Gatlinburg Meetings & Conventions
The Gatlinburg Convention Center features over 148,000 square feet of meeting and exhibit space and is a popular alternative to the average day-to-day convention center landscape. That, and you’re within a hop, skip, and a jump from downtown Gatlinburg and all the great attractions, shopping opportunities, and restaurants. Looking to stay on budget and have […]
Some Smoky Mountain Facilities to Remain Closed This Year
If you’re planning a camping trip in the Smokies this year, make sure the locale you’re looking into is still in operation. This following some recently announced federal budget cuts have some vacationers scrambling to find a new spot to pitch a tent this spring and summer. These cuts will directly affect a handful of […]
Prescribed Burns Becoming Common in Spring
Don’t jump to conclusions if you see parts of the Smoky Mountains actually smoking this spring. What you’re seeing likely isn’t a forest fire, but a prescribed burn being carried out by the National Park Service to fortify the Smokies from such wildfires and help replenish the majestic landscapes that everyone has come to know […]
Newfound Gap Road Work Ongoing, Completion In Sight
A completion date for roadwork on Newfound Gap Road looks to be within sight. Round the clock roadwork has been ongoing according to the contractor repairing US 441 (Newfound Gap Road) – the site of a January landslide took out a large, football field-sized section in North Carolina. Accordingly, the main road between Gatlinburg, TN, […]
Golf Digest Rates Gatlinburg Course #1 Municipal Course in Tennessee
The title of Best Municipal Golf Course in the State of Tennessee was recently awarded to the Gatlinburg Golf Course, as published in Golf Digest magazine this past August. The magazine concluded that the Gatlinburg Course was best by using a combination of star ratings from Golf Digest’s “Best Places to Play” rankings and the […]
Winterfest Lights Get Top Nod
The Society of American Travel Writers has included the lights of Winterfest on its list of The Top 10 Lesser-Known (But Just as Bright!) Holiday Lights in the U.S. Winterfest lights are displayed in the cities of Sevierville, Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg. The display ranks 8th on the society’s list, which also includes light displays […]
Effects of the Newfound Gap Landslide
Though the recent Jan. 16 landslide destroyed nearly 200 feet of Newfound Gap Road (U.S. 441), most park activities and destinations remain open and accessible to visitors. This according to officials with the park who said some roads are still being cleared on the Tennessee side due to debris from recent storms, “but as far […]
Recent Snowfall a Hit at Ober
Despite all the area power outages, delays, traffic pileups, etc., as well as the bad Newfound Gap Road collapse, the recent snowfall blast that occurred last week did have a positive effect on one local entity – Ober Gatlinburg. Ober was already operating at greater capacity due to some upgrades in snow making equipment that […]
Newfound Gap Washout
The section of Newfound Gap Road that was washed away due to heavy rainfall last week is still influx as park officials attempt to figure out how to repair that portion of U.S. Highway 441 through the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It’s primarily recognized as the main connector road between Gatlinburg and Cherokee, N.C. […]
Visits to the National Park UP 7.5% in 2012
Think the economy is having an effect on the Smoky Mountain area? Think again. Officials from the National Park services reported that half-million more visitors toured the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in 2012 than in 2011 – a 7.5 percent jump. Most officials say that the increase is due primarily to the mild weather […]