Family Trip to Dollywood Theme Park

I’m in heaven, and I’m taking you guys with me. I am truly a big kid at heart and I love going to amusement parks! My kids haven’t always been big on rides but I’m hoping that they will love it as much as I do! 

This is my family’s first visit to Dollywood and hopefully not the last! Dollywood is known as one of the best family-centered parks and I had to check it out for myself. We have children ranging from age 2-18 and wanted to make sure that Dollywood was living up to its hype! We visited during Dollywood’s Harvest Festival and it was a hit. The park is beautifully decorated and well maintained. There was so much to see and do - you won’t have a dull moment. 

Travel and Lodging

We opted to rent an Airbnb for our stay and it worked out perfectly. We stayed in Sevierville, TN which is only about 15-20 minutes from Dollywood. This was great for us since we had such a large group (8 people) and needed the space. It also provided us with the flexibility to cook! There was a lot to do - I highly recommend you stay for at least 3 days especially if this is your first visit. If you’re traveling far, remember to buffer in travel and rest time.

There are a few hotels in the area and even one on-site, Dollywood DreamMore Resort and Spa. So finding a place to stay won’t be too difficult, just remember peak season for a mountain area and avoid it if you can.

McGhee Tyson Airport is the closest to Dollywood, be sure to check flight times, I like to travel in the early mornings but with hotel check-in being later that may make things a little harder.

The Park

OMG, Dollywood was more than I expected. I read a lot of reviews and watched videos before coming so I knew what to expect and it did not disappoint. The park is huge and well maintained. Parking was a breeze, we arrived early and were able to hit the park as soon as it opened. I love that they have height wristbands, this made it really easy to determine which rides the kids would be able to get on without having to deal with the disappointment of being turned around.

By far, Dollywood is the best park I have been to in a long time. I loved that there was something for my whole family to enjoy. We started the day off in the Country Fair section and worked our way around. This was great since we had our 2-year-old with us. He was able to enjoy a few rides and loved it. It also proved helpful for some of our bigger kids to warm up to the larger rides. Then we ventured over to Jukebox Junction, we hated that Lighting Rod wasn’t open but there were still a lot of other rides. We took a quick break to eat before leaving the park. The younger kids had become restless. 

I did rent a stroller and I am so glad I opted to leave our large one home. We were able to return it and pick it back up once we came to the park for round 2. Wildwood Grove and Wilderness Pass were my favorite parts of the park! There was so much to ride that we didn’t get to do it all. On our next visit, I will plan to visit the park in 2 days to really get a chance to enjoy it all.

Overall, my family and I had a blast! I can’t wait to go back. I really want my whole family to come and experience Dollywood. It is such a family-friendly park. I highly recommend wearing tennis shoes because there is a lot of walking. Enjoy - if you have any recommendations of parks we should visit, let me know!