Dollywood Do's & Don'ts: What I Learned Visiting Over Labor Day Weekend

I love Dollywood.

But, like any other theme park, Dollywood is one of those places where a little strategy can make the difference between a fantastic day and a day where you are rethinking all your life choices after spending multiple hours in one line.

After our recent Labor Day weekend trip to Pigeon Forge, where we visited both Splash Country and Dollywood, I came home with some opinions. And, more importantly, some DOs and DON'Ts that can help you spend less time standing in line, less time trekking back and forth across the park, and more time actually enjoying your Dollywood trip.

The faces behind the opinions. 😂 Our family has been visiting Dollywood for years, and after our latest Labor Day weekend trip, I came home with a few more things to add to my list of Dollywood do’s and don’ts.

DO: Give Yourself Two Days If You Can

You CAN do Dollywood in one day, but just because you can doesn't mean you should.

Dollywood is a big park, and trying to see and do everything in a single day can quickly turn your vacation into a "Mission: Impossible". Giving yourself two days means you can move through the park at a more leisurely pace, take breaks when you need them, enjoy the food and entertainment, and still hit your must-do rides without feeling like you're racing the clock.

It also gives you some flexibility when real life happens. On weekends, especially holiday weekends, crowds may be heavier than expected. A ride may temporarily go down, the weather may change, or you may simply need a break from walking Dollywood's hilly terrain.

If your Pigeon Forge itinerary allows for it, I think two Dollywood days is the sweet spot.

Dollywood isn't just about the rides. The Robert F. Thomas Chapel in Craftsman's Valley is named for the Sevier County doctor who delivered Dolly Parton and still hosts Sunday worship services. Little stops like this can take more time than you expect, and they're one more reason I love having two days to slow down and actually explore the park.

DO: Take the Tram

Dollywood's parking lots are BIG, and you are about to spend an entire day walking up and down the hills of East Tennessee. There is absolutely no reason to start adding unnecessary steps before you even make it through the gates.

Take the tram. It's free. It's easy. And the Dollywood tram attendants are a wonderful first experience into the park. The trams continuously transport guests between the parking areas and the park entrance, and at the end of the day, they'll get you back to the parking lot close to where you parked, which feels particularly wonderful when your feet have officially had enough Dollywood for one day.

MRS. PIE PRO TIP: When you park, try to choose a spot toward the front of your tram stop. When the tram brings you back at the end of the day, you'll exit near the front of the tram pickup area. Parking strategically in the morning can mean a much shorter walk to your car when you return.

It seems like such a tiny thing at 9 a.m. At 8 p.m.? You'll be very pleased with Morning You. 😂

MRS. PIE PRO TIP: Park toward the front of your tram stop if you can. When the tram brings you back at the end of the day, you'll walk toward the front of the pickup area to get to your car. A little strategic parking in the morning can save tired feet a few extra steps later!

DON'T: Assume Holiday Weekend Crows Will Be Consistent

Our latest trip took place over Labor Day weekend, and the difference between Sunday and Monday was wild. Sunday was really crowded. By sharp contrast, Labor Day Monday was shockingly quiet.

Don't assume every day of a holiday weekend will behave the same way just because they're part of the same weekend. Our experience seemed to suggest that many visitors packed the park on Saturday and Sunday, then used Monday as their travel day.

Because we're close enough to drive home after a day in the park, we used that to our advantage. We spent Monday at Dollywood and headed home afterward, and it paid off! With the weekend crowds largely gone, we made it through our entire must-do list between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m.

For comparison, Sunday was a completely different experience. We spent more than four hours waiting for a single attraction that day.

Same holiday weekend. Same park. Two completely different days.

I wouldn't plan a trip assuming Labor Day Monday will always be this quiet, but I absolutely wouldn't write off the holiday itself as a park day, either.

That eagle means you've made it! 🦅 One of my favorite little arrival moments at Dollywood and your first reminder that you're officially in Dolly's corner of East Tennessee.

DON’T: Let a Long Queue Take Over Your Day

At the time of our visit, NightFlight Expedition had only been open for a few weeks, and we really wanted to ride it. After about an hour and a half in line, we made the conscious decision to tough it out. We had another full Dollywood day ahead of us, we'd made it into the indoor, air-conditioned portion of the queue, and most importantly, we wanted to ride the brand-new ride.

So we committed.

Nearly four hours later, we finally boarded. I'm glad we got to experience NightFlight, but by the time we got off, we were all miserable and ready to leave the park.

If I had that day to do over again? I would have skipped it and tried again on a future visit.

Part of the problem was that we never really knew how much longer we had. The queue winds through multiple areas and buildings, and every time we thought we had to be getting close, we discovered another section. Had we known how much line was actually ahead of us, we would have bailed much earlier.

MRS. PIE PRO TIP for NightFlight Expedition: If the queue is already extending outside when you arrive, I wouldn't bother unless NightFlight is one of your absolute top priorities.

Even on a day with so much waiting and some very long lines, I was incredibly thankful for the good attitudes from my boys. Theme park days don't always go according to plan, but these two rolled with it... and that made a long day a good one anyway. 💙

DO: Know Your Must-Do Rides Before You Enter

Dollywood is not the park where I would recommend showing up with absolutely no plan and deciding everything as you go. The park is large and hilly, and backtracking can add to your step count very quickly. (And trust me, you're not going to need any help getting your steps in!)

Before you arrive, figure out which rides and attractions are true must-dos for your family. We downloaded the Dollywood app ahead of our trip and created a favorites list, which made it much easier to check wait times and make quick decisions once we were inside the park.

You don't need an hour-by-hour itinerary. Know your priorities, then give yourself enough flexibility to adjust as the day unfolds.

Another reason to slow down and actually look around Dollywood: little tributes like this are tucked throughout the park. This memorial honors firefighters and the work they do to protect their communities - a good reminder that there's plenty worth stopping for between the rides.

DO: Know Where to Find Accessibility Resources

If someone in your group may need accommodations during your visit, Dollywood has a Ride Accessibility Center near the park entrance. The center is there to help guests understand available accessibility accommodations, ride requirements, and boarding procedures. Even if you aren't sure whether you'll need assistance, it's worth knowing the resource exists before you arrive.

This is also near the area where children can be measured and receive a height wristband, so you'll know which rides they're tall enough for before you start making your way through the park. If you're visiting with younger kids, taking care of that at the beginning of the day can save you from repeatedly checking height requirements at individual attractions.

Accessibility needs are individual, so check Dollywood's current accessibility information before your trip and stop by the center with any questions specific to your party.

If someone in your group may need accommodations or if you have kids who need to be measured before riding, make this one of your first stops. Dollywood's Ride Accessibility Center and Ride Height Measuring Center are conveniently located together near the entrance, so you can get the information you need before heading farther into the park.

DO: Plan Around Geography

Dollywood is big, hilly, and not the place you want to spend your day unnecessarily criss-crossing. Once you're in an area of the park, take advantage of being there. One of the great things about Dollywood is that it's broken up into distinct sections that I like to think of as little “neighborhoods.” Instead of looking at the park as one giant to-do list, I like to think of our day as spending a little time in each neighborhood before moving on to the next.

My personal favorite route is to start in Wildwood Grove. This is where you'll find some of the newer rides that tend to draw longer waits. My family likes to hit Big Bear Mountain, Dragonflier, and the Great Tree Swing early in the day before wait times increase. Then we make our way toward Craftsman's Valley, usually just in time for everyone to need a snack.

MRS. PIE PRO TIP: This is where your must-do list and the Dollywood app work together for a successful day. Check wait times for attractions near where you already are rather than chasing a slightly shorter line all the way across the park.

You absolutely don't need to follow my exact route. Chart your own path! Just make sure that path doesn't have you climbing the same hill three extra times because a wait dropped by ten minutes somewhere else. Your feet will thank you.

Download the Dollywood app before you go. Seriously! Do this before you're standing at the park entrance. You can use it to check current wait times, view the park map, find rides, restaurants, shops, and entertainment, and keep track of the attractions your family wants to prioritize. We created our favorites list before our trip, which made it much easier to make decisions once we were actually in the park. MRS. PIE PRO TIP: Don't let the app run your day. Use those live wait times to make smart choices where you already are, not as a reason to hike across Dollywood every time a number drops by ten minutes.

DO: Use Quick-Service Food Strategically

We are not big sit-down-theme-park-meal people, especially when it's hot. For us, quick-service meals and snacks work much better because we can eat when we're hungry without structuring a big chunk of our park day around a meal. And at Dollywood, the snacks deserve some attention anyway.

Obviously, we need to talk about the cinnamon bread. If you've somehow made it this far in life without hearing about Dollywood's cinnamon bread, consider this your official Cruise with PIE notice: GET THE CINNAMON BREAD. Warm, gooey, pull-apart cinnamon bread is basically a Dollywood attraction in its own right, and grabbing a loaf gives everyone an excellent excuse to sit down for a few minutes and recover before heading to the next neighborhood. I have LITERALLY considered buying a Dollywood ticket just to get inside and get cinnamon bread before. In Tennessee, I swear it's such a tradition that if you have family that visits Dollywood and doesn't bring a loaf (with extra icing) back for you, you are within your rights to question if they actually love you.

But my sleeper hit? The piña colada ICEE. HOLY. MOLY.

On a hot Dollywood day, that cold piña colada ICEE lives rent-free in my head in between every one of our visits. (They also serve them at Splash Country!) I am not saying you should plan your entire route around an ICEE, because I literally just told you not to criss-cross Dollywood unnecessarily, BUT if you happen to see the piña colada ICEE?

🤚🛑Get the piña colada ICEE.

For actual food, quick-service spots are scattered throughout the park, so we usually choose something wherever we already happen to be rather than making food a separate mission. One of our favorite stops is Iron Horse Pizza in Country Fair. It's an easy crowd-pleaser when everyone wants something familiar, and it fits easily into our route as we make our way through the park.

The goal is to let meals, snacks, cold drinks, and the occasional cinnamon-bread-induced food coma become natural breaks in your day - not another attraction you have to plan your entire afternoon around.

Eat where you are. Sit down while you do it. And never underestimate the restorative powers of sugar and air conditioning.

Quick-service spots like Splinter’s Trailside Snacks make it easy to grab food or a cold drink without turning lunch into an event. Our strategy is simple: eat where you already are, enjoy the break, and then keep exploring.

DON’T: Waste Prime Morning Time Getting Coffee Off-Site

Pigeon Forge is a little peculiar when it comes to Starbucks. There isn't a traditional stand-alone location along the Parkway; instead, you'll find Starbucks tucked inside places like grocery stores, hotels, and The Island.

On our first Dollywood morning, I personally donated more than 40 minutes of my life waiting on a Starbucks order inside Food City, even after placing my order on the app before we even left our hotel. My projected 8 minute wait became 48 minutes. That put us behind schedule getting to the park, which meant arriving later than we planned, and on a busy holiday weekend, those early morning minutes mattered.

Learn from me.

The next morning, we went straight to Dollywood and got our caffeine fix at Spotlight Bakery, just inside the park entrance. They serve Starbucks Pike Place Roast with caramel and vanilla flavoring available, plus sugar, Splenda, and creamer. You're not getting a full Starbucks menu or your highly customized espressos or lattes here, but if what you really need is coffee in your body so you can go ride roller coasters, they've got you covered.

We grabbed coffee and kept moving. And the caffeine monster was put to bed.

And if you're planning your whole weekend, not just your Dollywood day, I've got more thoughts on where to stay, tips and tricks, what worked well for our family, what we wouldn't do again, and the best way to structure your weekend getaway in my Pigeon Forge Family Weekend Guide.

When you see the Grist Mill, you know you're getting close to the good stuff. 🤤 Follow the smell of warm cinnamon and prepare to make excellent decisions involving bread and extra icing.

DO: Break Up Your Dollywood Days

If you're planning to visit both Dollywood and Splash Country during the same trip, I wouldn't put your two Dollywood days back-to-back if you can avoid it.

My ideal setup is:

Dollywood → Splash Country → Dollywood

Dollywood is a lot of walking, a lot of hills, and a lot of time on your feet. Splash Country is still a full park day, but it gives you a completely different pace in the middle, especially if you have a retreat or cabana where everyone can actually sit down, cool off, and regroup.

Then, when you head back to Dollywood the next day, you're not starting the morning already feeling yesterday's 20,000 steps in your soul. There is a practical benefit, too. That second Dollywood day gives you another chance at anything you missed the first time around because of crowds, weather, ride closures, or a line you wisely decided wasn't worth sacrificing half your day to.

Think of Splash Country as the intermission between your two Dollywood acts. You still get three full park days, but the rhythm of the trip is so much better.

If you're doing both parks, this is my favorite way to structure it: Dollywood → Splash Country → Dollywood. Splash Country gives you a completely different pace in between two big Dollywood days, and a retreat like this makes for an especially nice place to sit down, cool off, and give those Dollywood legs a break. 💦

My Ideal Dollywood Strategy

From visiting to Dollywood throughout my entire life and especially after our most recent trip, this is my overall ideal strategy:

Give me two days at Dollywood. Get there early. Know your family's must-do rides before you arrive, then work your way through the park geographically instead of chasing wait times from one end of Dollywood to the other.

And if we're visiting Splash Country on the same trip?

Dollywood → Splash Country → Dollywood. 

And always remember: The plan should serve your family. Your family should not have to serve the plan.

This is why I keep talking about geography! 😂 Dollywood is spread across several distinct areas (or “neighborhoods,” as I like to think of them) and those hills between them are very real. Pick your priorities, use the app, and work your way through the park instead of chasing wait times from one side to the other. Your feet will thank you.

A Personal Note About Dolly

I would be remiss to write this much about Dollywood without talking about Dolly herself.

I grew up in the Tennessee mountains, and Dolly Parton has always felt like more than a celebrity to me. Her music, her story, her love for these mountains and the people who live here, she has simply always been ours.

Dolly passed away just before this trip, one day before what would have been my Pa's birthday. In the days that followed, I found myself holding onto the thought that maybe she got there just in time to sing “Happy Birthday” to him. I know that's sentimental. It also helped.

And if I'm telling the truth, I boohooed my way through parts of Dollywood that weekend.

There was something deeply comforting about being there, surrounded by people who loved her too. We stopped at the memorial near the entrance. I walked through the places that tell her story differently than I ever had before. I bought way too much Coat of Many Colors merch.

I didn't expect a theme park visit to become part of my grieving process.

But it did.

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Dollywood has always been a joyful place for our family. On this trip, it was something else, too. It was a place where I could miss Dolly, miss my Pa, cry when I needed to, laugh with my family, eat cinnamon bread, listen to music, and be surrounded by people who understood why losing this woman felt so personal to so many of us.

Maybe that's part of what Dolly gave East Tennessee in the first place: a place that feels like home, even when your heart hurts.

I'm really grateful we went and even more so when we did. 🦋

THE ULTIMATE DOLLYWOOD DO'S

We've talked strategy. We've talked crowds, coffee, food, and how not to spend half your day hiking back and forth across a mountain.

And, most importantly, we talked about DOLLY.

Forever our Tennessee Queen. 🦋

Forever our Tennessee Queen.

But this is Dollywood, and at some point we need to dry our tears, stop strategizing, and talk about the FUN STUFF.

So, in no particular order, these are the Cruise with PIE Ultimate Dollywood DO’s - the rides, treats, and experiences that our family keeps coming back to EVERY time.

In case the multiple loaves didn't sufficiently demonstrate our commitment to Dollywood cinnamon bread... the boys won cinnamon bread plushies in Country Fair. And yes, I got one too. 🤤 Apparently we don't just eat the cinnamon bread now. We bring it home as a member of the family.

DO ride Big Bear Mountain. This is one of our family's absolute favorites. It's fast and exciting without being an enormous, terrifying coaster, which makes it one of those rare rides that can be a genuine whole-family favorite. We usually head toward Wildwood Grove early specifically because Big Bear Mountain is high on our must-do list, and wait lines tend to increase quickly for this fan favorite.

DO ride Dragonflier. Another Wildwood Grove favorite and one we NEVER skip. It's smooth, fast, and just thrilling enough. If Big Bear Mountain is already part of your plan, Dragonflier absolutely deserves a spot right beside it. (This one is my actual favorite.)

DO get on the Great Tree Swing. We rode this four times in a row last time. Our kiddos LOVE this ride, and it rarely has a long line, if a line at all.

DO ride Star Shooter. Sometimes the smaller rides are the ones that become family traditions. Star Shooter is one of ours. Not every Dollywood favorite has to be the newest, biggest, or most talked-about attraction in the park to be a family favorite! This one also sees us multiple times every trip.

DO ride the Waltzing Swinger. Classic theme-park joy. There's something about flying around on swings with the Smoky Mountains around you that just feels exactly right at Dollywood. This ride has been at Dollywood since I was a child, and it's something I look forward to every time I visit.

DO see the replica of Dolly's Tennessee Mountain Home. Dollywood isn't just a collection of rides, and this is one of those places that reminds you of that. Walk through the replica of the little cabin where Dolly grew up and take a minute to appreciate the story behind the woman whose name is on the park. For me, this is part of what makes Dollywood feel distinctly different from other theme parks.

One of my favorite non-ride stops at Dollywood: the Tennessee Mountain Home, a replica of Dolly Parton's childhood home in the Great Smoky Mountains. Take the time to walk through it. It's a small piece of Dolly's story that helps explain so much about the heart behind Dollywood. 🦋

DO stop for some live music. In addition to nonstop rides, Dollywood has a FULL show schedule. At nearly every time of day, there's a show happening somewhere nearby, and you don't want to miss it. The caliber of live music at Dollywood is genuinely incredible; I've watched performers there who could walk onto the Grand Ole Opry stage and fit right in. And with Dolly's own family among the musicians who have performed throughout the park, the music feels like an important part of what makes Dollywood Dollywood. Do yourself a favor: sit down, cool off, and take in a show. That's part of the Dollywood experience, too.

DO get the cinnamon bread - with extra icing. Yes, I already devoted an unreasonable amount of this article to cinnamon bread. And I mean every word. Get the loaf... and another loaf. Get the extra icing. Enjoy one loaf there in the park, and take the other back to the hotel or cabin with you. And if you're anything like us, the second loaf will get eaten at the hotel, necessitating a second Dollywood day and a second stop for two more loaves.

DO get the piña colada ICEE. I ALSO ALREADY TOLD YOU THIS. 🤚🛑

Get. The. Piña. Colada. ICEE.

And NightFlight Expedition? I am still recovering. Ask me again next trip. 😂

From one East Tennessee girl who loves Dolly to another: I hope these tips help you spend a little less time worrying about the plan and a lot more time enjoying Dollywood. 🦋

XOXO, PIE