u4icmusic

Nobody thinks it might be Dollywood? They haven't had a new coaster since Dragonflier, which is a family coaster. There has been chatter about a new coaster, which would be great.

Exactly, with 99% of the items for sale made in China that could be purchased for half the price on eBay or Amazon. I've seen items sitting on their shelves for so long they have to be regularly dusted. The only time most of that stuff sells is when it goes on sale or clearance. It's a marketing ploy. Have a craftsman that makes a handmade item when the rest of the merchandise in the store is imported from China. It's all fake. The other "home good" stores sell stuff you can find anywhere else or online for much cheaper. It's gotten worse of the last few years too and Herschend pushes for more and more profit over the guest experience.

Does your son and your teen that loves Dolly go to Dollywood to listen to the Kingdom Heirs? My only thought was that other music choices would bring in other people that may not have visited before because of the artists they regularly book at Dollywood. It's my opinion, which I have a right to have.

I have to respectfully disagree with you on that. Craftsman's Valley is only one section of the theme park. There are eleven themed areas. Each area could have different music, stages and theaters with different music options. I don't know anybody that goes there for the music and the music typically appeals to the older crowd that doesn't spend any money in the park. Bringing in new music, I think, would bring in new guests. How many times can someone go see the Kingdom Heirs?

Both of those could easily be moved to Nashville, where country music reigns. Do people go to Dollywood to see either the museum or the replica of her childhood home, which takes about 1 minute to walk through? I've never walked through the museum, so I cannot comment on it, but it would probably do better elsewhere.

There are three or four different options they can use on Drop Line. The one you had today is for less busy days when there is little to no line. When it's busy, it's a straight up, pause, then down.

Could be her grand farewell. They've removed her photos from the outside of Dolly's Closet (not sure why that store is still there because nobody dresses like Dolly except for Dolly). They removed the ticket booths inside the park for The Stampede and they removed her picture in the Emporium on the way out. When you think about it, other than Dolly's Closet, there's nothing in the park that is Dolly themed at all, except for junk in the gift shops. It could be called anything and nothing else would have to change, except for merchandise in the stores. All the rides and shows could stay the same. I would be happy with way less, country, gospel and religious music than they have now. I'd love to see more pop, rock and other types of music. It would open it up to a wider audience. Dolly doesn't ride the rides anyway, so she has nothing to do with them. I doubt she even has much input when new rides are chosen and negotiated. She's also no spring chicken anymore and might be thinking about retiring or focusing on other things like her library, music, perfume and books. Going back to Silver Dollar City could be a win-win for east Tennessee.

Here is the full screen shot of the Dollywood survey showing the name change to Silver Dollywood for next season. Was it a typo or is an announcement going to come soon?

Things are changing at Dollywood. There has been a lot of odd things going on around the park. Such as all the theming removed from the upper train loop, the Stampede ticket booth disappearing from Dollywood, Dolly's thank you picture taken out of the Emporium, and Dolly's pictures have been taken off the exterior of the Dolly's Closet store in recent years as well. The lease for the Gospel Museum was also not renewed. We all think changes are coming to Dollywood soon. This could very well be goodbye Dollywood and Hello Silver Dollar City East! Maybe season passes will be good at both Silver Dollar City parks if that happens.

Has anyone heard about Dollywood transitioning to Silver Dollar City over the next two years? Dollywood is having a huge auction next weekend. They are saying they are getting rid of surplus items from the park. Others think it is due to the transition from Dollywood back to Silver Dollar City. Here is the info on the auction: Auction Story Is Dolly Parton getting out of the theme park business and selling her stake in Dollywood to Herschend Family Entertainment? Does this auction have anyting to do with the park being renamed? It is all a rumor? Here is a screenshot of a survey from Dollywood. Notice how it says Silver Dollywood for one of the questions? Something is going on and inquiring minds want to know. Discuss!

Dead today at Dollywood. Today, I arrived at about 9:30 am and got in line for Lightning Rod. They opened it just before ten and the short line went quickly, in less than 10 minutes. Then I walked the opposite way most people do and went to Thunderhead and walked right on. Zero wait. Then I went over to Mystery Mine and again walked on with no wait. I thought the lines might be longer later in the day, so I rode it twice before hitting Firechaser, Wild Eagle and Tennessee Tornado. I walked on all of them, all with zero wait time. I don't recall Dollywood ever being this slow, but I was happy. By 11:30 am, I rode all the coasters and some other of my favorite rides (Daredevil Falls Drop Line and Barnstormer) and several of them multiple times. As we all know, masks are not required outside in the park, although about 25% of the guests still wore them. The ride operators were adamant about wearing the masks in line and on the rides, which was fair. Some guests had to be told multiple times to wear their masks while in line, but overall, mask usage was good. They also brought back the big jugs of hand sanitizer and were making everyone use it. They stopped doing this last year and I'm glad they brought that back. I think they have struck the right balance for a safe day at the park. My only though was that I felt sorry for the people that purchased the Timesaver Passes, as they were completely unnecessary today. The lines for the food were long, as usual, but the rides had no wait. Mystery Mine and Lightning Rod were both down for a short time, which is not unusual. Mystery Mine is still fun without the horseshoe loop and I've never found that ride rough. It does tilt back and forth a lot, but it's not rough to me. Overall, a great day at the park. The parking lot where the campers usually park was closed. They redid the blacktop and were painting new parking lines this afternoon when I left for the day. It needed it. The food they were offering for the Flower & Food Festival looked really good, but I didn't try anything. I was trying to find the Belgian Waffles, but never did find them. Next week, when I go, I'll have to ask where they are.

that's not totally correct. As of April 12, 2021, we have adjusted our COVID-19 safety requirements to the following: Per the CDC’s guidelines on safe outdoor activities, our outdoor areas, where six feet of distance can be maintained between parties, are now mask-optional spaces. Guest masking is required at all ticketing areas, park entry, on rides and trams, in queues, all indoor areas and areas where guests cannot socially distance outdoors. Guests and employees are still required to participate in a self-assessment health screening prior to entry, but temperature checks are no longer part of the process. Areas of the property where masks are required will be clearly marked and strictly enforced. Employees will continue to wear masks at all times while on the property.

The problem with that is that people will not put them on in the queue lines or inside shops. Once they are off, then they will be off for the entire day, in my opinion.

I was at Dollywood yesterday. The park opened at 10 am. I arrived at 9:15 am and lot C was already almost full. Lines for temperature checks were very long and they were not even asking the 4 questions, just checking temperatures. I got into the park at 9:45 and got in line for Lightning Rod, which was already to Dolly's Closet store. They opened the ride at 10:15 and were running two trains. The loading process is very slow because people with items that need to be stored have to walk over the seats, place their items in the bins, then get back into the trains. For some reason, people can't move quickly and get this done quickly, causing long wait times. Then there are the people that didn't try out the test seat and can't fit into the ride, causing further delays because you have to wait for them to disembark the train. When I got off the ride and looked at the wait time sign it said 180 minutes. I'm sorry, although this is a good ride, no ride is worth a 3-hour wait to me. I checked the phone app and all the wait times for the coasters were long. They have increased their capacity and it was packed. As a matter of fact. I've never seen it this crowded on a Wednesday and I go every week or so. I ended up leaving just after 12 noon because you literally could not move throughout the park without bumping into other people. Mask wearing was decent, about 90% with 10% not wearing them at all. I say no park employees asking people to wear masks and all the seats were being filled on all the rides. They are basically back to pre-Covid levels. The only think I saw them do was sanitize the rides hourly. Other than that, it's back to normal crowds at Dollywood. Don't go without a Time Saver Unlimited or you won't get on any rides without a long wait.

We will have to wait and see. There's no reason to get lax about social distancing and wearing masks now when a possible 4th wave is around the corner. We should be even more vigilant now, even though we are all tired of the mandates. They are there for a reason and until we get heard immunity, if we ever do, then I expect the mandates will remain in effect to prevent employees and guests from getting Covid while at the parks. I don't see why Kings Island would not be doing the same protocols as last year since most Americans still have not been vaccinated. I also think being outdoors helps, but distancing is still possible and should be followed. You don't get on the rides any quicker by standing close together, so what is the harm in spreading out some for everyone's safety? It's common sense. Here is the link to the full article. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/how-to-stay-safe-from-covid-this-summer-according-to-experts

While I do agree with you. The rules are the rules at this time. The difference between Kings Island and Dollywood in terms of enforcing COVID rules is like night and day. Both parks employ 16 year olds, but at Kings Island, they have employees actively going through the queues and and making sure groups are spaced at least 6 feet apart. I also feel that since we've been doing this for a year now that people should know better. Guests should not have to be told to stay on their blue lines (the circles are gone) or ask people to wear their masks properly. It should be automatic and there should be no argument or begging people to do the right thing. It's not a big deal and everyone knows what six feet looks like. People have the right to get bent out of shape, especially now that cases are up all over the country. The fault falls squarely on the people not following the posted rules and not on the guests that want the rules enforced.

I live in Knoxville and in all of Eastern Tennessee, but especially Pigeon Forge, Sevierville and Gatlinburg, the COVID mask mandates and social distancing are almost entirely ignored. Just last night, the Knox county commission voted to strip the health department of all powers in the fight against COVID. That's how backwards it is here. However, I have found compliance at Dollywood to be pretty good, at around 75% percent for mask wearing, but no social distancing, which is unfortunate. When I am in line and ask people to step back, they get an attitude, like I am making my own rules. There are blue stickers on the floor that are supposed to be adhered to, but ignored by 95% of the guests. I so see and hear ride operators asking people to wear their masks when on the rides, but nobody is enforcing it while in the queues. CDC guidelines also state that masks must still be work after vaccinations have taken place, so having a vaccine is NOT an excuse to not wear a mask. Dollywood needs to do better with enforcement, but they just don't have the staff. Everyone knows the rules before going, so if you are anti-mask, don't visit the park. They need to start removing guests that aren't following the rules.

I'm in Knoxville, and it rained a lot of the day yesterday and very hard at times and there was some (not a lot) lightning, so hopefully the rides stayed open most of the day and the crowds were probably small due to the rain. I've gone to the park later in the day after heavy rains have stopped and been there with just a handful of people. Works every time, but you have to watch the weather and hope it is accurate. Don't want to drive there if it is going to start raining again.

When calling the park 5 times, you might get 5 different answers from 5 different Dollywood phone reps. You cannot believe everything they tell you because they don't always have the correct answers, which is unfortunate. At least you can check on the website and see how many are available for pre-order. I've never seen them sold out online then checked at the park to see if they get any additional inside the park, but I will check the next time I go, as I always get there an hour early.

They only sell a limited quantity for each day. If they are sold out online, then they will also be sold out at the park. When you try to buy online it will show how many are remaining for that particular day. If the number remaining is high, then you might be able to buy one at the park. However, I've seen them have 75 available and check two days later and they are have all been sold. Buy as soon as you can. With reduced hours and being closed two days a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays, there is a huge demand to get into the park, especially from season pass holders. I believe there won't be any slow or less crowded days this season unless it is a very rainy day.

It doesn't matter if it is spring break or not. They were not even at capacity, which is reduced because of COVID. Expect longer lines when the park goes full capacity again when the restrictions are lifted. The park wasn't busy, but everyone wanted to ride Lightning Rod for sure.

Just got back from Dollywood. Lightning Rod was running two trains today. I got in line at 9:30 am. They starting sending trains out at 10:10 am and they were running two trains today and there didn't appear to be any issues. The line was long and at 10:30 the wait time posted on the sign was 140 minutes, so I only rode one time. They must have also tweaked some of the rough spots on the track or maybe the transition from the Topper Track to the I-Box track because it was super smooth. The last two times I rode it, there were rough patches on the track, but not today. It was smooth from beginning to end. I think the only way to ride this coaster in a timely manner will be to get the TimeSaver passes.

Yes, still only one train. They are waiting for a fix from the manufacturer. Even the TimeSaver Line is long, about an hour, instead of 2 plus in the regular line. It's not a good time to ride Lightning Rod right now because of the long wait times.

The problem with Lighting Rod right now is the LONG wait times in line because of them only running one train. I refuse to wait in line 2 hours for any ride.

You are correct. I was surprised how packed it was yesterday. There's no way they had any capacity limits yesterday with the crowds and parking lots that full. If they did, then they raised their capacity and are either at normal or close to normal capacity, because it is way more crowded than last year. It was loaded with kids too.