Are you coming to the Pigeon Forge area and looking for some things your little one can do?
We are so glad you are here! We are Stephanie and Sarah and we both have small kids. We have lived in the Great Smoky Mountains for over 15 years. We love to go out and about and explore new and fun things to do with our kids. We get asked a lot. “What is there to do with my toddler?” We want our kids to stay little, but we are so excited for them to do more with us. When planning a vacation or even a fun night out with the family, we try to think about everything our little ones can do. There is actually so much they can do, see and play!
When we say toddler, we are talking 1 to 4 years old. They are usually below the standard 36″ tall for most things they require for kids to start doing. It can be hard going to new places.
Here is our list of 33 Things you can do with your small kids. I know when you go anywhere with little ones it is important for them to have fun and you the parents as well.
Hike and Explore the Great Smoky Mountain National Park
We should all know that your little babies can go with you on hikes and drives all around the Smoky Mountains. Explore Laurel Falls, Grotto Falls, a drive around Cades Cove, Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail, or The Foothills Parkway. Take them to explore nature and have fun!
We wanted to include locations and attractions that you do have to pay for.
Deer Farm Petting Zoo
Deer Farm Petting Zoo is located in Sevierville, and I guarantee your kids will love it. They have all kind of animals you can pet and feed. Such as elk, goats, camel, zebra, zonkies, emu, and pot-bellied pigs and more. Expect to stay around 1-2 hours. Then you could even do a pony ride with your toddler. Come view our trip there by >>CLICKING HERE<<.
The Island Wheel and Fountain Show
The Island is a fun and FREE place for everyone in the family. Parking is free as well. You can walk to The Island from your car or ride the tram. Your toddler can ride The Island wheel, some of the rides, and watch the fountain show.
Sky Tykes Rope Course at The Island
Does your little one love to balance on things and climb up high? Take them to The Island and let them play on the Sky Tykes Rope Course. If they are under 48 inches, then they can still get harness up and you as the parent can help them maneuver around the course.
Thunder Dome at The Island
If you are at The Island they can go and jump on the Thunder Dome. We took our 2-year-olds here. As long as they weigh 20 pounds they can get in a harness and jump on their trampoline. I will say, my toddler didn’t like it, but my 4-year-old loves it. We didn’t get a refund due to my son crying and throwing a fit when he got the harness on, double check to see if you can get refunded if they chicken out.
Dollywood
I know I loved going to Dollywood before having kids and once I had kids in the mix Dollywood still became our go to place for kids! I wrote a whole blog post about everything your toddler can do at Dollywood, so CLICK HERE to read it. I talk about the rides, playgrounds and shows your kids will love.
Splash Country
Splash Country is another place we love to go when it is hot outside. There are some fun toddler splash areas and some easy slides you can do with your baby. They will love playing there. There is also a lazy river and then if you want to do some regular swimming be sure to head over to “The Cascades” where they can learn to swim and play with lots of fun toddler play area.
Soaky Mountain
If you would rather go to Soaky Mountain to play at the waterpark because you have more adventurous kids with you. There is still a lot your toddler will love to do. They have 2 kid zone areas with slides and shallow water. They also have a huge regular pool where your toddler might love to just float around, and they have a wave pool that is fun, but they would love to play at the entrance where the water hits their feet. Soaky Mountain even has a fun “wave” lazy river. Now, I would not recommend a baby to be in there when it is aggressive, but your toddler might love it because mine sure did.
Top Jump
Top Jump is one of our favorite activities. My daughter gets excited when we just pass the building. Top Jump has a toddler jump area that is perfect for them. They can jump, fall into the foam pit, slide, build blocks and play some music. We enjoy watching them have fun.
Aquarium
The aquarium is a great stop while out in Gatlinburg. My kid and toddler love looking at all the fish, sharks, divers and penguins. They even have a huge playground inside broke up into 2 sections.
Pigeon Forge Snow
Now, your toddler won’t be able to do the fun tubing, but they have a “snow play” area your toddler will love. You can bring gloves for them, or they have some there you can buy. If not, don’t worry about it. They will love the texture. It’s not too cold in there that you would need a jacket if it’s the summer, but they could get their clothes wet after playing so just bring a change of clothes.
Anakeesta
Anakeesta is a fun place to take your toddler. There are 3 ways you can get up to the top; chairlift, gondola or the Ridge Rambler (a big truck). Either one you choose should be fine. If you do want to ride the open-air chair lift, I am sure you will be nervous having a squirmy little one so, you can wear them and that will make you feel better or just pick one of the other ways. If it’s not too busy wait for a gondola and you can still see the views, or my best recommendation is to ride the Ridge Rambler.
Once you are up there, head towards the gardens and they will love going through the open walkway. It takes you back to the entrance, or have them climb the observation deck, go play at the playground and then stay for the night show!
Parrot Mountain
If your toddler loves birds and aren’t afraid of them, then this place is super fun! You can see, hold, and feed these beautiful birds. They have birds who talk and let you hold them. A nursery where you can see the baby birds and caged exotic birds. We had so much fun when we went there!
Playgrounds
If you are staying in Pigeon Forge, you might want to check out Wear Farm Park playground. They have 2 playgrounds broke up into big kids and little kids. They have slides, swings, merry go rounds on the little kid side. The big kid side has some things your little one can do as well such as a sea saw, slide, swing and things to make music.
Another Fun playground my kids love is Mt Ton of Fun. They have so many things for kids of all ages can do. It is also located next to the Sevierville City Park, so you could go swimming there, have a picnic, play tennis, pickle ball, basketball or ride your bikes in the area.
Play in the River
If it is a nice hot day, your kid might enjoy putting their feet in the water and playing with the sand and rocks. My favorite spots are at Sevierville City Park, Mynatt Park, and the Gatlinburg Trail.
Frizzle chicken
Frizzle Chicken is a fun place to go and see all these robotic chickens who sing and dance every 30 mins. They have the funniest names and costumes. You will hear the chickens sing and dance to all kind of classic songs kids know. It is a treat to go and watch them.
Mamas Farmhouse
This southern restaurant is delicious and the reason my kids love it mostly because if there is a wait, they have some cute playhouses outside, hopscotch, large checker game and more. They have no problem waiting for a table here.
Rain Forest Zoo
This place is a fun activity to do if you are needing something to do indoors, especially on a rainy day. There is an area you can feed the goats, but not necessarily get in the gate with them. Outside they do have a few other animals you can see as well so you may get wet a little bit. I highly recommend bringing an umbrella or a rain jacket and simply enjoy the memories you will be making! As always, have an extra change of clothes for your kids or head back to your hotel to do a quick freshen up. There is a lot of exotic animals to see and even if you’re lucky you’ll get to hold a snake. My son loves snakes and that was the highlight of his day when he held one!
Wilderness at the Smokies
You can stay at the Wilderness during your visit, or if you already have a place to stay, you can still get a day pass to go to Wilderness at the Smokies. There are fun things your toddlers can do such as play in the wave pool, swing in the kid’s area and go down the slide. The Wilderness has an area called The Flying Squirrel Shallow Activity Pool. It is for smaller guest to enjoy the water. It has bouncy seats, mini sized soft play slide, and a mini squirrel house. The squirrel house is smaller than the big kid bucket dumps. I’m sure your little ones will love Wilderness at the Smokies!
Big Rock Dude Ranch
If you are traveling with other adults who would like to go horseback riding, you can still go! They have a petting zoo you can enjoy for free with your littles. After you can take them to play on the playground. If no one is wanting to ride horses, then you can still go to visit the petting zoo. They also have gem mining you can pay for to do. Kids love to dig, so why not let them find a few gems to take home. Big Rock Dude Ranch also has a shaded picnic area so you can pack lunches or snacks to enjoy after playing. They also have a general store you can buy snacks from. If your kids love fishing, they do have a pond stocked with fish. You will have to help those toddlers but imagine the joy on their face once they catch one!
Dinner Shows
Depending on what your toddler is into, there are lots of shows and dinner shows your kids will love. We have Pirates, Stampede, Hatfield and McCoy, Lumberjack Feud or even check out Terry Evanswood’s Magic Show. You really can’t go wrong with any of them!
Beyond The Lens
Beyond The Lens is more of a pop culture museum. It is filled with interactive things the adults will love as well as kids of all ages. We went with just adults, and we had so many laughs and fun photo opportunities. We also know our kids would have loved going and playing the games they had, jumped in the alien eggs (ball pit), and interacting with all kinds of things. Just a heads up, your toddlers probably won’t be able to do the FlyRide. They have to be at least 32 inches tall to ride it.
Duck Pin Bowling
What is Duck Pin Bowling? The pins are smaller, the lanes are shorter, and the ball is smaller with no holes. You get 3 turns to roll the ball and the pins are connected to strings to make it easier to reset. It is literally built for kids but actually harder for adults to get a strike. My toddler can pick up the ball with no problem. Roll it down the lane easily and knock down pins on his own. It is fun! You have to try it. You can find this at Downtown Flavortown.
Bowling
It’s crazy that there are not any major places to go bowling. If you are in town and wanting to go bowling, you can go to the Sevierville or Pigeon Forge Community Center to go bowling for a great price. They have bowling assistant for the kids.
Wonder Works
Wonderworks has so much fun things for kids. Our kids enjoy the extreme weather station, playing in the bubbles, playing with all the sand, and even playing with huge light bright bulbs. There is something for every age. Read a full description of our time there by clicking >HERE<.
The Track Rides
The Track has lots of fun rides your toddler will love such as a small carousel, a kid friendly ferris wheel, and swings just to name a few. They also have a mini golf area. Kids 5 and under play for free with an adult. If the adult doesn’t play you don’t have to pay. We went one day to just let the kids ride a few rides then play mini golf while we watched and taught them how to play.
Mirror Maze
I have always loved mirror mazes. They are fun and a challenge to get out of. I recently took my toddler with me to go through one and he loved it. We like going to Hannah’s mirror maze in Pigeon Forge or Circus Golf mirror maze in Downtown Gatlinburg. I always like to ask ahead to see if it goes dark in there incase my kids get scared.
Gatlinburg Sky Bridge
I have taken my kids to the Sky Bridge, and they loved it. I know it’s scary riding the chair lift with a toddler, if they are small enough, wear them with a baby wrap, but they loved the view and the experience. Once you get to the top, kids love walking the bridge and exploring the area with you.
Gatlinburg Space Needle
If you are wanting to see a great view of the mountains and the city day AND night, go up to the space needle and enjoy the view.
Wild Bear Falls
This is a fun water park that is a part of the West Gate Resort. They do offer tickets to the waterpark, even if you are not staying there. The Waterpark is indoors and is heated so lots of fun for when it’s cold out. You can take your toddler to go down slides, play, and get all that energy out
Xperia
There is now a new way to view the underwater ocean. Xperia is located in Tanger Outlets in Sevierville across from the Disney Store. It is a 45 min guided group tour where you go room to room exploring different parts of the ocean. They have interactive things your kids will love. We went to this place when they first opened and loved it. Read our other blog post here >>Come and See Xperia In Pigeon Forge<<
We Rock the Spectrum
This is a fun indoor playroom for your babies up to 8 years old. They would love it there. They have infant toys, swings, baby slides, games, zip lines, trampoline and all kinds of things. You can buy a play pass that is 2 hours, and they also offer play passes. Be sure to check out their Facebook as they could be closed for private birthday parties or events. Keep an eye on Facebook for fun character parties.
We hope this list helps you decide what you want to do! Keep an eye on Groupon as well if you want to save a buck or two! Let us know what your favorite thing to do is with your toddler and drop us a comment if we left out anything!