Tennessee is a remarkable vacation destination with great outdoor activities, historical attractions, theme parks, and cities that are larger than life. A beautiful state with rivers, mountains, quaint towns, and rolling plains all wrapped up with glowing Southern Hospitality, it is a great place to travel to for family outings, extreme outdoor excursions, soul searching road trips, or secluded romantic getaways. Travel through each of the regions, East, Middle, and West, to get a taste of all that “the world’s most amazing stage” has to offer.
Vacation Guide - RentalsExpress.com © 2008 Northeast Tennessee
The eastern part of the state presents mountains, lakes, rolling hills, world known attractions, and great southern football. Touring beautiful scenery with the Smoky Mountains as a backdrop is any outdoorsman’s dream. The northeastern part of the state offers Appalachian heritage, world-class golf, and the International Storytelling Center. The town of Jonesborough holds the National Storytelling Festival each October and is known as one of North America's Top 100 Events. Although Nashville is the home of Country Music, Bristol is its birthplace. Folks say it was created here with the Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers in the early 1920’s. If traveling to the Bristol Motor speedway to see one of the most challenging racecourses in the country, don’t miss out on staying at the All American Campground in Bluff City. Check out the Mountain Lake Wilderness Resort in Butler for a resort stay with a Tennessean theme, complete with quaint cabins and wagon rides. | East Tennessee
A stay in East Tennessee is sure to be action packed. Home to Pigeon Forge, where you can find Dollywood, Gatlinburg, a picture perfect Smoky Mountain town, and Knoxville, home of the University of Tennessee Volunteers, there is always something to do and something new to see. Visit Sevierville, the birthplace of Dolly Parton and the place of the NASCAR Speed Park with great interactive attractions for both kids and adults. For a more relaxing vacation in the Smoky Mountains, visit Townsend. Go tubing down a lazy river, hike through fields of wildflowers, or visit a rushing waterfall. Walk along dogwood lined avenues in Knoxville. The eastern part of the state has such diverse opportunities for vacations that it’s a destination the whole family can agree on. Travel south to Chattanooga, one of America’s oldest vacation destinations. Visit beautiful Ruby Falls located deep inside Lookout Mountain, take a ride on the Chattanooga Choo-Choo, and be sure to stick around for the Longhorn World Championship Rodeo. With great attractions and beautiful surroundings, it’s a wonderful destination for diverse travel needs. Next, follow I-75 to Monteagle and the South Cumberland Recreation Area. It is a very popular with bikers, hikers, boaters, and nature lovers. | The Central Region
The Central area of the state is known for fantastic state parks and outdoor recreation, horses, and, of course, music. Outside the town of Spencer you will find Fall Creek Falls State Park. One of the most popular state parks in the east, it offers great camping, plenty of hiking trails, and four majestic waterfalls. Fall Creek Fall plunges 256 ft, making it one of the highest falls east of the Rocky Mountains. Another outdoor lovers fantasy is Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area. The Big South Fork of the Cumberland River passes through 90 miles of picturesque gorges and valleys with a wide range of natural and historic features. The park offers great biking trails, fishing, hiking trails, and other fun activities for kids. The central area of the state is also Tennessee Walking Horse country. Visit Lynchburg and the Tennessee Walking Horse Museum, and visit the grave of the first walking horse, "Strolling Jim”. While in town be sure to see the Jack Daniel Distillery to take a tour of the grounds and taste some food and drink, “bourbon style”. For those looking for a highly unusual taste of Tennessee, visit Fayettville to dine in old jail cells at Cahoots Restaurant. | Nashville
For those who want the feel of a big city with a Southern flair, look no farther than Nashville, Music City, USA. With so much to see and do, you might want to leave yourself more than one day for this city. First stop is the Grand Ole Opry where music’s greatest stars have been entertaining for more than 80 years. It is also home to the nations longest running radio show, WSM 650 AM Radio. For a taste of the arts visit the Frist Center for the Visual Arts. It is home to world-class visual art, interactive displays, circulating art exhibitions, and educational programs. Outside of Nashville, there are majestic lakes, rolling hills, and quaint towns if you need a break from the fast paced city. Visit the Land Between the Lakes, a 170,000 plus acre national park. Situated between Lake Barkley and Kentucky Lake, it is home for a wide variety of wildlife and the perfect spot for the avid outdoorsman. See herds of bison and elk, take a tour of the Nature Station, an environmental education center, or take advantage of the over 200 miles of hiking, biking, horseback riding, and off-roading trails. For a taste of history, take a drive down the Natchez Trace Parkway. This road has been a walkway for so many different people throughout history, from the Choctaw, Chickasaw, and other American Indians fleeing west, to the boatmen floating their wares downstream to New Orleans. Visitors can experience the parkway through driving, hiking, biking, horseback riding and camping. | Western Tennessee
Western Tennessee is a great place to vacation if you want a diverse area with so many different attractions and activities to offer. The northern part of Western Tennessee is a must visit for the water lover. Known as the “Land of Lakes and Water” it is home to hundreds of rivers, lakes, and streams and is bordered by the Mississippi and Tennessee Rivers. Reelfoot Lake was formed from the earthquake of 1812, when the Mississippi ran backwards and created the unique 13,000-acre refuge to over 56 species of fish and over a thousand migratory birds. This paradise for fishermen and birdwatchers also offers year-round hunting, canoeing, natural wildlife viewing, and pontoon and boat rentals. In the region you will also find Kentucky Lake, the nations largest man-made lake. The lake boasts over 2,300 miles of shoreline making it a recreational park, as well as, a power source and flood control center. A great place for fishermen, anglers typically take more than 1,000 tons of fish a year out of the lake for recreational purposes. This region offers a rich history to share with its visitors, served with Southern hospitality and charm. In Savannah, taste a famous recipe for Fried Green Tomatoes at the Worleybird Café after taking a walking historic home tour. The history buff will not want to miss a visit to Shiloh for American Indian and Civil War history. This town is home to Shiloh Indian Mounds National Historic Landmark that overlooks the Tennessee River and is one of the largest groups of burial mounds in the nation. You can also visit the Shiloh National Military Park, a memorial for one of the bloodiest battles of the Civil War. | The Southwestern Region
Southwest Tennessee offers so much to a visitor from marshlands, to strolls along the Mississippi River, to flourishing cotton fields, and the city of Memphis. The home of Blues and the birthplace of Rock ‘n Roll, this southern metropolitan has so much to see from Graceland, the home of Elvis Presley, to the National Civil Rights Museum. The museum notes the growth of Civil Rights from its beginning to today and solemnly reflects on the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. Be sure not to miss out on the nightlife of Beale Street. For more than half a century, this street has been the home to the blues and one of the hottest entertainment districts in the country and the number one tourist attraction in Tennessee. You can visit the musical museum at Sun Studio that commemorates men of blues, soul, and rock like Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny Cash. |
However you choose to spend your vacation in Tennessee, it will be a trip to remember. Whether its fishing the lake country or sitting at the Bluebird Café in Nashville or hiking in one of the state’s many state and national forests, this is a vacation destination that can fit anyone’s needs. With such a bountiful history to share, beautiful natural attractions, and southern hospitality at its best, its clear why people flock to Tennessee to get away and enjoy life.
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Little Pigeon River Wonders
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Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg are two cities nestled in the Smoky Mountains, thirty miles from Knoxville, in Eastern Tennessee. With the Smoky Mountain National Park having close to nine million visitors every year, Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg have become extremely popular family vacation spots. The ambience here is Appalachian and a celebration of the symbiotic relationship between Nature and Man.
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