Dollywood

The Dollywood sign at the one and only Dollywood in Pigeon Forge Tennessee!

Welcome to the All Cool Entertainment guide to Dollywood! On this page we’ll give you our honest thoughts and try to guide you through one of America’s favorite theme parks. Dollywood theme park is part of Dollywood Parks & Resorts which includes Dollywood’s Splash Country, DreamMore Resort and Spa and HeartSong Lodge & Resort.

We’re just going to be honest with you right up front…we love this park! The theming, food, rides, and the overall area of the Great Smoky Mountains are some of the most beautiful we’ve seen in the United States of America. But when should you visit? Which festivals are the best? Where can you find the best food? All of that and more will be answered here!

Timeline

A timeline of Dollywood. Data from Dollywood.

1961 Brothers Harry and Grover Robbins open a small-scale attraction called Rebel Railroad featuring Klondike Katie, a general store, a blacksmith shop and a saloon.
1964 Rebel Railroad started to transition from a theme inspired by the centennial of the Civil War into a Wild West theme that would eventually become Goldrush Junction.
1970 Rebel Railroad was sold to Art Modell and was now known officially as Goldrush Junction. New attractions, live entertainment and a place of worship were added.
1976 The word Junction was removed from Goldrush Junction and the park was simply known as Goldrush. The following year the park would change yet again to...
1977 Jack and Pete Herschend of Herschend Enterprises purchased the park and renamed it to Silver Dollar City Tennessee, their second Silver Dollar City theme park.
1986 Dolly Parton partners with Herschend Family Enterprises to make the park what it is today. New attractions, restaurants, entertainment, resorts, a water park and more are added.
2026+ Dreamer-In-Chief Dolly Parton passed away in 2026. Herschend plans to honor her legacy with new experiences that will honor her love for the people and places of the Great Smoky Mountains.

Transportation

The entrance to Big Bear Mountain roller coaster at Dollywood.

Flying is the fastest way to get to Dollywood (depending on where you’re coming from of course) but which airport should you land at? You really only have one option if you want to be close to Dollywood and that is TYS. Now if you want to take the scenic route and capture the natural beauty of the Great Smoky Mountains then driving might just be for you. We’ve done both from Florida and prefer flying but are glad we got to go through the mountains while driving. We even made some friends along the way!

A timeline of Dollywood. Source Dollywood.

However, if you want to celebrate more of Dolly Parton then just Dollywood you may want to consider BNA because that is near Dolly Parton’s SongTeller Hotel and Dolly’s Tennessean Travel Stop. Those attractions are hours away from Dollywood though.

If you’re staying at the Dollywood resorts you get complimentary bus trolley access to and from the parks. You can also get a rental car from TYS if you prefer. Lyft, Uber and local taxi services are also available however be warned, even if you schedule a rideshare ahead of time there are certain times of the day where they do not have enough drivers in the area and your ride will most likely be cancelled. When this happens, especially if you’re trying to make your flight home early in the morning or late at night, you’ll be forced to call a local taxi service and spend 3 to 4 times as much as you would on a Lyft/Uber.

Don’t ask how we know this…

Attractions

A timeline of Dollywood. Source Dollywood.