Here are the best places to drive or hike to catch the fabulous fall colors of the Smoky Mountains at their best during this fall season. Fall in the Smoky Mountains is famous for its wonderful colors, starting at the mountaintop and gradually moving down the mountain to lower elevations.
Photo by Kahli Reynolds
October in the Smoky Mountains is the peak time for the fabulous fall colors everywhere, and no surprise that it’s also the most popular month for couples to get married. Holidays are getting closer, festive events are breaking out everywhere, and the end of the month will take on its traditional spooky turn, but meanwhile it’s all about the brilliant colors of the leaves on the trees.
Here’s the scoop on events happening in the Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge area during October this year.
Fall Colors in the Smoky Mountains
A trip to Gatlinburg with the family can run up the expenses pretty quickly, unless you find some ways to save money and still have a great time. Here are some tips on how to do just that.
September is the month in which we can truly say that Fall is coming. It’s the time of harvest celebration and the turn of the seasons reflected in the changing colors of the leaves on the trees, and in this part of the Smoky Mountains it means bluegrass festivals, auto rallies, scarecrows and pumpkins, beer tasting and lots of food, fun and festivity.
Image courtesy of Dumplin Valley Bluegrass Festival
August in the Smokies is bustling with events, from hot air balloons to cosplay and fishing, and also with a foretaste of changes to come, with the kids going back to school, and harvest festivals peeking around the corner (but not quite here yet). Temperatures are in the high eighties to low nineties, and the evenings are pleasant.
July is one of the best months to visit the Smoky Mountains and it’s high season in Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, as well as Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the surrounding scenic area. Conventions, Fairs, music and the big July 4th Parade are among the events to watch for here in this hot summertime month.
Temperatures are generally in the high eighties to low nineties with cool nights in the sixties – perfect for every kind of mountain adventure except for snow and downhill tubing – and even in midsummer, we have that covered too!
While the towns and attractions are bustling with visitors and special events, it’s a good time to hit the higher elevations or some swimming holes to cool down, as well as knowing the back roads to avoid some of that bustle.
But read on to see just what kind of bustle is happening in July.
Images courtesy of the Craftsmen’s Fair, Gatlinburg & Pigeon Forge
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The voting period is going on now through July 31st – Click Here to cast your vote for the best cabin rental operation in the Smoky Mountains!
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The month of June in the Smoky Mountains starts the bustle of summer, and opens up countless opportunities for fun in the great outdoors – from fireflies to fishing, and from festivals to free trolleys, as well as flame azaleas in the higher elevations.
The Free Trolley? Well, all the Gatlinburg trolleys are now free. We used to announce in June each year that Gatlinburg was running a free trolley up and down Parkway through summer, and that was fun news, but it’s all turned fun now, with the city’s decision to run a free system. Pigeon Forge, which covers larger distances, still charges, but the fares are still the cheapest thing in America today. See our guide to the Gatlinburg & Pigeon Forge Trolleys. And read on for the insider lowdown on what’s happening in June.
The famous synchronous fireflies of June in the Smokies
Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge both host a several interactive and immersive attractions and experiences, but the Flying Theater is the latest and greatest experience, delivering a lot of WOW!
The flying theater is a big-screen experience, with movie-goers strapped into moving seats that are perfectly synchronized with the motion portrayed on the screen, offering a sensory realism that is, um, moving, to say the least! Not only that, but wind currents, mists and even scents produced within the theater offer an even greater sense of realism.
Combine all this with some of the best drone and plane aerial photography of phenomenal landscapes, and we have a winner. You feel like you’re flying through it all.
Image courtesy of SkyFly: Soar America
The month of May in the Smoky Mountains around Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge is alive with events, and the start of festivals from bluegrass to bagpipes! Here’s everything happening in this merry month.
May continues the display of arts and crafts that started in April, with special events and opportunities from our huge local artisan community in Gatlinburg, and plenty happening out on the Quiet Side of the Smokies too. Car shows go crazy this month, with all kinds of motors to admire, and music is in the air from multiple sources, including two big festivals later in the month.
Weather-wise, it can be a heavy month for rainfall, but the thousands of miles of waterways are flowing strongly everywhere, and it’s a great month for fishing. May is also a favorite month for Weddings in Gatlinburg and the area.
Read on for highlights of May 2023 events in the Smokies.
Images courtesy of Bloomin’ and Scottish festivals
We are the one of largest cabin rental agencies in the Smoky Mountains and have been recognized by Southern Living as the Best Family Resort in the Smokies. We manage over 340 cabins in the Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge and Sevierville Tennessee areas. Visit us today and get over $700 of free attraction tickets with your cabin rental.
