Classic National Park Tour: Historical Gatlinburg Exploration
4.9
93 Ratings
Gatlinburg
Embark on a historical exploration of Gatlinburg, TN, and discover the rich heritage of the Smoky Mountains. Learn about logging, pioneers, and the founding of the national park on this classic national park tour.
Duration: 3 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Elkmont Ghost Town - We’ll hike along one of the mightiest rivers in Great Smoky Mountains National Park as we learn about the history of the founding of the park and how the lives of loggers, CCC workers, pioneer farmers, and the earliest mountain recreational visitors intersected.
What's Included
  • Complimentary bottled water
  • Tasty snacks included
Additional Information

Our journey commences with pickup from our base in Gatlinburg, TN. We’ll be traveling in eco-friendly, comfortable vans to our first destination - the ruins of an erstwhile resort town over a century old. Here, we explore the history of logging in the Smoky Mountains, the lifestyle of the initial Appalachian settlers, and the establishment of the national park. Continuing onward, we’ll traverse one of the most picturesque routes in the southeast, taking in the breath-taking mountain landscape. On the way, we’ll make pit stops at stunning vantage points for photo opportunities and to discuss the geography of the area. Ultimately, we’ll reach Newfound Gap, the 5,000 feet high division between Tennessee and North Carolina. At this point, we’ll delve into the history of the sprawling 2,200 mile Appalachian Trail and the location of President Franklin Roosevelt’s park dedication speech in 1940.

Location
Gatlinburg Welcome Center
Banner Road
We'll meet you in the upper parking lot behind the Gatlinburg Welcome Center.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.9
(93 Ratings)
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Vjirvine
Jun 6, 2024
Great Tour - Fantastic tour in comfortable air conditioned van. Our guide, Clayton, was simply wonderful! Very knowledgeable, and customized the tour to meet our preferences. If we book another tour, it will definitely be with Rock Mountain Guides, and we will request Clayton. But judging by Clayton’s professionalism, I imagine all of their guides are terrific!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Bill
Jun 4, 2024
What A Wonderful Tour!!! - What a wonderful and informative trip! Wes was a fantastic tour guide!! He is very personable and knowledgeable! He is engaging and, IMHO, a great asset to the company. I would take tour after tour with him!! The vistas we saw were incredible!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Betsyanded
May 28, 2024
Love These Mountains! - Had a great tour with Wes - learned a lot about the area and saw some beautiful scenery, while leaving the driving to someone else. Only way to improve the tour would be the addition of a microphone - those in the front seats could hear Wes talking and answering questions … but not so much in the back
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Suzanne_h
May 28, 2024
Great Smokie Mountain tour - Wes, our guide was great! He took pictures for us and the rest of the group. He shared his knowledge without it being a script which made it more personalized and interesting. Would recommend it to anyone.
Review provided by Viator
Sandybi7728nj
May 27, 2024
Fun and Informative - Guide Wes was outstanding. He made trip informative and fun. We enjoyed his stories about the park. I would recommend this tour for anyone.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
129cherylz
May 25, 2024
First Visit to the Smokey Mountains - Our driver, Wes, was an excellent guide. He was knowledgeable about the area & showed us places that were very beautiful & historic to the area. He made the tour fun & very memorable. This was our first visit to the area & we are so glad that we signed up for the tour. Would highly recommend this tour!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
O8060gpdianeb
May 22, 2024
Adventure - Wes was the best. Knowledgeable, so pleasant. The sights where so beautiful and I like that it was unscripted and we weren't rushed at all. He answered all our questions and made it fun Definitely recommend!!! Diane Bailey and Mary Burke
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Amy
May 21, 2024
Perfect for Smoky’s first timers! - This was an excellent tour for us Smoky’s first timers! There were several stops for great views, pictures, and even a touch of hiking/climbing. We learned so much from our tour guide, Wes. He was informative, funny, and so helpful. He gave some great hiking and restaurant recommendations that did not disappoint. The value of the tour far exceeded the cost and our expectations - do not hesitate to book this one!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
542janiceh
May 20, 2024
Smoky Mountain Guides helped us see how beautiful the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is - We took the "Classic " National Park Tour after Wes, our tour guide explained that the classic tour provides both mountain views and river views. Having a guided tour provided much information we would not have known about, without lengthy and careful searching. Wes was very knowledgeable of the history of the Park before it was declared a national park and information about the people and process of their leaving the land. He mentioned certain types of trees, plants and flowers. He kindly took a photo of us at times. Because neither of us was driving we enjoyed gazing around at what we were seeing. He described small puffs visible near certain trees. He described how 100 years ago the loggers cut most of the trees down, and dwellers were farmers growing corn. He knew a fire in the area some years ago left the barren trees visible around green thriving trees. He knew exactly were to take us so we observed the beauty of the Park. I highly recommend Smoky Mountain Guides so you will get an exceptional guided tour of this amazing park.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Shanda21
May 19, 2024
Mountain Fun - Our tour guide Wes was great. He was very nice and informative. He kept us engaged throughout the tour and offered to take pictures for us. The views were spectacular. The only down side was I thought we were going to hike/walk a little more than we did.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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June 2024
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