The Festivals of May 2017!

One last month for Spring 2017, so the latter end of this month will make it worth the trip with two favorite special events going on at the same time.

The first one coming up is the Wilderness Wildlife Week going on from May 9th to the 13th. This event used to be held in January for over a generation was held in January, but that changed when the LeConte Conference Center in downtown Pigeon Forge was built! Other than the seasonal and location change, the W3 is every bit the same as we've always enjoyed. The hikes, lectures, workshops and special guest appearances continue to exceed our expectations. You can get more information on that at http://www.mypigeonforge.com/events/wilderness-wildlife-week/.

Next is the very unique Gatlinburg Cornbread and Beans Festival going on in downtown Gatlinburg on May 11th from 5:00PM to 8:00PM. Yes, we are in fact dedicating an entire festival to the Southern cuisine of cornbread and beans. Why not? This is the South after all. And like our Chili Cookoff, the event itself is free, but sampling the best in cornbread and beans from a multitude of local restaurants and restaurants from abroad requires the purchase of an "admission spoon". There will be additional entertainment with Jody Medford and Cash Creek performing music and items the whole family can enjoy. See more information on this at https://www.gatlinburg.com/event/gatlinburg-beans-and-cornbread-festival/.

And then after that, we have the Sevierville Bloomin' Barbeque and Bluegrass Festival which actually takes place around the Sevier County courthouse in the historic section of downtown Sevierville on May 19th and May 20th. It's usually the only event that shuts down that part of town and it's a really fun atmosphere. There is, naturally, hundreds of different ways to get the best barbecue platter you've ever had and there will be a marathon of bluegrass and local acts playing on stage while arts and crafts booths open up on the avenues surrounding it. Lots of great stuff there and you can see more at http://www.bloominbbq.com/

And finally, the most prominent one to talk about is Dollywood's "Barbeque and Bluegrass" Festival and it goes on until June 4th. For this awesome week-and-a-half, the price of admission at Dollywood includes round-the-clock performances from Blueline, Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, Sleep Canyon Rangers, Rhonda Vincent & The Rage, Hot Rize, The Gibson Brothers and dozens of additional artists playing throughout the park and the best in pulled pork, smoked sausage, chicken and much more served at Market Square. See more on this at www.dollywood.com.

Have an awesome May! We'll be back in June with more special events and news. www.allthesmokies.com