, rode the Goat Coaster, and played mini golf – all in one area! It was a really fun part of the trip. The golf was Jurassic-themed with a really great display of dinosaurs. The Goat Coaster was also great – it’s like a roller coaster where you control the speed. Unlike roller coasters sitting over pavement, however, the Goat Coaster takes you up to the top of the mountain, and then you zoom on back down to the bottom. We went at night, so I’m not sure how the views are at the top, but night time was neat too because we could see so many lights all around us and the track was lit up with cool lights too. Keep in mind that there are restrictions for riders and it cost about $12 (pretax) for each ride. My sisters found some nice rocks (or maybe gems?) during the gem mining, and Ollie loved feeding the goats – there were plenty to feed and all of them loved seeing us (with food) too.
Mountain Biking at Wildside at 1099 Laurel Lick Rd. Pigeon Forge, TN 37863
For good and bad reasons, I won’t forget this trip. Let’s start with the bad: I am not a mountain biker and although I’ve done it before, the Tennessee mountains are much different than any mountain biking I’ve done in New Jersey. Pair this with the fact that I have not gone biking in about a year and mountain biking in about 10 years. So when the guys at Wildside said go test your bike on the beginner path, I went right into zooming down the hill. In my attempt to stop, I broke too hard on the front and flipped over, separating my shoulder. This is a good time to remind you that accidents happen, and they can be much worse than mine – so take every precaution necessary to avoid injury or worse.
It hurt, but because that was literally the first 5 minutes of me riding, I couldn’t stop there. On to the good: I’m glad I didn’t because the rest of the day was so much fun. Charlie, Pepper, Gabe and I went down 6 different times (about 4 hours riding) and had a blast. If you’re into mountain biking, I think you’ll really like this place because no matter what level you’re at, there are paths for everybody. Not only that, but the staff was amazing. You basically start at the bottom of the mountain and if you have a pass, get a ride up to the top (it costs money, but well worth it). We chatted with one of the workers, John, who was really cool, and we seemed to be laughing together every time up the mountain. The bike experts at the bottom of the mountain were also really cool and absolutely helpful with explaining nuances of the bikes and the paths. While I left there banged up, it was certainly one of the better part of the trips for me.
Microwrestling at 185 East Wears Valley Rd, Pigeon Forge, TN 37863
No, this was not my idea. Nor was this something I would typically do because I’ve never been into wrestling like WWE. That being said, it was fun. The wrestlers in Pigeon Forge put on a great show and the whole thing felt personal, which isn’t always common in performances/professional sports anymore. For example, during intermission, we got to talk with the wrestlers. There weren’t many people in the audience that night, which I think helped make it more personal. After the show we had a chance to take pictures with the wrestlers (for a small fee). The building/arena is in a very inconspicuous spot and it was easy to get to, unlike a typical sporting event. Parking was free and you’re next to several other strip mall-type stores. The experience overall was unique, but one I highly recommend if you’re into wrestling. There were kids in the stands, and the performance overall was geared toward families (I’d give it a P-13 rating).
Titanic Museum at 2134 Parkway, Pigeon Forge, TN 37863
Using Gabrielle’s take since I was mountain biking. Overall, the visit was underwhelming. There was A LOT of reading; probably because there were so few artifacts available (understandable considering where the ship is currently located). Bringing Ollie there wasn’t ideal, but maybe when he’s a little bit older and has at least seen the movie it will be better. Still, there were a lot of photos available. Her favorite part was looking at the photos of everybody on the boat, but the trip was a bit sad because you’re ultimately reading about people who died in a tragedy. Seeing the movie limits your personal connection with people on the boat, but the museum provides more context. Her least favorite part was the gift shop because it was filled with so many (relatively useless) tchotchkes. My sister and parents seemed to have a much better time, however, as they are a little bit more into the Titanic than Gabrielle. If I were to give suggestions on visiting: it’s a great thing to do when it’s raining and it’s great for anybody interested in the Titanic or history.
Observations about the Area
Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg remind me a lot of Myrtle Beach. There are some interesting attractions, plenty to eat/drink, plenty to do and see. There was a big difference, however, aside from the lack of a beach. I felt more connected to the people we met who lived there than I ever did at Myrtle Beach. In the north, you always hear about life moving slower down south. And while it might take a little bit longer to check out at a store, it’s often because those checking out are having a conversation with the cashier. That was the biggest difference. I felt like, even though I was just a tourist, I had so many real conversations with the people in Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg. It wasn’t to make a sale, nor was it a generic “how’s it going”. I got to know what they were looking forward to on the weekend, where they went on their last vacation, and which sports teams they were following. The people I met in Tennessee were genuinely very nice no matter where I went. If you’re from Tennessee and especially if we’ve met down there, I’m sending over a huge thank you for how nice my experience was.
The scenery was really something else. The mountains aren’t the same as the Rockies, but they are something I hope everybody gets a chance to see. Looking at the “smokiness” wasn’t what I expected. I thought I would basically look into the mountains and see an opaque fog. And while part of that is true, it was less opaque than I imagined. You could see the outline of mountains, which made it look like a really cool pastel painting. The different shades of blue during sunrise and the variety of reds, oranges, yellows, and purple at night were something my camera won’t do any justice.
Overall, it was great relaxing with family, getting out into nature, experiencing the scenery and all the Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg have to offer. If you’ve ever visited, what parts would you recommend? We would love to hear from you!
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