Home of Dollywood and a town of Appalachian traditions, Pigeon Forge offers fun for the whole family.
Visit one of Sevier County native and country music star Dolly Parton’s attractions or stay at her new hotel resort.
Enjoy Southern cuisine and good, clean fun at any of the town’s comedy shows or the local western themed dinner theater. Adults can enjoy one of the latest attractions, Old Forge Distillery, making adult spirits with the grain from the 175-year-old grist mill.
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LOCAL TRADITIONSPigeon Forge festivals offer dancing in the summer, illuminate the night sky in the winterWilderness Wildlife Week: This May festival features eight days of free activities that connect Pigeon Forge to nature in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains. The longtime tradition includes guided walks, hikes and daily music presentations of old-time mountain ballads and bluegrass.Patriot Festival: Pigeon Forge’s annual Fourth of July event features free admission, free parking and free shuttle service at Patriot Park on Independence Day. Performers take the stage starting at 1:30 p.m. Free activities continue throughout the afternoon and evening, and a headline performer takes the stage just before a free fireworks show around sunset concludes the festival.Winterfest: More than 5 million lights illuminate the streets of the city during its annual winter display. The Salute to Veterans Parade kicks off the opening night of the festival at 5 p.m., and kids enjoy a play area while adults can browse the goods of vendors and sign kids up for photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus. The lighting ceremony is followed by a fireworks show, sending the festival into the winter months in the Smoky Mountains. It runs November through February.Source: Pigeon Forge Department of Tourism, Pigeon Forge Chamber of Commerce, mypigeonforge.com
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FRIED GREEN TOMATOES AND CHICKEN Paula Deen’s new restaurant offers favorite Southern dishes. From chicken and waffles to fried green tomatoes to Georgia fried catfish, Paula Deen’s Family Kitchen offers all things Southern.> Visit for breakfast, lunch or supper and find your favorite dish. Finish the day off with an Ooey Gooey Butter Cake or banana pudding.> Located at 131 The Island Drive, Suite 8101, dining hours are from 7:30-10:30 a.m., 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays and until 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.> Shop in Paula Deen’s retail store afterward for household kitchen goods, cookbooks and homemade sauces.Source: Pigeon Forge Department of Tourism, pauladeensfamilykitchen.com
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*LET THE SHOW BEGIN *The Comedy Barn celebrating 20 years of good clean funVoted the winner of the funniest show in the Smokey Mountains, The Comedy Barn offers laughs for the whole family with show times at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. nightly.The acts feature comedians, magicians, jugglers and live country and gospel music along with special performances from parrots on bicycles to mini-donkey acts.Tickets are $29.95 for adults and children 12 years and older. Children 3-11 are $9.95. Special deals for multiple shows are also offered online.Other shows include Hatfield & McCoy, a Southern-style picnic dinner and Smokey Mountain Opry, featuring singers, dancers, acrobatics and a magic show.*Source: Pigeon Forge Department of Tourism, comedybarn.com.
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MAKING MOONSHINEOld Forge Distillery uses grain from the 175-year-old grist mill to distill adult spiritsWhat was once a farm supply store a century ago now houses the Old Forge Distillery, located at 170 Old Mill Avenue in Pigeon Forge.The distillery opened in 2014 to make whiskey and moonshine based on an 1830 recipe from the freshly ground grain of The Old Mill located next door.The small-batch spirits include flavors of chocolate, french toast and coffee that can be sampled at the Old Forge Tasting Bar any day of the week. >ormal operating hours are from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday – Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays.The same folks own the old grist mill that converts around 1,000 pounds of grain into meal that is served in dishes at the Old Mill Restaurant and goes on sale at the Old Mill Pottery House Cafe and Grille. Sought after dishes at the restaurant include the corn chowder and pecan pie.The Old Mill, at 3344 Butler St., is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.Sources: oldforgedistillery.com and old-mill.com
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A DREAMY STAY Dollywood’s new DreamMore resort opens this summerDolly Parton’s latest attraction is a hotel resort located only minutes from her theme and water parks, Dollywood and Dollywood Splash Country.Cool off in one of the resorts many pools, waterfalls, a lazy stream, a family splash park or use the indoor heated pool and outdoor hot tub along with a southern-style spa.The resort also includes a sit-down family style restaurant with patio seating and a buffet-style grab-and-go diner as well as complimentary theme park and water park shuttle services.Resort guests are also offered perks to visit the Dollywood parks such as early Saturday entry, timesaver line passes, exclusive entry and complimentary package delivery.Dollywood theme park is open March 21 through January, but the longest open hours 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. are offered in the summer through Aug. 2.Dollywood Splash Country opens the weekend before Memorial Day through Labor Day with 35 acres of water attractions.Source: Dollywood.com
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A SMALL TOWN WITH HUGE TOURISMPigeon Forge is a giant among national tourist destinations.> Population: 6,132> Biggest employers: Dollywood; retail; tourism and hospitality industry> Landmarks or geographic features: The Little Pigeon River is located along the town, as well as the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.> Date founded: Settled in the early 1800s, the city was incorporated in 1960.> History: The area now known as Pigeon Forge was once a Cherokee hunting ground and used by European settlers as a passage west into the frontier. It was settled by pioneers in the late 18th century and gets its name from an iron forge built on the Little Pigeon River by Isaac Love in 1817, combined with its once-dominant community of passenger pigeons.> Unique traditions: Visitors can ride the Pigeon Forge Fun Time Trolley, the city’s mass transit system, designed to help provide a means to see the town’s many attractions. About 10 million visitors come to Pigeon Forge each year, more than 1,000 times its residential population. To accommodate the 2 million annual visitors who stay overnight, the area boasts thousands of spots to lodge.> Fun fact: Pigeon Forge takes its name partly from a breed of extinct North American bird called the passenger pigeon, which dwelt in large numbers along the Little Pigeon River.Source: census.gov, Pigeon Forge Department of Tourism, cityofpigeonforge.com