Nestled in Dolly Parton's hometown of Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, we visit the amusement park bearing her name, Dollywood!
Visiting Dollywood has been on Grammy K's bucket list for a very long time. When we visited last year, during our time exploring Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg, we knew we had to visit again and bring Grammy with us.
If you've missed some of our travel videos featuring Grammy K, you can find them here...
Nashville, Tennessee (coming soon!)
The park is bigger than we expected with lots of nooks and crannies to explore. Wear your comfortable walking shoes.
We love visiting in the spring during the Flower and Food Festival. The topiaries are beautiful and the color really adds to the beauty of the park.
If you don't want to pay to park at Dollywood, you can park for free at Patriot Park in the Old Mill District and pay to ride the Pigeon Forge shuttle bus. During our visits, an all day (round-trip to Dollywood and back) ticket cost $3 per person.
Folks age 62 and up qualify for Senior Discounted Tickets. Be ready to show ID when you are purchasing your tickets. Another way to save money: if you plan to visit the park more than once during your stay, look into their 2 and 3 day pass options. Adding a 2nd or 3rd day to your initial purchase is A LOT less expensive than buying multiple individual days.
Not a rides person? Not a problem! Yes, Dollywood offers all kinds of rides including massive roller coasters. But for us, the experience has nothing to do with rides. We enjoy wandering through the park at a leisurely pace looking at the landscaping, listening to the live music, and taking in the shows and craft demonstrations. Even without the ride experience, a visit to Dollywood is always a super fun day for us.
Free glasses of water are available in some of the food stands and cafes around the park. No excuses not to stay hydrated!
Be sure to arrive early to start exploring the park before the crowds arrive.
And DO NOT MISS the Dolly Parton Experience! This awesome addition to the park is housed in several buildings... each exhibit is unique and tells a different aspect of Dolly's life and career.
Well, first of all, we all love Dolly Parton. What's not to love about Dolly?!
This is a beautiful park sharing positive, uplifting messages. If we could sum up the feeling Dollywood brings us in one word, it would be "Joy".
The landscaping is colorful with a wide variety of plants and flowers and an abundance of shade.
The shows and exhibits are fun, entertaining and very well done.
We always learn something at Dollywood.
And, we have to say, we really enjoyed our first visit to Dollywood. But with the addition of the Dolly Parton Experience there is a TON more Dolly to enjoy. And that is a big plus in our opinions. We love the park even more now.
Prior to becoming Dollywood in 1986, this park was known as...
The Herschend Family bought the park from Art Modell (then owner of the Cleveland Browns) in 1977. The Silver Dollar City name came from the family's first them park which they opened under the same name in Branson, Missouri in 1960. That park still operates under the same name. And as much as we love visiting Dollywood, a trip to Silver Dollar City is absolutely in our future the next time we're in Branson.
Dolly Parton joined the Hershend Family in ownership of the Pigeon Forge park in 1986 and the name was changed to Dollywood.
1986 (as Dollywood)
165 Acres
foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains
approx 1,000'
59° - 86°
mid-March to early-January
Visit the Dollywood website for more information, operating hours and current pricing.
We visited Dollywood in May.
📍 The Ridge Outdoor Resort in Sevierville, Tennessee
See More Things to Do in Tennessee
Visiting Pigeon Forge, Tennessee
Visiting Gatlinburg, Tennessee
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Touring a Working Crawfish Farm in Louisiana
Unique Fun in Northern Michigan
Longhorn Cavern State Park, Texas
Harold Warp's Pioneer Village, Nebraska
Visit Mackinac Island, Michigan
Hey y'all! We are Native Texans and (since 2018) Full-Time RVers sharing the adventures, challenges, and joys of RV life as we travel. We love camping and hiking in State and National Parks, discovering history, visiting interesting and quirky places, and exploring small towns. We're on a mission to experience life, not just live it with our dog, Star, and our cat, Astro. You can learn more about us on by visiting our About Us page. Thanks for joining us as we RV America Y'all!
