Dollywood Discussion Thread

[dstephe9]

Honestly, I feel the survey was just a typo. I work for a company with three brands. Communications, surveys, what not sure always similar. Lots of copy/pasting.. Doesnt SDC have similar, if not the same, festivals? 

[TEDodd]

3 hours ago, u4icmusic said:

 Was it a typo or is an announcement going to come soon?

Typo since it only one of 3 lines and the other two just say Dollywood.

As nice as SDC is, Dolly is a big part of the draw and without it DW would just be a little regional park (like it was before she got involved).

 

Just compare the activity in this thread to the SFC thread. This one might be 350 pages if it was SDC East instead of DW.

[IronWolfman]

2 hours ago, DBru said:

Dollywood is such an iconic name for a park. Even my non-enthusiast friends around the country are familiar with it. I really hope even if Dolly parts ways with the park that Herschend can strike a deal to continue using her name.

My thoughts exactly. Dollywood is very recognizable and is almost certainly the most well known non-chain-branded park when it comes to the non-enthusiast people I know, at least for being halfway across the country from it. The name in itself is a draw with Dolly's popularity nation-wide, and it'd be unfortunate to lose that. 

[sdcfan88]

5 hours ago, TEDodd said:

As nice as SDC is, Dolly is a big part of the draw and without it DW would just be a little regional park (like it was before she got involved).

Just compare the activity in this thread to the SFC thread. This one might be 350 pages if it was SDC East instead of DW.

That might indeed be true (and if Lightning Rod was never built LOL)

Though on a serious note I do feel Hershend did invest more into DW over SDC up until the past decade which also contributed to the bigger draw. Just look at how quickly DW expanded their real estate (and coaster count) vs SDC from 2000 to now.

2000-2010 SDC got Wildfire, a family flat ride area, and the kiddie coaster. (Powderkeg was a conversion of the short lived Buzzsaw Falls literally reusing most of its track for the mid course, so its debatable if it counts) In fact SDC lost some stuff (Waterboggan and kids play areas) during that time that never got fully replaced. Also SDC's classic Fire In The Hole ride is in disrepair and might actually be demo'd in the coming years while DW fixed their version up. DW added several family/kids play areas, flat rides, Thunderhead, and Mystery Mine.

2010-2020 DW continued its coaster investments with their own kiddie coaster, Wild Eagle, Firechaser, Lightning Rod, and the large family expansion area with Dragonflier. SDC got Outlaw Run, Time Traveler, Firemans Landing and Mystic River Falls. (again with the latter two being a retooling of the site of a former attraction)

[ytterbiumanalyst]

Branson's pretty far out for most people. Our population density really still is along the East Coast, so Dollywood is easier to reach for most Americans. Thus it has higher attendance than SDC. If you have more guests, you need and can afford more attractions. More attractions means more buzz on the Internet.  All these things are related.

[bill_s]

Like the case of Busch Gardens, I can't imagine they'd want to change the name unless they had to, even if everything beyond that is debranded. There are some disadvantages though of the association,, not everyone likes country music or Dolly, and she's not becoming more popular.

Hershend is expanding though, so it could become "Silver Dollar City's Dollywood" or "... a Hershend Park"

[CP_RULES]

14 hours ago, u4icmusic said:

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?

Silver Dolly City 

[DollyWould]

Even if the name does change in some form, such as to Silver Dollywood, no one is going to be going out of their way to call it that, with the exceptions of employees maybe.  So that means if that were to happen, Splash Country would officially be Silver Dollywood’s Splash Country? LOL...I mean, give me a break.  No one calls it Dollywood’s Splash Country now.  It’s just commonly referred to as “Splash Country.”  I think the park is sending out mixed messages this season anyway.  This year’s park brochure is the first year to prominently display Dolly’s image in as long as 15 years!  She has been absent from it for quite some time now (with the exception of her image associated with her Stampede Dinner Show.)   Also, she has been doing more voice-overs lately in television and internet ads as well.  So if she is truly on her way out soon or not as involved, why would the park’s current marketing efforts include expanded use of Dolly’s contributions? 
 

[tndank]

Seemed Drop Line was running a different cycle today. It rotated as it went up. Then, near the top it stopped lifting and did a 360. Then, it slowly starts rising and drops immediately after 5 or 10 feet. Good stuff.

[u4icmusic]

8 hours ago, DollyWould said:

Even if the name does change in some form, such as to Silver Dollywood, no one is going to be going out of their way to call it that, with the exceptions of employees maybe.  So that means if that were to happen, Splash Country would officially be Silver Dollywood’s Splash Country? LOL...I mean, give me a break.  No one calls it Dollywood’s Splash Country now.  It’s just commonly referred to as “Splash Country.”  I think the park is sending out mixed messages this season anyway.  This year’s park brochure is the first year to prominently display Dolly’s image in as long as 15 years!  She has been absent from it for quite some time now (with the exception of her image associated with her Stampede Dinner Show.)   Also, she has been doing more voice-overs lately in television and internet ads as well.  So if she is truly on her way out soon or not as involved, why would the park’s current marketing efforts include expanded use of Dolly’s contributions? 
 

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.

[u4icmusic]

4 minutes ago, tndank said:

Seemed Drop Line was running a different cycle today. It rotated as it went up. Then, near the top it stopped lifting and did a 360. Then, it slowly starts rising and drops immediately after 5 or 10 feet. Good stuff.

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.

[tndank]

Didn't realize that. Thanks for the info. I've only had the standard "to the top, pause and drop" that I know of. There was zero line last couple hours today. Makes sense.

[dstephe9]

31 minutes ago, tndank said:

Seemed Drop Line was running a different cycle today. It rotated as it went up. Then, near the top it stopped lifting and did a 360. Then, it slowly starts rising and drops immediately after 5 or 10 feet. Good stuff.

Yeah it has a slow cycle and they were running it now that it can be full capacity again! Slow cycle includes time to view the park.

[dstephe9]

29 minutes ago, u4icmusic said:

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.

Oh today was slammed! Very busy day, again, I believe it's just bc they are up to fill capacity on everything again! 

[bert425]

isn't the Dolly museum there?

 

I thought there's a full walkthru with a section of it as her Childhood home?

[tndank]

2 minutes ago, bert425 said:

isn't the Dolly museum there?

 

I thought there's a full walkthru with a section of it as her Childhood home?

Two different attractions. There is a Dollywood museum. Completely separate is a reproduction of her childhood home.

 

[bert425]

ok.. so the comment above implying Dolly isn't really represented in the park isn't an accurate assessment. . as there is both a museum, and a reproduction of her childhood home.

never been to the park, it's still on my list.

[tndank]

8 minutes ago, bert425 said:

never been to the park, it's still on my list.

Come up and see us in East TN sometime.  If it's not a Friday or Saturday, I've got free Bring A Friend passes.

 

[megan]

On 5/2/2021 at 8:22 AM, bill_s said:

Like the case of Busch Gardens, I can't imagine they'd want to change the name unless they had to, even if everything beyond that is debranded. There are some disadvantages though of the association,, not everyone likes country music or Dolly, and she's not becoming more popular.

Hershend is expanding though, so it could become "Silver Dollar City's Dollywood" or "... a Hershend Park"

She NOT becoming more popular????? She on probably the biggest awareness high she been in YEARS right now. I could actually see her thinking “I’ve got so many development deals going on right now that the last thing I need to boost my awareness is this” I don’t think that’s the case, but waning “popularity” is NOT the reason. 

[u4icmusic]

12 hours ago, tndank said:

Two different attractions. There is a Dollywood museum. Completely separate is a reproduction of her childhood home.

 

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.

[AmyUD06]

53 minutes ago, megan said:

She NOT becoming more popular????? She on probably the biggest awareness high she been in YEARS right now. I could actually see her thinking “I’ve got so many development deals going on right now that the last thing I need to boost my awareness is this” I don’t think that’s the case, but waning “popularity” is NOT the reason. 

Really?  In the DE/NJ/eastern PA area, where there is one country station on the radio, I guarantee you that 7 out of 10 people under 40 have never heard of her, two know her as "that country singer with the big boobs and hair" and couldn't name a single song, and one is a fan.  I find myself in the middle category.

[tndank]

The museum is good stuff if you've never walked through.  They have some things from when it was SDC and a lot of Dolly's items.  Grammys, Emmys, etc all on display.  

Her popularity has been on an upswing.  

https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/artsandculture/arid-40186524.html

https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/features/dolly-parton-netflix-heartstrings-9-5-jane-fonda-miley-cyrus-a9216661.html

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/10/19/the-united-states-of-dolly-parton

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/nov/26/why-dolly-parton-is-having-a-millennial-moment

 

[TEDodd]

On 5/2/2021 at 12:42 AM, sdcfan88 said:

Though on a serious note I do feel Hershend did invest more into DW over SDC up until the past decade which also contributed to the bigger draw.

Without Dolly the park wouldn't have had the traffic to justify the investment which further increased the traffic. I visited in the 80s ('88 or '89) from a town 350 miles away. Would not have happened without Dolly's name.

Then more recently, 2012 took the family 5 hours to the Smokies but the prime draw was Dollywood, and it's kept us coming back multiple time a year since.

If it was SDC it wouldn't have happened. My son and I would have gone to Six Flags for coasters and the family would have gone elsewhere since the girls (wife and daughter) had no interest in coasters.
I've suggested SDC since and no interest. They wanted Dollywood because of Dolly.
Even the rest of Branson isn't enough of a draw.

You could put TH, MM, WE and LR at SDC and it wouldn't have a big impact on the traffic,
(Most of the traffic isn't coaster enthusiasts).
Dollywood already had the traffic to justify the investments.

[TEDodd]

21 hours ago, tndank said:

Seemed Drop Line was running a different cycle today. It rotated as it went up. Then, near the top it stopped lifting and did a 360. Then, it slowly starts rising and drops immediately after 5 or 10 feet. Good stuff.

That's the only cycle I've ever had on Drop Line. I knew others were possible, but never been on it when they were in use.

[TEDodd]

21 hours ago, u4icmusic said:

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. 

For every one like you there are a dozen that are the opposite. Changing the music (which fits the craftsman/country life vibe) would cause a lot to not come back. I suspect a lot more than would suddenly show up.