Dollywood Receives “Best Shows” Award From The Golden Ticket

Dollywood took home its first-ever trophy for Best Shows and claimed a second consecutive win for Best Christmas Event at the 2009 Golden Ticket Awards ceremony on Sept. 10, 2009, at LEGOLAND California in Carlsbad.

Dollywood was a finalist in four additional categories, taking third place honors for Friendliest Park and Cleanest Park and fourth place honors for Best Food and Best Water Ride for the Mountain Slidewinder. Dollywood’s Thunderhead, twice named the number one wooden coaster in the world, placed fifth in the rankings of Top 50 Wooden Roller Coasters in the World.

“Congratulations to all of the Golden Ticket Award winners and the finalists on their well-deserved honors,” says Gary Slade, publisher and editor-in-chief of Amusement Today. “The competition is friendly, but the voting is becoming tighter every year. It’s fun to see parks and attractions the world over vying for a Golden Ticket Award, which truly recognizes superior quality in all facets of the amusement industry.”

The Golden Ticket Awards are presented to the “best of the best” in the amusement industry and calculated from an international poll conducted by Amusement Today magazine. Surveys were sent to a database of experienced and well-traveled amusement park fans around the world–in balanced geographical regions–asking them to rate the “bests” in 25 categories such as amusement parks, roller coasters, shows, friendliest staff and water rides.

Amusement Today newspaper covers international amusement and water park news and trends and in its 13-year history is a five-time winner of various awards from the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions.

Dollywood is a 150-acre family adventure park in Pigeon Forge, Tenn. Open nine months a year (March 28, 2009-Jan. 2, 2010), Dollywood offers more than 40 rides and attractions; award-winning live entertainment featuring country, bluegrass, gospel and mountain music; and a dozen crafters authentic to the East Tennessee region. For more information, call 1-800-DOLLYWOOD or visit the Dollywood website

The Fall is Full Activities in Sevierville

Around Sevierville fall brings more than rich golden and red leaves to the Great Smoky Mountains – it also brings the annual Harvest Fest celebration.

Sevierville, a gateway town to the Great Smoky Mountains located right next door to Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg, TN, is celebrating fall with six weeks of events, harvest decorations and fun things to do during Smoky Mountain Harvest Festival (Sept. 18-Oct. 31). Many Harvest Festival events celebrate the season as well as popular and mountain culture.

Events like Great Smoky Mountain Auto Fest (Sept. 24-26) highlight classic cars while Robert Tino’s Smoky Mountain Homecoming (Oct. 3-4) focuses on the craftsman heritage of these mountains.

The Dumplin Valley Bluegrass Festival (Sept. 17-19) brings out some of the brightest entertainers to be inspired by these mountains.

Nearby Dollywood is also a Harvest Festival must-see with thrill rides, mountain music, craftsmen and harvest foods like pumpkin bread and hot apple cider.

And don’t forget the shopping! Sevierville is famous for its shopping – from high end outlets to treasure filled flea markets and everything in between. Check out Sevierville for a fall Girlfriends Getaway and enjoy shopping, spas and great dining. Of course, while you’re shopping you can still enjoy the beauty of Harvest Festival, since even storefronts are filled with harvest decorations. Businesses throughout Sevierville put out giant scarecrows, overflowing pumpkin displays and colorful floral arrangements…providing plenty of opportunities for fun photos with family and friends.

For even more fun, visit the attractions in Sevierville. From discovering adventure in the great outdoors at attractions like Wahoo Zipline and NASCAR SpeedPark to shopping till you drop at Tanger Five Oaks Factory Outlet Center and even enjoying a delicious harvest meal at great restaurants like The Applewood Farmhouse Restaurant, there is something unique to see around every corner in Sevierville. To experience the events, fun and discovery of Harvest Festival in the Great Smoky Mountains, go to www.VisitSevierville.com or call 1-888-SEVIERVILLE (738-4378).

Dollywood Parade Brings 18 Television Stars to Parade

The ever-expanding Duggar family, stars of TLC’s “18 Kids and Counting,” is coming to Pigeon Forge May 5 –9 to explore what entertainment legend Dolly Parton and more than 10 million annual visitors already know—this Smoky Mountains town is ideal for families of all kinds.

“Just when you thought Pigeon Forge had everything, along come the Duggars,” said Mayor Keith Whaley.

At the invitation of Mayor Whaley, the Duggars will travel 750 miles from their hometown of Springdale, Ark., to participate in the upcoming Dolly Parton Homecoming Parade on May 8 and take in the many sights of this major tourist town.

The Duggar family trip to Pigeon Forge will be featured in a summer episode of “18 Kids and Counting,” which airs on TLC Tuesdays at 9 p.m. (ET/PT). Each episode chronicles the lives of an Arkansas couple, Jim Bob and Michele Duggar, and their 18 natural-born children, who range in age from four months to 21 years. The family includes two sets of twins. For more information, visit TLC.com.

Every year for the past 24 parades, thousands of Dolly Parton fans have lined a two-mile stretch of the Pigeon Forge Parkway to wave at and to be acknowledged by the entertainment superstar. Parton, of course, is the grand marshal. She is tied to the local tourism economy because of Dollywood, the theme park that is Tennessee’s most popular ticketed attraction.

This year’s Dolly Parton Homecoming Parade has special meaning because Parton is the official ambassador of the 75th anniversary of neighboring Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and the parade is expected to carry an appropriate theme.

Details of Parton’s float are a tightly held secret, a tradition throughout the parade’s history. The Duggars will ride on a float the City of Pigeon Forge has crafted for them.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park, whose nine million visitors make it the most visited of all national parks, has adopted six Pigeon Forge special events, including the parade, into its official anniversary celebration.

In days leading up to and following the parade, the family will enjoy numerous Parkway attractions during a five-day stay, including several live comedy and musical theaters, spiraling three-story go-cart tracks and North America’s only Zorb, the mountain-side free-fall inside a gigantic ball. All told, Pigeon Forge boasts more than 40 family-friendly attractions along its five-mile Parkway, making it one of the most popular tourist destinations in America.

“I guess the Duggars will make it 10 million and eighteen visitors this year,” Whaley said, “and counting.”

If You Go:

The Dolly Parton Homecoming Parade starts at 6 p.m. on May 8 near Traffic Light #6 and travels north nearly two miles to Traffic Light #3 in Pigeon Forge, Tenn. Organizers encourage visitors to arrive in Pigeon Forge early in order to acclimate to the city and find Parkway space from which to view the parade.

Map of Dolly Parton Homecoming Parade