Tennessee Parks

djsamuel wrote:
We've stayed at Big Meadows Family Campground in Townsend. Great place and really convenient to the park, especially Cades Cove. Townsend is very quiet. Getting from the campground to Pigeon Forge is an easy drive as well.

Campsites along the river, IMO, are the best ones, at least you have a little more privacy.

Thanks to everyone for all your help. I have been taking notes as you have all been awesome!

The problem is finding a campground with both full hookups and privacy. In short, it doesn't exist in the immediate area. Your best bet as others have posted is to find something in the Townsend area. You won't have much privacy, but it's better than the Gatlinburg or Pigeon Forge area where you are packed in like sardines. We've stayed at Tremont Outdoor Resort and like it fairly well, but again, not much privacy.

We've stayed at Big Meadows Family Campground in Townsend. Great place and really convenient to the park, especially Cades Cove. Townsend is very quiet. Getting from the campground to Pigeon Forge is an easy drive as well.

The best place for us doing the Smoky Mtn Natl Park was to get a spot in TOWNSEND and use that park entrance to the park. It is the closest to Cades Cove anyway... Cades Cove is at its best late afternoon to just around dark for all of the wild life to start coming out. Not sure when you are going but watch out for the annual Firefly dates there. The whole country side will be over-run with cars and vehcles during that time frame. Even the park roads gets shut down... MAY-JUN time frame - check google for 'Synchronous fireflies' centered on ELKMONT camp dates... Its a sight to see all of the fire flys flashing at the same time...

None of the camp sites inside the Natl Park have hookups... We always stay at ELKMONT inside the park with no hookups. Our setup does great off our batteries and we are allowed to run our 2KW Generator each morning to re-charge our batteries. Did not like the CADES COVE camp site all that much.

The camp grounds in Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge was always way to ACTIVE to enjoy anything... The road to Pigeon Forge to Townsend has a few places close to Pigeon Forge that may not be so bad...

There are people wandering around Gatlinburg all hours of the night...

Roy Ken

Here is a link that may help

CG links