If you're planning a Christmas or New Year's vacation in Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, or Sevierville, there's a local term you may hear that probably doesn't appear in many vacation brochures:
"Hell Week."
It sounds dramatic, but among many Sevier County locals and people who work in the tourism and service industries, it's a familiar nickname for the exceptionally busy period surrounding Christmas and New Year's.
Generally, Hell Week runs from around December 23 through about January 2, although the exact pattern varies from year to year depending on where Christmas, New Year's Day, and the surrounding weekends fall on the calendar.
The broader holiday rush often begins around December 18 as schools let out and Christmas travelers begin arriving. By the time Christmas approaches, Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, Sevierville, and the surrounding Smoky Mountains can become extraordinarily busy.
The nickname isn't meant to discourage visitors from spending the holidays in the Tennessee Smoky Mountains. It's a bit of local shorthand for what happens when an enormous number of visitors arrive at essentially the same time.
If you know what to expect and plan accordingly, you can still have a wonderful Smoky Mountain holiday vacation.
Why Is It Called "Hell Week"?
The Christmas and New Year's holidays create a perfect storm for tourism in Sevier County.
Schools are out. Many workplaces are closed. Families are traveling together. Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge are glowing with Winterfest lights and Christmas decorations, and thousands of families have the same idea at roughly the same time.
The result is a lot of people trying to get to the same places on the same roads.
Traffic on the Parkway and other major routes can become extremely heavy. Restaurants and attractions may have long waits. Parking in popular areas can be difficult to find, and a trip that normally takes 15 or 20 minutes can take considerably longer.
For visitors, that can be frustrating.
For the people working behind the scenes to make those vacations possible, it's also one of the most demanding periods of the year.
Restaurant servers and cooks, attraction employees, cabin cleaners, maintenance workers, grocery store employees, rental support staff, first responders, and countless other local workers are serving thousands of visitors while much of the country is enjoying time off with family.
That's an important part of the "Hell Week" story that visitors don't always see.
How to Prepare for "Hell Week" in the Smoky Mountains
You can absolutely enjoy a Christmas or New Year's vacation in the Smokies. The key is to arrive with realistic expectations and a little extra planning.
1. Allow Much More Time to Get Around
Don't judge travel time by mileage during this period.
A destination may be only a few miles away, but traffic through Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg, and major intersections can make a short trip take much longer than expected.
Avoid planning an itinerary that requires you to rush from one attraction to another. Give yourself plenty of time between activities and be prepared to change plans if traffic isn't cooperating.
2. Don't Try to Do Everything
This isn't the ideal week for an ambitious itinerary with five or six scheduled stops every day.
Pick the things your family most wants to experience and leave some open time around them. If you're spending the day in Gatlinburg, for example, it may make more sense to stay there for the day rather than repeatedly driving between Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge.
3. Make Reservations Whenever Possible
If there's a restaurant, dinner show, or attraction that's especially important to your family, make reservations in advance when they're available.
Popular restaurants can have significant waits during the holiday rush, particularly around normal meal times.
4. Buy Groceries and Supplies Before the Busiest Days
If you're staying in a cabin, consider getting groceries and other necessities before Christmas Eve and the peak holiday period.
Having breakfast, snacks, drinks, and the ingredients for a few meals at the cabin can save you from having to venture into heavy traffic every time someone gets hungry.
5. Enjoy the Cabin You Came Here to Enjoy
One of the advantages of renting a Smoky Mountain cabin is that you don't have to spend every waking hour in town.
Spend an evening in the hot tub. Play games with the family. Cook dinner together. Sit by the fire. Relax on the deck and enjoy the mountain surroundings.
Sometimes the smartest Hell Week itinerary is simply deciding that you don't need an itinerary every day.
Please Be Patient With the People Working During Your Vacation
This deserves special mention.
If your restaurant is busy, your meal takes longer than expected, an attraction has a long line, or a service request can't be handled immediately, remember that the employees you're dealing with may have already worked an extremely long day.
Many are also working during a time when their own families are celebrating Christmas or New Year's without them.
Tourism is a major part of life in Sevier County, and during the holiday rush these are the people keeping restaurants open, attractions operating, cabins clean, stores stocked, and visitors taken care of.
Please bring some patience and kindness along with you.
If someone takes particularly good care of you during an exceptionally busy shift, let them know you appreciate it.
Why Blue Mountain Cabins Does Not Schedule Holiday Turnovers
As private cabin owners, we've made a deliberate decision about the major holidays.
Blue Mountain Cabins does not accept reservations requiring guest turnovers on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve, or New Year's Day.
That means we structure our holiday reservations so that we do not have guests checking out and new guests checking in on those dates.
Why?
Because a same-day cabin turnover requires other people to work.
Someone has to clean and prepare the cabin, handle linens, restock supplies, inspect the property, and potentially take care of maintenance or other issues before the next guests arrive.
Our cleaners and the other people who help us take care of our cabins have families, too.
There are plenty of other busy days during the year when we need their help. We don't think Christmas Day, Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve, or New Year's Day need to be among them.
It means we have to be less flexible with arrival and departure dates during the holidays, but we're comfortable with that tradeoff.
Want the Christmas Atmosphere Without Hell Week?
Here's something many first-time visitors don't realize:
You don't have to visit during Christmas week to experience Christmas in the Smoky Mountains.
If your schedule is flexible, consider visiting in early to mid-December.
You'll still find Christmas lights, decorated attractions, holiday events, and plenty of Christmas atmosphere, but you'll generally avoid the extraordinary crowds surrounding Christmas and New Year's. If you're considering a winter trip, see our guide to visiting the Smoky Mountains in winter for more ideas on what to expect and things to do.
Early and mid-December can also offer substantially better cabin rates than the peak Christmas and New Year's period.
Keep in mind that the holiday rush often begins building around December 18, with the precise timing depending on the calendar and when schools begin their winter breaks.
January After New Year's Is Another Great Option
Once the New Year's visitors begin heading home, the Tennessee Smoky Mountains become a very different place.
By early January after the holiday rush, traffic generally becomes much lighter, lodging demand drops, and visitors have more breathing room to enjoy Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, Sevierville, and Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Winter also brings a different character to the mountains. With the leaves off the trees, you can often see mountain views that are hidden during the warmer months.
And lower winter demand can mean significant savings on cabin rates compared with Christmas and New Year's. For a broader look at seasonal pricing and lower-demand travel periods, see our guide to the best times to visit the Smoky Mountains on a budget.
If your vacation dates are flexible and crowds aren't your thing, January after the New Year's rush can be an excellent time for a Smoky Mountain getaway.
Already Booked During Hell Week? Don't Panic
Thousands of families visit the Smoky Mountains during this period and have wonderful vacations.
You simply need to approach the week differently than you would an ordinary December visit.
- Make reservations where possible.
- Buy groceries before the busiest days.
- Allow considerably more travel time.
- Don't overschedule your days.
- Be flexible if traffic changes your plans.
- Spend some time actually enjoying your cabin.
- Be patient with the people working to make your vacation possible.
And remember that you're sharing the Smokies with a lot of other people who had exactly the same holiday vacation idea.
Sometimes the best Hell Week strategy is surprisingly simple:
Pick a few things you really want to do, leave plenty of time between them, and enjoy your cabin while everyone else is sitting in traffic.
The Smoky Mountains aren't going anywhere.
Planning a Winter Smoky Mountain Getaway?
Blue Mountain Cabins offers privately owned vacation rentals in the Tennessee Smoky Mountains near Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, and Sevierville.
If your travel dates are flexible, compare early to mid-December or January dates with Christmas and New Year's week. You may find fewer crowds and considerably better rates.
Frequently Asked Questions About Hell Week in the Smoky Mountains
What is Hell Week in Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge?
"Hell Week" is a nickname used by many Sevier County locals and tourism and service-industry workers for the extremely busy Christmas and New Year's holiday period. It typically runs from around December 23 through January 2, although the busiest dates vary depending on the calendar.
When does Christmas traffic get busy in the Smoky Mountains?
Holiday traffic often begins increasing around December 18 as schools begin winter break and Christmas travelers arrive. The most intense crowds generally occur around Christmas through New Year's, with traffic beginning to ease as New Year's visitors head home.
Is Gatlinburg busy between Christmas and New Year's?
Yes. The period between Christmas and New Year's is typically one of the busiest times of the entire year in Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, and surrounding Sevier County. Visitors should expect heavy traffic, crowded attractions, limited parking, and longer restaurant waits.
Should I avoid visiting the Smoky Mountains during Hell Week?
Not necessarily. Many families enjoy spending Christmas and New Year's in the Smokies. If you visit during this period, allow extra travel time, make reservations when possible, avoid overscheduling, and expect crowds. Travelers who strongly prefer lighter traffic and fewer crowds may prefer early to mid-December or January after the New Year's rush.
When is a less crowded time to visit the Smoky Mountains for Christmas?
Early to mid-December is a good alternative for travelers who want holiday lights and Christmas atmosphere without the peak Christmas and New Year's crowds. The holiday rush usually begins building around December 18, although the timing varies from year to year.
Is January a good time to visit Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge?
January after the New Year's holiday rush can be an excellent time to visit. Traffic and crowds are generally much lighter, and cabin rates can be significantly lower than during the Christmas and New Year's peak period.
Why doesn't Blue Mountain Cabins allow holiday turnovers?
Blue Mountain Cabins does not schedule guest turnovers on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve, or New Year's Day. Same-day turnovers require cleaners and other support personnel to work, and we choose to structure our reservations so those important holiday dates can remain available for them to spend with their families.