There is so much talk about the Airbnb experience. However, I personally had never stayed in one as I kept picturing nothing more than couch surfing at some randoms place as they walked through pouring the morning coffee. I could not have been farther from the truth and Airbnbs are so awesome!

Airbnb experience has affordable options

When heading to Tennessee, we normally book a cabin through a company. However, since COVID, the cabin prices have skyrocketed. So I started looking on Airbnb. Tada, a lovely one-bedroom cottage was discovered in Knoxville! There were about ten properties from condos to rooms to cabins and all were under $125 a night! This was drastically lower than any place I found through any other website. Yes, it wasn’t right in tourist junction. However, it worked out better because the drive wasn’t bad, and we could explore different areas too. We also wouldn’t be stuck in traffic almost every time we wanted to leave the cabin. So we booked it on the Airbnb website!

Here is the video!

Airbnb has creature comforts!

As we walked around our Airbnb, we noticed that there were utensils, some dishes and cookware, cleaning products, and even a little food left in the refrigerator. We ended up donating a baking sheet to the menagerie of items that we found. However, it was so nice having a kitchen with a lot of the things needed to cook a meal. Obviously with a stay anywhere a person might have to adjust to certain things they are not used to at home. For me, it was the electric stove. I have the hardest time cooking on one of them! But, just a minor convenience.

You make things work when booking Airbnb-

The TV channels were pretty bad at Airbnb. However, a workaround was casting from my phone to the television. Then I could have whatever streaming services I have at home. So we could Netflix and chill or watch the Roku channel. Casting the phone to the television also allowed us to watch our own personal videos and photos we were taking on the trip! Pretty cool!

Expect the unexpected

Every Airbnb experience will be different. To me, that’s what makes it so awesome. You can pick some really unique experiences. However, you might have some of those experiences anyways during your stay. For us, the owners have chickens. I remember coming home with fried chicken in my hands and a chicken was standing at our front door staring at me. As my daughter says, “so awkward.” But, it was a new experience. Every night they would roost in the tree by our tiny cottage. Abby Girl even got to play with baby chicks. There was also a dog. So be aware if you are bringing your dog. There might be other dogs on the property.

Don’t worry, I got the awkward chicken experience on video! Cluck here. I mean click here …

Another cool highlight was the fireworks. Yes, we had fireworks! On the fourth of July, we ended up going to a seafood buffet instead of the traditional fireworks. I was honestly bummed. However, when we returned to the cabin, fireworks were going off on three sides of the property! An amazing family memory for the Airbnb books.

The Airbnb host-

They can truly rock. Ours was beyond nice. He even suggested the church him and his wife attend. It ended up sparking a blog post about the experience. The first night we were there, my husband and I had a small miscommunication and left the keys in the cottage. Our host, was reachable by the website and his phone. So, we were able to get back in without an issue. In fact, we needed anything, they were there to help.

read our church-inspired post here!

Tips for other Airbnbers to Follow-

• Respect the rules. For us the main one was no dogs on the furniture. Our dog was confused at first but got it

• If you have questions, contact them! After I reserved the Airbnb, it said dogs had to be crated when we weren’t there. Our dog would go bonkers. But the host made an allowance and allowed Noodles to be confined to a room with her bed

• Clean up after yourself

• Embrace the experience

• learn to adapt if needed

• respect the property

• Don’t be a pest. I contacted our host a couple of times. However, they have lives too, so don’t bug them for every little thing.

Final Thoughts on the Airbnb experience-

Airbnb is a great way to experience the world whether you want to stay in a yurt, castle, or suburban neighborhood. Just keep an open mind and expect the unexpected.

Heading to the Gatlinburg area? Here are some touristy things to do. Embrace your inner tourist!

In Gatlinburg and surrounding areas are you looking for things to do that just scream “I’m a tourist”? Well, then this is the post for you. Every time we adventure to the area, we find different stuff to do. Here is our list from this time around of must-dos. Just, remember, these options might or might not be friendly on the wallet. So let’s break down from free is for me to silent sobs as the money flies. The one thing all these places have in common is that they are all a ton of fun and with careful planning, even the more expensive tourist spots can be less expensive.

In Gatlinburg and Surrounding Areas: Practically Free and Awesome-

We did three things that didn’t cost any money (or minimal) this trip for people to try.

Cades Cove is at the top of the list.

As you travel towards the Cades Cove loop in the summer, you will see many people splashing in the water or even fishing. You can skip the loop altogether and just have fun playing in the water. Just watch for the current and ability levels in the water of every person in your party.

*Want to spend a little money? Bring a picnic lunch and spend the day. Just don’t leave your pic-in-ic basket or any leftover food or trash for Yogi. The area is populated with bears and they cannot have “people” food no matter what Yogi the bear says.

If you decide to travel down to Cades Cove Loop, you can always stop at the tourist center or keep going. It was too crowded to stop when we went. Be prepared to hit traffic. Especially in popular times. We went during the week and the loop still took a very long time to go around and it is only eleven miles. However, the scenery and history are well worth the traffic. There is a donation box if you would like to contribute. We made several stops going around the loop to see the historical churches and the views. On this trip, we didn’t see any animals. However, it was extremely hot and the middle of the day.

*What type of animals might one see in the loop? Well, you can see bears, boars, antelope, elk, bobcats, otters, raccoons, deer, and other wildlife. So keep those eyes peeled. All we saw was a blackbird. However, just outside the loop heading back, we did spot a bear cub in a tree. Read more here!

Go to Church-

We usually attend Roaring Forks Baptist Church in Gatlinburg. However, due to the Fourth of July Traffic, we ended up at our Airbnb host’s church and it was awesome (Valley View Baptist Church-Knoxville). There is also a service in Cades Cove. Churches are practically at every turn. Most are Baptist. However, we saw a fair share of Methodist, Church of Christ, and Pentecostal too.

Read our Post that I was moved to write while attending church on vacation!

Go for a Drive-

There are plenty of roads to explore in the area. Just be aware that as you drop into some areas, service might be a distant memory. We explored an area toward the Kentucky border and first I noticed I had no WIFI and then I saw an “x” where my service bars used to be at one time. So make sure you have gas in the tank and snacks for one and all. Then use an old-fashioned map or at your own discretion, wing it. We also had no service in Cades Cove!

Price is open if You walk in Gatlinburg-

I say “open” because there are a ton of shops and tourist attractions in Gatlinburg and the neighboring towns. So you can just go for a walk or spend that vacay money. It is totally up to you. We tried to get our most expensive must-dos out of the way early in our trip so that we knew how much allotted vacation money was left to shop and do extra stuff in Gatlinburg and surrounding areas. FYI Abby Girl did a lot of shopping.

* Insider tip-Try to purchase items that you cannot find where you live or are more difficult to find. I stocked up on my Christian items as it’s hard to find stores with Christian products in the Hudson Valley. Leave a comment if you know any! FYI we are Baptists.

Top of the List for Expensive in Gatlinburg and surroundings are this-

Dollywood, Ripley attractions, and old-time photos are at the top of the list of the most expensive stuff to do on this trip. But they are all worth it and with careful planning, you can make them more affordable.

Dollywood-

As far as amusement parks, Dollywood is beyond awesome. We missed a whole section because we got there in the morning and having a dog back at the cabin, had to get back to her forcing us to leave late afternoon. The rides are a lot of fun. There is also a Dolly Parton museum on-site and Abby Girl loved all of Dolly’s clothing.

Abby lost her watermelon visor hat on a water ride and was devasted. Literally lost it at the end of the ride. However, the staff worked for an hour to find her a new hat that was similar. So now Abby is the proud owner of a French Fries hat thanks to the amazing staff at Dollywood.

Next time, we want to go in the afternoon and stay into the evening to catch the fireworks, drones, and various shows. We missed them all going at the beginning of the day. However, it gives us something to look forward to for a future trip.

Tourist Tips-

• Buy a combo pass to more than one Dollywood attraction to save money.

• Don’t forget to stop at the beginning of the park and get your children measured to save time deciding on rides (and disappointment). We finally are no longer in Kiddy Land! Yay to 43 inches.

• Eating before and after you avoid the long food lines and huge expensive theme park food.

• Spend a little extra money on the better parking. It puts you right near the entrance. It’s super easy when you want to exit and you don’t have to wait for the trolley.

• Stay hydrated and wear sunscreen during warm weather. It gets very hot standing in lines and walking around.

• Save the gift shops for the end.

• Make a meet-up location in case your party becomes split up.

• Go during the week or off-season

• Buy tickets in advance. We didn’t do this as we were paying cash. However, it does save time and disappointment if they are at capacity when you get there.

• Keep an eye on the ever-changing COVID rules. We didn’t have to mask up this trip (early July 2021). But, they keep everyone updated on the website.

• You most likely will not see the real Dolly Parton. We were told that even when she does visit the park, she takes off her wig, makeup, and anything else that would give her away and goes incognito. However, there is a cool holograph in the museum!

Ripley’s Attractions in Gatlinburg-

(Sponsored section) We loved Ripley’s attractions! We were planning on just visiting the Aquarium … However, the woman at the guest service both offered us a multipass with two other attractions.

*Tourist tip- Buy the multipass, it will save you money!

Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies-

This was Abby Girl’s first time visiting here. She loved touching the stingrays and the underwater tunnel was so cool. Her favorite was the penguins. She seemed to connect with the one penguin. They have extra attractions throughout the day too that we didn’t see such as the penguin parade and the mermaids. Lots of different areas to explore. They have cool events too (even for homeschoolers). But they sell out fast, so reserve early!

*Be aware of crowding. We went during the week and it was still crowded. But, everything moved at a decent pace.

Ripley’s Haunted Attraction-

We usually don’t do stuff like this. However, Abby kept asking and asking. It was more fun than scary. Very theatrical and no creepy people physically touch you or anything. She was alright until it went pitch black. The spinning tunnel was crazy. Age 6 plus is required to enter. You cannot carry anyone if they become scared and secure all your items because you will lose items such as sunglasses on the head. You also have to congo line through with one hand on the person in front of you. It might be a stranger. Our fearless leader was someone we did not know and they kept leading us into the walls. So if you are a Mr. Monk type, then this attraction is not for you.

Ripley’s Believe it or Not

This place is beyond fun. It had a lot of educational and hands-on exhibits. The whole family got in on all the interactive stuff. A lot of oddities. So if you are like us, you will enjoy it a lot. It’s two floors and jam-packed with awesome at every turn. Abby Girl had an absolute blast.

Old Time Photos-

BE AWARE. I did a Groupon offer thinking we were just going to have a couple of photos taken in the old-fashioned clothes and get our 8 x 10 and leave. Read the fine print. Call the place you are completing the Groupon through.

We went to Wild Gals Old Time Photos in Pigeon Forge. They had us pick an era from several different looks and then we waited for the photographer (we were old Southern). He then took us to the first set. Then another set and finally a third. He was really awesome and not cookie-cutter in his poses. I liked that he really thought about what he was doing and tried new poses. He even asked us if we wanted to try any different poses.

Then afterward, you wait again after you change back into your clothes. You drag all your belongings with you throughout the process in a small shopping basket. They then take you into a room and close the door. BE AWARE. The cheapest package was almost three hundred dollars. The Groupon only covered that 8 x 10 and the sitting fee. Releasing the rights to you and all the other stuff is additional. We picked the cheapest package. They gave us a CD and airdropped the photos on my husband’s iPhone. We received an 8 x 10 on special paper where you cannot use glass over the picture. It will ruin it. So, just be prepared to spend in one of these places. We would have been upset, but the photographer did an awesome job and we have minimal family photos, so it was worth it.

Summing up Ways to Save Money in Gatlinburg-

• Stay someone where there is a kitchen. Easier said than done. We only ate a handful of meals at the cabin. However, it does save money. (We love the buffets, and Mama’s Farmous. We could have done without Captain Jim’s Seafood Buffet, Bojangles and No Way Joses). Funniest moment was returning to our cabin with Fried Chicken and the Air BNB hosts chickens were there staring at us as we walked by them with said chicken. When I was reviewing photos later, my husband chuckled because there was literally a picture of fried chicken next to a photo of a chicken. But, if you want good Cajun fried chicken, go to Gus’s!

• Keep snacks in the car

• look into the coupons. Many even offer free gifts with purchase. Do not leave them in the place you are staying like I did. Go mom!

• Multi-passes save money

• Stay outside the touristy areas. We rented an Airbnb in Knoxville. The drive wasn’t bad to Gatlinburg and surrounding areas. It also allowed us to do free or inexpensive stuff in and around Knoxville. The cost of the Airbnb was far less than anything even near Gatlinburg.

Final Thoughts About Stuff to do in Gatlinburg and Nearby Areas-

Gatlinburg and the surrounding areas are a lot of fun. We went for a little over a week and still have plenty to do for trips in the future. We also love how friendly everyone was and the conversations we had with so many. So go be touristy ya’ll and have an awesome time!

Watch the short film of the whole trip here!