Welcome To Gatlinburg – The Ultimate Vacation Destination

Gatlinburg, Tennessee, is a charming mountain town resort nestled along the northern border of the iconic Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It’s known for some of the most breathtaking views, amusement parks, and family-friendly activities in North America like 

• mini-golf
• aquariums,
• hiking trails
• ice skating 
• skiing
• white water rafting
• treetop trekking
• aerial tram
• horseback riding

and of course, it’s famous for warm southern hospitality!

With a town of only 71,000, the people of Gatlinburg welcome over 12 million people each year looking to find adventure at places such as Anakeesta Theme Park or looking for excitement at places like Ober Gatlinburg and The Aquarium of The Smokies. You can also find the peace and quiet you’d expect from a mountaintop vacation while exploring the trails and beauty of Great Smoky Mountains National Park or The Village Shops in downtown Gatlinburg.

Regardless of whether you’re looking for the perfect family-friendly vacation for the whole family, a romantic sightseeing getaway for two, or if you’re the outdoorsy type looking to hike and bike while taking in mountaintop views – Gatlinburg, Tennessee, is guaranteed to deliver.

Here are seven of the most fun things to do in Gatlinburg that offer something for everyone, from kid-friendly attractions to adults looking to forget their daily grind.

Top 7 Things To Do In Gatlinburg

1) Great Smoky Mountains National Park

No visit to Gatlinburg is complete without spending at least one day at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, where you’ll explore hiking trails and mountain views with tons of outdoor activities.

This national park boasts over 500,000 acres of mountain range, waterfalls, forest and is the most visited national park in the entire United States. 

Even more than Yellowstone Park! 

Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the ultimate destination for kid-friendly, family fun or for couples looking to experience all that the mountains have to offer.

If hiking really isn’t your thing, but you don’t want to miss out on this epic opportunity for sightseeing, we recommend the Great Smoky Mountains Self Driving Tour. In this experience, you will be able to tour at your own pace and benefit from a guided GPS tour complete with a narration of behind-the-scenes mountain stories, educational information, as well as a heads up for what wildlife and fun things lie ahead.

While at Great Smoky Mountains National Park, be sure not to miss hitting up Cades Cove – one of the most popular stops in the Great Smokies for seeing white-tailed deer, black bears and groundhogs.

It’s an experience the kids are sure to remember.

2) Ober Gatlinburg Amusement Park & Ski Area

More than just a ski area and snowboarding park, this theme park has tons to do in every season. If you’re visiting over the summer, you can still feel like you’ve had a taste of what it’s like to be there in the winter when you purchase tickets to their indoor ice skating rink or by riding the Alpine Slide. 

You can also choose to ride the Ski Mountain Coaster located near the snow tubing park. This mountain coaster is a five-and-a-half-minute ride full of dips and twists at 25mph speeds.

During the winter at Ober, you can participate in a wide array of snow sports, from snow tubing down their 350-foot long snow tubing hill with a 50 ft drop. You can also shred some snow while snowboarding and skiing at the Ober Gatlinburg Freestyle Terrain Park and push your skills to their limits.

3) Anakeesta Theme Park

You CAN. NOT. miss out on visiting Anakeesta – Tennessee’s award-winning theme park. This place truly is a place of adventure and memorable moments that the whole family is sure to enjoy. Anakeesta’s list of attractions is everything you could ever want in a mountain top outdoor theme park. Here, you will be able to choose from a duelling zipline adventure where you and a friend or family member can race each other over 3500 feet of zipline through the treetops, or you can hop aboard North America’s first of its kind single rail mountain coaster with options for tandem rides so that the kids can come along.

But, if whipping through the mountains isn’t really your speed, then you can relax and unwind in the Vista Gardens located at the mountaintop, giving you 360-degree views of the national park and downtown Gatlinburg.

Don’t forget before you leave to pick up a photo taken by one of Anakeesta’s professional photographers at either the base of the mountain or at the duelling zip lines. These definitely will be memories that you and the whole family will want to look back on.

4) Ripley’s Aquarium of The Smokies

The Ripley’s Aquarium of The Smokies is open for fun all year round and is a tourist favourite amongst the Gatlinburg attractions.

Here you will have the opportunity for the unique experience to go behind the scenes with trainers and biologists and learn firsthand what it’s like to work with marine life.

Some of the most popular experiences for both kids and adults are :

Touch A Ray Bay –  In this experience, you will have the opportunity to touch a stingray as they glide by in their lagoon and ask any questions about these incredible creatures to the educators nearby.

The Glass Bottom Boat  – In this experience, you will be able to drift over 12-foot sharks and other creatures that call the Ripley’s Aquarium lagoon home in a glass-bottom boat – offering you the ultimate view into their world.

Pet A Penguin – In this experience, you will have the opportunity to interact directly with one of the cutest creatures in their state-of-the-art indoor/outdoor habitat at the aquarium.

Not done with the fun yet? Grab a combo pass and gain access to Ripleys Aquarium of The Smokies and have the choice of the 5D Moving Theater, Mirror Maze, Super Fun Indoor Mini Golf, Old Mac Mini Golf, Davy Crockett Mini Golf and more.

The Ripley’s group of Tennessee Attractions could have you busy for days!

5) Gatlinburg Space Needle

Gatlinburg Space Needle is a premier destination that overlooks downtown Gatlinburg and the Smoky Mountains. When you arrive, you will ride the glass elevators over 400 feet up to reach the observation deck and take in the 360° view of the legendary Great Smoky Mountains and the town of Gatlinburg. 

Located at the street level of the Gatlinburg Space Needle is Arcadia, a 25,000 square foot arcade chock full of classic and new games that the whole family can enjoy. 

Looking to take in a comedy or magic show? The Iris Theatre, also located at the Gatlinburg Space Needle, has a reputation for delighting and entertaining its audiences night after night.

6) Rowdy Bear Mountain Amusement Park

Rowdy Bear Mountain Amusement Park has two locations in Gatlinburg and another in Pigeon Forge, only a 19-minute drive away. Both adventure parks boast the Rowdy Bear Mountain Coasters and Alpine Coasters destined to put a smile on your face as you whiz down the mountain and through the trees.

At the Pigeon Forge Adventure Park, they offer Tennessee’s first and fastest outdoor tubing hill. This tubing hill offers the option of hooking your tube to your friends and family so that you can make the exhilarating ride down to the bottom together and witness everyone’s hilarious expressions as you speed down the hill. This is sure to become one of your family’s favourite memories. Making it even more exciting is the LED lights that light the path at night so that you can continue to tube past sunset.

7) Gatlinburg Sky Lift Park &  Sky Bridge

Last but not least, do not miss out on the longest pedestrian suspension bridge in North America. It spans 680 feet across a valley in the Great Smoky Mountains, with three glass panels located in the middle of the bridge to stand on and view the ground 140 feet below you. This experience will undoubtedly make for the most “insta-worthy” picture of your trip with its panoramic views around you and below you!

Bonus: Fun Things For Adults To Do In Gatlinburg

You didn’t think we’d leave here, did you? While those are the top 7 things to do in Gatlinburg for adventure and excitement, we couldn’t leave you without mentioning a few things adults love about vacationing in the Gatlin area.

Distillery Tours: Don’t miss out on tasting some of Smoky Mountain’s best moonshine by paying a visit to Ole Smoky Moonshine – The Holler Distillery in Gatlinburg. Before you go, book a behind-the-scenes tour in this authentic moonshine to witness the entire distilling process and treat yourself to samplings of the homegrown moonshine of East Tennessee.

Gatlinburg Scenic Overlook: Veteran vacationers in the Gatlinburg area have made stopping at the overlook a photo op tradition. There isn’t a better place to photograph yourself than overlooking the entire town of Gatlinburg with the mountains as the backdrop. Located on the Gatlinburg Bypass between the Gatlinburg Spur and Great Smoky Mountains National Park 

Golfing: If golfing’s more your thing, there are seven golf courses in and around Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge for you to visit. The number one rated golf course in the area is Creekside Golf Course, with its beautiful Smoky Mountain vistas, driving range and golfing lessons.

The Mountains Are Calling

Booking a vacation in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, is truly a dream destination for the whole family. There’s something there for everyone to enjoy amongst the amusement and adventure parks, the endless summer outdoor activities of hiking, biking, ziplining, horseback riding or snow sports of skiing, snowboarding, and sightseeing. 

We’re not sure about you – but we’re already dusting off our old Davy Crockett hat, packing our bags and booking our trip for the Great Smoky Mountains of Eastern Tennessee. Out where the air is fresh, the views are divine, and outdoor adventures await. 

See You There!

Featured Image Credit: By Miro Vrlik Photography