Dollywood is in the home stretch of its 2023 operating season, with the Golden Ticket-winning Smoky Mountain Christmas event in full swing through January 6th. Dollywood Parks and Resorts recently held a virtual press event to highlight some of the fun in store through the rest of the year and into the 2024 season.
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Dollywood 2024 Season Highlights
When Dollywood Parks and Resorts returns from its short winter’s nap, there will be lots of new experiences to attract first-time visitors and bring returning guests back. The Dolly Parton Experience will welcome the country music superstar’s biggest fans into an interactive world that’s all about Dolly, and the return of the I Will Always Love You Music Festival, along with all the seasonal Dollywood staples, will help make 2024 an unforgettable year.
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What’s New in 2024
- The Dolly Parton Experience is expected to open next May in Dollywood Park, just in time for the busy summer season. Three-times larger than the former Chasing Rainbows Museum, the new experience also brings Dolly’s timeless story into the 21st century with state-of-the-art interactive elements. The experience will be broken up into three themes:
- Songteller – A digital experience about Dolly Parton’s most personal songs and the stories that inspired them.
- Behind the Seams – A look into the fabulous, rhinestoned costumes that have defined every era of Dolly Parton’s life and career.
- Precious Memories – A more personal look into Dolly’s family life.
- The return of the “I Will Always Love You Music Festival” at Dollywood Park, which debuted in 2023 to celebrate the song’s 50th anniversary. New entertainment is planned for the festival’s sophomore year:
- A Trio Tribute Show, inspired by Dolly’s memorable collaborations with Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris.
- A new show about Dolly Parton’s life, told through her songs, that will be performed in the Celebrity Theater.
- A Dolly Parton Sing-Along show that invites guests to join in the musical fun.
- The popular Dollywood rollercoaster Lightning Rod is receiving a tune up, with its magnetic launch system being replaced with a high-speed chain lift, which should keep it running more consistently.
- Dollywood’s Splash Country Water Park isn’t just known for its fun slides or it’s high safety standards (Jeff Ellis & Associates Platinum Award-Winning Lifeguards), but also its food. New in 2024 is a donut stand, where guests can get donuts made with funnel cake batter, dusted with icing and cinnamon sugar inspired by Dollywood’s famous cinnamon bread.
- Dollywood’s DreamMore Resort and Spa will once again play host to the Annual Winter Music Series this January and February, giving guests a reason to visit while the parks are closed. Notable performers include Aaron Tippin, T. Graham Brown, and Linda Davis, with performances held in a climate-controlled tent on the resort’s event lawn.
- The DreamMore Resort and Spa, which opened in 2015, will be receiving a refresh in spring of 2024. Guest rooms will receive new carpet, paint, lighting fixtures, and pillows, with one of the highlights being backlit bathroom mirrors. This remodel will also apply to the resort’s premium Dolly Parton Suite.
Dollywood Resorts
Dollywood’s second resort hotel, HeartSong Lodge & Resort, opened on November 3rd, joining the DreamMore Resort and Spa for on-site accommodations. Guests don’t need to be staying at the resorts in order to visit, with restaurants and unique Dolly Parton experiences available to visitors. A stop at either resort is the easiest way to get a loaf of Dollywood’s famous cinnamon bread without having to visit the park, with the confection available at the grab and go locations in both resorts, which also serve Starbucks Coffee beverages.
Benefits of Staying at DreamMore and HeartSong:
- Priority theme park access
- Complimentary Dollywood TimeSaver Pass – Comes with five expedited entries and can be upgraded to TimeSaver Plus or TimeSaver Premium passes.
- Complimentary door-to-door transportation via the Resort Trolley.
- Complimentary package delivery from shops in both parks.
- Saturday Early Entry to Dollywood or Dollywood’s Splash Country – Enter either park up to an hour early.
- Access to resort amenities, including pools, fitness centers, storytelling spots, fire pits, and family activities.
HeartSong Lodge & Resort Highlights:
- Designed to celebrate the natural beauty of the Great Smoky Mountains, most guest rooms at HeartSong have balconies offering beautiful views of undisturbed nature.
- Four-story lobby atrium with views of the Smoky Mountains and a communal fireplace.
- Nature-inspired room decor, including lightning bug lights on bathroom mirrors and a mural depicting chestnut trees, a species that Dolly’s uncle Bill Owens helped save.
- An indoor Trolly Lobby where guests can wait for the Resort Trolly.
- Restaurants
- Ember & Elm (signature restaurant – serving breakfast and dinner)
- Songbird Market (grab-and-go market – serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner)
- High Note: Casual Dining & Drink (serving lunch and dinner)
- Acoustic Lobby (exclusive private dining space filled with Dolly Parton artifacts – reservations required)
- Camp DW activities and entertainment, including storytime with books from Dolly’s Imagination Library, crafts for all ages, and smores supplies.
- Event center with conference rooms and an outdoor lawn perfect for weddings.
DreamMore Resort and Spa Highlights:
- Themed to Dolly Parton’s career, guests will find uniquely Dolly touches all over the resort, including a color palette inspired by her legendary “Coat of Many Colors,” stage-used instruments on display, and a record wall hallway to walk through Dolly Parton’s musical career.
- The spa offers massages and hair services, all in a setting designed by Dolly Parton.
- Restaurants
- Song & Hearth: A Southern Eatery (farmhouse-style – serving breakfast and dinner)
- The Lounge (serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner)
- The DM Pantry (grab-and-go market – serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner)
- Enhance your stay with two special Dolly Parton lodging experiences:
- The Dolly Parton Suite – An apartment-style penthouse on the resort’s top floor inspired by the country star’s personal style, with colors of pink, purple, gold, and plenty of rhinestone accents. The suite features high ceilings, a fireplace, and offers gorgeous views of the Smoky Mountains.
- Dolly Suite 1986 Tour Bus Experience – Stay in Dolly Parton’s actual tour bus, used between 2008 and 2022. With decor themed to a traveling band of gypsies, the bus was decorated by Dolly Parton and her sisters with hand-painted artwork on the walls, a full-size refrigerator, bunk beds, two bathrooms, plus Dolly’s private bedroom quarters. Guests will even get to enjoy some Dolly Parton artifacts on display in the walk-in closet and vanity. This experience comes with a VIP dining experience, park tickets, dinner show reservations, Pink Jeep Adventure Tours, plus a more spacious guest room at the DreamMore Resort.
Beyond Dollywood
There’s a lot to see and do around Pigeon Forge. One of the coolest ways to take in the sights of the great Smoky Mountains is with Pink Jeep Adventure Tours. Their fleet of 12 custom Jeeps take guests on curated tours of the area, with drivers pointing out historic sites before culminating in an exclusive off-road experience.
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Dinner Shows:
- Dollywood also owns several dinner shows in Pigeon Forge, all of which are just a short ride away from the parks and resorts.
- Dolly Parton's Stampede features 32 horses in a live arena show that features a rotisserie chicken dinner. During the holidays, the show is enhanced for Christmas, with a giant LED wall transforming the arena into Santa’s workshop and also transporting guests to Bethlehem for a live nativity.
- Pirates Voyage recruits guests to take sides between Blackbeard and Calico Jack as they battle it out on land and sea in a spectacle that includes pirates, mermaids, and sealions.
- Hatfields and McCoys takes the popular fabel and turns it into a show that combines music, stunts, and comedy alongside a southern barbecue meal. There’s also a holiday version of the show that plays in November and december.