The 10 Best Things To Do In The Great Smoky Mountains National Park With Kids

I grew up in Knoxville, Tennessee – often referred to as “The Gateway to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park” (GSMNP). As a kid, we drove the 45- minute drive to the Smoky Mountains several times a year. Some of our school events and field trips took place in and around the National Park and summers were spent hiking and exploring. In college, I worked summers at an outdoor education camp just outside the National Park and spent my time working with friends backpacking, kayaking, rock climbing and picnicking throughout the area.

Now that I’m living in Nashville with kids, I try to get my 3 girls and husband up to the park once a year or so to explore this beautiful part of the country.

Here are my 10 favorite things to do in the Great Smoky Mountains with kids:

1. Ride Bikes Through Cades Cove

Cades Cove is a valley surrounded by mountains within the National Park and is one of the most popular destinations in the Great Smokies. It offers some of the best opportunities for wildlife viewing in the park including tons of white-tailed deer and sometimes black bear, coyote, ground hog, turkey, raccoon, skunk, and more.

Every Wednesday and Saturday from mid-May to mid-September, the 11-mile Cades Cove loop road is closed to cars until 10 a.m. for walkers and bikers. You can bring your own bikes or rent them at the Cades Cove Bike Rental Shop in the Cades Cove campground. Two roads bisect at the main loop road so you can adjust your distance according to your kids’ ability. (Exit the loop at Sparks Lane to catch the loop on the way back for a 4-mile bike ride. Take Hyatt Lane for a 8-mile ride. Or ride the full 11-mile loop.)

2. View Fireflies, Butterflies & Bees (& other wildlife)

There are so many opportunities to spot wildlife in the Great Smokies and there are a few events that happened during the year that are really special. There is a species of fireflies in the park that has a magical and hypnotizing flashing pattern. The fireflies flash in unison for a two-week period in June. The best place to watch them is in the Elkmont Camp ground area from 10 pm to midnight. There are often large crowds to observe this phenomena, but everyone gets quiet when it starts and it’s pretty amazing.

Monarch butterflies have an annual migration in the park and put on a spectacular show during August through October. Watch them fly from the higher elevations in the park such as Clingman’s Dome. The butterflies love the warm weather so the best time to see them is mid-morning to late afternoon.

Check out the bee gums made from hollow black gum tree trunks and the hives at the Mountain Farm Museum, a working farm in the Oconaluftee (North Carolina) area of the park.

And keep an eye our for black bear (read what to do if you see a bear), coyote and white tailed deer, among other animals throughout the park.

3. Get A Junior Ranger Badge

The Smoky’s Junior Ranger Program has activities for several age groups. The Junior Ranger programs change seasonally and may include blacksmithing, hayrides, GPS orienteering hikes, wildlife viewing, making an old-fashioned mountain toy, learning to play the dulcimer, and hunting for salamanders among other things!

4. Hike With Kids

Here are my 5 tips for hiking with kids and our favorite kid-friendly hikes in the Smokies:

• Clingman’s Dome is the most well-known viewing spot in the park. A road (closed in winter) takes you within a half mile of the tower along the Appalachian Trail. Then a steep half-mile ramp takes you up to the highest spot in Tennessee. The ramp is steep but doable for strollers.
• Laurel Falls is an easy, paved trail, and much easier to take a stroller on. The roundtrip distance to the waterfall is 2.6 miles and the hike is considered moderate in difficulty. It takes about 2 hours to hike to the waterfall and back.
• For a quieter lookout point, head for Look Rock on the west edge of the park off of Foothills Parkway (closed in winter). Take the one- to two-mile round- trip hike (depending on where you park) to the Look Rock Tower for 360-degree views of the mountains.
• Ramsey Cascades Trail – This 8-mile round trip hike is a little longer for kids, but the waterfall at mile 4 is worth the trip. Ramsey Cascades is the tallest waterfall in the park as well as one of the most spectacular.
• The Gatlinburg Trail – The Gatlinburg Trail is an easier 4-mile hike beginning at either Gatlinburg or Sugarlands Visitor Center. This is a nice hike that allows you to explore Gatlinburg a bit but also get into the park for beautiful scenery and views.
• Mt. LaConte – The hike up to Mt. LaConte is a steep, strenuous 5.5 mile (one way) from the Alum Cave Trailhead, but the views are stunning. My husband Brad and I have hiked this trail (not yet with kids) and one of the unique aspects about the hike to Mt. LeConte is the lodge and cabins near the top of the mountain. Hikers have the option of spending the night in one of the historic cabins on the site but you’ll need to make reservations well in advance. A night atop Mt. LaConte is magical, includes amazing sunset and sunrise views along with dinner and breakfast at the LaConte lodge.

5. Go Horseback Riding

Trail riding is plentiful throughout the park and always fun to do with kids. Some stables also offer horse-drawn rides which are more accessible for small children. (Stables are closed in winter.)

Popular places to go on a guided trail ride include:

• Smoky Mountain Riding Stables
• Sugarlands Riding Stables
• Cades Cove Riding Stables in Tennessee
• The Smokemont Riding Stable in North Carolina

6. Have A Picnic

The Great Smoky Mountains have 10 formally-designated picnic areas but we love to take a picnic and stop beside a creek or in a field. While picnicking, remember that the park is bear country – there are bear-proof trash bins at each picnic areas. And, never leave anything at picnic tables or on the grills.

You can also reserve a picnic pavilion at Twin Creeks, Greenbrier, or Metcalf Bottoms for larger events, family reunions or just to have some family space.

7. Try Tubing, Wading, Kayaking Or Swimming

• There are several creeks and swimming holes throughout the park where you can wade or swim including Metcalf bottoms, Elkmont swimming hole and The Sinks.
• You can rent an inner tube and float past a waterfall in the Deep Creek of the Great Smokies.
• Head to Townsend for family-friendly tubing just outside the park borders.
• The Nantahala River is great for kayaking, rafting and canoeing. There are several outfit companies that can provide all of the equipment and supplies.

Learn more about the best water activities in the Great Smokies. Be sure to wear water shoes for all your water adventures in the Great Smokies!

8. Chase Waterfalls

Many waterfalls in the Great Smokies require only a short walk or are close to the road and we’ve found that for hikes, waterfalls are a great reward especially for kids. Here are a few with varying length of hikes for kids:

• Three falls you can drive to are Mingo Falls on the Cherokee Reservation, Place of a Thousand Drips on the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail, and Meigs Falls on Little River Road.
• In the southern section of the park near Bryson City, there are three short hiking trails to great waterfalls: Juney Whank Falls on its self-named trail (0.6 miles RT), Indian Creek Falls starting from the Deep Creek Trail, then the Indian Creek Trail (1.6 miles RT), and Tom Branch Falls on the Deep Creek Trail (0.5 miles RT).
• Laurel Falls (mentioned above) is a 2.6 mile moderate hike. It takes about 2 hours to hike to the waterfall and back.

9. Visit Dollywood

The Dollywood Theme Park in Pigeon Forge, at the base of The Great Smoky Mountains is a beloved family park in the area. Country Legend, Dolly Parton put her name on the theme park in the late eighties (previously it was called Silver Dollar City) and it transformed the town of Pigeon Forge. There is an emphasis on family, music and celebration throughout the park which makes it perfect for families and kids.

10. Indulge In The Food Of The Area

There are lots of food and southern food experiences in and around the Great Smoky Mountains National Park with kids. There are concessions at most of the camp ground sites and visitors centers. Plus, Gatlinburg has homemade taffy, caramel apples, fudge and other southern favorites. The Donut Friar in The Village is a local favorite (walking around the village is fun too). Other good eats include the Smoky Mountain Brewery, The Peddler & Pancake Pantry, and The Apple Barn.

Where to Stay

There are tons of cabins, resorts and hotels in and around the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. There’s also plenty of camping opportunities. Here are a few of our favorites:

• Cobbly Knob Cabins  
• Dollywood DreamMore Resort
• Le Conte View
• Elkmont Campground

Have you been to the Great Smoky Mountains with kids? What would you add to this list? Here are some tips for staying safe in ALL of our amazing National Parks from Loveholidays.com.

Listen to me talk more about the Great Smoky Mountains with kids on Vacation Mavens Podcast, episode 134.

Feature and Pinterest Photo Credit: GSMNP Flickr.com