Dollywood Expansion 2019 – Wildwood Grove
We have exciting news regarding Dollywood’s plans for 2019! Over the years, we have brought you breaking details on some of the biggest and most exciting additions in Pigeon Forge including the world record-breaking Lightning Rod, Firechaser Express, Margaritaville, Paula Deen’s Family Kitchen, Hard Rock Cafe, Paula Deen’s Lumberjack Feud, and so much more. This, however, is perhaps our largest reveal yet as it features a 5 acre expansion to Dollywood! As we have done in past breaking stories, this will be a “live” post that we will continually update as we get new & confirmed information from various sources. We post the date along with the details we receive on that date so that we can piece together clues as to what will be included in this new expansion. We hope you love finding clues and piecing together everything just as much as we do! So let’s get started!
Wildwood Grove Officially Revealed at Dollywood!
On August 3rd, 2018 Dolly Parton officially revealed the 2019 expansion, Wildwood Grove, to the public! Below is a complete list of details from this exciting announcement.
The Beauty and Wonder of Wildwood Grove
First, we need to talk about the magical beauty and wonder of Wildwood Grove. Cross through an ancient fallen log to discover a land of pure imagination. The centerpiece is a 55′ tall colorful “Wildwood Tree” covered in colorful butterflies. Dollywood’s blog describes it by saying, ” It glistens with the majesty of the forest and glows brightly every night, creating an ever-changing experience day or night.” During the Nighttime Spectacular, butterflies awaken to transform the tree into a kaleidoscope of color. You can get a glimpse of what the tree looks like in the video below.
Dollywood describes Wildwood Grove as a “Fantastical adventure” with 11 themed experiences. Nearly every attraction and experience can be enjoyed by the entire family. “You can imagine yourself riding on the back of a Smoky Mountain black bear, swinging on a giant leaf, or flying suspended from a dragonfly. Most important, Wildwood Grove is a place the entire family can play together. There are indoor and outdoor spaces to play and experience; new friends to meet; and a great new restaurant to refresh and recharge.”
“Wildwood Grove beckons the explorer in all of us. Let curiosity be your guide as you journey ever deeper, past sparkling creeks, through a charming village, and under the mighty limbs of the great Wildwood Tree. This is where adventure takes root and dreams take flight.”
Much has been said about how much land Dollywood has cleared for this new expansion, but they are investing nearly $1 million in landscaping, including 400 trees and 1,000 shrubs.
Also at night, lanterns and lights will glow like fireflies, giving a completely unique “theme” to the area. It will truly be a magical place for the family and something we are incredibly excited to see added to Dollywood!
Wildwood Grove is Dollywood’s largest capital investment ever at $37 million and the first new area added since Wilderness Pass in 2008.
New Rides Coming to Dollywood in 2019!
There are numerous rides and a covered play area coming to Wildwood Grove. Below, we have a list of the rides that have been mentioned along with a brief description of each and some artist renderings.
Treetop Tower – This family tower gives guests a sky-high view of Wildwood Grove as they soar nearly 40 feet in the air. Riders, seated in giant acorns, spin around the top of a tall oak tree before gently drifting back to the grove floor. (Zamperia Samba Tower)
Black Bear Trail – Children can ride on the back of a black bear! Riders hop on the back of these friendly bears for a spirited trek through their natural habitat. Families will enjoy meandering through the woods of this unique Smoky Mountain experience. (Metallbau Emmeln Pony Trek)
Mad Mocking Bird – Tennessee’s state bird – the mockingbird – gives visitors a lift as it flies in a high speed circle around a tall tree. Riders control their ride experience by moving a sail as the birds rush above the ground. (Larson Flying Scooter)
Wildwood Creek – This welcome “oasis” features pop jets, splashing pools, and more wet play activities. Dry play area at Wildwood Creek featuring “music instruments” for guests to enjoy.
Sycamore Swing (swinging boat ride) – Guests aboard this thrilling “leaf boat” swing back and forth just like a leaf falling from a giant sycamore tree. (Zamperia Galleon)
Hidden Hollow – Indoor play area, net towers, suspended bridges, crawls, slides, and special toddler area, 4,000 sq ft indoor, climate-controlled climb structure for exploration.
Frogs and Fireflies – Adventerous guests can hop aboard one of these friendly frogs as they chase each other in a spirited race around the lily pad. (Zamperia Jump Around)
The Dragon Flier – Suspended family coaster. We have a video further down in this article of a family suspended coaster that is most likely going to be very similar to this one. This thrilling suspended roller coaster lets guests soar with a dragonfly as it dips and darts along the gushing geysers and lush landscape of Wildwood Grove. (Vekoma 453m suspended coaster)
Below are artist renderings of some of the rides that will be in Wildwood Grove in 2019.
New Place to Eat
There will be a new restaurant featuring southern-inspired, southwest-fresh items. We’ll add more details and menu as Dollywood reveals them.
New Season Pass Payment Plan
Dollywood is offering an exclusive deal when pre-purchasing a 2019 Season Pass. The deal is to lock in the current 2018 rate along with an exclusive 9 month payment plan! That’s payments as low as $14 per month for a Dollywood Regular Season Pass in addition to three Bring-A-Friend Free tickets (one for Smoky Mountain Christmas 2018 and two for the 2019 season).
Video of Wildwood Grove at Dollywood
Check out the video below showcasing the idea behind Wildwood Grove along with some exciting animations of what we can expect!
Video of the Wildwood Grove Announcement at Dollywood Featuring Dolly Parton
See the official Dollywood page featuring Wildwood Grove details:
https://www.dollywood.com/themepark/Rides/Wildwood-Grove
Feb 27, 2018
Dollywood representatives met with the Pigeon Forge Planning Commission to review a 5 acre site plan for the Dollywood expansion. The location of the expansion is described as being located near the Thunderhead roller coaster and the parking area. We have drawn an area on the aerial map below to highlight our best guess as to where the expansion will be located. Again, this is our guesstimate of the location…not an official map from Dollywood. Keep in mind that the red outline is larger than 5 acres…so the expansion should be located somewhere within this area.
At 5 acres, this expansion appears to be larger than Country Fair or the 50’s area, which means it will be the parks biggest addition since they expanded up to create the Wild Eagle and Firechaser Express.
Community Development Director David Taylor was quoted in the local newspaper, The Mountain Press, saying “There’s going to be about eight different attractions, a restaurant, separate building for restrooms, there’s going to be water features, shade structures; just a lot of different things in this area.”
Officials are hoping the expansion is ready to open in 2019, but details on exactly when in 2019 is dependent on all sorts of things with an expansion of this size. While we’re hopeful that it opens at the beginning of the 2019 season, we’re holding off on pinpointing timeframes until construction & approvals get underway throughout the year.
We’re excited to see what this new expansion will bring and possibly what it will be themed as! The 2018 season hasn’t even started yet and we’re already looking forward to 2019!
March 6, 2018: Blueprints revealed, location confirmed, and it’s geared for kids!
Local news station WBIR featured the Dollywood expansion in a recent broadcast. It shows the construction as well as the blueprints presented to the Pigeon Forge Planning Commission! The blueprints reveal an enclosed family coaster, a pendulum style ride, an indoor play area, and more which all but confirms that this new expansion is going to be geared more towards the younger crowd! This is great news as families have long been wishing there were more things to do between Thunderhead and Wild Eagle.
Below is the WBIR news feature of the Dollywood Expansion.
http://www.wbir.com/article/news/local/dollywood-developing-5-acre-expansion/51-526144541
Below are the blueprints shown in the video, which provide an idea of the layout as well as a couple of the proposed rides!
This blueprint reveals a variety of rides…but our question is if these are the “actual” rides proposed or if they are somewhat “placeholders” until all of the construction proposals are approved for storm drainage, sediment & erosion control, etc. Either way, this looks to be a fun new addition!
Woohoo! Location and size confirmed! It appears that the “entrance” to the new addition will be located where the Mystery Mine track crosses over the walking path. Also, this pretty much confirms that they are not adding another entrance into the park like some had suspected.
The blueprint below is throwing us off due to the tube structure…and are those “large fans” or are they supports for the structure? Any guesses???
The blueprint below shows what appears to be a classic pendulum ride such as the classic pirate ship ride.
Using the blueprints above, we combined it with a satellite image to show the approximate location & size of the new expansion. This could, of course, my altered and modified as they obtain permits & approvals. Pretty exciting to get a feel for what this new area will be like!
March 10, 2018: Is THIS the new coaster????
Rumors are swirling throughout forums of coaster enthusiasts that the blueprints above reveal that the new coaster is a Vekoma 453m Suspended Family Coaster. The RCDB website (which is a massive database of roller coasters around the world) has already added this info to their website. RCDB goes on to state that the coaster will not be an “enclosed” coaster as described by WBIR in their initial report, but instead the blueprints are showing a “reach envelope” of the suspended coaster.
Here is the breakdown of why coaster enthusiasts believe that the new Dollywood roller coaster for 2019 will be a Suspended Family Coaster built by Vekoma.
First, here is the overhead blueprint from above…we zoomed in and rotated it so you can see what happens next.
Now, here is a blueprint of a coaster called Orkanen located at FĂĄrup Sommerland. If you’ve never heard of it, it’s because it’s in Denmark.
Finally, we take the Orkanen blueprint, rotate it, and lay it on the Dollywood blueprint, and voila! You can see an exact match in the layout. So unless Dollywood is using this as a “placeholder” (which we are seriously doubting), then you are looking at Dollywood’s brand new roller coaster for 2019!
Want to take a ride on the coaster? Check out a front seat view on Orkanen to see! This looks like a fantastic family coaster and a great addition to Dollywood!
July 13, 2018: Official Dollywood Clues are on the Way!
Things have been very quiet out of Dollywood the past couple of months…even the amount of construction hasn’t revealed much. When we have something more exciting than dirt to share, we will post pics. 🙂
But for now, check out Dollywood’s tweet on July 13th! This is great news as we gear up for an official unveiling in early August!
Stay tuned for some clues in the next few weeks! ???????? #DW2019 pic.twitter.com/cBV3Idj05Z
— Dollywood (@Dollywood) July 13, 2018
Something BIG? Hmmm…ok, our imaginations are swirling around that clue. Stay tuned!
July 24, 2018: Name of Expansion revealed! “Wildwood Grove”
Members of the media & press are receiving invitations to the official announcement on August 3rd along with the name and logo for “Wildwood Grove”! Dolly Parton will be at Dollywood to reveal details at 11am. We will add all of the photos, videos, and details to this post as soon as they are announced. Stay tuned…we’re getting close!
So, what do you think so far??? We’re excited and can’t wait for the next update!!!
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Your Thoughts?
We’d love to hear what you think about the Dollywood 2019 expansion, Wildwood Grove! Use the comment form below to share your thoughts. Also, be sure to check out our guide on Dollywood discounts as well as our complete guide to Dollywood featuring the schedule, new shows, and more things to do in town.
Exciting news & the more you can create the more people will come. I’ll always love DollyWood because it is a wonderful place for yourself, friends, & family.
How bout another Aunt Grannies. Where you can eat inside or outside with a nice shaded cool space.
GRANNYS KITCHEN IS THE BEST EAT NO WHERE ELSE
We have been a Dolly Wood pass holder for many years. I have been coming to Dolly Wood for many years I am 63 and I have been coming to Gatlinburg since I was 9 years old. My mother brought me I brought my children and now they are bringing their children. Thank you Dolly for all the wonderful memories you have created for my family.
Dollywood has already expanded to much . For me it is not as much fun as it was several years ago. TO BIG that is why I don’t like Disney World. The whole area has taken away from the mountains.
Too would be the correct word, not ‘to,” this is third grade English..
It’s spelled TOO not TO!!!
Come on DJ and Bea. You both are acting like third graders.
Spell it however you want to Don look forward to seeing you at Dollywood. Cant say the same for dj or bea. I wouldnt know how to act around such perfect people.
Need more shows–NOT more rides.
I agree. Dollywood is slacking on the show department.
They just dont get the message. Over 50% of the people who come to Dollywood are over 50 years old. We dont need more rides of any kind. Its been years sense any new Theaters have been added. We have told them and told them. For some reason they dont care and for that reason were not coming back ANYMORE.
I agree that they need more shows, preferably indoor ones. Possibly something more than just bands playing music. But I must admit that I want more ride choices even more than the shows! More thrill type rides and possibly another indoor themed ride like blazing fury, which has been my favorite ride at Dollywood for over 30 years! I miss the flooded mine!
I wish they hadn’t taken away that cool theater thing with the moving chairs…
I was there this past yr n was disappointed cause the movie ride theater was gone wanted more shows as well haven’t been there in a few yrs so I was disappointed n the kids rides wasnt much really fir them it was either to small rides or they couldn’t get in the bigger rides due to height
If you do more rollercoaster it needs to fit the big people not all the little people I like to ride to but can not fit because I’m big in my body I’m not fat but big frame so hook the big people up and make some more shows and places to eat
I agree they need to fit larger body frames. My 15 yr old son is 6’4” and is big framed and can’t ride any coasters????
Too many lame shows already. We need more thrill ride, more roller coasters and a dark ride.
Just stay on the dark side and others will see the wonderful shows.
Ed Mason
March 3, 2018
Any expansion of Dollywood is exceptional news as it means we, the custormers, will be able to experience even more of an already superior theme park. I can only imagine what developers have in mind, but I am excited to learn miore. Dollywookd is a theme partk, second to none…It has something for everyone. From first rate shows to incredible rides and amaizing food…we are the recipients of something very special. “Let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
Totally agree!
I agree I love everything about this wonderful park. I am happy for my grand children they love the rides. The park has something for everyone. I just love the atmosphere and the food .
“AMEN”
Need more rides for little kids not all these coaster and more showes and have better lines for rides should do something for the train ride nothing really to see nothing up there on the hill
I miss the train show they used to have!!
Yes I agree I loved that even though it scared me at first
Dollywood doesn’t need to do away with any water rides, in fact they need more water rides, and more kiddie rides and more things for children to do. Do away with some of the shops.
They used to do a holdup show up on the hill, theyd stop the train to do the show, was enjoyable.
dollywood needs a better kids section. Pigs and ducks did not keep the little ones occupied for long. Plus… put the kids section in the shade. Little ones can’t be in the sun all day.
I, for one, love the water Rides better than anything else in the park. That being said, losing River Battle sucks…..
The photo you all posted is outdated and inaccurate.. look at Google maps for a more accurate location.. the photo you posted doesn’t even Include the new parking lot built a few years ago and over half your marked area is that new marking lot
Thanks Jason! I’ve update the pic. Funny thing is, Google Maps is what I used the first time and I didn’t even pay attention to how old it was. haha I ended up using Google Earth Pro this time to grab a more recent satellite pic…still a bit outdated, though, as it’s from November, 2017.
Again, thanks for the catch!
Would love to see them put a restroom for special needs my son is 10 and he can’t walk so it would be great to have a table big enough to change him on we love coming to Dollywood
They have a large family bathroom down near the main entrance. If you walk through the main entrance and go right, it’s just past the Spotlight bakery. It’s for nursing mothers and families. There should be plenty of space in there for you. ????
Dollywood added to family changing stations last season. One is located at the Mystery Mine bathrooms between Timber Canyon and Wilderness Pass, and the other is located next to the Bakery on Show Street.
I meant two not to.
Petting zoo would be a nice thing for kids and kids at heart!
Need something similar to Space mountain or Test track in Disney!!!
Agreed! An indoor ride would be a great addition. 🙂
I agree. My family has loved Blazin Fury since our first visit. It’s for young and old.
Would love to see more stalls in the ladies restroom at the Front Porch restaurant, since there is only one. If a mother goes in there to use the changing table it takes forever. When our ladies group goes there we have to wait so long when we are ready to leave and can’t make the shows on time.
Didn’t see if this had been mentioned, it may not be that the coaster is enclosed in tubes, often times in planning and blueprint documents, a “tubelike” clearance envelope is illustrated in that way to show what the clearance measurements from the ride vehicle is (to show how far arms and legs are from supports). So it may not be in a tube, they may just be illustrating it like that on plannig info.
Great point! What do you think about the 3D overhead view where it does actually look completely enclosed?
Looks like a family inverted/suspended coaster to me. The tube structure is just the clearance envelope.
Vekoma Suspended Coaster Model 453m
I would really like to see a larger Aunt Grannies with the same freindly staff they are great. Its just to small. And maybe a nice cool shaded place to eat outside if you wanted to.
Coaster will be like this (minus the water):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7duHnhaQ9ng
How about a campground — Since the fires work campers can’t find a place to stay-there for causing many workers not taking jobs. It’s a shame because many of us really want to work at dollywood.
After taking Dixie out of The Dixie Stampede it will probably be named The Liberal Village.
Dennis, I totally agree with you. We were going to attend the “Dixie” Stampede again this year, but not now. They’ve offended me, too! If they are going to cave in to the liberal knotheads, then I and my family will not be attending. I am glad to know that there are others that feel as I do about changing the name. Thank you.
I’m offended with the name Stampede. My ancesters were continually run over and killed by stampedes. Or something. So they need to change the name again.
Our family has loved Dollywood for many years. As they have expanded there has never been a path to cut across the whole area. I can’t tell you how many times we wished we didn’t have to walk all the way around just to go to one ride! That would be awesome now that we are grandparents and I believe it would be an easy fix..
We agree. LESS WALKING is really needed. We bought a season pass at Christmas and only went once because all the UPHILL WALKING was too much for us.
I would LOVE to see a virtual like motion coaster, like the Soarin and Harry Potter rides in Florida…those are my favorite! How about one where u are an eagle flying across the mountains and thru valleys swooping down amongst black bears!!..Lol
Hopefully they are going to have some kind of tram system to transport those of us who cannot begin to climb up there but would also enjoy the new area with our families.
While I love ALL roller coasters and thrill rides I am getting older and would love to see the Children’s area revamped and updated. Too many games. There is a large age gap in the rides from early toddler to 8-10 year olds. I would love some more things to do with my 4-5-6-7 year olds or at least more family rides to include those ages. I also love stalling through the shaded sidewalks all over the park. ONLY in the mountains do we get 50 am 95 pm temperatures. PS How about shading the rocking chair area
This is awesome! My family loves Dollywood and visit every year!
I am really excited about the expansion !!! I would like to see more shows as well .. I have been going to Dollywood for 30+ years and love it . I do wish they would bring back the big daddy huge pizza and the homemade chips. I had a new visitor with me last visit and went on and on about those two items to get there and find out they didn’t have them any more . Please bring them back .. I still love it and love them family memories I have and will continue to make . I do not agree with the name change on the Dolly’s Dixie Stampede . I see no reason to change the name .
One problem with Dollywood is the cost to content ratio. It’s a nice park, but if you compare it to other parks that are around the same price, the other parks offer a lot more rides, big coasters, and other big attractions, and are usually bigger parks. This new area doesn’t change that much if it’s only going to contain a family coaster, small pirate ship fair ride, and maybe some kiddie flats. And regardless, will the ticket price now go up too?
They recently added the very nice Firechaser Express so I’m not sure why they need another family coaster. If kids don’t like the kiddie rides, they should just replace them. They really need a hyper coaster or good quality dark ride. Or even a sky-ride.
Which brings me to the other problem with Dollywood…the walking. It’s a heck of a hike to the back of the park with the incline, especially for young kids and us 40+ year old adults, And this new section is even further away from the entrance, unless it’s going to connect near Thunderhead as well? This page only mentions connecting at Mystery Mine.
I’m glad they are getting some more family/ kid rides. there is really nothing much for the approximate 6-10 age. They’re too big for the ducks and pigs that they loved when toddlers but not big enough for the big coasters. I would love to also have some rides that grandma’s and grandpa’s can ride with the grandkids. Not the big coasters but something fun that doesn’t jerk you around so much. Basically I spent hours following the 3 year old around in the kiddie section, trucked up the hill to the merry-go-round and train and then back to the kiddie area with one grandchild while grandpa took the older child to ride the coasters so we never saw each other all day. Would also like more areas of food choice all around. If I want BBQ I don’t want to have to walk all over the park to find it. Would also like more and updated shows. If you go several times a year for several years, you see the same show many times. And it would be nice if every person in your group didn’t have to pay a fortune to reserve a show time. It would cost us $80-100 to do that on top of already paying admission. Should be able to pay maybe $20 for one for the whole family and let Dollywood keep up with how many people are supposed to be admitted with that one reservation….not everyone in your party having to pay for a separate buzzer. We love Festival of Nations, we love getting to park at Patriot Park and riding the trolley to the door, love the car ride (kids love driving) and we loved that Dollywood gave out free water in the hot summer days. Looking forward to using our season tickets this year!
We love Dollywood as we are seniors we would like to see more shows. Most seniors cannot ride on roller coasters. A tram would be nice to get to the back of the park for seniors or parents with small children it’s hard to walk that far. The price keeps going up to get into the park. A lot of us seniors on a fixed income and parents with more than 1 or 2 children it’s hard to be able to afford to spend the day there by the time you pay admission and food. Most parks are bigger and have a lot more to offer for around the same price.
Fantastic!! My family visit Dollywood and every year!
We’ve been coming to Dollywood since 2007 once or twice a year. We’ve always purchased season passes to her theme park. WE ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT. THANK YOU DOLLY FOR ALL YOU’VE DONE TO MAKE MY LITTLE FAMILY’S VACATION FABULOUS. WE NEVER HAVE ANY REGRETS VISITING DOLLYWOOD. EVERYTHING’S EXCITING AND ADVENTUROUS FOR US. All the food in Dollywood is SUPER DELICIOUS as well. Thank You So Very Much again Dolly. We look forward to spending many more Vacations here. Wished we had a Vacation Home here. Love this town. Mona Hefner, Conover North Carolina.
Put something in that is totally brand new! Make it something that has never been inside the park before in the whole 30 years!
Bringing back the Indian/Cowboy shooting thing on the train wouldn’t be a bad idea!
Bring back Sha-Kon-o-hey!
Looks like it is going to be great.
Bring back the moving theatre where the cops chased the bootleggers (that was the most fun anyone could have), log flume, flooded mine, and gunfight on the train ride, that was very entertaining and lots of fun. Many people like my husband do NOT care for the thrill rides and these gave him things to enjoy. It was something for him to enjoy instead of just sitting all day while the kids were busy. Just waiting on others makes for a very long, boring day. These were fun family things that families could do together. I also miss the concert shows with known musicians in country music.
My husband an I have been coming to Dollywood for years.Our first time was after it first opened with our children.It was beautiful at Christmas and I love the atmosphere.It would be nice to have more shows.We are in our 60s and do not ride anything.We stayed at the DreamMore Resort last year and it was so nice.God Bless you Dolly
We are seniors with some health problems that prevent us rushing from show to show to be able to get in. Would be nice if there was a golf cart shuttles that would help move the elderly place to place. We love the gosphel singing week and the bluegrasss week. If these were not available we would probably not even go.
dollywood needs more country singers enjoy ed pam tillis last year but i don’t enjoy the music being so loud that my hearing aids shut down plus see children come out holding there hands over there ears we thought of not buying season pass’s this year .