What to do, when to go, and where to stay — your complete Smokies guide.
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Definitive Smokies Guide
The seven corridors that shape how you see the Smokies — and the pullouts along each one that are worth the stop.
The Smokies are a scenic-drive destination as much as a hiking destination. For many visitors, the long view from a stone-wall pullout on Newfound Gap Road or the Foothills Parkway is the photo they take home — and most of the park's big landscapes can be reached in a comfortable Crown Vic-era sedan, provided the roads are open. This page is the master index: seven corridors, each with its own character, elevation range, best-light timing, and named overlooks.
For the full mile-by-mile detail of each corridor, see our dedicated guides — or jump straight to the complete overlooks catalog for pullout-level detail. Every overlook page ties back to a Stay22 map so you can base near the corridor you most want to drive.
The 33-mile crossing of GSMNP from Gatlinburg to Cherokee. Sugarlands → Chimneys picnic area → Chimney Tops overlook → Newfound Gap (state line, 5,046 ft) → Oconaluftee. Every turnout has a name and a story.
2 named overlooks catalogued → see all
Two spectacular segments on the TN side — the original 17-mile east section and the newer 16-mile west section — with wider, lower-traffic views than Newfound Gap. The Look Rock tower offers 360° panoramas.
The southern terminus of the 469-mile Blue Ridge Parkway, MP 411 (Cherokee) up toward Waterrock Knob and Balsam Gap. The highest BRP elevations, best cloud-inversion viewpoints, and fewest crowds.
A 43-mile alternate over the Unicoi Mountains from Tellico Plains, TN, to Robbinsville, NC. High, lonely, and among the most dramatic drives in the southern Appalachians. Elevation ranges 900 to 5,400 ft.
The 11-mile one-way loop through the valley floor of Cades Cove. Preserved cabins, churches, mills, bear and deer sightings, and a rim of mountains in every direction. Pedal-and-paddle Wednesdays (vehicle-free) in peak season.
A 5.5-mile one-way loop off the east end of downtown Gatlinburg. Old-growth forest, waterfalls (Place of a Thousand Drips, access to Rainbow Falls and Grotto Falls), and preserved homesteads. Closed winter.
The 17-mile river-hugging route from Sugarlands through Elkmont toward Cades Cove. Wonderland Hotel ruins, Appalachian Clubhouse, The Sinks, Metcalf Bottoms — and the fireflies in June.
Where to stay
Base near the corridor you want. Gatlinburg for Newfound Gap + Roaring Fork + Little River. Townsend for Cades Cove + Foothills West. Cherokee for BRP. Robbinsville for Cherohala.
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