Directions to Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Finding the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is pretty easy, after all, it covers more than 800 square miles which is quite a size, and around 8 to 10 million visitors find the park each year, so here are the directions which they must follow, and you can too for your visit to Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Driving Directions to Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Great Smoky Mountains National Park has three main entrances, so here are the driving directions to each of them.

• Gatlingburg, Tennessee entrance to Great Smoky Mountains National Park – from I-40 take Exit 407 at Sevierville to TN-66 South. Once you reach the Sevierville intersection continue straight on US-441 South, through Sevierville and Pigeon Forge and on into the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
• Townsend, Tennessee entrance to Great Smoky Mountains National Park – heading from the north take I-40 in Knoxville Exit 386B and onto US-129 South towards Alcoa/Maryville. When you get to Maryville head on US-321 North/TN – 73 East through Townsend, then continue along the TN-73 right into the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
• Townsend, Tennessee entrance to Great Smoky Mountains National Park – heading from the south take I-75 until Exit 376, then I-140 East towards Oak Ridge/Maryville, where you should merge onto I-140 E at Exit 376B in the direction of Maryville. Next turn onto US-129 South (the Alcoa Highway) at exit 11A then travel in the direction of Alcoa. Turn onto the TN-35 and follow along that route until you reach the US-321 North, follow US-321 North/TN-73 East through Townsend, and continue along right into the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

• Cherokee, North Carolina entrance to Great Smoky Mountains National Park – heading from the north on I-40, take Exit 27 to US-74 West in the direction of Waynesville, then turn onto US-19 and go through Maggie Valley on to Cherokee, where you should turn onto US-441 North and follow the road all of the way to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
• Cherokee, North Carolina entrance to Great Smoky Mountains National Park – heading from the south follow US-441/US-23 north, and when you reach Dillsboro merge onto US-74 west/US-441 north, when you reach exit 74 merge onto US-441 then follow this route through Cherokee to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Traveling to Great Smoky Mountains National Park by Plane

• Tennessee – the closest major airport in Tennessee to Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the McGhee-Tyson Airport (TYS) which is located in Alcoa, just a little south of Knoxville. This airport is around 45 miles to the west of the Gatlinburg entrance to Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
• North Carolina – the closest airport to the Cherokee entrance to Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the Asheville Regional Airport, which is around 60 miles to the east of the entrance.

Traveling to Great Smoky Mountains National Park on Public Transport

Public transportation is not available to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, but there are some commercial businesses which operate from the smaller communities which surround the park. You should be able to find transport to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park from Knoxville, TN and Asheville, NC, as well as a bus service from Cherokee, NC to both Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge during the summer months and into the fall. There’s also a trolley service available from Gatlinburg, TN.

Ain’t it great?