Visiting Smoky Mountains National Park with Kids

We just recently visited Smoky Mountain National Park for the second time, we are so thankful to live so close to such an amazing park! I have to admit, when we first visited, I expected it to be a bigger version of all the state parks we had visited in Tennessee. But my goodness, the second our car crossed into the park, I knew I was wrong! It is huge, peaceful, and breathtaking in its own special way. The kids say it is their favorite National Park we’ve visited!

Because it is large, crosses into two states, and has multiple entrances, it can feel slightly overwhelming to plan. If you don’t have a bit of forethought to your trip, you could spend a lot of time in the car driving and possibly miss out on a parking spot to the hike you wanted to take. So I wanted to share a bit about our time there, and give some ideas of places to visit and hikes that are on the easier side.

Where to Stay

On our first visit the kids were 6 and 8, we made a very last minute decision to visit. Unable to get a campsite at such late notice, we decided to just do what most people do – stay in Gatlinburg. Wanting to avoid the crowds and chaos of Gatlinburg, but benefit from the accommodations, we chose to stay in the Hampton Inn Gatlinburg (Historic Nature Trail), right next to the Gatlinburg park entrance. We were able to be in the park within minutes of leaving the hotel and also had many restaurants within walking distance for dinner.

Our second visit was just this past week (the kids are now 8 and 10), this time we really wanted to avoid Gatlinburg altogether and try out the Townsend, TN entrance. Choosing to visit last minute again, the choices of places to stay were very limited. But we were able to find an Airbnb right in Townsend that fit us and my in-laws who joined us for this trip. When you enter Townsend, there is a large mural that claims to be ‘The Peaceful Side of the Smokies.’ Y’all, this is SO true. It had everything we needed – a small grocery store, gas stations, and some really great places to eat – but was a clean, well-kept, small town that felt just as restful as the park it sat next to.

What to Eat

We woke early each morning, having breakfast in either the hotel or our Airbnb and packed a lunch for the day in a small cooler. The park is HUGE, and there is a lot of driving between each hike or sight, so come prepared with plenty of water, snacks, and lunch! Since we had set off so early in the morning, we knew we would be back by dinner time and planned to just eat in a restaurant each evening.

Okay, I’m not gonna sugarcoat here, we didn’t like any of the restaurants that we visited in Gatlinburg, so I don’t have any suggestions. But we do have two great recommendations for the Townsend side – The Peaceful Side Social and The Abbey. Both are breweries as well. Peaceful Side has a very large outdoor area, complete with a play area for the kids! They have sandwiches, sour dough pizzas, delicious salads, and plenty of appetizers to pick from. Attached to the other end of the restaurant is Peaceful Side Creamery, serving amazing ice cream for dessert! The Abbey is also a brewery and serves very similar food, they also have specials for the day, which were delicious. It is located in an old church and is such a cool building. We sat outside in the garden area right next to the river and it was perfect!

When you are done eating at The Abbey, venture over to the Swinging Bridge down the road. It’s a very short walk and you instantly come upon the bridge. It goes over the river and is just a beautiful view. While we were there a Bald Eagle flew right over our heads and landed in the tree next to us!

Parking Passes

This was new for our second trip. Entrance to the park is free, drive around as much as you would like. BUT parking more than 15 minutes requires a paid parking pass. This cannot be substituted with any sort of America The Beautiful pass or 4th Grade Pass. You can pay $5 a day or $15 for a week, it covers the whole car and everyone in it. You can get them at the visitors centers or there we several conveniently located kiosks that you can just pull up to throughout the park. We chose to go to the new Great Smokies Welcome Center in Townsend as soon as we got into town. We purchased our parking pass, got a map, and asked the rangers all the questions we had for planning out the days ahead. The center is brand new and beautiful, with exhibits and lots of fun books, toys, shirts, and gifts.

Junior Ranger Books

If you haven’t heard of it, the Junior Ranger program is a great way to teach the kids about the park. You simply arrive at any visitors center and request one. The kids will complete the book throughout their time in the park (great for the parts in the car), and return to any ranger at any visitors center when they are done. As a reward, they’ll be sworn in as a Junior Ranger and given a Smoky Mountain badge! This has become such a fun activity for my kids, they have loved doing the books at every National Park we visit and collecting all the badges.

THINGS TO DO WITH KIDS

Nature Trail behind the Sugarlands Visitors Center – 7 minutes from Gatlinburg entrance, 41 mins from the center of Townsend

This is a short 0.7 mile hike to the small Cataract Falls. It’s a sweet trail that is perfect for any family or group with young children, it’s mostly flat and many of the trees and plants along the way are labeled. An easy add on while you wait for the visitor center to open or to do in the afternoon when everyone is lower on energy.

Laurel Falls – 15 min drive from Gatlinburg entrance, 35 minute drive from the center of Townsend

This is one of the most popular hikes in the park, and for good reason, the trail to the 80-foot waterfall is just as beautiful as the waterfall itself! At just 2.6 miles roundtrip (in and out), it’s also a hike that is a great length for most people. The parking for this hike is VERY limited. If you don’t go first thing in the morning, you risk not finding a spot. As the morning goes on people will start parking down the road and walking to the trail head, making the trail and waterfall overcrowded. When you reach the waterfall, there is a bridge to stand on that goes over it, this is how you best view the waterfall. And when too many people are there it is no longer enjoyable. We were there by 8:00 (in May when school was in session), and it was perfect. By the time we got back to the parking lot though, there were crowds of people making their way to the trailhead. So, get up early for this one, you won’t regret it! The hike itself winds around the rim of the mountain and gives amazing views.

Clingman’s Dome – 55 minutes from the Gatlinburg entrance, 1 1/2 hours from the center of Townsend

This is the highest point in the park and offers amazing views! At only 0.5 miles, many people add this to their Smoky Mountain bucket lists. And it’s totally worth it – but a word of caution – this short path is straight up and in high altitude. We showed up expecting it to be an easy little stop and it was not. It was crowded and we huffed and puffed our way up. Another stop that I would recommend doing in the morning or evening, when it’s cooler out.

Mountain Farm Museum and Mingus Mill – 57 mins from the Gatlinburg entrance, 1 1/2 hours from the center of Townsend

This is located on the eastern side of the park, right behind the Oconaluftee Visitor Center. You can explore the visitor center (get or turn in your Junior Ranger book, visit the farm and mill, and do an easy hike alongside the river that runs behind it all. If you are lucky, a chicken will join you for the hike! We still bring up the time we ‘hiked with a chicken’, who could forget!? One of the best parts of this side of the park, is that you might see an elk! There is a large field next to the visitor center and they congregate there in the mornings and evenings. We weren’t able to see any in the field when we were there, but saw them on our way back, just up the street in the river!

The Elkmont Club Cabins – 23 minutes from the Gatlinburg entrance, 39 minutes from the center of Townsend

Y’all, this is so worth visiting! We were running out of things we had planned to do and went into the visitor center to talk to Ranger John and ask for a recommendation. He said if we were looking for some adventure, to head to the Old Elkmont Cabins… Before the Smokies became a park, there was a small resort town called Elkmont. The wealthy built summer cabins and brought their families every year to stay. They recently renovated the cabins and you can now walk through them. We spent at least a hour there talking to the Ranger on site. He told the history and stories about the families that came year after year. It was truly fascinating!

When done exploring the small town, there are some beautiful trails around the area that you can just walk to. Ask a ranger to direct you to the ‘Troll Bridge’, it was like a little fairy tale town. This is a great afternoon activity as the area isn’t nearly as popular as others, so the crowds will be low and it’s mostly in the shade to help beat the heat.

Cades Cove – 55 mins from the Gatlinburg entrance, about 25 mins from the center of Townsend

This is a one-way loop that takes you through the beautiful open fields found on the western side of the park, where many bears call home. We’ve gone before lunch both times, in our first visit we saw 12 bears, on the second 5. While it’s only 11 miles long, people stop every time they see a bear, many jumping out to take pictures (that’s just part of the fun), so it can take a very long time to get through this loop – it took us about 4 hours each time. We’ve found it to be worth the time both times we’ve visited. Pack binoculars if you have them!

If you want to hike off the path, be prepared to stop, because it is a one-way street and there is no turning back. There are several old cabins and churches that you can pull over and take a short hike to. Abram Falls is also a very popular hike off the loop, but we have never done it. A little over half way around is the visitor center. Its a small place to stop and stretch, go to the bathroom, and ask a ranger any questions you may have. When we were there this past time they were teaching the kids how to weave on the porch! They both spent about an hour working hard on their own creations!

FYI – the loop is closed to vehicles on Wednesdays. Allowing pedestrians and bicyclists to have the 11 mile road to themselves. We have never done this, but it is on our bucket list!

New Found Gap & The Appalachian Trail – 28 mins from Gatlinburg entrance, 1 hour from the center of Townsend

New Found Gap is a great overlook (the drive there is also amazing), with a decent amount of parking. It’s a mountain top view, which is a great contrast to the forest hikes of Elkmont or the fields of Cades Cove. Located in the middle of the Appalachian Trail, if you feel up for a hike, you can head either way on the trail and hike a portion of it. There is restroom at this stop, so be sure to take advantage of that before leaving. We chose to hike North toward Maine. The hike follows the ridges and offers great views along the way. It is covered in rocks and roots, so it’s considered moderate to difficult, but that is part of the beauty. My kids prefer trails like this and had no problems with it. (Heading north it’ll be uphill on your way in and down hill on your way back out.) We walked for about an hour and felt we got a good hike in before wanting to turn around and head back. We saw salamanders along the damp rocks and stopped to listen to some of the birds while eating a quick snack. This would be a good afternoon hike, we passed plenty of people, but not so many that it was crowded. But being in the higher altitude, it was nice a cool (and mostly shaded).

Anthony Creek Trail

This is a longer trail that connects to others, but we just went as far in as we felt like and then turned around. The easiest way to hike with kids! It’s located in the Cade’s Cove Picnic Area, just at the end of the Cade’s Cove loop. After looping through Cade’s Cove, we stopped here for a picnic (plenty of picnic tables and parking) and to use the restroom – then hit the trail!

This trail was uphill, but not strenuous, and followed Anthony Creek and its cascading river. There were no mountain views, but it was a beautiful walk through the forest. We saw some crazy things on this trail – a huge snail eating a millipede (did you know they were carnivores?!), a rattlesnake eating a squirrel (gross, but cool because it was shaking it rattle at us but couldn’t bite us because it had a squirrel halfway in its mouth), and a sad rock. Very eventful!

Picnic at Chimney’s Picnic Area – 15 minutes from the Gatlinburg entrance, 47 minutes from the center of Townsend

Located between Sugar Land Visitor Center and New Found Gap, this is a somewhat central location. It has bathrooms, and plenty of picnic tables. Each table has its own area and parking space. If you can, I highly recommend finding a spot on the river. We had our picnic and then the kids spent hours in the river, playing and splashing. The river in this area is very full of downed trees and huge rocks or boulders, so a lot of climbing is involved. And it’s possible to play in the river without getting wet because there are so many dry places to step. They found a boulder with a clump of trees on it that was magical and played there until it was time to leave. It’s a great place to rest and recoup after a hike! (I read my book while they played, it was lovely!)

I hope that this will make visiting the Smokies a little easier for you all. Words and pictures just can’t come close to describing the beauty and grace of this great park. It’s one of our favorites for sure!