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- Dolly Parton's Dollywood amusement park in Tennessee has more than just roller coasters.
- The Dollywood Express provides a gentle train ride with views of the Great Smoky Mountains.
- There are also lots of live musical performances, restaurants, shops, and hands-on activities.
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You can barely walk a few steps at Dollywood without hearing live music playing.
Notable musical offerings include Southern gospel quartet The Kingdom Heirs, who have performed at Dollywood for 37 years, and Harmonies of the Heart, a show featuring Parton's nieces and cousin as they sing and share memories of growing up with "Aunt Granny."
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The Dollywood Express steam trains are unique relics of World War II, having transported troops and lumber across Alaska during World War II.
Two trains function as The Dollywood Express today. Cinderella was built in 1938, followed by Klondike Katie in 1943. They were retired to Tennessee in 1960.
The gentle train ride offers views of the park as well as the surrounding Great Smoky Mountains.
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Craftsman's Valley hearkens back to a time when settlers in the Tennessee mountains relied on the knowledge and skill of local artisans to make everyday items.
Parkgoers can make their own knives at the Blacksmith and Foundry, hand-dip candles at Old Flames Candles, or create a custom glass ornament at Mountain Blown Glassblown.
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Dollywood has an array of menus and eateries to choose from, many of which contain subtle references to Parton's family. The retro diner Red's Drive-In is named after Red's Café, the restaurant where Parton's father took her to eat her first hamburger, and Aunt Granny's restaurant gets its name from Parton's nickname with her nieces and nephews.
But if you eat one thing at Dollywood, make it the $10 cinnamon bread sold at The Grist Mill. Baked fresh daily, the pull-apart loaves are soaked in butter and cinnamon-sugar before baking. Each one comes with dipping sauces of buttercream icing and apple butter.
It's such an iconic treat that Dollywood gift shops even sell t-shirts that read "I'm just here for the cinnamon bread."
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The American Eagle Foundation maintains a 30,000-square-foot aviary at Dollywood for permanently disabled birds that wouldn't survive in the wild.
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Parton's brother Bobby built the Dollywood replica, and her mother Avie Lee designed and furnished the interior with real family heirlooms.
The log cabin had no electricity or running water, but Parton remembered her years there fondly in her 1973 song "My Tennessee Mountain Home."
"In my Tennessee mountain home / Life is as peaceful as a baby's sigh / In my Tennessee mountain home / The crickets sing in the fields nearby," she sings.
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Shops at Dollywood sell copies of Parton's books, as well as mementos like mugs, t-shirts, and magnets.
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Dollywood's Smoky Mountain Summer Celebration features line dancing at sunset followed by a drone show, during which drones fly through the air, change colors, and create shapes in the sky.
The amusement park also hosts a fall Harvest Festival, a winter Smoky Mountain Christmas celebration, and a spring Flower and Food Festival.
8 things to do at Dolly Parton's Dollywood amusement park if you hate roller coasters
Source: Kalayaan News
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