The Ultimate Guide to Dollywood: Your Guide to the Best Rides, Restaurants, and Attractions at Dollywood

by Erin Browne

A must-have for Dolly Parton fans everywhere, this unofficial guide features 100 of the must-try restaurants, iconic rides and attractions, and important landmarks at Dollywood and its sister parks.

Dollywood is a unique and incredible theme park that’s best known for its amusement park thrills, traditional Smoky Mountain inspiration, and, of course, insight into namesake and owner Dolly Parton. There’s a lot to see and do—and it can be easy to miss out on all Dollywood and its nearby sister parks have to offer. The Ultimate Guide to Dollywood is your one-stop shop for all things Dollywood! You’ll get insider advice on everything from the food to the rides and learn all the best tips and tricks to make the most of your visit.

-Want to try the world’s fastest roller coaster? The Lightning Rod is not only the fastest…it’s also the first wood launch coaster.

-Looking for an attraction that will really excite the biggest Dolly Parton fans? Check out Dolly’s $750,000 tour bus that was her “home” for fifteen years of touring, parked right in the Adventures in Imagination section of Dollywood.

-Are you a history buff? The Dollywood Express, which takes visitors on a five-mile ride through the Great Smoky Mountains, actually played a key role in America’s war effort during World War II.

-Searching for the inside scoop on all things Dollywood? Check out Red’s Drive-In, where you’ll be able to impress fellow visitors with the fun fact that this restaurant was named after Red’s Café, where six-year-old Dolly ate her first hamburger.

Whether you’re a longtime Dolly Parton fan looking to learn something new about the iconic musician or planning to make the most of your first trip to Dollywood, this book is the perfect companion.

PLEASE When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

Genres: Nonfiction

240 pages, Paperback

Published September 17, 2024

Reviews

[Sheila · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a free copy of, The Ultimate Guide to Dollywood, by Erin Browne, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I have not been to Dollywood since the 90's, this book makes me want to plan another trip there. Dollywood has so many great places to see, eat at, and ride. I really enjoyed this book about Dollywood.

[OutlawPoet · Rating 4 out of 5]

So…this gets a little breathless at times. The author is extremely enthusiastic about everything. We get paragraphs long descriptions of bumper cars, a primer to funnel cake, and…rocking chairs.

But my, the author’s enthusiasm is catching!

By the end of this book, I was ready to book a trip to Dollywood. I want to eat at the restaurants, visit the eagle sanctuary, and yes…I want to play with the Dolly paper dolls!

Dolly Parton is an icon for a reason and this park seems so wholesome and fun.

The author did their job and I’m all fired up!

• ARC via Publisher

[Lindsay · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a lifetime visitor of Dollywood, "The Ultimate Guide to Dollywood" brings to life the park through the seasons, festivals, rides, games, crafts, treats and shows. Stories of the park's history also spotlight things that have changed over the years and brings back fond memories of attractions long gone. I truly hope this book will be available for purchase at one of Dollywood's many gift shops, as it's a must have for visitors old and new. 


**Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.**

[Doreen · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a delightful way to either plan for a trip to the musical icon's theme park or to just daydream about eventually going!

While this unofficial guide doesn't go into the history of Dollywood, it's certainly a loving look at the largest employer in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, near the birthplace of living legend Dolly Parton. The book occasionally alludes to the former incarnations of what is now Dollywood, but it's clear that the amusement park as we know it today has been guided and stamped by Ms Parton's vision. It's actually pretty impressive how thoughtful, uplifting and inclusive a theme park can be -- but that shouldn't be a surprise for anyone who knows Ms Parton as more than a country music icon. With her early reading initiatives, investment in the poor and championing of equal rights for marginalized groups, she's long been a quiet but firm backer of common sense approaches to making life better for everyone.

Thus, it's a pleasure to read of all the ways in which Dollywood is a safe space for all of its visitors, from those with sensory issues to those with uncommon dietary needs. Erin K Browne makes a point of noting these little details and more in ways that make it easier for visitors to plan ahead, so that everyone going can have a good time. Divided into ten parts, this book focuses mainly on the sights of Dollywood actual, confining related attractions such as Splash Country and the Stampede Dinner Attraction to a single chapter at the end. It's still a large amount of info, neatly distilled by Ms Browne so that visitors can make the most of their time in the area, assuming that they're primarily there for the main theme park.

The first eight parts of the book each focus on an area of Dollywood, then further break that down by the individual attractions, whether they be rides, restaurants, retail or more. You get a What, Where and Expert Tip in the Fast Facts section that begins each of these attraction descriptions, then a Why You Should See It and Park Pointer. Each chapter gets a map, and little bits of Dolly Parton trivia are sprinkled throughout the text.

While there are lots of great overall points of interest as you'd find in any themed resort, I loved that there are so many attractions geared specifically to the Dolly fan. I've thought she was pretty cool ever since reading about her coat of many colors as a kid, and my respect for and admiration of her has only grown over the decades. That said, perhaps my favorite part of this book was the way it described all the local artisans who not only sell their wares in Dollywood, but frequently demonstrate their craft there, too. It really speaks to Ms Parton's dedication to keeping local traditions and industries alive, and is of a piece with her good sense and enormous heart.

There are not, unfortunately, any fun trips planned for my family's immediate future, but should we ever find ourselves close to Dollywood, we're definitely making the trip over, with this guide in hand. Not because Ms Parton needs the money, but because it feels both like an homage to a terrific human being and a way to keep her efforts -- of community building, promoting tolerance and education, and just delighting in the innocent joys of a theme park -- going for even just that much longer.

The Ultimate Guide To Dollywood by Erin K Browne was published September 17 2024 by Adams Media and is available from all good booksellers, including Bookshop!

This review first appeared at TheFrumiousConsortium.net.

[David Ward · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Ultimate Guide to Dollywood: Your Guide to the Best Rides, Restaurants, and Attractions at Dollywood by Erin K. Browne (Adams Media 2024) (791.068768) (4087).

This is a guide to Dolly Parton’s Pigeon Forge, Tennessee amusement park Dollywood. The park opened in 1961 as the Rebel Railroad. It was sold, reopened, and rebranded several times (Rebel Railroad>Goldrush Junction>Goldrush>Silver Dollar City) until it was purchased by Dolly Parton and a consortium of investors and reopened in 1986 as Dollywood.

Dolly Parton is revered in East Tennessee as “Saint Dolly of the Smokies.” Her park is fun, safe, popular, and a highly profitable cash machine.

Author Erin K. Browne’s The Ultimate Guide to Dollywood: Your Guide to the Best Rides, Restaurants, and Attractions at Dollywood appears to have been published only so that Dollywood could boast the same type of guide seen and sold at major national theme park attractions. Browne’s guide is thorough, but it is hardly informative. If this book were a video rather than a print volume, it would be considered a cheesy money-grab of an infomercial. It purports to be a guide to the park, but it inexplicably fails to include a comprehensive map of the layout of the park itself! The various chapters each have small maps of the various “park neighborhoods,” but nowhere does the book explain how these neighborhoods are located within the park or how they connect or are tied together.

I just checked the list price of this book and saw that the cover price in 2025 was listed at $17.99. Allow me to humbly suggest that if the reader is planning a trip to Dollywood, wait to pick up the free map at the park’s entrance and then go exploring. You can use the $17.99 you just saved by not buying the guide and apply it toward the purchase of one of the park’s exceptionally-expensive soft drinks or refreshments.

My rating: 4/10 (for lack of meaningful content), finished 9/20/25 (4087).

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Erin Browne ( @ebrowniebites ), Adams Media ( @adams_media ), and NetGalley ( @netgalley ) for allowing me to read The Ultimate Guide to Dollywood early (comes out September 17, 2024).

This book is everything you need to know about the theme park Dollywood. It also includes sections on the water park, Dollywood’s Splash Country, and two places for lodging, DreamMore Resort and HeartSong Lodge & Resort

I have been a season pass holder to Dollywood for YEARS. And I’ve been visiting the theme park before it was even Dollywood (remember Silver Dollar City), so I wasn’t sure what, if anything, I’d learn from this book. Let me tell you—I learned something NEW ON EVERY PAGE!!

This book provides so much detail into every part of Dollywood - the rides, the shows, sit down restaurants, festivals, and even including all the shops and counter service food stops. This really is the ultimate guide to everything Dollywood!

I can’t wait to go back to Dollywood to look for some of the items I never knew about and previously overlooked.

#TheUltimateGuidetoDollywood #NetGalley #ErinBrowne #AdamsMedia

[Kristin- Kristin's Bookstack · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great resource for visiting Dollywood! It was filled with lots of insightful tips and descriptions of each restaurant, snacks, show, and rides. One chapter was dedicated to the festivals held throughout the year. I also liked that Dolly facts were sprinkled throughout the book. I didn’t notice any photos in my copy. I would have liked to have seen some photos included in the book. Funny tidbit: I read the book with a southern accent! Not sure why I just felt like it was appropriate for reading this book! I can't wait to use all the knowledge I gained when I visit the Park in the near future.

Thank you NetGalley and Adams Media for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

[Elisha Huskey Blais · Rating 4 out of 5]

I grew up going to Dollywood and always loved it. Over the last several years I have found the time to visit. I was offered a chance to read this book for review and not only was I excited to read it now I’m excited to visit Dollywood again. The author really brings to life the joy of Dollywood. As I read I began to crave some delicious bakery treats and some festival adventures. The book had me strolling down memory lane and excited for the new things I haven’t seen yet. Can’t wait to experience the excitement the author feels for Dollywood!

[Don · Rating 3 out of 5]

Publishes 9/17/2024, I looked at an advanced reader copy. So I gave this three stars as a neutral rating. I requested to get this ARC to help me decide about going to Dollywood, I was disappointed because save for a few thumbnail cartoons of the roller coasters there was not a single photo or illustration. Lost of seemingly good descriptions of stores, restaurants, shows, etc. but it didn’t help me to decide whether to go.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

arc received from netgalley in exchange for an honest review

I've never been to Dollywood but I've always wanted to go. This guide was certainly thorough and informative. But there were no maps or pictures, and sometimes it felt more like an advertisement than a guide. I would have appreciated more "guide-like" features like prices.

[Ted · Rating 5 out of 5]

A clear, concise description of the parks, rides, restaurants, and specialty shops. It covers everything nicely, without being overwhelming. There are no photographs in the book, unfortunately. But there are tips and other bits of information concerning the park and Dolly. I found it very useful.