Dolly Parton’s “Dollywood” Recognized As Best Theme Park In The United States Over Disney & Universal Studios

Is there anything that Dolly Parton can’t do?

Whether it be her legendary country music career, her initiatives to provide free books to kids through Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, or her theme park located near the Great Smoky Mountains, Dolly Parton always holds herself to a high standard.

The country music legend often visits Gatlinburg, Tennessee where her theme park and rollercoasters sit within the Smoky Mountains. Dolly has even been known to greet park goers and sometimes even perform at Dollywood. All in all, she knows what it takes to create a hospitable environment, and the theme park named after her that’s located in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee is certainly a reflection of herself,

Dollywood is sprawled across 160 acres and features over 50 different rides and attractions. The Smoky Mountains theme park draws in over 3.5 million visitors a year, and it’s consistently ranked as one of the best theme parks in the country. In fact, Dollywood has been recognized as Tripadvisor’s top amusement park in the United States three out of the past four years.

It was just announced that the Appalachia-themed park was named the No. 1 Best of the Best in the Amusement & Water Parks category for 2025:

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That’s a massive accomplishment, considering all of the other tentpole theme parks in the United States like Disneyworld and Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. One of those parks might have a mightily recognizable mouse as a mascot, but neither of them have the one and only Dolly Parton as the face of their franchise.

Dollywood president Eugene Naughton provided this statement when it was announced that the Pigeon Forge, Tennessee theme park was voted best in the land:

“This award is humbling, because it is derived from real reviews left by our actual guests describing their time here at our parks and resorts. We’ve earned a number of honors this year from national organizations, and it is all due to the hard work of our hosts who ensure our guests feel welcome and cared for while they are here. We feel — and these awards continue to show — the Dollywood Parks and Resorts experience truly is best in class.”

Knowing that it’s the guests that determine the victor makes winning the award all that much sweeter.

And just in case you were wondering, here is the Top 5 of the Travelers’ Choice Awards. Pretty impressive for Dolly Parton and her team at Dollywood to beat out Mickey Mouse and other highly-respected theme parks across the United States:

1. Dollywood (Pigeon Forge, Tennessee)

2. Disney’s Magic Kingdom (Orlando, Florida)

3. Knoebels Amusement Resort (Elysburg, Pennsylvania)

4. Disney’s Hollywood Studios (Orlando, Florida)

5. Universal’s Islands of Adventure (Orlando, Florida)

It’s evident that Parton is fearless when it comes to her career. That’s evident when you take a look at her groundbreaking songwriting, instantly recognizable vocals, and innovative business ventures. However, I do have to point out that all of that fearlessness goes out the window though when it comes to riding one of Dollywood’s famous coasters.

Parton finally came clean on why she chooses to keep her feet on the ground during an interview in 2023.

At the time, the Smoky Mountain theme park had just opened up a brand new ride called the Big Bear Mountain roller coaster, and while Dolly was back at Dollywood to celebrate the momentous occasion, she told Bang Showbiz why she chooses to stand on the sidelines when it comes to actually climbing aboard any of the coasters:

“Well does that look like fun or not? I think that is really gonna be something really great. Now you all know as well as you know my name that I am not gonna be riding that thing.

Because I don’t ride the rides, I don’t want my hair to fly off right on national television or something! But I know that all of you will be fighting to get on it and I’ll be standing watching you get in line!”

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Gotta give credit to Dolly for both having a vision to create a theme park and always being unapologetically herself. She’s such a gracious host that she won’t dare take a seat on a rollercoaster from a fellow Dollywood visitor.

That’s at least what we’ll say… it sounds better (but not as funny) than her wig excuse.The post Dolly Parton’s “Dollywood” Recognized As Best Theme Park In The United States Over Disney & Universal Studios first appeared on Whiskey Riff.