Dollywood opens Saturday—Friday for Season Passholders! —so, this will be the last off-season-work update. As I walked around the park to snap some pictures for you to see the progress, I was reminded how synonymous Dollywood’s opening is with spring. I mean, we kind of kickstart the calendar: Dollywood opens March 13, and then [...]
We’re two weeks (and some change) from opening for the 2021 season. The buzz of excitement is evident in Dollywood offices and as you walk around the park. Today, we invited the media in for a sneak peek of our plans for the year. We were so grateful to have had a strong finish [...]
January is a great time to hit the reset button and refocus on priorities. At our theme park, that’s included on our list of things to do this winter, too! The very day after we bid our final guests of the 2020 season goodbye, dozens of crews hit the pavement with marching orders in-hand. [...]
For years, Dollywood’s ‘white glove’ team has swept the park before opening—noting everything that was ready for guests and those few things that need a little more polish. Because this effort is about more than ensuring everything is clean, it’s now known as the Operational Readiness team. It’s a wholistic walkthrough to examine every [...]
Along with wrapping up construction and maintenance projects that crews had to tackle in order to get Dollywood in tip-top shape for the 2020 season, our Special Events team is out there, too, prepping for Festival of Nations. Festival of Nations is in its 20th season this year. It’s a long-time friend because of [...]
If you don’t come visit the Smokies and take advantage of some of the great Dollywood Season Pass bonuses to be found during the winter months, you really are missing out. I love the slower pace of life in our tourism town that starts at the beginning of the year and lasts until early [...]
Our water park’s season runs from mid-May through Labor Day. Off-season work begins almost immediately to prepare Dollywood’s Splash Country for the next year. I’ve learned there’s a LOT of elbow grease that goes into maintaining a water park—especially when you consider the standards for all Dollywood properties! We pride ourselves on being the [...]
As much as I would love it if we didn’t have to close Dollywood for the winter, I’m equally glad we have that time to tackle big projects that improve the guest experience year-to-year. Just think of all that our team is able to accomplish! The way the calendar falls, there are 69 days [...]
I am pleased to tell you that Dollywood is just about ready to open for the 2019 season! We have more than 75% of our off-season projects checked off the list—and that’s great news because we open in two weeks! March 16 is the official first day of the season, but Season Passholders will [...]
Three weeks (and some change) until Dollywood opens for the 2018 season! To give you an idea of how our off-season projects are progressing, I walked around the park to check it out. As I passed by a food stand, a lingering scent of cinnamon-glazed almonds, pecans and cashews stopped me in my tracks. [...]
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