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Dollywood Announces New Experiences Honoring Dolly Parton’s Life and Legacy
Dollywood Parks & Resorts has announced a series of new experiences and installations designed to honor the life, values, faith, and lasting legacy of Dolly Parton. The additions will roll out over the coming months and into 2027, giving guests new ways to reflect on Dolly’s connection to the Great Smoky Mountains and the vision she created for Dollywood.
Related: Special 20/20 Edition Honoring Dolly Parton Now Streaming on Disney+ and Hulu
One of the most meaningful changes will come to the Robert F. Thomas Chapel, a place closely tied to Dolly’s faith and her love for the Smokies. A new cascading mountainside waterfall will be added outside the chapel, creating a quiet place for guests to stop and reflect. The chapel will also receive new stained-glass windows inspired by Ecclesiastes 3:1, a verse that held special meaning for Dolly. The windows will depict the changing seasons of the Smoky Mountains, tying together her faith, her home, and the many chapters of her life.
Dollywood will also celebrate Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library with a new character coming to Wildwood Grove in 2027. The Dream Maker will arrive with her Dream Wagon and interact with children through stories and activities encouraging them to dream big, believe in themselves, and show kindness to others. Special kiosks throughout Wildwood Grove will also allow guests to leave messages about the ways Dolly inspired their own dreams. Dolly’s Imagination Library has distributed more than 330 million books to children around the world.
The Dolly Parton Experience will receive a new entrance portal, providing guests with a refreshed gateway into the attraction dedicated to Dolly’s life, career, stories, and memorabilia. Dollywood has also established a memorial in the park’s welcome plaza where guests can remember Dolly and celebrate the joy she brought to generations of people around the world.
Dolly’s story will continue beyond Dollywood as well. The Sevierville Chamber of Commerce is preparing a new program called “In Dolly’s Footsteps,” featuring walking-tour markers at locations Dolly and her family visited during her childhood. The trail will give visitors another way to explore the people and places that helped shape the woman who would eventually become one of the Smoky Mountains’ most beloved icons.
Related: Dollywood Earns National Recognition as a Top Employer by Forbes
Dollywood President Eugene Naughton said the park will continue carrying Dolly’s dreams forward by growing while maintaining the kindness, joy, hospitality, and family memories that were always at the heart of her vision. These new additions make it clear that while Dollywood continues to evolve, Dolly’s influence will remain woven throughout the park for generations to come.
If you would like to visit Dollywood and experience these new tributes to Dolly Parton’s legacy, our partners at Get Away Today can help plan a Smoky Mountain getaway filled with plenty of Dollywood memories.
