Dollywood Visitors Are NOT Happy About The Theme Park’s New QR Code Drink System: “No Way My Dolly Approved This”

Yeah, this would drive me crazy.

Dollywood, the theme park owned by Dolly Parton in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, is gearing up for the 2026 season by testing out some changes they’ll be making for visitors to the park. And one change in particular doesn’t seem to be popular…

The park is rolling out new “Scan Pour Go” drink machines that will require guests to scan a QR code on their cup before filling up. The machines then give guests a certain amount of time to fill up their cup, while also measuring the amount of drink they’ve dispensed and cutting off after a guest reaches the maximum number of ounces they’re allowed.

@nathansmalls22How do you feel about Dollywood’s new drink system?♬ original sound – Nathan Johnson

Obviously that means no free refills, and guests who have gold or diamond season passes will be required to get a QR code for their souvenir mug in order to be able to use the perk. Guests with these refillable mugs will also be required to wait a certain amount of time, reported to be 10 or 15 minutes, before scanning their cup again.

And it’s safe to say that guests aren’t thrilled about the change.

Across the internet, many are blaming “corporate greed” for the change, while others are questioning whether Dolly Parton herself would approve of the change:

“$110 for admission, $25 for parking, and they wanna limit how much you can drink. What a joke.”

“The level of greed in this country is sickening.”

“Dollywood is supposed to be better than this”

“Tracking a liquid that costs the restaurant maybe 10 cents per cup (including the cup) is wild.”

“this screams we hate our customers”

“this alone will keep me from ever taking my family to Dollywood.”

“Immediately no. Not supporting any business that does this.”

“the oz limit is a bit excessive. why even have a open drink machine at all.”

“So they charge a fortune to get in the park and now they want to nickel and dime people for drinks. I’ll likely never visit Dollywood again.”

“Dollywood is a rip off. It used to be good.”

“Ain’t no way my Dolly approved this!!”

“Dollywood used to be so good back in the day and Dolly cared about her local families. Unfortunately local families can’t afford Dollywood anymore.”

@emmatron The amount of greed in this world is hard to stomach at times #dollyworld #fountaindrink ♬ original sound – Emmatron

Another issue that many mentioned is probably one that everybody’s experienced: What happens when you go to get your drink and the syrup is out, and you just wasted your ounces on a cup of watered down Coke? I assume the employees can help you reset your balance or just give you another cup, but that’s more of a pain than just dumping it out and choosing another soda…

Of course Dollywood is far from the first amusement park to install this new system, and I have a feeling we’ll be seeing more and more of these pop up everywhere from theme parks to restaurants. With the economy struggling and companies looking for new ways to increase their revenue, free refills are probably an easy target to get people to spend a couple extra bucks when they need a drink.The post Dollywood Visitors Are NOT Happy About The Theme Park’s New QR Code Drink System: “No Way My Dolly Approved This” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.