Smokies in November

It's a beautiful area with plenty to do for kids. We call it "Kid Vegas"

Thanksgiving week is very busy, but if you are there before the weekend you may be okay. Pigeon Forge is closer to Knoxville, but Gatlinburg is more walkable. Food options aren't great, like the previous poster mentioned. Go fill up at a pancake house then snack through the day to get you to dinner.

We always hit the Old Mill restaurant when in the area, it doesn't take reservations and there is always a line. Try to hit it at an off peak time, say 2:00 and you may have better luck. For a nice dinner in Gatlinburg, try the Peddler steakhouse. You will need a reservation and ask for a riverside table. Our favorite breakfast spot is Crockett's breakfast camp, but it will also have a wait. Go early!

Dollywood is a big attraction, and if you get there before the weekend the crowds won't be so bad. If you go the week of Thanksgiving it will be crowded to the max. You can also visit the resort nearby at night to see it all lit up. There are tons of Alpine Coasters, we rode the Smoky Mountain Coaster on Wears Valley Road. It seems to be one of the better operations. Surprisingly the Titanic exhibit in PF is very nice. WonderWorks (the upside down house) is a good way to kill some time with the kids. The lumberjack shows are always good. Several options for Go Karts and Putt Putt along the strip as well.

Spend a day in Gatlinburg, you can park and walk the entire area. Anakeesta is a newer attraction, you ride to the top of the mountain and theres shops and a set of rope bridges. We stood in line forever to ride the Alpine Coaster there and it was underwhelming. You can also take a gondola to Ober Gatlinburg, but I have found it to be very dated and not a lot to do, but there may be skiing that time of year. Instead, take the chairlift to the glass bottom bridge.

Tons of hiking in that area, the Laurel Falls hike is one of the more popular ones. It should be back open by then and it is an easy out and back trail with a nice waterfall at the end. You can drive through Cades Cove and hit the pullouts along the way, it is a beautiful area and a good chance to see deer or bear.

Plenty of stuff to do, and a quick google search will give you tons of info. Just know that the whole vibe of the area is kind of hokey and rednecky, but it really is a great area for families.

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Peddler steakhouse

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This and Park Grill were good meals last time we were there.

If you have never been OP, before I went for the first time a couple of years ago someone told me it was the Panama City Beach of the mountains.

They were a liar.

Panama City Beach is the Gatlinburg of the beaches. As in, Gatlinburg/ Pigeon Forge have more tourist crap going on than Panama City does.

So, just understand going in its more like going to the beach in Panama City mid summer than it is say going to the Rocky mountains and finding a quiet hike. Great Smokey Mountain national park gets more visitors yearly than Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon combined.

Not saying that's terrible, but just understand. There's more go cart tracks, Tshirt shops, and pancake houses than I've ever seen.

Given that, the weekend prior to Thanksgiving I'm sure is fine.

As said, drive time is not a joke especially if its busy, dinner time, etc. You have to figure out if you want to be in town and walk around or you want to be in nature away from people.

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What's the traffic like on UT gameday weekends? Any recommendations on routes and parking areas?

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Traffic is pretty horrible on gameday. I would highly recommend parking at Tyson Park. They have $20 gameday parking there and free bus transport to Circle Park (next to Neyland Stadium) where you can checkout the tailgating situation.