Blog for Zipline Attraction in the Smoky Mountains
Located in Pigeon Forge, TN and near Gatlinburg and Sevierville.
Smoky Mountain Winterfest
By Ross Bodhi Ogle
Posted on November 24, 2020
As the kids would say, the Great Smoky Mountains are lit!
No, literally, they are officially lit up right now thanks to all the light displays you'll find throughout Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge and Sevierville. It's all part of Smoky Mountain Winterfest, the annual celebration where our local communities get all decked out for the holidays with colorful lights, and the city calendars are packed with special events geared toward helping visitors get into the spirit of Christmas and the entire winter season.
This week, we'll give you an overview of everything that's going in the area. So if you plan on ziplining Gatlinburg, Tennessee, any time in the next couple of months, just know that there will be a lot of holiday-themed fun you can add to your visit to Smoky Mountain Ziplines.
Lights
As we already mentioned, the lighting displays are already up in Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge and Sevierville, and they'll be there all the way through February. Each town has millions of twinkling lights throughout, and they're displayed in all kinds of ways: lighted trees and lighted utility poles as well as colorful scenes depicting cherished symbols of the season, both static and animated. In Gatlinburg, you can obtain a map showing all the light locations at the Gatlinburg Spur Welcome Center, or you can find it by downloading the Visit Gatlinburg app. Normally, Pigeon Forge offers trolley tours of its lights, but this year, for public health reasons, they're encouraging visitors to see the sights with self-guided car tours. Another way to see lights in Sevierville, in addition to their usual Winterfest displays, is to attend Shadrack's Christmas Wonderland at Smokies Stadium through January 3. This 1.5-mile drive-through tour features dozens of animated LED displays, which are synched with a soundtrack you listen to via your vehicle's radio.
Shopping
You can already be taking advantage of Winterfest to get some Christmas shopping done. Many of the area's retailers and outlet mall stores are offering special sales events and discounts, making this a prime time to come to the mountains, knock out all the names on your list and get into the spirit of the season while you're here. Black Friday is this week too, which will offer even more opportunities to save money while immersing yourself in Winterfest fun.
Theater Shows
Many of the music and entertainment venues in the Smokies are staging their holiday shows, which will run through the end of the year. It's a great time for the whole family to get in on the music, comedy and variety, except right now, it's all wrapped up in a bow for Christmas and the entire holiday season. Listen for plenty of Christmas carols and other favorite songs, and look for onstage visits from Santa Claus, sugar plum fairies, Frosty the Snowman and other classic holiday characters.
Special Events
Each community has an impressive slate of Winterfest events this year. In Sevierville, look for their annual Christmas parade (12/5) and the Santa Hustle Smokies 5K and Half Marathon (12/13). In Pigeon Forge, you'll want to check out Dollywood's Smoky Mountain Christmas (now through 1/2) and the Pigeon Forge Winterfest Community Celebration (12/3). In Gatlinburg, look for the Great Smoky Thanksgiving & Christmas Arts & Crafts Shows, (selected dates through 12/6), the Fantasy of Lights Christmas Parade (12/4), the New Year's Eve Ball Drop and Fireworks Show (12/31) and the Tennessee Winter Special Olympics (1/24).
