Planning a Vacation to Great Smoky Mountain National Park

If you had to choose between Grand Canyon NP, Yellowstone NP or the Great Smoky Mountain NP, which would you choose as the most visited by travelers from around the world? Well if you realized that this article is about the Great Smoky Mountain NP then that probably gave you a good clue as to the correct answer. According to the National Park Conservation Association the Great Smoky Mountains ranks #1 in visitors among national parks.

With over nine millions visitors making the pilgrimage each year in order to get a first hand view of this amazing stretch of forest covered mountains, the Great Smoky Mountain National Park more than doubles the visitors of the Grand Canyon NP which ranks #2 on the list. As for Yellowstone, #5 on the NPCA's list, its visitors are only a third of that of the Smokies. So if you are planning on traveling to the Great Smoky Mountains anytime soon then you are likely to be in good company.

Before you pack the car (or charter the plane) and make your way to the United States' most popular national park, here are a few things that will help you get the most out of your trip.

1. Plan Ahead - Visit the park's main site where you can request or download information such as park brochures, maps, lodging & camping information as well as updates on any road or trail closings due to weather or park maintenance.

2. Check out the Surrounding Towns - Near the Smoky Mountain NP are the exciting towns of Townsend, Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg. Although you will surely want to spend a lot of time inside of the park, you will find a lot of fun things to do and places to eat right next door.

3. Go During Autumn - But Be Ready for Larger Crowds - With thousands of acres of trees you can imagine how beautiful this time of year is in the Smoky Mountains as the leaves change colors. In fact, my wife and I visited during October and the sights were indeed spectacular. However, the traffic was not as spectacular. Many people flock to the park this time of year for the beautiful scenery so be ready and make sure your plans account for more time in the car. Which leads us to #4.

4. Stay in the Car and Take in the Sights - Now this might sound a little counter-intuitive at first. Why would you travel all the way to the Smokies and stay in the car? Two words - auto touring. Auto touring is a beloved past time for many park visitors. An auto tour of the park will offer visitors panoramic views, historic buildings off of the beaten path, views of mountain streams and much more. At the visitor center you can purchase inexpensive booklets for auto tours of Cades Cove Loop Road, Cataloochee Valley, Newfound Gap Road, Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail and Upper Tremont Road.

5. Get Ready to take Pictures - Okay so this might sound like a no-brainer. But before you get into the park it is best to make sure that you have extra batteries on hand. That last thing you want is to get the shot of a lifetime, or the whole family standing at an overlook, and be without power. Also, it is a good idea to take more than one SD card if you are shooting digitally. If you have to choose between a 16GB SD card and two 8GB SD cards, go with the two. This way you can have a backup in case one gets damaged or fails for one reason or another.

Now you are ready to make the trip to Great Smoky Mountains! With a little preparation and planning ahead of time you can ensure that your family or romantic vacation to the most popular national park will be an experience to remember and leave you with memories to cherish for years to come.

Sources: National Park Conservation Association, Top 10 Most Visited National Parks.