Hotel at a Glance: Island Drive Lodge

Island Drive Lodge sits in the heart of Pigeon Forge, a resort town at the foot of the Great Smoky Mountains. Also nearby: Dollywood, the Titanic Museum Attraction, and all the shops and restaurants of The Island entertainment complex.

• Complimentary continental breakfast served each morning
• Dive in to the seasonal outdoor pool.
• Comfortable rooms are spacious and feature refrigerators and microwaves.
• Dollywood is 5 miles from the hotel, and you'll be within walking distance of numerous shops and restaurants.
• Across the road: The Island, a giant outdoor entertainment, shopping, and dining center with a 200-foot-tall Ferris wheel.

Pigeon Forge, Tennessee: Family-Friendly Attractions and Outdoor Activities in the Great Smoky Mountains

On US Route 441 in eastern Tennessee, there’s an old wooden sign at the entrance to the town of Pigeon Forge that touts the city as a "family vacation hub." Though it’s secluded in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains, Pigeon Forge is home to some quirky destinations, including Dollywood, a Titanic museum that looks just like the famed ocean liner from the outside, and WonderWorks—an interactive children’s museum housed in an upside-down three-story building.

In Pigeon Forge’s historical town center, a cluster of old-fashioned specialty shops and restaurants forms the Old Mill Square along the Little Pigeon River. Inside the mill, a pair of 4,600-pound granite stones has been grinding grain since the early 1800s. Another nearby attraction is Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies, located a few miles down the road in Gatlinburg. Here, exotic stingrays and four-eyed anableps swim with other sea creatures beneath a backlit waterfall. At the shark lagoon, you can stand inside an enclosed glass tunnel to get an up-close view of green eels, sand tiger sharks, and sea turtles.

If you have the time, it’s worth it to spend a least a day exploring Great Smoky Mountains National Park, America’s most visited national park, located roughly 10 miles south of Pigeon Forge. Here, you can hike more than 800 miles of trails that wend past waterfalls and pioneer-era log cabins tucked deep within the densely forested mountains. Or, take a bicycle ride on the 11-mile loop through Cades Cove, a broad valley known for its ample wildlife-viewing opportunities; deer, black bears, wild turkeys, and vacationing college mascots are known to frequent the open meadows. One of the best places to catch a glowing sunset is Clingmans Dome, the park’s highest point of elevation at 6,600 feet.

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