Gatlinburg

A pedestrian suspension bridge nearly 210 metres long, strung across a wooded ravine high above the town, reached by the SkyLift chairlift, with a glass floor section and views of Mount LeConte.

💡 Go up in the late afternoon, when the sun drops behind the town and lights up the mountains, or after dark for the lights of the valley. The ticket is subject to the weather and non-refundable. Price: $40.95, about €35, per adult at the ticket office, $26.95, about €23, ages 6 to 11, free up to age 5.

APK / CC BY 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons)

Gatlinburg's rainy-day attraction by the river, with a moving walkway through an underwater tunnel beneath sharks and rays, African penguins seen from glass bubbles and a ray touch pool.

💡 Come at opening time, 9am, or after 7pm, as the midday queues are long in summer. The free trolley's central station is right in front. Price: about $40, about €34, per adult, less online; check the day's price on the website.

Brent Moore from Smyrna, TN, USA / CC BY 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)

A mountaintop adventure park reached by gondola, with a treetop skywalk of sixteen suspension bridges, a 360° viewing tower, alpine coasters, a zip line and the Astra Lumina light trail at night.

💡 Buy online, as the price goes up at the ticket office. Stay until dark for Astra Lumina, which costs extra. Price: from $39.99, about €34, per adult, $27.99, about €24, ages 4 to 11; Astra Lumina $18.99, about €16; coasters and zip line extra.

Missvain / CC BY 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons)

A narrow one-way road of 8.9 km through hardwood forest beside a mountain stream, past log cabins, mills, the Place of a Thousand Drips and the trail to Grotto Falls.

💡 The road is generally open from mid-April to late November, and closed to RVs, buses and trailers. Buy the parking tag beforehand, as there is no kiosk on site, and have a fallback plan if the Grotto Falls car park is full. Price: parking tag $5, about €4, a day.

Missvain / CC BY 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons)

The most spectacular trail on the Tennessee side, climbing through rhododendron forest and through Arch Rock to the ochre overhang of Alum Cave Bluffs, then on to Mount LeConte.

💡 Park before 8am, as the car park overflows after that and cars parked outside the bays are ticketed. Allow 3 to 4 hours round trip to the Bluffs, and a full day for LeConte, with 850 metres of ascent. Price: parking tag $5, about €4, a day.

Andrew Heneen / CC BY 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons)

The pass between Tennessee and North Carolina at about 1,540 metres, where Roosevelt dedicated the park in 1940 and the Appalachian Trail crosses the road among spruce and fir.

💡 Set off early: the car park fills up from 10am in summer and in October. Walk 3 km round trip on the Appalachian Trail heading north to leave the crowds behind. Bring a jacket, as it is 8 to 10°C cooler than in town. Price: road free; parking tag $5, about €4, a day, on sale at the kiosks at the pass.

Missvain / CC BY 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons)

The highest point of the park and of Tennessee at 2,025 metres, formerly Clingmans Dome, where a steep paved path climbs to a spiral concrete observation tower above the treetops.

💡 The Kuwohi road is open from April to about the end of November, and closed in winter. Go up for sunset, but come back down before full darkness, as the road is long and deer cross it. The car park is often full: plan another stop. Price: parking tag $5, about €4, a day.