Nashville to Pigeon Forge drive: Distance, time & best stops
The distance from Nashville to Pigeon Forge by car is 214 miles, with a 3h26m driving time. The best road trip stops on the Nashville to Pigeon Forge drive are Edgar Evins State Park, the Mt Roosevelt Scenic Overlook and Knoxville.
Planning a Nashville to Pigeon Forge road trip itinerary
The Nashville to Pigeon Forge drive connects America’s country music capital to a fun-filled Tennessee resort town in the Great Smoky Mountains.
Nashville is renowned for its country music, but the National Museum of African American Music is also in the Tennessee capital.
The best Nashville experiences include backstage tours of the Grand Ole Opry House, helicopter flights over the city and tasting tours at the Big Machine Distillery. You can also try line dancing classes, the Country Music Hall of Fame and haunted pub crawls. Or, for lavish old homes, visit Andrew Jackson’s Hermitage, the Travellers Rest Historic House Museum and Belmont Mansion.
Excellent Nashville accommodation choices include the gloriously evocative Belle Air Mansion and Inn, plus downtown’s grand dame, the Hermitage.
How to see Nashville the smart way
You can save money in Nashville by combining a tour ticket with admission to two top attractions. These combo tickets give you a half day tour of the main sights, plus entrance to the Ryman Auditorium and Country Music Hall of Fame. Find out more here.
Pigeon Forge is popular because of its close proximity to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the most visited national park in the US. But so many attractions have built up around the resort town that it’s now much more than a gateway.
Most famous of these is Dolly Parton’s Dollywood theme park, but there’s also the Titanic Museum, the Beyond The Lens interactive museum and the Rocky Top Mountain Coaster.
Other Pigeon Forge experiences include small group jeep tours in the mountains, guided ATV adventures and wine plus moonshine tours.
Pigeon Forge is also known for its evening shows, whether Elvis tributes, Motown performances, lumberjack feuds or country music extravaganzas.
Nashville to Pigeon Forge distance and driving time
By car, the distance from Nashville to Pigeon Forge is 214 miles. That makes for a driving time of around three hours and 26 minutes. The quickest route is mainly along the I-40.
The best stops to add to a Nashville to Pigeon Forge road trip itinerary are Edgar Evins State Park, the Mt Roosevelt Scenic Overlook and Knoxville.
Nashville to Pigeon Forge road trip attractions: Edgar Evins State Park
Edgar Evins State Park is focused around the splintered arms of Center Hill Lake. It covers 6,000 acres on the Eastern Highland Rim. The landscape is steep, hilly and forested, but there are plenty of options for camping and hiking. Or, on the lake, fishing and boating.
If just dropping by, the best place to stop is the Visitor’s Centre, which has its own observation tower. This offers great views over the lake and hillsides, and you can often spot several bird species from there.
Nashville to Pigeon Forge drive: Mt Roosevelt Scenic Overlook
Mt Roosevelt is one of the highest points on the Cumberland Escarpment, and there’s a cracking photo stop that doesn’t require any hiking. The Mt Roosevelt Scenic Overlook is just to the west of Rockwood, Tennessee, and you can drive up.
Get lucky with the conditions and you can see the Great Smoky Mountains, more than 70 miles to the east. There are some picnic tables here if you want to stop for lunch.
Best stops between Nashville and Pigeon Forge: Knoxville
Highlights of Knoxville include World’s Fair Park, which hosted the 1982 World’s Fair. The often-dazzling Sunsphere is the major landmark, here. You can also visit the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame and Knoxville Museum of Art.
Other Knoxville experiences include ghost tours and downtown walking tours that pick out local secret spots, while serving up coffee and ice cream.
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