June 15, 2024
This blog was written by PR Intern Ali Burleson.
Finally, school is out, the weather is perfectly warm and summertime has arrived! What better way to kick off this season of fun than with a family vacation to Dollywood for our Smoky Mountain Summer Celebration presented by Food City (June 15 – Aug. 11).
We've pulled out all the stops for you to make this summer a memorable one. A celebration is never complete without brand-new, mouth-watering food and beverage offerings and thrilling lineups of special, new and guest-favorite entertainment adventures.
With refreshing ways to play and inspiring bursts of summer color, surprises await around every sun-kissed corner. Here are the Top 10 reasons to plan your trip to attend Dollywood’s Smoky Mountain Summer Celebration.
Summer’s best moments come to life on the streets of Jukebox Junction as you're invited to join in with the cast on a high-energy dance party, jiving to familiar favorites such as “Singing in the Rain” and “Splish Splash.”
Dollywood’s Smoky Mountain Summer Celebration is coming in hot this year with new entertainment performances like The Perondi’s Stunt Dog Experience (June 15 – July 13) and Phat Cat Swinger (July 15 – Aug. 11). Don’t miss the entertaining canine production, The Perondi’s Stunt Dog Experience; these pup-stars soar, jump, fly and spin, showcasing flying disc routines, dog dances, high jump, agility races and more canine capers. Later in the festival, the Pine Theater transforms to a classic Hollywood experience as the Phat Cat band brings sounds, songs and showmanship that will have you in a consistent state of swinging and singing.
Dollywood also is filled with lots of other summer entertainment offerings, including the Imagination Playhouse, Dolly’s Tennessee Mountain Home Experience and Parachute Play in Country Fair, as well as Dollywood’s Guest-favorite shows: the Kingdom Heirs, Forever Country, Smoky Mountain String Band, Wings of America, Heidi Parton’s Kin & Friends, The Tones and Wild Roots Band.
We couldn’t burst your bubble! The Gazillion Bubble Show, a one-of-a-kind Dollywood favorite, has returned this summer for the whole family to enjoy, delivering a mesmerizing burst of excitement as millions, billions, even gazillions of bubbles envelop the entire air-conditioned Celebrity Theater.
When the Smoky Mountain sun goes down, Dollywood fun doesn’t have to come to an end just yet. Beneath the Wildwood Tree in the Grove, cap off the evening with two different DJ-led dance parties. Before the day’s fun completely ends, we have a spectacular firework and drone show to light up the Dollywood night and dazzle dreamers of all ages. Combining 500 high-tech drones with large, vibrant fireworks, the Sweet Summer Nights drone & fireworks show conveys a unique Dollywood story through 3D animations and a symphony of light.
The Smoky Mountain Summer Celebration features the radiant Kite Sky for picturesque moments in the shade with bright colors of orange, yellow and white in a suspended arrangement above Showstreet. Kite Sky isn’t the only place to capture a photo; two new colorful overhead photo opportunities include Bright Sunshiny Day, located across from Hickory House BBQ, and the Sky of Many Colors, positioned next to Back Porch Theater.
At the entrance to Wildwood Grove, you can whirl and spin to their hearts’ delight on Los Trompos, spinning tops made from stretched fabric. Country Fair is the new home to the ever-popular Bubble Foam Zone, a place of play for families in America’s largest bubble foam pit. Other interactive experiences of fun include Jumbo Backyard Games and Noodle Takeover.
Our culinary team has cooked up new, season-inspired offerings of sugar and spice while everything tastes a little extra nice! The best way to ensure a taste of them all is with a tasting pass, which includes five food and beverage offerings for one price. You can purchase the tasting pass online or in the park for $39.99 plus tax or $36.99 plus tax for gold and diamond passholders. The delicious menu features specialty items such as the Apple Cider Pork Sandwich, Pinto Bean Nachos, Summer Showers Cupcake, Fruit Crunch Funnel Cake and many others.
The summer celebration never ends at Dollywood Parks & Resorts. Guests of both Dollywood’s DreamMore Resort and Spa and Dollywood’s HeartSong Lodge & Resort can enjoy festival-inspired elements of live entertainment, fun-filled crafts and family activities, among many others. Be on the lookout for days that Camp DW hosts pop-up pool parties with games and ice-cold popsicles to cool down during the hot summer day. Indoor fun includes magnet and postcard painting, stuffie making and more, also available on select days. At HeartSong Lodge & Resort, you can cool off with a refreshing Strawberry Lemonade daily.
Step into the captivating world of all things Dolly at the park’s newest attraction: The Dolly Parton Experience. This immersive journey follows our Dreamer-in-Chief’s life and legendary career from Locust Ridge to the significant milestones along the way. Through three distinct exhibits — Songteller, Behind the Seams and Precious Memories — you can trace Dolly’s roots while exploring all the people, places and things that shaped the Smoky Mountain girl we know and love today.
Ready to make more than a splash, maybe even some waves, this summer? Dollywood’s Splash Country hosts Too Hot Tuesdays with DJ Eric B and Too Chill Thursdays with DJ Dre at the Mountain Waves pool weekly. On Saturdays, local bands from various genres join in on the fun to provide music and entertainment throughout the day. A summer at Dollywood’s Splash Country is celebrated with slippery slides, flavorful foods, music that’ll make you move, and above all else, memories that will last a lifetime.
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