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How many of you have heard you will no longer be a How many of you have heard you will no longer be able to travel once you have kids? I find most people who say these things don’t even have kids or if they do they have never traveled with their kids!

I’m not really into counting countries and we enjoy visiting places more than once, seeing the beauty all over the US and right in our state too. You don’t have to travel far to give your kids amazing experiences but you can also take them wherever you want. Y’all know my motto, if kids live there kids can visit!! 

Where have you been that people said you were crazy for taking your kids (or your parents for taking you) but you were so glad you didn’t listen to them and went anyway.

#travellingwithkids #familytravel
Everything you need to know about visiting Chichen Everything you need to know about visiting Chichen Itza, one of the 7 Wonders of the World (SAVE + SHARE this post).

Chichen Itza is 2.5 hours from Cancun, 2 hours from Playa del Carmen, and 90 minutes from both Tulum and Merida.

You can get here by renting a car, booking a private tour on Airbnb Experiences like we did, coming on a tour bus or for budget travelers taking the ADO bus. 

Most tours from Cancun are all day long, leaving as early as 7/8 am and as late as 9 pm drop off. This is because you’ll visit cenotes outside of Chichen Itza and the town of Valladolid. Since we only had 4 days in Cancun we didn’t want to spend a full day on the road but also really wanted to visit so booking private transportation allowed us to skip all the other stops and just go there and back. We were picked up at 9 and back at the hotel by 4 so we could have a relaxing evening.

Current admission is $533 Mexican pesos for adults, $80 for kids 3-12 and free for kids under 3. That’s about $30 US for adults and $5 for kids.

Once inside there is the main attraction that everyone comes to see but there are also other Mayan dwellings and a cenote. I recommend coming with a guide or hiring an official guide once on site so they can give you information on the history.

Have you been to any of the 7 Wonders? If so, which one(s)?

Hubby and I climbed the Great Wall of China together in 2007, Jordyn, James and I have been to the Colosseum in Rome, the girls and I have been to Petra and we all visited Machu Picchu, Christ the Redeemer, Chichen Itza and the Great Pyramids of Giza together!

#chichenitza #7wondersoftheworld
Today is the last day of school and I could not be Today is the last day of school and I could not be more proud of Jordyn! Look at all those awards she racked up at her end of the year ceremony. She’s reading 3 grade levels above hers, was only 9 points away from a perfect score on her state reading test and made the Honor Roll every quarter of the year. It’s time to celebrate, let summer begin!!!
We’ve been to 34 states and while we haven’t v We’ve been to 34 states and while we haven’t visited them all yet these are 4 states you should consider visiting this summer. (SAVE + SHARE this list for inspo)

📍Idaho- Last year we explored Southern Idaho and it blew us away. City of Rocks National Reserve, Kayak to Shoshone Falls, white water rafting, and walking behind Perrine Coulee Waterfall are musts!

📍Alaska- We visited the South East part of Alaska, Juneau, Sitka and Ketchikan and WOW talk about stunning. You’ll love exploring ice caves, walking on glaciers, canoeing through ice bergs, seeing the volcano and hopefully spotting some bears!

📍Utah- From the famous national parks like Zion and Bryce to the lesser known areas like Kanab, Utah is stunning. You can’t miss sand boarding through Coral Pink Sand Dunes and ATVing through the gorgeous landscape.

📍California- Where else can you surf and ski/snowboard in the same day? California has the most national parks in any state so you know the beauty is beyond amazing. Having lived there for 3 years I’ve explored so many cities and there is something for everyone!!

Would you like me to share my website link for our itineraries for each of these trips in stories? Have you been to any of these? Which state intrigues you the most from this list? What city/state would you like to see us cover?

#visittheusa #bucketlisttrip #travellingwithkids
We have been traveling with our girls since they w We have been traveling with our girls since they were 6 weeks old. Is traveling with kids always easy? Nope! Are there added costs to traveling with kids? Yes! But having status with World of Hyatt has helped elevate our travels, making things a little easier and saving us money, here’s how (SAVE + SHARE this post).

1. Being a family of 4 standard hotel rooms can be kind of cramped. Having status with World of Hyatt means we’re eligible for free upgrades when available including suites as a Globalist.

2. Eating out for breakfast everyday on a vacation starts to add up really quickly. As a Globalist we get free breakfast for 2 adults and 2 children.

3. At hotels with club access Globalists also get free access which includes drinks and snacks, the perfect way to hold kids over until dinner without spending money.

4. I don’t know who decided 9 or 10am was a good time for check-out, hello we’re on vacation, we want to sleep in! Having status with World of Hyatt means you qualify for late check out at 2pm or 4pm depending on your level of status. So whether you sleep in, hit the pool or use the other amenities at the hotel you can enjoy a little longer. It especially helps us when we have flights later in the day.

5. After paying for our hotel room we hate having added fees. Thankfully when you have Globalist status with World of Hyatt resort fees are waived on free night awards and/or eligible rates.

6. Free hotel nights! There is nothing like booking a hotel and not paying a penny! Having joined World of Hyatt we rack up points (on more than just stays) and the higher your status, the more points you earn to get free stays faster.

7. As World of Hyatt members we even earn American Airlines miles on our Hyatt stays, getting us free flights faster to save even more money!

From being more comfortable to finding more ways to earn, you’re missing out if you haven’t joined World of Hyatt!

@hyatt #HyattPartner
4 Ways to Redeem Points at Hyatt Hotels & 7 Ways t 4 Ways to Redeem Points at Hyatt Hotels & 7 Ways to Earn World of Hyatt Points & (SAVE + SHARE):

Ways to Redeem
1. Redeem points for rooms at Hyatt hotels. There’s nothing like experiencing luxury without the cost, so glad I could redeem Hyatt points for this stay with one of the best views of Tokyo.

2. Redeem points to cover your meal at participating restaurants at Hyatt hotels.

3. Redeem Hyatt points to cover your spa treatment at participating spas at Hyatt hotels. 

4. Redeem points through World of Hyatt FIND experiences. With over 200 experiences like cooking classes, tastings, & walking tours there are so many activities to choose from!

Ways to Earn
1. Are you an elite member with American Airlines? If so, you can earn 1 Hyatt point for every $1 spent on AA flights. These are in addition to the normal miles you’ll earn on American, just sign into your AA account & link your World of Hyatt account.

2. Rent a car through Avis & can earn 500 Hyatt points per rental. Just provide your Hyatt membership number when making the reservation & use AWD code K817700.

3. Book a FIND experience by World of Hyatt and earn 10 points per $1 spent. Hyatt offers over 200 experiences such as culinary classes with celebrity chefs, hot air balloon ride in Arizona, guided bike tour over the Golden Gate bridge and more.

4. Even if you aren’t staying at a Hyatt property, if you eat at the hotel restaurant or book a spa treatment you can earn 5 points per $1 spent. We actually ate at a Hyatt restaurant in Kyoto & even though we weren’t staying there I gave my World of Hyatt number & received points!

5. Earn points on everyday spending with a World of Hyatt credit card: 2 points per $1 spent on restaurants, airline tickets, local transit, rideshares, & gym memberships plus earn 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases.

6. Transfer points earned on other credit cards who partner with Hyatt such like Chase Sapphire Preferred, Sapphire Reserve, Freedom Unlimited & Freedom Flex. 

7. Book a cruise with Lindblad Expeditions & earn 5 points per $1 spent.

Are you doing any of these?

📍Andaz Tokyo

@hyatt #HyattPartner
If you visit Lisbon or any mainland city in Portug If you visit Lisbon or any mainland city in Portugal I highly recommend adding a trip to Madeira! It’s an island off the coast of Portugal, actually closer to Africa than Portugal. Here’s how I spent 6 days in Madeira (Save + Share this post):

🇵🇹Day 1: Pool day at my hotel (NEXT Hotel) for most of the day and then I went running up the crazy hills of Madeira to see Funchal by foot.

🇵🇹Day 2: I explored the NW part of the island visiting Seixal Beach, Ponto Moniz, Fanal Forest and Ilheus da Ribeira da Janela.

🇵🇹Day 3: I went on a sidecar adventure where I explored Valley of the Nuns, the Cabo Girão Skywalk, and the fishing town of São Pedro with @madeirasidecartours.

🇵🇹Day 4: Whale and dolphin watching tour but we only saw dolphins. In the evening I did an Airbnb Experience at a locals farm house where he cooked a great dinner where 90% of the items were picked directly from his gardens that day. He also taught us how to make poncha, a favorite local drink. The tour should already be linked in my Maderia story highlights.

🇵🇹Day 5: I toured the SE part of the island visiting Ponta do Garajau, Monte Palace, and ended the day at the most beautiful views from Pico do Arieiro (the shots of me on the clouds).

🇵🇹Day 6: I watched the sunrise from Miradouro Ponto do Rosto and then did an 8 mile hike of Levado do Caldeirão Verde. After the hike I relaxed at the pool!

If you want photos taken in Madeira I recommend @robframing.

Honestly Madeira was everything and I don’t see it dropping out of my top 5 international destinations anytime soon.

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Things to do in Pigeon Forge with Kids

December 8, 2020      Destinations, North America, Tennessee

This post contains affiliate links. If you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small commission at no cost to you. Please see our disclosure policy for more information. All opinions are my own.

When looking to visit the Smoky Mountains most people make their base Pigeon Forge or Gatlinburg as they are a quick drive into the National Park. However, in addition to being close to the Smokies there are many fun family activities to do in these cities. You really can’t go wrong with either but I personally felt there were a little more things to do in Pigeon Forge with kids. Even if you do decide to book housing in Gatlinburg, like we did, I mean, check out these cabin views, you’ll want to spend time in Pigeon Forge. 

mom, dad, two girls and their grandma harnessed up to go ziplining

Outdoor Things to Do in Pigeon Forge with Kids

The best part about being in Pigeon Forge with kids is getting outdoors. We visited in the Fall (October 25-30th) and had beautiful weather which wasn’t too hot but also not freezing yet so we loved being outside.

Anakeesta

Anakeesta is a newer attraction and very touristy but there are a lot of things to do here. Plan to spend at least half a day if you want to do all the activities. As a heads up there is a general entry fee and then most of the activities still have an additional fee once you’re in the park. Vista Gardens and the Treetop Skywalk are included in the price however if you want to zip-line here, go on their mountain coaster or go gem mining these are extra costs. The Smoky Mountains Sightseeing Flex Pass gives you up to 30% off admission costs to various on tours throughout the Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg, and the Smokies, including Anakeesta.

two young kids in Pigeon Forge at Anakeesta holding up their trays showing off the gems they found mining

My girls absolutely loved the gem mining activity and they were able to share a large bag to sift through and get two trays. This is one of the extra activities I really think is worth paying for here. Some of the others you can do outside of Anakeesta for cheaper, which we did do and will discuss later on.

Anakeesta does offer great views of the mountains and we even saw a Black Bear climbing up. There is a great playground for kids as well where they can burn off all their energy. The park also has a few restaurants, both casual and sit down, and deserts!

Dollywood

Dollywood is a must when visiting Pigeon Forge with kids. It’s a much smaller park than Disney World but still lots of fun and way cheaper. A one day ticket starts at $69 with 3 day passes starting at $99. There are rides for every age group including some big thrills for those that have no fear! If you are there in October their Halloween decorations are amazing and best viewed in the evening when it’s dark so plan accordingly.

dad with two daughters at Dollywood theme park posing in front of the sign

If you’re more of a water ride person Dollywood has it’s on waterpark, Splash Country. Since we visited in late October it was closed for the season. Splash Country is only open mid-May through Labor Day weekend and starting in August they are only open on select days. 

Rocky Top Mountain Coaster

If roller coasters are too thrilling but you’ve also graduated from the baby rides, Rocky Top Mountain Coaster is for you. It’s great because you can control the speed of your ride, so if you want all the thrills you can go full speed and if you don’t you can go as slow as you want. The ride lasts at least 9 minutes, longer if you go slower. You just need to be 38 inches to ride with an adult or 56 inches to ride alone.  Get Your Guide offers mobile tickets to the Rocky Top Mountain Coaster.

Adventure Park at Five Oaks

If you want to keep the adventure going definitely check out Adventure Park at Five Oaks. We chose to do their zip-lining adventure here but they also offer horseback riding. The zip-lining here is great for families as kids 3 years and older can participate. The lines here are around 400ft high and you’ll enjoy 7 lines. It takes about two hours to complete the tour and it was lots of fun.

zip-lining in pigeon forge with kids

Smoky Mountains

You cannot come to Pigeon Forge and skip the Smoky Mountains National Park. When visiting with kids I know some of the hikes can be challenging but there are some like Laurel Falls Hike which is great for kids. 

mom, dad, and their two young daughters standing in front of a small waterfall

If you really can’t hike with them I highly recommend the Cades Cove scenic loop, this way if you don’t want to get out the car you don’t have to but you can still see a lot. From the road we saw this bear and Cades Cove is supposed to be one of the best places to see them. 

There’s lots to do in the Smoky Mountains, you can check out my blog post on the park here for more!

Indoor Things to Do in Pigeon Forge with Kids

If you’re looking for things to do indoors because of the weather these are some great options.

WonderWorks

A great activity for raining days, we’ve visited the one in Orlando and it’s always a hit with my kids. They especially always love the magic show the museum puts on in the evening. This location even offers laser tag!

Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies

If you’re familiar with Ripley’s Believe it or Not, this is their aquarium. Much different than their typical establishment, it’s still filled with adventure. They have cool programs like sleepovers where you can sleep in front of the shark tank and have a scavenger hunt when the aquarium is free of daytime guests.

Cherokee Museum

The Cherokee Museum is technically not in Pigeon Forge, it’s actually not even in Tennessee, it’s in Cherokee, NC but it is so worth a visit. Historically the entire area was inhabited by Native Americans until settlers came in and stole their land. The museum highlights the tribes who originated from here and their history. It’s a small yet powerful museum that is completely worth the hour drive!

Other Things to do in Pigeon Forge with Kids We Didn’t Have Time For

There are so many things to do in Pigeon Forge with kids that we just didn’t have time to do them all. We would love to revisit the area so these are a few things we’re looking forward to doing next time!

  • Go Karts Pigeon Forge Speedzone Fun Park- go karts for the whole family
  • Paula Deen’s Lumberjack Adventure- You can watch lumberjacks competing and then try out those same adventures yourself
  • Pigeon Forge Snow– where you can go snow tubing year round
  • Pink Jeep Tour (we did one in Sedona on our Southwest road trip, it was excellent)
  • White Water Rafting- the lower Pigeon rafting allows kids 3 and up to join

Where to Stay in Pigeon Forge with Kids

When you come to a destination like Pigeon Forge it is all about the cabins. Since we were traveling with kids and on a flexcation, doing work/virtual school, we needed a place where we would have a lot of space and have things to do without leaving the cabin. We found this amazing cabin on Vrbo and it was so hard choosing just one since they offered so many great options.

With five bedrooms, five bathrooms, a pull out couch and bunk bed the cabin could sleep up to 16. Four of the rooms had a fireplace and a balcony making them extra cozy. The balconies all overlooked the Smoky Mountains and the views were absolutely stunning, especially in the fall with all the leaves changing colors.

dad holding daughter on a cabin balcony looking at the views of the Smoky Mountains

If we didn’t want to leave the cabin, which some days we couldn’t, we had more than enough to do right inside. As soon as it was lunch time at school for my daughters all you heard was them running downstairs. They weren’t interested in eating at all, they wanted to enjoy the cabin’s game room. Honestly, I couldn’t blame them at all, the room had Mario Kart, a jukebox, pinball, a machine with 100 games including my favorite Mrs. Pac Man and more.

In the evening when we wanted to relax the theater was the perfect place. We could watch TV, Sunday night football or a movie in comfort and on the big screen. The only thing missing was a popcorn machine!

How to Get to Pigeon Forge with Kids

There is no airport in Pigeon Forge but 25 miles away is Knoxville Airport (TYS). While it’s only 25 miles it does take about an hour to get there due to driving through the mountains. We personally drove in from Chattanooga, TN which is a two and a half hour drive and then went on to Franklin, TN to continue our Tennessee road trip. Other nearby airports include Greenville/Spartanburg (GSP) (98.2 miles), Charlotte (CLT) (152.8 miles), Atlanta (ATL) (157.7 miles) and Nashville (BNA) (176.8 miles).

There are so many things to do in Pigeon Forge with kids. We spent five nights and could have easily spent another two weeks but we were on a Tennessee road trip and it was time to check out our next destination. Did you find this article helpful? If so, please share it!

The Traveling Child is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com, amazon.co.uk, amazon.ca. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.

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  1. Rosalyn says

    December 18, 2020 at 4:32 pm

    Thanks so much for sharing! My fam and I are doing a cross country road trip and this was super helpful!!

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Hi! We’re The Hambricks

Hi! We’re The Hambricks

If kids live there, kids can visit! That's our motto and you'll often find us exploring destinations most don't find "kid friendly". We've traveled to 35 countries on 6 continents with our children since they were 10 weeks old and share tips to make it easier and affordable. But mom and dad are people too so we also write about solo travel, baecations and girlfriend getaways.

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