If you're planning to visit Smoky Mountains National Park, Sevierville, Tennessee, is a good base from which to explore the park and surrounding area. The town of Sevierville is located just a few minutes from the park's main entrance, and you'll find plenty of RV options here, running the gamut from family style parks to high-end resorts catering to retired folks.
Public RV Parking
Camping right in Great Smoky Mountains National Park offers the quickest access to park activities and attractions and is a good option if you want to be as close to nature as possible. The majority of sites are first-come, first-served, but a limited number of semi-developed sites can be reserved between Memorial and Labor Day. If you don't have a reservations, you should arrive early in the morning to improve your chances of getting an RV site. You can choose from primitive, equestrian or developed camping, although you should keep in mind that even developed sites do not have electric hookups, and there are no shower facilities in the park.
Private RV Parks
You'll find dozens of RV parks in and around Sevierville. Private RV parks tend to offer more amenities and services than their public counterparts, meaning that families with young children or fussier campers might be happier at a privately owned and operated RV park. At the River Plantation RV park, you can enjoy amenities such as complimentary Wi-Fi, a playground, sports and games, two swimming pools and hot tubs and golf cart rentals. At the Foothills RV Park and Cabins, you'll find amenities such as a swimming pool, complimentary Wi-Fi and a laundromat. Lastly, at the Pine Mountain RV Park, you can enjoy similar amenities plus cable TV hookups and a snack bar.
RV Camping Considerations
Smoky Mountains National Park is one of the country's most-visited parks so it's no surprise that campgrounds are often booked solid up to six months in advance, particularly between mid-October and November, when the fall foliage is at its best. If you plan to hike, bike or participate in outdoor sports, be sure to lather on the sunscreen, wear bug repellent and bring plenty of drinking water with you. Early spring and winter offer fewer crowds and lower prices, so if you can visit outside high season, it's well worth it.
Water Sports
Mountain rivers mean that white-water rafters are in luck. The Little Pigeon River is the perfect site to take a white-water rafting tour or go kayaking or tubing. If motorized water sports, such as water-skiing, boating and Jet Skiing, are more your thing, head to Lake Douglas. If you would rather spend the day fishing, area creeks, streams and rivers are home to trout, catfish, crappie and smallmouth and largemouth bass.
Land Recreation
If land recreation is more your style, you'll definitely want to head to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, where you can enjoy more than 800 trails of hiking and multiuse trails, plus hundreds more miles of "primitive" or non-maintained trails. Biking can be dangerous in the park because of motorized vehicles and narrow, twisty roads, but if you have your heart set on biking in the park, the Cades Cove Loop Road is a safe, family friendly bikes-only trail. Take the whole family to the Ober Gaitlinburg Ski Resort and Amusement Park, a Mecca for winter sports, arcade games and water slides.
Member Comments