What To Do With A Weekend in Pigeon Forge || Wilderness At The Smokies
The Smoky Mountains feel like home to me. I have spent so many weekends in Pigeon Forge since I grew up so close to the area in East TN. We went on school trips to Dollywood, my family rented cabins and I have many milestone moments there with Matt and the girls. How had I never been to Wilderness at the Smokies? I remember before I had children of my own hearing my friends talk about how amazing it was and how much fun their kids had. Which is why I was so excited for our recent family weekend in Pigeon Forge!
Weekend in Pigeon Forge
Keatyn has been asking to go since friends of ours went on fall break so we decided to surprise her and Charlie with a weekend of fun. To be honest I had so much planned for us like driving to Gatlinburg for all kinds of things but our resort had SO much we really didn’t need to leave.
The first night we got there we went straight to the arcade after checking in. The girls had so much fun mini bowling, playing in the climbing playhouse and playing games in the arcade. Then we ventured out to grab some groceries and had dinner at the Diner, a cute little spot with a retro feel. Keatyn and I decided to bunk up in the bunkbed while Charlie slept in a crib. Huge plus that they had cribs available as well.
The next morning we woke up and ate breakfast. (They have restaurants on site.) We headed down to the waterpark with the girls. Keatyn absolutely loved the wave pool. We played on the slides for awhile and then I took Charlie up for her nap while Keatyn stayed with Matt and played for probably two more hours. Unfortunately I did not carry my phone with me around the waterpark so I didn’t get a ton of photos. Also since it is November the outdoor waterpark was closed but we got a good view of it from our windows. We can’t wait to come back during the warmer months and experience it as well.
After nap time we rested and headed to dinner at Holston House followed by more arcade fun and glow in the dark mini golf. Keatyn even rock climbed which is way out of her comfort zone.
On Sunday it was gorgeous outside so we headed to my fave place ever, Dollywood. I couldn’t come to the area and not see my girl Dolly’s spot. The only bummer about it was that due to the time of the year the water rides were closed. But it’s ok we will just head back when it’s warm. All I really cared about was a funnel cake and dippin dots. My parents drove up to meet us and we had such an amazing day. We rode the carousel among so many other rides and walked around looking at the Christmas lights. Afterward we had dinner at Huck Finn’s and then we headed back to the resort for one final night of arcade fun. The girls had been saving up their tickets to cash in and Keatyn had been begging me to walk the course with her so I obliged. They decided to split the tickets and got a puppy and a bear that they both sleep with now 2 weeks later.
Y’all we had so much. Our room was so comfy that it felt like home. I definitely would recommend Wilderness at the Smokies for your stay. We missed it by one week but their ice rink is returning for holiday season from November 15- January 2, 2020. Who doesn’t love to ice skate outdoors with a cup of hot chocolate, it screams nostalgia. It takes place at their 3,200 sq ft ice rink that doubles as their outdoor wave pool in the summer. It is available to hotel guests in addition to the public. The admission fee is included in your hotel stay with code ICESKATE when you book or at check in you can purchase admission for $10/person including skates. The admission for on site purhcase and for the public is $20. It is open from 10 am to 10 pm Friday – Sunday, Thanksgiving and Christmas break; and 4 pm to10 pm Monday- Thursday. Make sure to check out our video on IGtv. Have you been to Pigeon Forge before? Let me know in a comment below!