The Anakeesta Experience From a First Timer

Gatlinburg is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the United States and it keeps getting bigger and better. A lot has changed in the five years since our last visit to the Smoky Mountain region. During our recent trip (when we stayed in a Dollywood Cabin and went to Harvest Festival at Dollywood), we visited Anakeesta for the first time.

Scenic Anakeesta Chondola

Opened in September 2017, Anakeesta is a self-described “outdoor family theme park” and is continuing to grow. Located on top of Anakeesta mountain on the east side of Gatlinburg, the most common way to get to the mountaintop park is by chondola – a chairlift/gondola hybrid. Visitors have the option of taking the open air ski lift style chairs that can seat up to six or the enclosed red colored gondolas. There are only eight total enclosed cabins, so the wait can be quite lengthy for those.

If you visit in the morning you could be starring into the sun for most of your trip up the mountain to Firefly Village, and the chairs could be wet from morning dew. The ride coming down is much better than going up as the views of Gatlinburg and surrounding area are fantastic.

 

Rail Runner Alpine Coaster

The first thing we did was grab a ticket to Rail Runner, the only single rail alpine coaster in North America. Unfortunately, after paying ~$22 for a lift ticket you have to pay an additional $12.99 to ride the coaster. Luckily, you can add a child passenger for only $2 more. If you are planning on riding Rail Runner, I recommend riding it early in the day as the low capacity of the coaster could lead to lengthy wait times.

This ride is one of the wildest and most intense alpine coasters I’ve been on. Unlike the other alpine rides in the area, this one has you board at the top and immediately plummet down the side of the mountain. It has a 400-foot elevation change over only a 1,600 foot downhill layout, which makes for some quick sudden drops and super-tight turns. It’s short but it’s intense if you go full throttle. The single rail definitely increases the sense of danger and thrill over its two rail companions.

Take a ride with us on Rail Runner by watching the POV below:

Vista Gardens and the AnaVista Tower

The latest addition to Anakeesta is the AnaVista Tower. Opened in July 2020, visitors can climb the stairs and enjoy 360 degree views from downtown Gatlinburg’s highest point.

The tower still is not 100% complete. There is an area where a glass floor will be installed so you can stare straight down at the ground sixty feet below.

 

TreeTop Skywalk

At Anakeesta, you can stroll along suspension bridge after suspension bridge. In fact, there are sixteen suspension bridges spanning a total of 800 feet through the trees. The last four minutes of this video highlight the TreeTop Skywalk bridges:

Overall Thoughts on Anakeesta

The biggest negative to the day was actually right after leaving Anakeesta. We parked in the parking garage behind the aquarium across the street from the chairlift terminal. The traffic congestion was so bad it took more than a half an hour just to exit the garage and turn left onto US-441, a distance of ~0.25 miles. I guess that’s what we get for visiting on a weekend in October.

Overall, we had a great time. If traffic/crowds weren’t so bad we would’ve loved to go back later in the day as your lift pass is good all day long (instead we went hiking in the national park and saw a black bear just feet away from us). One of the additional upcharge attractions at Anakeesta is the Dueling Zipline Challenge that we did not do on this trip but sure looks fun. In its current form, Anakeesta is probably a half-day visit at best. A few more attractions or things to do at the top of the mountain to lengthen your experience and to get more value out of the lift ticket will really solidify Anakeesta as a must visit on every trip to the Smoky Mountains.

view from anakeesta


Have you had the opportunity to visit Anakeesta? What did you think? Let us know in the comments below.

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