Gatlinburg is known as “The Gateway to the Smoky Mountains” for good reason—it is nestled right on the edge of the National Park, making it a popular mountain resort town.

Gatlinburg Tips:

Get into the Great Smoky Mountains National Park! The whole point of visiting Gatlinburg is the close access to the park, so make sure to get into nature!
Gatlinburg is extraordinarily touristy—it’s like the Disney World of mountain towns. Personally I do not love places like this, so if you are similar minded I would recommend staying in a small town on the North Carolina side of the park versus Gatlinburg. Bryson City is my personal favorite!
- Pigeon Forge is the same level of “touristy” but with even more “attractions”. If you have small kids there is plenty of entertainment options in PF! Gatlinburg is definitely more walkable and a better base camp in my opinion, but the two are only 15 minutes apart

Adventures & Ales Top Recommendations:

Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail: A beautiful nature drive with places to stop off for nature views and historical buildings.
Traveling with a group? AvantStay has some amazing larger homes for rent! Use my link here to save $250 off your booking!
Go winery hopping: There are several wineries in Gatlinburg that you can pop into for free samples and to bring home some delicious wine if you choose to do so!
- Smoky Mountain Winery: My favorite that we visited! Their tasting offered a plethora of samples for free and Tiffany, who was working, was absolutely fantastic! This spot is slightly off the main road, so be sure not to miss it!
- Sugarland Cellars: The tastings here are $5, the only winery you have to pay to sample at, but they have Sangria slushees that are absolutely delicious and totally worth it! They have two locations, one right in the heart of downtown Gatlinburg and one right on the edge of the National Park.
- Bootleggers Homemade Wines: Located in the Ole Smoky Holler, a small spot to sample wines with cute merchandise as well!
- Goodwater Vineyards: An extremely nice family owns and operates this winery, pop in for samples and chat with them!
- Tennessee Homemade Wines: Another winery with solid wine and free samples. Owned by the same team as Tennessee Cider Co
- Gatlinburg Wine Cellar: The most touristy of the wineries, this spot has lots of sweet wines in their two locations on the main strip

Clingman’s Dome: About 45 minutes from Gatlinburg, this lookout tower and viewpoint is definitely worth the drive. The ride is gorgeous as well, be sure to stop at the Newfound Gap Overlook for great views just a few minutes away from Clingman’s Dome. At the dome expect traffic/parking to be a hassle there are tons of people who stop here. To get to the tower you walk up a steep hill to the overlook, but it is only a half a mile each way and is paved. It is the highest point in the Smokys!

Tennessee Cider Company: The first cidery in the Gatlinburg area and new to the scene. Their ciders were delicious and the staff was super nice!
Cookie Dough Bliss: Edible cookie dough, what more do you need to know?! It is absolutely delicious and located right next to Goodwater Vineyards
We had a complimentary stay at Greystone Lodge and it was lovely! The views of the mountains and river out back were great and it was conveniently located in the heart of the city!

The Classic Tourist Spots Actually Worth Visiting:

Go moonshine hopping! You can’t visit Gatlinburg and not have some moonshine. Each moonshine tasting is $5 for all of the samples.
- Ole Smoky Moonshine: The classic! Located in Ole Smoky Holler. Don’t skip the pickle!
- Sugarlands Distilling Company: The first couple samples here are extraordinarily awful and burn, but persevere, it gets better!
- Doc Collier Moonshine: This is a smaller and newer space with some great options! They also have moonshine slushees that were delicious!
Ole Red: A really popular bar/restaurant with live music. Crowded and overpriced but it is entertaining
Pigeon Forge: Another area to explore with lots of attractions
- Be sure to visit the Yee-Haw Brewing outpost in The Island for an extremely delicious pretzel and solid beers!

Other ideas:

Smoky Mountain Brewery: More restaurant style than brewery with pretty standard beers. Get the Supermug (33oz)! They have locations in Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, Turkey Creek, and Maryville
Gatlinburg Brewery: Super yummy pizza! Beers are pretty average but it’s worth checking out while you’re in the area!
Check out Knoxville which is just an hour away, or Asheville, an hour and a half away!
- Check out my guide to Knoxville here and my guide to Asheville here!

You May Also Enjoy:

Lexington

Louisville

Nashville

Knoxville

Chattanooga

Savannah

Bryson City Recommendations:

Bryson City Outdoors: A beer bar and gear shop with a nice patio and daily food trucks.

Explore Great Smoky Mountains National Park! Deep Creek Waterfall Loop is a popular option very close to town with 3 waterfalls on a 2.4 mile long trail with 426ft of elevation gain. You’ll encounter Tom Branch Falls, Indian Creek Falls and Juney Whank Falls.

Mountain Layers Brewing: A nice brewery in the heart of downtown with a rooftop deck. They also have a Hawaiian food truck out back The Rice Wagon. You can see all of town from the roof and offer wine and cider for non-beer fans.

Zipline, whitewater raft, or stay in a yurt with WildWater! Whitewater rafting is very popular on the Nantahala and super fun. It is 8 miles of class 1 and class 2 rapids with one class 3 rapid. Their ziplining course goes through the gorge and has a couple of spots with great views.

High Test Deli: A delicious sandwich shop in the heart of downtown. They are also known for their frozen ice cream sandwiches.

The Road to Nowhere: Drive this historic road and be sure to check out the Lake Fontana overlook and the Road to Nowhere Tunnel. Just be prepared, the road does indeed go to nowhere.

Meander the many shops throughout downtown.