Glad to hear there was no damage to the area!
I've been reading reviews of Wild Eagle and so far they have all been excellent. Hopefully the crowds won't be bad next Wednesday when we go.
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Heading to Dollywood in April...
- Thread starter Todd H
- Start date
Glad to hear there was no damage to the area!
I've been reading reviews of Wild Eagle and so far they have all been excellent. Hopefully the crowds won't be bad next Wednesday when we go.
prberk
Well-Known Member
Wild Eagle is an AMAZING coaster! Don't expect to be scared outta your wits. But if you're looking for a fun *smooth* ride, you'll love it. The loading station is beautifully-designed, and track layout flows brilliantly.
Tip: If you are headed to the Pigeon Forge area, avoid Rod Run weekends at ALL costs. You'll thank yourself for doing so.
I've gone before on Rod weekends, gotten overconfident & thinking "I'll just take the backroads around the heaviest of traffic..." only to find those roads more conjested than the actual parkway. So do yourself a favor unless you're really into hot rods...avoid those two weekends outta the year. One is coming up the weekend of April 21st.
Tip: If you are headed to the Pigeon Forge area, avoid Rod Run weekends at ALL costs. You'll thank yourself for doing so.
I've gone before on Rod weekends, gotten overconfident & thinking "I'll just take the backroads around the heaviest of traffic..." only to find those roads more conjested than the actual parkway. So do yourself a favor unless you're really into hot rods...avoid those two weekends outta the year. One is coming up the weekend of April 21st.
We're here and so far I'm not happy.
We have an autistic child and so far it's been a nightmare. Unlike Disney's GAC, Dollywood gives you a disability pamphlet and tell you to show it to a staff member at the exit of rides. So far the staff have been terrible. Half the time they don't believe us, questioning us as to whether anything is wrong with him. Lots of eye rolling as well. Not sure I'll ever come back.
We have an autistic child and so far it's been a nightmare. Unlike Disney's GAC, Dollywood gives you a disability pamphlet and tell you to show it to a staff member at the exit of rides. So far the staff have been terrible. Half the time they don't believe us, questioning us as to whether anything is wrong with him. Lots of eye rolling as well. Not sure I'll ever come back.
That's really sad. The staff at Dollywood can be hit or miss. You can get those who go above & beyond, making everyone they encounter feel important. Then you have those who make you feel like you're intruding on their day. Trust me, we've dealt with both. Sorry to hear you've been encountering the bottom half. If it gets really bad, try to locate or ask for today's H.I.C. ("Host In Charge"). If that doesn't work...go straight to the top. Hopefully it will turn around for the better.
Thanks Bob. We tried not to let it bother us too much but after a while that was just not possible. I will give kudos to the nice lady at Blazing Fury who fully understood our situation and was very accommodating. But unfortunately she was probably the only one. Makes me really appreciate the staff at WDW and the lengths they go to help visitors in our situation.
As for the rides, Wild Eagle lived up to the hype. The wife and I rode front row right and both thought it was a fantastic coaster that lived up to the billing. Thunderhead is still one of the best wooden coasters I've ever experienced. Mystery Mine was great but lost some points on the missing lightning effects on the last 90 degree climb (instead of lightning we were treated to a frozen Windows Embedded loading screen). Tennessee Tornado was OK. Seemed way shorter than we remembered. And Blazing Fury was a disappointment. I could barely make out anything on the ride because it was so dark.
I didn't take many pictures. I kinda lost interest in it after fighting with the people that worked there all day. I will say it was as packed as I've ever seen a theme park. The crowds were unreal and it was unseasonable hot.
So that's pretty much it. Not sure if we'll ever go back. I did enjoy my trip driving through the mountains. The scenery on my drive in was absolutely gorgeous.
As for the rides, Wild Eagle lived up to the hype. The wife and I rode front row right and both thought it was a fantastic coaster that lived up to the billing. Thunderhead is still one of the best wooden coasters I've ever experienced. Mystery Mine was great but lost some points on the missing lightning effects on the last 90 degree climb (instead of lightning we were treated to a frozen Windows Embedded loading screen). Tennessee Tornado was OK. Seemed way shorter than we remembered. And Blazing Fury was a disappointment. I could barely make out anything on the ride because it was so dark.
I didn't take many pictures. I kinda lost interest in it after fighting with the people that worked there all day. I will say it was as packed as I've ever seen a theme park. The crowds were unreal and it was unseasonable hot.
So that's pretty much it. Not sure if we'll ever go back. I did enjoy my trip driving through the mountains. The scenery on my drive in was absolutely gorgeous.
Goofy6294
Active Member
Advice Needed
We were thinking about renting a cabin in the Sevierville/Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg area during June. I noticed a couple of locals responding in this thread. You guys have any advice on the best locations? We will have three children with us - ages 10, 5 and 9 mos, if that helps with your recommendations.
Thanks
We were thinking about renting a cabin in the Sevierville/Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg area during June. I noticed a couple of locals responding in this thread. You guys have any advice on the best locations? We will have three children with us - ages 10, 5 and 9 mos, if that helps with your recommendations.
Thanks
WDWScottieBoy
Well-Known Member
Cabin companies are all very hit and miss. I used to work at the Inn at Christmas Place in Pigeon Forge and families absolutely love it. It's one of the pricier hotels in the area but worth it for what you get (size of the room, breakfast buffet, etc). There is Wilderness of the Smokies in Sevierville (further from the attractions) but has a large indoor water park. Feel free to PM me for any additional help if you need it. I'd recommend my hotel now but it's pricy and further from the attractions as well and starts at around $800/night (but we are the #1 resort in North America).
Disneybird
Member
Would that be Blackberry Farm?
unkadug
Follower of "Saget"The Cult
Yeah...I just did a Google search myself for "#1 Resort in the USA" and Blackberry Farm popped up. And starting at $900 per night!
Disneybird
Member
Yeah...I just did a Google search myself for "#1 Resort in the USA" and Blackberry Farm popped up. And starting at $900 per night!
Suppose to be good. Though I'll never have first hand experience.
unkadug
Follower of "Saget"The Cult
Wilderness in the Smokies is nice, but it isn't really "in" the Smokies. It sits all the way out on hwy 66 (Winfield Dunn Pkwy), as your headed toward I-40. From the resort, you have to drive all the way through Sevierville and Pigeon Forge before you hit the Smoky Mtns. It's like me opening "Bob's Resort On The Beach"...and putting it 15-20 miles inland.
If you want to be indulged in the mtn atmosphere, yet still be close to all the goodies (DWood, Aquarium, Ober, etc) stay in the Gatlinburg area.
If you want to be indulged in the mtn atmosphere, yet still be close to all the goodies (DWood, Aquarium, Ober, etc) stay in the Gatlinburg area.
WDWScottieBoy
Well-Known Member
I don't think I could even relax when I was paying 1,400 per night.
But it's all meals included and voted best service in the world for multiple years! You would have plenty of relaxing!
Disneybird said:
:wave:
Disneybird said:
I can help make it a bit more reasonable!
WDWScottieBoy
Well-Known Member
Agree with the distance of Wilderness, but it has more amenities so thought for a family with kids it'd be worth looking into. I tend to have people avoid Gatlinburg due to traffic and most of the attractions are all in Pigeon Forge now. Gatlinburg is an art's community and has lots of airbrush t-shirts.
It's sorta a toss-up between PF and GBurg as far as family attractions go. PF has Dolly, go-karts, and all the shows, whereas GBurg has all the Ripley's attractions/aquarium, space needle, Ober, sky-lift, etc. Both have their fair-share of mini-golf. PF may have the higher numbers (more space to work with, obviously). But both can cater to the family w/ kids genre very easily. There's also *rumors* of a new indoor/outdoor waterpark coming to GBurg where the Holiday Inn (up traffic light #8) used to be.
So there is certainly a lot for a family to do in Gatlinburg other than look at air-brush shops. (I gotta defend G-town).