Growing up in the Great Smoky Mountains’ Locust Ridge in East Tennessee as the fourth of 12 children, Dolly Parton admitted that her modest roots meant she wasn’t exposed to travel early in her life. “If we got the chance, our vacations were down to the river for a picnic, or to visit relatives,” the country music legend told Travel + Leisure. “We were not a family that were lucky enough to say that we could go on a vacation.”
That was one of her impetuses behind her creating a true family destination with her theme park Dollywood. As its “Dreamer in Chief,” she’s now partnered with Tennessee Tourism to grant dream getaways to 10 families of four, who will be treated to a VIP Dollywood experience, including a two-night Dollywood resort stay, when the Pigeon Forge park opens for its 40th season in 2025.
“We wished we could go on vacations, but we were not that family to have that kind of money,” the megastar said. “So I’m so proud that I’ve been able to provide a wonderful place like Dollywood for families.”
In addition to attending the opening of the landmark anniversary season (“We’re still in the middle of planning, but I’m hopefully going to do some little concerts and other special things”), the winning families will also get season passes to Dollywood, a signed guitar, and an activity pass to Pigeon Forge’s family-friendly attractions. “They have some of everything in the area,” she added, calling out examples like putt-putt golf, helicopter rides, and dinner shows, like Dolly Parton’s Stampede.
To choose the winners, Parton has traded her “Coat of Many Colors” for a Willy Wonka-inspired coat, hiding butterfly tickets randomly inside the 90 pages of 10 copies of the new Tennessee Playcation Kid’s Guide. (It can be pre-ordered now at DollyPlaycation.com, and will arrive by Nov. 25.)
The idea behind the guide is to help kids get involved with planning their family trips. “When a child feels like they’re a part of making something happen, they’re going to enjoy it more,” the Imagination Library founder said. “Kids know what they want — more than the parents sometimes, so I think it’s good for the parents to listen and let them participate in planning the fun they want to have.”
So many of the memories of Parton’s youth were forged in the mountains she grew up in, as she said it was “always a treat for us to go up to Gatlinburg” which she still considers one of the most “special” places. She also recalled that “one of the big things for families was getting to go to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to picnic and play in those wonderful cold mountain streams.”
As she grew up, she found her own way too. “When I first started dating, it was a big deal for us to get to go to the Smoky Mountains with friends, and walk around Gatlinburg,” she said.
