Townsend is the small town at the quiet entrance to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, about 25 minutes from Cades Cove. Here is what we'd do with a long weekend: drive the cove at sunrise, hike to a waterfall, float the Little River, and save the caverns for a rainy day.
Updated November 2026 by the hosts of Above the Pines
Townsend's entrance to Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the quiet way into the most-visited park in the country. Cades Cove is the reason most people come.
An 11-mile, one-way paved loop around a wide valley ringed by mountains. Expect deer and wild turkeys, often black bears, and the log cabins, churches and grist mill left by the families who farmed here in the 1800s. Go at sunrise for the most wildlife and the least traffic.
The spot where the Little River meets its West Prong, right at the park entrance on Highway 73. Locals swim, wade and tube here all summer. The water is cold and there are no lifeguards, so keep kids close.
A one-way gravel road that climbs out of Cades Cove and drops you back into Townsend, with long views back over the valley. It's the scenic way home after the loop. It closes in winter and isn't suitable for RVs or trailers.
Three trails within a short drive of the cabin, from an easy creekside walk to the best-known waterfall hike on this side of the park.
About 5 miles round trip along Abrams Creek, from a trailhead on the Cades Cove loop to a short, powerful waterfall and a wide pool. The current at the base is dangerous, so enjoy it from the rocks.
A shorter, steeper climb from the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont that ends at a tiered waterfall. It sees far fewer people than Abrams.
A wide, gentle old railroad grade beside a rushing stream at the end of Tremont Road, with cascades in the first couple of miles. Walk as far as you like and turn around. Good with kids.
The Little River runs right through Townsend, clear and cold, and it shapes most summer days here.
Outfitters in town rent tubes and shuttle you upstream for a slow float back down. It is the classic Townsend summer afternoon.
The Little River and its prongs hold rainbow and brown trout, and some higher streams hold native brook trout. You need a Tennessee or North Carolina fishing license, and park fishing rules apply inside the boundary.
When the weather turns, Townsend has a cave and two small museums that explain the history you'll see in Cades Cove.
Guided walks through huge underground rooms to Silver Falls, which drops 210 feet and is the tallest underground waterfall in the eastern U.S. The cave stays cool all year, so bring a light jacket even in July.
Original 19th-century buildings, hands-on exhibits and a Cherokee collection, all on one campus near the park entrance. It also hosts the Tennessee Pottery Festival.
A small museum about the logging railroad that built Townsend, with a restored Shay steam locomotive out front. It makes a quick stop on the way into town.
Some of the best views around Townsend come from the car, the saddle or a bike seat.
A ridge-top road with some of the widest views in the Smokies. The Walland to Wears Valley section starts close to Laurel Valley, which makes it an easy sunset drive from the cabin.
Townsend has a paved bike path along Highway 321 through town. Riders head to Cades Cove on Wednesdays from about May through September, when the loop is closed to cars and open to bikes and walkers.
Stables in Townsend and in Cades Cove run guided trail rides that suit first-timers.
Where to stay
Above the Pines is a three-bedroom log cabin in Laurel Valley, about 15 minutes from downtown Townsend. After a day in the park, there's a hot tub on the deck, a fire on the patio and a wall of windows facing the mountains. It sleeps eight.
Townsend's events are small and local. Dates change each year, so check theExplore Townsend festival calendarbefore you plan around one.
When to visit
March to May
Wildflowers on every trail, waterfalls at their fullest, and the caverns reopen for the year.
June to August
Tubing, swimming at the Wye and car-free Wednesdays in Cades Cove. Hot afternoons, cool cave.
September to November
Color usually peaks at lower elevations in late October and early November. Book early.
December to February
The quietest season. Rich Mountain Road and the caverns close, and the hot tub earns its keep.
Five things that save visitors a headache. Current rules and fees are on nps.gov.
Townsend questions
Townsend calls itself the Peaceful Side of the Smokies. It is a small town on the Little River, at the national park entrance closest to Cades Cove, and it has none of the crowds or attraction strips of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge.
Cades Cove Loop Road starts about 25 minutes from downtown Townsend, through the park entrance at the Townsend Wye. From Above the Pines it is about 40 minutes.
No. Great Smoky Mountains National Park has no entrance fee. You do need a parking tag to park anywhere in the park for more than 15 minutes. Tags cost $5 a day, $15 a week or $40 a year.
Cades Cove Loop Road closes to vehicles every Wednesday, typically from May through September, so people can walk and bike it. The rest of the year it is open to cars from sunrise to sunset every day.
Tuckaleechee Caverns (open March to November), the Great Smoky Mountains Heritage Center and the Little River Railroad and Lumber Company Museum are all indoors and close together.
Pigeon Forge is about 40 minutes away through Wears Valley, and Gatlinburg is about 45 minutes away along Little River Road inside the park.
Book direct
Pick your dates and see the full price on the booking calendar. Prefer Airbnb or Vrbo? The cabin is listed on both.
Questions? Call Dogwood Cabins at 888.448.9054