Dollywood's HeartSong Lodge & Resort construction photo-update

Hi Everyone, Dollywood has released a few pictures of the new HeartSong Lodge & Resort that's currently under construction behind the DreamMore Resort at Dollywood.

New Universal Park with focus on families and kids announced near Dallas, Texas

Hi Everyone,

I have to preface this, this not a Dollywood-related post per se, but it is interesting news from the Amusement and Theme Park Industry.  In America, it has been somewhat rare to hear about new park openings.  New parks are mostly limited to Asia and the Middle East right now, where they seemingly spring up all the time.  They do happen from time to time in the US.  Recent park openings in America include Lost Island park in Iowa that grew from the success of a sister water park, American Dream indoor park in New Jersey, and then the OWA park in Foley, Alabama.  Legoland New York and Peppa Pig Park in Orlando are two new parks that cater to families with small children.

So, what's going on in Texas?  Well, I heard rumblings on one of the news sources I follow that something was coming to Texas, but it would be small because it was around 100 acres.  Who would build something?? - was the most asked question.  An announcement was made on Wednesday that the Universal Group was behind it, and they were building a different type of theme park from all the others they own.  Universal, is of course, a traditional movie studio as well as an extremely immersive type of theme park with thrilling rides, roller coasters and resort hotels.  It is steeped in characters like Spiderman, The Hulk, The Simpsons, Shrek, Harry Potter, and that list goes on forever.   Universal has resort theme parks in Hollywood California, Orlando, as well as Shanghai, Beijing and Tokyo...and now Frisco, Texas.

Let's read the press release from Universal and discuss it further after that.

FRISCO, Texas (January 11, 2023) – Universal Parks & Resorts announces a one-of-a-kind theme park, unlike any other in the world, specifically designed to inspire fun for families with young children. The new park concept, set in a lush green landscape and featuring immersive themed lands, celebrates Universal’s iconic brand of entertainment, humor and innovation and brings to life its beloved characters and stories in ways that will wow even the youngest theme park goers.

The proposed park will be designed to be more intimate and engaging for younger audiences and will be sized for a regional audience. It will be full of family-friendly attractions, interactive and playful shows, character meet and greets, unique merchandise and fun food and beverage venues. Although smaller in size, it will still carry the same quality as Universal’s other larger resort destinations.

Part of 97 acres of land recently purchased by the company, the proposed park also has plans for an adjacent themed hotel and room for expansion. The entire area is intended to have a completely different look, feel, and scale than Universal’s existing parks and will appeal to a new audience for the brand.

Universal Parks & Resorts selected the city of Frisco, in North Texas, as the area for this new concept given the city’s growing population and ability to attract businesses to the area. The proposed location for the new concept is ideally situated east of the Dallas North Tollway and north of Panther Creek Parkway.

“We are excited about the opportunity to partner with the city of Frisco and Mayor Cheney as we work to bring this innovative, new concept to life designed specifically for a younger generation of Universal fans,” said Page Thompson, President, New Ventures, Universal Parks & Resorts. “We think North Texas is the perfect place to launch this unique park for families given its growing popularity within this part of the country.”

“Frisco is one of the fastest growing cities in the U.S. and has been recognized as a great place to plant professional roots and raise a family,” said Frisco Mayor Jeff Cheney. “This new Universal concept will continue to enhance our tax base, expand employment opportunities and bring even more fun to Frisco benefiting our residents, businesses, and visitors.”

More details about the project will be revealed over time.

That's a lot of information!  Fun fact: Frisco, Texas is where the first season of Dallas was filmed!

More about the park...from the NBC Dallas Affiliate article - which owns Universal and Comcast...

Specific details about the park were not disclosed, but officials did say it would have traditional offerings like rides, shows and food while also including meet and greets with characters from Universal properties, films and shows -- like Minions or Shrek.

 

A rendering of the park was shown Wednesday morning that included a lush border with a grand entrance that opens to a lagoon. From there, guests can head in a number of directions to visit themed areas of the park.

 

The park design also included a river with what appears to be a boat ride throughout the park.

And this, too...

The footprint is about one-quarter the size of the parks in Orlando, scaled smaller to be more "intimate and engaging" for younger guests. The company said the theme park will have a completely different look, feel, and scale compared to Universal’s existing parks but will still carry the same quality as the larger resort destinations.

 

"The idea is to create a place in a region like this that people can come to time and time again, in between their visits to our big vacation destinations like Los Angeles or Orlando," explained Woodbury.

 

He said the park is expected to be a one-day or two-day experience and that they plan to also build a 300-room themed resort hotel on the property.

 

What stands out to me, and why I wanted to share this article, is that it does somewhat encroach on one of Dollywood's target audiences, which is families.  Since this park will be in Texas, it's not a direct competition to Dollywood, but Universal has a lot of money.  They are currently building a new flagship park in Orlando called Epic Universe, which will sort of be like Disney's Magic Kingdom with massive infrastructure, a hub and spoke layout, and several lands to visit.  Is this new small park style what's to come for amusement parks in America, or is Universal tapping into demands of what families are looking for?  Or Both?

In the late 1960's and early 1970's we saw dozens of corporate backed parks pop up.  The original bunch of Six Flags, King's Island, King's Dominion, Astroworld, Carowinds, Great America, The Busch Parks, the Sea Worlds, and Opryland were all built basically all at once, like a whole park was constructed in a year or two, and they all had funding from stable corporate sponsors - in their respective beginnings.  So, is this what will happen in the future?  Will Universal build out small parks like the one discussed here around the country?   According to this article from Dallasnews.com, Yes, they plan to build more small parks across the country.

Unlike Universal Studios’ sprawling parks in Orlando, Los Angeles and abroad, the Frisco development will be a much smaller attraction — the first of multiple such projects the company plans.

This article from Travel And Leisure says that this type of development is called a micro-theme park.

This is part of a growing trend in the theme park industry known as ‘micro-parks.’ These parks, significantly smaller in size than large-scale parks, are designed to be experienced in a shorter period of time and often are more affordable.

 

Examples include the newly opened Peppa Pig Theme Park in Florida, and the in-development Crystal Lagoons Island Resort in Arizona.

 

Universal Parks & Resorts currently operates five theme park resorts around the world — including Universal Studios Orlando and Universal Studios Japan — but this will be its first venture of this new park concept.

Would Universal build in East Tennessee?  I don't know!  I think there are a lot of plusses in the Pro Column for Universal to build in East Tennessee.   This area is appealing to families.  Families flock here and love it because the price points for all of the major attractions and lodging are a better value than in Orlando & in Southern California, and other tourist hot spots.  We are about an 8-hour drive from over 80% of the population in the United States.  This area is one of the more Southern areas in the US that experiences snow, and that is appealing to those who live south of this area, for winter activities.  Dollywood is a well-established park, so would Universal want to tap into that base?  Well, if you look at Universal's build-out history, they certainly tapped into what Disney had created in Orlando, so that is your answer to that question of would they or not.  

As far as other areas Universal might pop up - well, basically anywhere.  Frisco, Texas is an affluent, fast-growing suburb and America has a fair amount of that to offer.   The beauty, in my opinion, of this idea of micro-parks is that it really doesn't matter if another major theme park is nearby since their target audience is different.  The bigger parks are not catering exclusively to families and little kiddos.  Families no doubt visit these parks, out of necessity, but the parks have a heavy emphasis towards thrill-seekers.  Dollywood and Silver Dollar City, Missouri are exceptions to that idea, and both appeal to thrill-seekers and families quite well.

My hometown Nashville also comes to mind.  It is desperate-thirsty for any type of amusement park or family entertainment.  The challenge there is that no one wants it in their backyard (See StoryVille Gardens - a location has not been specified after the announcement in June of 2021), so it will be a real task to find 100+ acres in Middle Tennessee at this point, with an appropriately sized buffer zone surrounding it, and a community that will support it.  

This is all too early to know how any of this will play out over the next several decades, but I thought it was an interesting development that, one day, may impact Dollywood.  Of course, competition isn't bad for the consumer.

 

Resources for this article:

• Press Release from Universal - Universal Brings Kids Theme Park to Frisco (universalparks.com)
• Travel and Leisure Article - Universal Announces Plans for New Theme Park in Texas — What We Know So Far (travelandleisure.com)
• DallasNews.com 
• NBC Dallas Affilate Universal Theme Park, Resort Hotel Coming to North Texas – NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth (nbcdfw.com)

Dollywood's Future Plans - An Eye on 2026!

 

Hi Everyone,

Screamscape.com - a website dedicated to posting information about amusement and theme parks, has posted a video taken from the recent IAAPA Convention in Orlando, with Eugene Naughton, who is the president of Dollywood.  IAAPA is THE convention for Amusement Parks and Manufacturers to showcase new attractions.  This year, Dollywood and Vekoma revealed the train for Big Bear Mountain, Dollywood's roller coaster for 2023.

Ed Naughton said that Dollywood was on a buying spree for 2026!

Go To 2m 12s in the video above, or click here for a cued up version.

"We're working on 2026.  We're hard at work on a buying spree, and we're getting ready for some major things that will be added to our park in 2026."

"I love the show (IAAPA) and what it represents, but I love doing it at a nice pace, so you make better decisions, and better planning, and give our partners a better time to deliver an upscale experience in plenty of time to design.  So that's why it's only 2023, but we're talking 2026, so we have a lot of ideation time in our program."

He goes on to briefly mention that Dollywood is hosting Coaster Con, as well as the Golden Ticket awards next year.   

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN??

I have no inside knowledge of what they're planning to do, but I am aware of the surveys that Dollywood has sent out to guests for feedback about future attractions.  That is the direction that they'll most likely go.  I think parks do make these sort of master plans, and five-year plans and so forth, but roller coaster and ride manufacturers come out with new concepts, and they kind of become the next flashy thing that every park wants to get first.  IAAPA is the best place for a manufacturer to premiere an idea because of the audience, the eyeballs are all on top of it.   That's part of what Ed is doing at IAAPA - he's looking for the best ideas and the best ride systems for these concepts that Dollywood has floated around and is looking to execute.

Let's dig into Dollywood's last survey from 2019.

IIRC, the question asked was What type of roller coaster would you like to see at Dollywood?

1.  Hyper Coaster

2. Indoor Coaster

3. Spinning Coaster.

So, those are three solid options.  The Spinning Coaster shown here is at Dollywood's sister park, Silver Dollar City.  Would they want the same concept at both parks?  Maybe, it wouldn't be the first time they've repeated concepts.  They could always change the theme and the layout to make them different enough.  This spinning coaster is made by Mack, and only a few have been made to date.  Another plausible reason for going with a spinner could be that Dollywood buys a spinner and a hyper, read on.

Dollywood can afford to work with any manufacturer they wish.  Some folks on the internet have said that B&M coasters would not put one of their hypers in Dollywood because of a "Proximity Clause".   It's an agreement that parks sign with B&M that states they won't sell another hyper-coaster (in this case) to a nearby park, so they're not competing with ride copies. I'm not aware of any such agreement, so that's an unknown variable.   King's Island, Carowinds, and Six Flags over Georgia form a triangle around Dollywood, and all three have B&M hypers.  B&M Hypers are really nice, but all very similar to one another.  Mack makes a great hyper-coaster product too, see the DC Rivals Hyper Coaster in Australia, and Vekoma would build one if asked...so when it comes to hyper-coasters, it could be from anyone.  Zamperla is one of Dollywood's go-to's for rides. Zamperla is beefing up their roller coaster manufacturing division and could even toss their hat into it.  Zamperla is CONFIRMED to be retrofitting Top Thrill Dragster at Cedar Point - a 420-foot coaster currently...so they have skin in the hyper game too.  Going back to my point about the spinner, would a Mack hyper and a Mack spinner make sense?  Yes.  The idea of discounts for a contract for two roller coaster purchases is also a long-rumored bargain, so, what if Dollywood buys two at once?   Not to drag this out, but Dollywood has two Gerstlauers, two Vekomas, two RMC projects when you include the partial retrack of Blazing Fury, two S&S arrow products with Tornado and Barnstormer.   

Maybe they will build all three options!!   The way Dollywood is dropping money, it might not be out of the question.   Dollywood needs more indoor attractions, given their stated desire to operate year-round.

Moving on...

The next concept they asked about was for an indoor attraction.  Let's take a look at the options presented.  

This sounds familiar.  This 'theme' was used on Big Bear Mountain instead of a dark ride.  They wanted you to shoot Benjamin Bear for a thousand points!!

Those are great and seem very Dollywood-appropriate, so I like them all.

Below are some other ideas Dollywood was floating around in 2019.  I think it was in 2020 that the Candlelight Choir began performing at the Chapel in Dollywood, a low-key nod to this concept.   A Flying Theater was built on The Island in Pigeon Forge, and opened in 2021, so that idea may be off the table perhaps.  An interactive walk-through sounds interesting and could have lots of potential.

That's a lot of information to think about.  The good news is that Dollywood is planning its growth!  We're not discussing sad scenarios here, so that's fantastic news to someone who has lost two beloved amusement parks in his life - not slightly bitter or anything about that, lol-sob.  

You can read my extensive blog post about Dollywood's Future Plans that I wrote back in early August 2022...here.

Of course I'll keep one eye on this, and report back any news I find out.

Until next time!

Dollywood's Future Plans - One Point Revisited

 Hi Everyone,

I wrote a blog article not long ago about Dollywood's Future Plans.  One of the many items on the list was Year-Round Operations.  Dollywood included it in their 10-year plan, see below, by Ed Naughton, President of Dollywood.

Could Dollywood open 365?

Making sure there are plenty of things to do in every season will position the company to entertain year-round, Naughton said, adding it's possible the park could open theaters and restaurants near the entrance during winter.

Continuous improvement seems to be the new constant at Dollywood. Much of that change happens during a frenzied January and February.

Source:  click here. 

Oddly enough, or coincidentally, this week, two 'neighboring' amusement parks in the Cedar Fair chain, Carowinds and King's Dominion, both announced year-round operations.   Carowinds is southeast of Dollywood near Charlotte, and King's Dominion is near coastal Virginia, in Doswell, so its winters are pretty mild for the most part.

That's great news for those who work at those parks and can now be employed year-round, and it's great for the guests who are looking for entertainment in January and February.    I see lots of potential in winter operations doing things that are challenging in the summer, like snow tubing & ice skating as a couple examples.

My understanding is that these two parks will be open for weekends-only during the two coldest months of winter, which obviously is weather dependent.  Other parks that stay open year-round cycle the operations of the rides in and out of service, so that routine maintenance can be performed.  It would not be reasonable to expect every single ride to be in operation during the winter months.  That's what happens in other year-round parks such as Six Flags Magic Mountain, Knott's Berry Farm, Disney-World-Land-Epcot, Universal, Sea Worlds, & Busch Tampa.  

It's interesting to me that these two parks have chosen to operate year-round.  Was it a way to beat Dollywood to the punch?  Done so in their own interest?  It's impossible to say.  Will Six Flags over Georgia follow suit?  At this point I doubt it.  Six Flags seems somewhat in operational disarray.  Six Flags Magic Mountain has, for several years, been open year-round and recently announced that they were scaling that back, which is unfortunate for those who bought season passes who were promised year-round operations.

What would year-round operations look like at Dollywood?  I don't have any insider info to know what they're thinking about doing, but based off of Ed Naughtons' comments, he said they would consider using the entrance as a sort of hub, making use of the theaters and restaurants.  Chasing Rainbows Museum is not far away from the entrance, and it was closed in 2022 for a major re-thinking of the experience.  Will it move closer to the entrance to align with the 10-year plan?

Drop Line can operate in temps down to 5-degrees F and Thunderhead has, I think, four trains.  I believe they have the two trains from Celebration City's shuttered GCI coaster, so that means two trains could be in rehab at any given time and potentially would never have seasonal downtime, or at least not very long.  Mystery Mine seems to struggle with cold temperatures, so Im not sure it would open on the coldest of days.  So, Dollywood could open The Entrance area/Showstreet, Timber Canyon and maybe Wildwood Grove for winter, which would allow for seasonal maintenance in the rest of the park.  As years went on, they could introduce Wilderness Pass, then Craftsman's Valley the year after that.  They love to incrementally grow things, so that would seem to make sense.

Another possibility is that Dollywood adds an entire Snow Themed Area in the park that features cold-weather activities like snow tubing, ice skating, bonfire areas, stuff like that.  Before it was cancelled, the Nashville combo Water Park/Snow Park was a real idea they had.  They were set to partner with Gaylord, but it fell through.  So, they're well aware of the types of things they could do to make a snow park work.

Like I mentioned, I have no idea what they'll end up doing.  They hold their secrets pretty well.  I will certainly keep my eyes peeled for any developments.

Until next time.  

$34 Million Dollar Expansion for Anakeesta

Hi Everyone,

Anakeesta - one of the newest and larger theme parks in the area, has announced massive new expansion plans.  In fact, they are planning to double in size!

🚠🚠🚠

Here is WATE’s report on this expansion:

GATLINBURG, Tenn. (WATE) – Gatlinburg theme park Anakeesta on Thursday announced a $34-million expansion that will double the size of the guest experience over the next three years.

The park will add a new mountain coaster, a night walk with lighting and guided audio, a bird-house themed play area, and a European-themed village.

The new “Astra Lumina Enchanted Night Walk” will feature immersive lighting, projection and guided sound in partnership with Moment Factory, an award-winning multimedia entertainment studio. This will be Moment Factory’s first Lumina Night Walk experience in the United States and 15th in the world. It is set to open in November.

courtesy Anakeesta 

courtesy Anakeesta

In Spring of 2023, a “European-Themed Village” will open and offer two new attractions. The park will add a second mountain coaster called, “Hellbender.” One of the new attractions will be a double-railed mountain coaster in addition to the existing single-railed coaster, “Rail Runner.”

The second will be a birdhouse-inspired play zone as part of a new “European-Themed Village” where kids can enjoy three larger-than-life birdhouses, dozen adventure zones and seven slides winding more than 50 feet down the mountain.

• 

  European Village - courtesy Anakeesta↑

  
  

• 

  Bird House play area - courtesy Anakeesta↑

The first phase will also add a waterfall and cave system to their walking trails and gardens, allowing guests to walk behind falls and explore caves.

😻😻😻

Wow - I feel like I have been saying that over and over lately.  This is great for Anakeesta of course.  I have yet to visit this attraction, mainly because I wasn’t sure there was enough to do at the top of the mountain to justify it, and I’ll be honest, if you don’t go first thing in the morning, you will be faced with a very long waiting line at the bottom and the transportation to the top, specifically the chair lift/3 gondolas, or Chondola, as they call it, moves at a snail's pace and stops a lot.  So, my first impression of Anakeesta from the street level has not been impressive.  However, in reading about guests' experiences there, those have been overly positive for the most part.  I don't see many negative experiences.  So, I guess people don’t mind that the chondola is slow, they like what Anakeesta is serving, and they're about to give you lots more of it!

These attractions have staggered opening dates over the next three years, so  in some cases we’ll be waiting a bit to experience some of these attractions.

Let’s dig into the details a bit…

• New Mountain Coaster - Named “Hellbender”, named after the Smoky Mountain Salamander. The only other detail offered is that it’s a double-rail coaster.  Anakeesta’s other coaster is a single-rail - and that happens to be the only one of that type in the United States.  I’ve lost count, but there are at least a half-dozen other double-rail coasters in this area, and all but two are manufactured by Weigand (link https://wiegandsportsusa.com/).  Weigand makes a lot of cool stuff!  Another manufacturer, ADG Mountain Coasters (link ADG Mountainsides® | Mountain Coasters, Mountain Slides Design/Build (aquaticgroup.com)) is behind Ober Gatlinburg’s ‘Ski Mountain Coaster’.  A company called Brandauer made Anakeesta’s single-rail coaster “Rail Runner”.  Brandauer was acquired by SunKid, and that's how it is currently known - you can check their website out here (Sunkid: leisure experiences for the whole family (sunkidworld.com) .  So, it remains to be seen which company Anakeesta has chosen to make their second coaster, but often times, parks will buy two (or more) roller coasters from the same manufacturer in order to help with supply chain issues, spare and replacement parts, familiarity with the parties involved, and other advantages you would find by working with familar vendors.  That’s a lot of nerdy details!  Bottom line, we will not know more until Anakeesta tells us, or until it opens and someone - like me - goes and checks it out.

• Light Show - “Astra Lumina Enchanted Night Walk”.  This looks and sounds like it will be an immersive visual and audio experience.  I looked at Moment Factory’s website, and it boasts many very impressive projects that are unique and eye-catching.  Just check out their website to dig deeper because the pictures and video are impressive.  The article states that this will open this November, so we will find out soon enough.

• European Village - looks to me like more food and merchandise opportunities centered around a waterfall structure.  It does remind me of The Village in downtown Gatlinburg - like a block or two away from Anakeesta’s ‘storefront’ on the parkway.

• Birdhouse Playhouse with Slides - This is an extension of the European village and it looks pretty elaborate to me with play areas to run around and then the various slides, which are all unique.  Hopefully, adults will be able to enjoy the seven slides as well.  I look forward to checking this out when it’s completed.

🎢🎢🎢

That about covers this analysis.  I think it's pretty impressive in the past couple of months that there have been four big announcements for the area. Dollywood's Big Bear Mountain Roller Coaster - and more, an all new construction amusement park Dig'n Zone, a $40 million dollar indoor water park expansion of Wilderness at the Smokies, and now Anakeesta's $34 million dollar expansion. We've seen an announcement this year that the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians will partner with one of the most immersive amusement park operators - Puy Du Fou for a storytelling experience at the Exit 407 project in Kodak, off of Interstate 40, along with a Buc-ees giant fueling center/food court/idk how else to describe it. Great things are in the works for the Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, Sevierville areas of East Tennessee.

Have you been to Anakeesta and if so, what were your impressions of it?  Are you looking forward to one or more of these announced additions, if so which ones?  Let me know in the comments.

Until next time!

Big Bear Mountain - Dollywood's Announcement for their 2023 attraction!!

 Hi Everyone,

Music Superstar Dolly Parton was on hand to announce Dollywood's 10th Roller Coaster and it is named Big Bear Mountain.  It looks to be made by Vekoma and will have three launches, which will make this their longest roller coaster at 3,990 feet!  The Highest point of the bright orange track is 66 feet with a maximum speed of 48 mph.  According to Eugene Naughton, there will be 23 airtime moments!  The ride will last under two minutes.  At least two, but maybe three 20-Passenger trains that look to be themed to jeeps will take passengers through twisty turns, past waterfalls and even a close encounter with a Big Bear!  Its height requirement is 39 inches - so many kiddos will be able to ride it.  It also features on-board audio, another Dollywood first for a ride.  It's reported to cost $25 million dollars - the most spent on a single attraction at Dollywood.

Check out the animated video...

Watch the entire announcement with Dolly Parton and friends...

The layout sticks pretty closely to what was leaked during planning approvals.  

courtesy @sketchyattractions on instagram

Station and first launch

Second Launch

Passing by waterfalls

Passing by waterfalls

Just after the third launch, going into the second half of the layout.

Below-grade Big Bear encounter

Check out Dollywood's page for Big Bear Mountain to learn more information - here..

This looks pretty exciting, and it should appeal to families and young coaster rides, but I think roller coaster enthusiasts will enjoy it too as it is a long coaster, which Dollywood needed.  

I'll be back a few more times this season to update this blog with images and video from the construction site in Wildwood Grove.  Be sure to follow my blog for updates!

Until next time!

Dollywood Has Big Plans! - Major Projects / What's Coming Up?

 Hi Everyone, 

Dollywood is always changing; I mentioned that in my welcome post, that Amusement Parks absolutely must undergo changes - like them or not - to keep the public interested, wanting to come back and experience new and different things, to grow and to improve their bottom line - they're businesses after all - damned your nostalgia!  Some parks do it better and more successfully than others.  It comes as no surprise to anyone who has followed Dollywood for any length of time, that there are always projects in the pipeline.  Dolly herself says she gets up in the wee early hours of the day to write songs and make future plans for herself and her business endeavors.  

“I always say, I wake up with new dreams every day. And so do the dreamers here at Dollywood.” - Dolly (1)

So, what's coming up at Dollywood and the rest of the Dollywood resorts?   Quite a bit actually.  Recently, the company announced a $500 million dollar investment plan for the next several years.  This is the largest such plan announced.  Back in 2013 they had a similar $300 million/10-year investment plan that included the FireChaser Express Roller Coaster, Lightning Rod Roller Coaster, DreamMore Spa & Resort, Wildwood Grove, and River Rush Water Coaster at Splash Country, as some of the biggest examples.  They made many other upgrades that are not ''exciting'' exactly, but necessary to keep the guest experience above par.  It's my feeling that they've done quite well with their choices as attendance and interest in Dollywood continues to climb impressively each year.

Projects that they've announced or discussed so far: 

• Resort #2 - HeartSong Resort.  Brand new 302 Room Resort geared more towards larger groups.  Scheduled Opening September 2023.
• Resorts #3, #4 and #5....All TBD although Dolly has mentioned that a Campground or Glampground was going to be one of the resorts.(2)  I would envision a high-end camping experience.  Also mentioned is a RV Park as well - Dolly loves the RV lifestyle.
• Suite 1986 - Dolly's last tour bus, available for booking now, by request at the link, where you'll find lots more info.  Suite 1986 is a part of the DreamMore Resort.
• 2023 Roller Coaster - Big Bear Mountain (Click Here to See my Blog Post for the Announcement) Those of us who follow Dollywood have seen the construction, have heard all the rumors, seen documents etc. that reveal some details.  I've covered the construction site in three different videos on my YT channel and on this blog. Link to my Blog Post.  
• What is the coaster?  It is named Big Bear Mountain.  It is made by Vekoma and will have three launches, which will make this Dollywood's longest roller coaster at 3,990 feet!  The Highest point of the bright orange track is 66 feet with a maximum speed of 48 mph.  There will be 23 airtime moments, and the ride will last under two minutes.  At least two, but maybe three 20-Passenger trains that look to be themed to jeeps will take passengers through twisty turns, past waterfalls and even a close encounter with a Big Bear!  Its height requirement is 39 inches - so many kiddos will be able to ride it.  It also features on-board audio, another Dollywood first for a ride.  It's reported to cost $25 million dollars - the most spent on a single attraction at Dollywood.
• Phase 2 of Wildwood Grove - not yet announced, but land is cleared and prepped for construction at any second.  We may hear more at the 2023 Roller Coaster announcement on August 5th.
• Continued investments on restaurant capacity. (6)
• Large Music Venue (2) - In Dreaming/Planning stages. (2)
• They get a lot of mileage out of growing their various festivals incrementally year after year.  They did so with this year's Flower & Food Festival by adding a few new mosaiculture plant statues, new menu offerings, new entertainment. Dollywood grew their Summer Celebration by adding more shows and entertainment like the Bubble Show, the hilarious-to-watch Foam Pits and adding the colorful hose splash pad at Market Square.  For the fall festival, Great Pumpkin LumiNights, they've promised to add more to that festival and of course, the Smoky Mountain Christmas festival will grow this year with new offerings too.  
• Year Round Operations - "Making sure there are plenty of things to do in every season will position the company to entertain year-round, (Park President Ed) Naughton said, adding it's possible the park could open theaters and restaurants near the entrance during winter."(6)
• Front Gate Area -  Firstly, that last bullet point from Ed Naughton - Let's unpack that first. He said ''it's possible the park could open theaters and restaurants near the entrance during winter.''  I have to imagine that the big open blacktop/asphalt expanse in between security screening and the front gate will become what he has described.
• Parking Lot Improvements - I see what a hot topic this subject has become on the various Dollywood Facebook groups.  What people should know is that it is A WORK IN PROGRESS.  Parking space is an issue, and they'll continue to add to it.   Dollywood mentioned somewhere that they are interested in adding a road system inside the property so that the Dollywood Trolley that goes in between DreamMore and in 2023, The Heartsong Resort, will not have to travel on public roads to shuttle back and forth.  That may have already happened, I am not sure.  Beyond that, we'll have to wait for future announcements to learn about the parking lot.  My personal feeling is that the improvements made so far, are very good improvements.  The tram no longer crisscrossing with guest traffic is much safer for all involved.  More toll booths, also good.  The one-way traffic pattern works for me too, although if you were in Lot D, then that's a long way to go around to exit considering you're already at the exit area, so I can see the issue there.  Handicap Parking is also an issue with lots of discussions on FB.  Most of all it seems the walk from the parking lot to the ECV rental was a concern.  Dollywood immediately created a solution by adding a second ECV Rental location near the Tram Station and once again began taking reservations online for rentals.  Furthermore, they significantly added the number of ECV's and strollers available for rent.  That is a guest forward focus.  
• Employee Dorms.  At first glance this does not sound exciting, however, seeing the side-effect of what Covid did for many businesses Staffing, including Dollywood, having the appropriate level of staffing is a direct correlation between guests having fun and having to wait in lines as a result of low staffing.  So, this is an important improvement for Dollywood. The dorms are already under construction.(7)
• Employee Tuition - Employees at Dollywood who pursue a college degree will have their tuition, associated fees and books 100% covered by the Dollywood theme park. (8)
• A New Indoor Water Park.  In Dreaming/Planning Stages. (2)
• Additions to Splash Country.  In 2022 they created a new splash area for little kiddos, but the last major addition was the TailSpin Racer slide in 2017, and before that the River Rush water coaster in 2013.  Recently a new and larger waterpark has opened in Pigeon Forge called Soaky Mountain.  I have not visited Soaky Mountain yet to have any opinions, but to me it looks more thrill-oriented and adult-focused than Splash Country, so that does appeal to me somewhat.  I imagine Dollywood feels the impact of the competition and will respond in a Dollywood-type-of-way that maintains their more family-forward atmosphere of the water park.  (2)
• Snow Park??? - this is 100% speculation, fantasy and wishful thinking on my part, but with year-round operations it does leave somewhat of an attractions gap for our two to four cold months of the year.  Could Dollywood add a section of the park for winter activities?  Maybe.  I could see them closing much of Dollywood and leaving open this winter area which would allow them to do maintenance and major changes they usually undertake in the off-season of January, February, and the first half of March.  Then the winter area could close in March or April and re-open in the Fall - just wishful thinking on my part.  Way back when Dollywood wanted to partner with Gaylord (see image below) to jointly open a combo Water Park/Snow Park, and that deal soured after a hot minute - point being - they had some plans that could easily be installed at Dollywood if they desired.  So, it will be interesting to see how Dollywood works with year-round operations.

Remember this Snow & Water Park proposal with Gaylord-Opryland?  It didn't work out.  This idea fits nicely into the year-round operations.

So! As is abundantly clear - Dollywood has big plans!   If there's anything I've missed, please chime in, in the comments.

Until next time!

Footnotes & Resources for this blog post:

• (1) Dolly Parton on Being Dollywood's Dreamer-in-chief — And the Park's Future (travelandleisure.com)
• (2) How Dollywood plans to tell more of Dolly Parton's stories: 'It's just a dream in progress' (yahoo.com)
• (3) 10-year, $300 Million Expansion - Dollywood (dollyparton.com)
• (4) Economic impact of tourism in Tennessee (wkrn.com)
• (5) Theme Park Success in 2022-What Does it Look Like? (dailyherald.com)
• (6) https://www.eteda.org/news/600/dollywood-investing-500-million-as-part-of-a-10-year-strategic-plan
• (7) https://dollyparton.com/family_destinations/dollywood/dollywood-announces-new-housing-development-for-seasonal-workers/19682
  
• (8) https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/feb/10/dolly-parton-dollywood-pay-tuition-employees-college-degree