Pigeon Forge, Tennessee is a beautiful and entertainment filled destination all year long, but it is especially magical at Christmas time.
If you are visiting Pigeon Forge, Tennessee there is plenty to see and do to keep you busy. From variety shows, to golf, to museums, to amusement parks, there are tons of fun attractions to visit. For Christmas vacation this year, we took our whole immediate family (11 children and adults), and rented a huge cabin near Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. We had such a wonderful time!
Here are just a few of our favorite places we visited on our most resent trip.
Dolly’s Parton’s Stampede should be on the top of your list if you are visiting Pigeon Forge. It is one of our favorite spots in Pigeon Forge! We never miss an opportunity to go when we are in the area. I love it year-round, but the Christmas show is a favorite!
When you enter Dolly Parton’s Stampede you are kept in a waiting area until show time. You are greeted with pre-show entertainment, a bar, and games to keep the little ones entertained. Our kids loved getting to be part of the show and it made the time waiting to go inside the arena go by quickly.
Dolly Parton’s Stampede is an action packed show with live horses, aerial acrobatics, and skits. They also encourage audience participation so its fun for all ages. They serve a delicious meal that includes, soup, an entree and dessert. The show is very entertaining for all ages!
After the show, which lasts around an hour and a half, some of the performers will come out to take photos and mingle with guests. The kids loved asking questions and getting to pet the horses. Our dinner and show at the Stampede were both fabulous, and getting to hang out with the performers after was a fun bonus!
Next up on your must-do list should be The Island in Pigeon Forge. You will find tons of shopping opportunities, restaurants, photo-ops, candy shops, and tons to keep you entertained. We love to spend a few hours browsing shops when we go.
The Ferris wheel at The Island is a great way to see a stunning view of the Smokies. It is an enclosed 200 ft. Ferris wheel. This attraction is definitely worth it!
If you want to spend a few hours in nature. I highly recommend visiting Cades Cove. This is a beautiful valley, surrounded by stunning mountain views, where you can find hiking & biking trails and an 11-mile scenic drive-thru road where you may spot bears and other wild life.
If you are driving through, there are multiple spots where you can stop, get out, and walk around. There are historic cabins and churches that you can go inside and explore. I especially enjoy this area during the fall when all of the trees are beautiful colors, but it is beautiful all year long.
We enjoyed stopping to see the pioneer cabins and checking out the old churches. We did not see any bears in Cades Cove this trip, but when we went last fall we saw several bears and deer.
Another fun stop to make if you are in the area, is The Apple Barn. The Apple Barn is actually about 11 miles from Pigeon Forge, in Sevierville, Tennessee. It is definitely worth the drive from Pigeon Forge. We usually stop on our way out of town and spend a couple of hours checking out all of the shops. There is a general store, a Christmas store, creamery, candy shop, winery, hard cider house, and restaurant.
On our most recent trip to The Apple Barn, we tried out the The Apple Barn restaurant and it was so good. You are given complimentary apple fritters and apple butter upon being seated. The apple fritters are delicious! The menu features southern style cuisine and has quite a bit to choose from. The children have a choice of complimentary chocolate chip cookies or ice cream for dessert. This was our first visit to the restaurant, but it definitely won’t be the last!
The creamery serves fresh baked bread and homemade ice cream. You can go in and sample their ice cream. They have all kinds of apple breads, muffins, and sweet treats!
The Apple Barn Hard Cider House offers hard cider samplings if that interests you. The winery offers samples as well, and has a large selection of local wines. The Apple Barn is a fun stop if you are in the area with so much to do and see!
We had so much fun on our most recent trip to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. These were just a few of the things we did and saw. There is so much more!
Dollywood is another great place to go in Pigeon Forge. We didn’t go this trip, but we have been in the past and it is so entertaining. The kids will love it! It will take up pretty much an entire day, so be prepared to go early and stay late! Hatfield and McCoy Dinner Show, and Paula Deen’s Lumberjack Feud Supper Show are two more fun dinner theater shows to check out in Pigeon Forge.
While we were in the area, we also went to Gatlinburg and enjoyed time downtown looking at all of the Christmas lights and visiting the shops and restaurants. You can check out our visit to downtown Gatlinburg HERE.
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