Dollywood Cabins Review and Tips 2014

A fun alternative to staying in a motel or hotel in Pigeon Forge is to stay in a luxury cabin or chalet. If you’re planning on spending a day or more at Dollywood I highly recommend staying in the Dollywood Cabins. They’re a bit pricey and you need to book well in advance but it is totally worth it. Very good value and one of the best places I’ve ever stayed. Perks include being able to go to Dollywood everyday you have the cabin reserved for the price of a single day ticket. Dollywood cabin guests also get free parking in one of the closest lots to the park entrance as well as other discounts.

Staying in a cabin could really take your vacation to the next level and make it a truly memorable experience. They’re especially great for honeymoons or when traveling with friends or family.  The mountain views are incredible, especially at sunset while soaking in the private hot tubs on the cabin’s decks. Don't try to cram in too much each day. The whole point of renting a cabin is being able to lounge in your pajamas on the deck, watch a spectacular sunset, and cozy up by the fire. You may not want to leave the cabin at all - and that's perfectly fine

The cost per night might be prohibitively expensive for some families on their own but a group of four or more can rent a nicer cabin with more amenities for a lower price per couple. Save money by brining your own food instead of eating out every night. If you’re staying with friends it could be fun to have each couple plan and cook one nightly meal.

If you’re thinking about staying in a cabin and are looking at prices, be aware of the potential “hidden” fees. If the cabin has a hot tub (and most do) there could be an additional hot tub fee that is not considered as part of the nightly rate. During the busy summer season nearly every cabin will require your stay duration to be at least two nights and may charge a reservation fee. Then there are state and Sevier County taxes to potentially pay as well. So just be warned when you see that totally awesome Groupon deal that looks too good to be true, be sure to read all the fine print so you aren’t caught by any unexpected fees.

Tip: Sometimes you can take advantage of the fact the cabins require guests to stay more than one night. For example, let’s say you’ve booked Thursday through Saturday night, checking out Sunday morning and another couple booked the same cabin beginning Monday evening. This means Sunday night is unfilled but another guest can’t book it because it’s only available one night. The cabin company would rather have the cabin filled than sitting empty a night so you now have the opportunity to extend your stay by a night or two for a steep discount, at least 50% off if not more!

Learn more tips like these by reading Things to Do in the Smokies with Kids.

Top 50 Most Terrifying Roller Coasters - 45. Furius Baco

45. FURIUS BACO

Known for: World's only launched wingrider

Park: Port Adventura

Location: Spain

Type: Steel

Opened: 2007

Designer/Manufacturer: Intamin AG

Height (ft.): 46

Speed (mph): 83.9

Inversions: 1

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lpl1zlq9jXY

Furius Baco was the world’s first wing coaster where the seats are cantilevered off the side of the train instead of being on top of or below the rails allowing passenger’s feet to dangle freely. What makes Furius Baco even more unique is it’s the world’s only launched wing coaster, and while many other launched rides typically launch immediately into a giant hill, Furius Baco races off of the launch track and dips down into a trench. Because the wingspan of the vehicles is so wide the outside seats are far away from the center of gravity of the trains and often result in a rough and bumpy ride. This could be one of the reasons why Furius Baco has been the only wing-rider with stationary seats sold and manufactured by Intamin. The wing-rider market is dominated now by B&M who appears to have solved the roughness problem.

Top 50 Most Terrifying Roller Coasters - 46. The Bat

46. THE BAT

Known for: World's first suspended coaster

Park: Kings Island

Location: United States

Type: Steel

Opened: 1993

Designer/Manufacturer: Arrow Dynamics

Height (ft.): 78

Drop (ft.): 70

Speed (mph): 51

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sg-OWKFyp8A‎

One of the most notorious rides in roller coaster history is The Bat at Kings Island. It was the first ever suspended roller coaster where the cars hang below the rails and are free to swing freely from side to side. The Bat only operated sporadically between 1981 and 1983 before being dismantled in 1985. Over the years, the legend of the Bat has grown due to the outrageous rumors about why the ride was destroyed and because so few people were able to ride it. Contrary to many wild stories, the Bat never killed or even injured a rider. Poor engineering of the trains, track, and structure is what really lead to the ride’s demise. A year after the Bat was removed the Vortex looping coaster was erected in the Bat’s place and actually reused the station. Concrete footers from the Bat can still be seen beneath the Vortex’s structure. The suspended roller coaster returned to Kings Island in 1993 with the edition of Top Gun (renamed Flight Deck and later re-themed to the Bat). If you were fortunate enough to ride the original Bat consider yourself lucky!

Ultimate Book About the Harry Potter Ride

Today I want to share with you the latest book on my reading list: Secrets of the Forbidden Journey.  It’s an in depth look at how the Harry Potter ride at Universal's Island of Adventure works! Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey is the most technologically advanced ride on the planet. 

It uses robotic arms that travel along a transport fixed to a track (called a RoboCoaster) and synchronizes with other moving platforms and animatronics.  

This book gives a detailed walkthrough of the ride, talks about the history of how it came to be, then dives into details about the engineering and technology behind it. This also includes how it uses hologram projectors and dome screens on carousels. 

It also talks about a few of the effects that were planned but didn’t make it to the final ride, like the dragon actually breathing fire and a more fearsome Whomping Willow tree. f you’re interested in how rides work or want to pursue a career in the theme park industry I recommend checking this book out. Available on Amazon.com.

Top 50 Most Terrifying Roller Coasters - 47. Riddler's Revenge

47. RIDDLER'S REVENGE

Known for: World's largest standup coaster

Park: Six Flags Magic Mountain

Location: United States

Type: Steel

Opened: 1998

Designer/Manufacturer: Bolliger & Mabillard

Height (ft.): 156

Drop (ft.): 146

Speed (mph): 65

Inversions: 6

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WrsvkjhSwEQ‎

When Riddler’s Revenge opened in 1998 it became the world recorder holder in height, drop, speed, length and number of inversions on a standup roller coaster. Instead of sitting in a seated position riders standup while hurling through massive inversions including two back to back dive loops. Riders straddle a small bicycle style seat meaning this coaster may be slightly more terrifying for males rather than females, especially if they have dreams of having children in the future. Even though B&M only built seven standup coasters Riddler’s Revenge remains the cream of the crop.

Top 50 Most Terrifying Roller Coasters - 48. The RATTLER

48. The RATTLER

Known for: World's largest wood coaster when it debuted

Park: Six Flags Fiesta Texas

Location: United States

Type: Wood

Opened: 1992

Closed: 2012

Designer/Manufacturer: John Pierce

Height (ft.): 179.7

Drop (ft.): 124

Speed (mph): 65

Video: http://youtu.be/BPXBkuN-O18

When the Rattler opened at Six Flags Fiesta Texas in 1992 it was the tallest and fastest wooden coaster in the world. The lift hill climbed to an impressive height of 179 feet followed by a gut wrenching drop of 166 feet and a blistering speed of 73 mph. Adding to the ride’s excitement was its incredible location situated on top of, next to, and even carved through a rock quarry wall.Unfortunately, the coaster's original plans never called for such a large first drop. The construction of the 161 foot tall Mean Streak at Cedar Point prompted the park to alter the design at the last minute in order to make it the record holder. The hasty changes negatively affected the layout due to very rough transitions between elements resulting in many riders complaining of rib or back pain. The park was forced to make modifications to the ride and shortenedthe first drop from 166 to 124 feet resulting in a reduction of its top speed from 73 to 65 miles per hour.

There’s a saying about wooden roller coasters: “If it doesn’t shake it’s going to break.” Wooden roller coaster structures are designed to sway a couple of inches as the train goes racing by, especially in tight corners and high g-force locations. Think of it like this — when you jump off of a tall object you land safely by allowing your legs to flex and bend at the knee. Otherwise, if you kept your legs straight, you might shatter your leg bone or bust your knee joint. This same basic principle applies to a wooden roller coaster. The structure must be allowed to give and flex like a shock absorber in order to keep it from internally shaking itself to pieces. The Rattler was notorious for how much the structure would sway as the train raced by. See for yourself in this video: (http://youtu.be/sLfQBW9wnDI)

The Rattler was closed in 2012 to be transformed into the Iron Rattler steel coaster.

Top 50 Most Terrifying Roller Coasters #49 Abyss

The next coaster in our countdown of the 50 most terrifying roller coasters ever built is...

49. Abyss

Known for: Underwear dispensers

Park: Adventure World

Location: Australia

Type: Steel

Opened: 2013

Designer/Manufacturer: Gerstlauer Amusement Rides GmbH

Height (ft.): 98.4

Drop (ft.): 100

Speed (mph): 52.8

Inversions: 3

Australia’s Adventure World opened Abyss in 2013, a custom designed Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter coaster, the first of its kind in the country.Riders of the $12 million coaster board one of four trains seating eight passengers each. The journey begins inside a dark show building where the vehicles navigate a few twists and turns before rolling rider’s upside down through an inline twist in the dark. Then it’s outside and up the 100 foot tall vertical lift hill. The beyond vertical first drop sends the cars zipping along in excess of 52 mph during the ride’s 2,066-foot-long course. A dive loop and Immelman loop complete the inversion count before the vehicles return to the station inside the show building.

In an effort to help promote Abyss as Australia’s most terrifying coaster, the park placed underwear dispensers outside the exit of the ride stocked with packets of fresh clean white underpants. Along with the 'tighty whities', the undies packets contained a fact sheet outlining all of the key statistics and features relating to the ride. The park hasn’t unveiled how many guests have actually needed the packets.

Stay tuned for number 48. See number fifty here.