Summer days and nights are ready to return to the Smokies, and summer comes home with the return of Dollywood’s Smoky Mountain Summer Celebration, kicking off later this week!
What’s Happening:
- Dollywood’s Smoky Mountain Summer Celebration presented by Food City (June 15 – Aug. 11) is where the ultimate summer vacation begins.
- Dollywood guests can enjoy all the Smoky Mountain sights, sounds and tastes, as well as the brand-new Dolly Parton Experience and returning favorite Sweet Summer Nights Dance Party and Drone Show.
- Dollywood welcomes guests of all ages to experience an authentic Smoky Mountain summer, complete with dazzling entertainment offerings and mouth-watering culinary delights. Sweet Summer Nights Dance Party and Drone Show returns to enchant and amaze. Take a look at 2021’s version of the show in our video below.
- As the sun sets, Wildwood Grove transforms with a hyped DJ and energetic dancers inviting guests of all skill and coordination to participate in the action. When the drones launch, the party takes to the sky, telling a unique Dollywood story through 3D animations, a symphony of light and an accompanying soundtrack.
- The “Gazillion Bubble Show,” returning this summer to Celebrity Theater, is a one-of-a-kind spectacular that kids (and parents) of all ages will love. The entire family will be mesmerized by bubbles of all shapes, sizes and colors, and a fantasy segment pays homage to Dolly and her Smoky Mountain history.
- This summer, the Pines Theater is home to two new shows, The Perondi’s Stunt Dog Experience (June 15 – July 13) and Phat Cat Swinger (July 15 – Aug. 11). The Perondi’s Stunt Dog Experience highlights the many talents of rescue and shelter dogs from across the country. Phat Cat Swinger performs both original music and re-imagined favorites with style, class and charisma.
- To commemorate the summer fun, guests can capture memories made together at vibrant art installations throughout the park. Kite Sky, a returning favorite photo spot, is located on Showstreet and features bright orange, yellow and white kites overhead in suspended animation. Two new colorful overhead photo opportunities include Bright Sunshiny Day, across from Hickory House BBQ, and the Sky of Many Colors, next to Back Porch Theater.
- Family-favorite interactive play opportunities abound. Guests can whirl and spin to their hearts’ delight on Los Trompos, spinning tops made from stretched fabric, at the entrance to Wildwood Grove. Others include Jumbo Backyard Games, Noodle Takeover and the ever-popular Bubble Foam Zone, now found in Country Fair.
- There’s no better way to celebrate the start of summer than with Dollywood’s award-winning entertainment. A leaky fire hydrant turns into a street-wide dance party in “Hydro Jive Junction,” and all guests are invited to sing and dance along to familiar favorites such as “Singing in the Rain” and “Splish Splash.” Landscaping specialists in Market Square become percussion performers in “Liquid Beats,” while cooling off in the garden hose fountain.
- At The Imagination Playhouse at Heartsong Theater, three classic children’s stories – books included in Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library – come to life on stage. This season, the featured musicals include “Coat of Many Colors,” “The Little Engine that Could” and “Violet the Pilot.”
- Dollywood’s culinary team has been busy crafting tasty summer treats for any palate. Guests can enjoy a flavorful Apple Cider BBQ Pork Sandwich or a creamy Bacon Mac & Cheese Pizza, then cool off with iced beverages, such as quintessential Homemade Southern Sweet Tea, Honey Raspberry Sweet Tea and Iced Boba Coffee, at seasonal culinary booths throughout the park. And no day at Dollywood is complete without a sweet treat. Dollywood chefs freshly bake delicacies like the Summer Showers Cupcake, a vanilla blue cupcake iced with a dollop of cream cheese, summery sprinkles and a sugar flower, at Spotlight Bakery. Smoky Mountain Summer Celebration Tasting Passes are available and include multiple festival offerings for one price. The tasting pass, which can be purchased online or at culinary locations throughout the park, is $39.99 plus tax or $36.99 for gold and diamond season passholders.
- The summer fun continues at Dollywood resorts. Guests of both Dollywood’s DreamMore Resort and Spa and Dollywood’s HeartSong Lodge & Resort can enjoy live entertainment, family activities and more. On select days, Camp DW will host pop-up pool parties with beach ball games and popsicles. Festival-inspired craft activities include magnet and postcard painting, stuffie making and more, also available on select days. At HeartSong Lodge & Resort, guests can cool off with a refreshing Strawberry Lemonade daily.
- Dollywood’s newest attraction, The Dolly Parton Experience, is now open. The area features a number of interactive elements, allowing guests to feel as if they were alongside Dolly as she journeyed from Locust Ridge to stages across the world.
- In Songteller, guests explore Dolly’s life in lyrics, tracing her roots from Sevier County to the bus she boarded to Nashville the day after her high school graduation. At Behind the Seams, guests can peruse a curated selection of Dolly’s style though the years and learn about her team’s creative process. Dolly’s family and friends will continue to perform at Dreamsong in “Heidi Parton’s Kin & Friends.” In the theater queue, guests can discover the importance of Dolly’s faith, friends and family in the Precious Memories exhibit.
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