Wilderness at the Smokies facts for kids

Wilderness at the Smokies is a super fun resort located in Sevierville, Tennessee. It's a great place for families and friends to visit, especially if you love water parks! The resort first opened its doors in 2008. It's part of a bigger area that also has places to shop, eat, and even hold big meetings.

When it first opened, Wilderness at the Smokies had a hotel and an outdoor water park. Later in 2008, they added a condominium resort and a cool indoor water park. In 2009, they opened the Lake Wilderness outdoor water park. More exciting rides were added, like "Runaway Canyon" and "Dark Mammoth," which are big raft rides with special lights and sounds. In 2010, they also added "Wilderness Rafting" and "Catalooche Creek Adventure Golf" for even more fun!

Indoor Water Park: Wild WaterDome

The Wild WaterDome is a huge indoor water park, about 80,000 square feet (7,432 square meters) in size! It has a special roof that lets sunlight through, so you can still get a tan even indoors.

Here are some of the awesome attractions you'll find inside:

• Storm Chaser: This is a thrilling water slide called a ProSlide Tornado, and it has cool lights and sound effects as you zoom down!
• Smokies Surf Rider: Ever wanted to try surfing? This ride lets you experience the thrill of riding a wave indoors!
• Washout Mountain: This is a giant play area with many levels. It has over 50 spray features, water cannons, and small tipping buckets. The biggest bucket dumps 500 gallons (1,900 liters) of water on everyone below! It also has two slides.
• Snapping Turtle Activity Pool: This is a fun indoor and outdoor pool where you can play basketball with hoops in the water. It even has a giant floating snake!
• Magnolia Grove: If you want to relax, this is an indoor and outdoor hot tub.
• Trail Twisters Tube Slides: These are two enclosed tube slides where you twist and turn in the dark.
• Runaway Canyon: This is a long, dark raft ride for families. It's over 450 feet (137 meters) long and five stories high! You'll drop almost 60 feet (18 meters) and go through huge tunnels with water curtains and exciting turns. It uses a lot of water – 800 gallons (3,000 liters) every minute!
• Flying Squirrel Play Area: This area is perfect for toddlers. It has a shallow entry, two small slides, a swing and bounce tree, a teeter-totter, and a tree house that sprinkles water.
• Grizzly's Grill: A snack bar where you can grab a bite to eat.
• Dippin' Dots: A stand where you can get those tiny, frozen ice cream beads.

Outdoor Water Parks

Wilderness at the Smokies has two fantastic outdoor water parks for you to enjoy when the weather is warm!

Salamander Springs

This outdoor water park is about 65,000 square feet (6,039 square meters).

• The Timber Rattler: A fun tube slide that's 207 feet (63 meters) long.
• The River Otter: A body slide that's 180 feet (55 meters) long.
• Lunker's Landing: An interactive water play structure with two slides, a tipping bucket, and lots of spray features.
• Catfish Corral: An activity pool where you can play basketball with three hoops.
• Minnow Marsh: A shallow pool for little kids with a zero-depth entry.
• Wildflower Lagoon: A relaxing hot tub.
• Coyote Cove: A snack bar for when you get hungry.
• Back Country Arcade and Game Room: A place to play games and win prizes.

Lake Wilderness

This is a huge water park, about 5 acres (20,234 square meters) in size!

• Washout Wilderness Rapids: A thrilling wave pool where you can ride the waves.
• Cataloochee Creek Adventure River: A long lazy river, 752 feet (230 meters) long, where you can float and relax.
• Smoky Mountain Crossing Cabanas: Private areas you can rent by the pool for extra comfort.
• Cataloochee Creek Adventure Golf: A fun mini-golf course.
• The Wall: An exciting waterslide.

Hotels at the Resort

Wilderness at the Smokies has two main hotels, each with its own unique features and connections to the water parks.

River Lodge

The River Lodge offers multi-room suites, which are perfect for families needing more space. This hotel is directly connected to both the Lake Wilderness outdoor water park and the Wild WaterDome indoor water park, making it super easy to get to the fun!

Stone Hill Lodge

The Stone Hill Lodge is connected to the Salamander Springs outdoor water park. It also has meeting spaces and standard rooms that can fit up to four people.