Gatlinburg Tennessee SkyBridge Views and Craft Studios

Why visit Gatlinburg

When the national park opened in the 1930s, Gatlinburg was a small mountain settlement known for its craft school, founded in 1912 by the Pi Beta Phi women's fraternity.

That location is the real draw. You can spend the morning hiking to a waterfall, the afternoon browsing the workshops of mountain craftspeople and the evening walking the Parkway with fudge in hand.

In town: the Parkway and mountain views

The Parkway and downtown

Gatlinburg's main street is lined with shops, arcades, museums and restaurants, and numbered traffic lights serve as local landmarks.

Gatlinburg SkyLift and SkyBridge

Starting right on the Parkway, the SkyLift chairlift climbs Crockett Mountain to an observation area with sweeping views of town and the Smokies. At the top, the SkyBridge, a long pedestrian suspension bridge with glass panels in the middle, swings gently over a wooded ravine.

Ober Gatlinburg

Above town, Ober Gatlinburg is Tennessee's only ski area and a year-round adventure park with an indoor ice rink, a scenic chairlift and seasonal rides. An aerial tramway has long connected it with downtown, and you can also drive up Ski Mountain Road.

Great Smoky Arts and Crafts Community

North of downtown, an eight-mile loop along Glades Road and nearby lanes links dozens of studios where artisans make pottery, brooms, quilts, woodcarvings, leatherwork and jewelry. Many work on site, and you can buy directly from the makers.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park near Gatlinburg

Sugarlands Visitor Center

Just south of town on Newfound Gap Road, Sugarlands is the first stop for many visitors. Rangers can advise on trail conditions and road closures, and a small museum covers the park's plants and animals.

Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail

Reached via Cherokee Orchard Road at the edge of town, this narrow, one-way loop winds through hemlock and hardwood forest past log cabins, a tub mill and fast cascades.

Grotto Falls

From a trailhead on the Roaring Fork loop, the Trillium Gap Trail climbs gently through old forest to Grotto Falls, where the path passes behind a curtain of falling water. The round trip is about two and a half miles and suits most families.

The Gatlinburg Trail

For an easy walk straight from town, the Gatlinburg Trail follows the Little Pigeon River between the edge of downtown and Sugarlands Visitor Center, about two miles each way.

Alum Cave Trail

Starting on Newfound Gap Road, the Alum Cave Trail is one of the most rewarding hikes in the park. It follows a creek, passes through Arch Rock and climbs to the overhanging cliffs of Alum Cave Bluffs, roughly two and a quarter miles from the trailhead.

Newfound Gap and Kuwohi

Newfound Gap Road crosses the crest of the Smokies at Newfound Gap, on the Tennessee and North Carolina state line, where Franklin D. Roosevelt dedicated the park in 1940 and the Appalachian Trail crosses the road. From near the gap, a spur road leads to Kuwohi, formerly known as Clingmans Dome, the highest point in Tennessee.

Cades Cove

About an hour's drive west of Gatlinburg, Cades Cove is a broad valley ringed by mountains, with an eleven-mile one-way loop road passing churches, cabins and a working grist mill. It is one of the best places in the park to see deer, wild turkeys and black bears.

Food and local flavors

Breakfast is something of a Gatlinburg ritual, and the town is known for its pancake houses; the long-running Pancake Pantry on the Parkway is one of the best known, and lines form on weekend mornings.

Where to stay in Gatlinburg

Downtown motels and hotels let you walk to restaurants, the SkyLift and the park entrance, which suits couples and first-time visitors who want to leave the car parked.

Cabin rentals in the hills around town, including the Arts and Crafts Community and Ski Mountain areas, suit families and groups who want space, kitchens and porches with mountain views; check access roads carefully if you visit in winter.

Best time to visit Gatlinburg

Spring brings wildflowers to the lower slopes from late March through May, and the Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage offers guided walks each April.

October is the most popular month, when fall color moves down from the high peaks to the valleys; weekends bring heavy traffic, so go midweek if you can.

Getting there and getting around

McGhee Tyson Airport, near Knoxville, is about an hour's drive from Gatlinburg.

Entry to the national park is free, but a parking tag is required for vehicles parked in the park for more than fifteen minutes.

A suggested itinerary

First day

Start with a pancake breakfast, then stop at Sugarlands for maps and a parking tag. Drive the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail and hike to Grotto Falls.

Second day

Leave early for the Alum Cave Trail. In the afternoon, drive up to Newfound Gap and Kuwohi for the views, then return to town for dinner.

Third day

Rise at dawn for the Cades Cove loop and its wildlife.

Fourth day

Take an easy morning on the Gatlinburg Trail along the river, then visit Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies or ride up to Ober Gatlinburg.

Practical tips

• Buy and display a park parking tag before stopping at trailheads or overlooks.
• Start hikes and scenic drives early, as popular parking areas fill by mid-morning in busy seasons.
• Keep at least fifty yards from bears and elk, never feed wildlife and store food properly.
• Check the national park website for road closures, especially in winter and after storms.
• Carry water, snacks and rain gear; cell service is patchy inside the park.
• Book cabins and downtown lodging months ahead for October and summer weekends.

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