Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg KOA Campground, near Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, is a lively spot that caters to families and outdoor lovers alike. With a range of accommodations from tents to RVs and cabins, it’s designed to make your stay comfortable and enjoyable.

The campground boasts a fantastic pool area complete with a lazy river, which visitors rave about. Many families appreciate the clean facilities and friendly staff, making it a breeze to unwind after a day of exploring. One camper highlighted, “We loved the lazy river in the pool,” which is a great way to relax and have fun at the same time.

Conveniently located, this KOA is just a stone's throw from attractions like Dollywood, making it easy to dive into local adventures. Reviewers have noted that the campground is close to everything, with easy access to nearby parks and entertainment options. As one guest mentioned, “The campground is very close to everything, and it has all the amenities you'd need.”

While some sites can feel a bit tight, especially for larger rigs, the overall atmosphere is welcoming and family-friendly. With a playground for the kids and a well-stocked store, Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg KOA is a solid choice for your next camping trip.

This KOA campground in Pigeon Forge is perfectly located to take everything the Great Smokies has to offer. Spend the day taking in the local area attractions such as Dollywood theme park, Dolly Parton's Stampede, Wonderworks, or the Old Mill just to name a few. Pigeon forge is bursting with over 70 attractions the whole family will love. Gear up for an adventure of hiking, fishing, biking or driving in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The options here are endless! For a home away from home, try our fully furnished Deluxe Cabins or Camping Cabins. Park your RV at our Pull-Thru RV Site with KOA Patio®, all with free cable and Wi-Fi. Pitching a Tent? We have beautiful waterfront sites conveniently situated with picnic tables and fire rings. Whatever accommodation you choose, you can rest assured you will enjoy your stay in this beautiful location. Explore our abundant entertainment options such as the NEW Gravity Rail, pan for fossils and gems at our Gem Mine, play at the NEW Playground, rent bikes or play in the zero-entry pool complete with a Rain Tree. There's even a safe place for Fido to play within the Kamp K9® Dog Park. As your day winds down, settle in to watch a movie at the Outdoor Cinema, sit around the Community Fire Pit or relax in the Hot Tub.

Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg KOA Campground

Some of the best camping in Tennessee is near Pigeon Forge, TN, surrounded by the magical Smoky Mountains. There's something for every kind of camper ⁠— backpackers, tourists, RVers, and boaters. With a variety of campgrounds and cabin rentals, amenities can range from very rustic to resort-style with heated pools. You can even get a glimpse of life in the 1800s with a stay in a covered wagon. Pigeon Forge is a short drive from Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which lies on the Tennessee-North Carolina border. The park is home to historic Southern Appalachian cultural sites, diverse animal and plant life, waterfalls and old-growth forests, and many miles of trails for hikers of all levels.

Pigeon Forge

The Best Camping Near Pigeon Forge, Tennessee

Gatlinburg

It's been a while but every time we have gone to this campground we love it. 

Been a while 

Campground is full of RVs that you can hear humming constantly. Decent location next to a river that you can tube in. Not secluded at all, but clean. 

Packed full of RVs but on the river

I've never stayed at a KOA I didn't like, and this one is no exception. If you want to camp a little closer to the shops and eateries in the Smokies, then this one is perfect. You can't go wrong staying here.

KOA at It's Best

Similar to most KOAs we've stayed at, and this one does have a real "lazy river" along side - but is otherwise not the greatest place we've stayed in the area.  We have a pop up, and it's difficult to level them in your site.  The bathrooms are touch and go.  They do clean them well, but it's the overly-careless campers here that are to blame.  No one seems to care.  Tent camping would be way to uncomfortable in these sites in my opinion.  Large, enclosed RVs are the way to go, because even a pop up is a little loud.  There's a pool and hot tub, and playground.  Overall, good location but not great.

KOA - Pigeon Forge, TN

We typically do not stay in "tourist type" campgrounds. We really like tent camping in the wilds but got in late and really did not have a choice. Staff was kind and helpful. Location was not that clean and we saw 2 persons with trailers having a lot of trouble setting up their trailers on some pretty uneven ground. I have to say though that the camp store had everything we could have needed. We came in late and were out early so not much more to review. Great location if you are going to be in town a lot though!

Only 1 night here

My first visit to Gatlinburg... Amazing.  So much to do nearby, and so much to see: not a single moment went by that wasn't filled with some new adventure.

Natures beauty at our fingertips!

Stayed hear as a family while traveling through the are on a road trip from northern Minnesota to North Carolina, years ago. We wanted to take in Smoky Mountain National Park and felt this KOA met our traveling needs. We stayed in a RV. Beautiful nearby scenery. A bit urbanized camping but most KOA's are. This didn't deter us as we wanted to be nearby shops and restaurants. Would stay again here if ever in the area again.

Nice stay near Great Smokey Mountains

We have stayed at many KOAs across central and southern states and as always we have never found a bad one or had anything but great things to say.
  This one was in a perfect location for our dollywood visit and the beautiful mountains,
So much to see and do

Fun Times

Very helpful and accommodating to a tent camper. 

winter 2016

We really enjoyed camping at KOA PF! Love the town and the campground!

Awesome experience! 

What can I say, it's a KOA.  You either love them or hate them.  This one we really enjoy.  lots to do for the kids, even kid movies at night.  We visit Dollywood every October and the trolley picks you up right up front of the KOA for .50 cents one way.  We only reserve the premium sites. The regular sites are very close together.  Very Friendly staff.  Full Hook-ups and Cable.  

Great Location 

Very kid friendly KOA. Was always very busy with comers and goers due to the area being touristy. Tent camping not the best idea if you want quiet. The scenery in the back of the park where the tent area is is on a creek (nice huh), not when you listen to trucks unloading all night every night at the grocery store across the creek.

Kid friendly

A very clean and well kept campground. Every night you can have a fireworks show for free from Dollywood! The sites are extremely, ridiculously close together which means our picnic table pad was 6 feet from our neighbors. Also, the camper next to us was less than 3 feet away from ours because the pads are designed to back up to each other. I would stay again, but never, never in the summer obusy months.

Great amenities!

If you are camping here to save money it is a good choice. The town itself is infectiously touristy. LIke Money flies out of your pocket touristy- everything is jacked up. Buy groceries and beer on the way.

Stay in campground

It’s a super nice campground. We were very happy with the convenience of things to do and see in walking distance. There is also the trolley that offers easy transportation to other great attractions. We could have parked the truck and never used it for the whole week. Again such a great location for the campground. It is located right along the river and also has great amenities at your site if you choose. There is a cafe and lots of kids activities too. We enjoyed picking a tomato and pepper to add to our dinner from the garden near the hammock and cornhole area. I would highly recommended this campground.

One of the best campground I’ve been to.   Location is wonderful 

very clean! nice pool and playground. great little river front property. walking distance from lots of shops amd eaterys.

was awesome. 

I have stayed here a few times because it is close to my house. It has a lot for kids to do. They have invested a lot of money in recent years. If you want to be in the middle of all the tourist stuff and still be camping, this is  for you. 

Getting better all the time

Great for families, tons of stuff for kids if all ages!

Small KOA, very clean, family oriented, quite, with lots of stuff for kids.

Super nice campground 
A few sites are way to close together 
Super clean bathroom with personal showers on the outside. Will definitely stay again just not on one of the squeeze tight sites 

Almost a five star

On screen, the tent sites look downright idyllic.  Bordered by a little creek, ducks visit during the day, the park is very well kept, extremely dog friendly; it seems perfect upon arrival.  Then after a long day of hiking, you return to your tent to crash, and get to listen to the sound of air brakes, back up beeping, and bay doors slamming all. night. long.  Just on the other side of the cute little creek is a grocery/bakery that has semi trucks coming in and out CONSTANTLY all night.  We might as well have set up camp in the receiving bay.  We were super disappointed, the site itself was everything we wanted.  Sadly, sleep is also important so we won’t be returning.  

Beware Tent Camping

Great campground, my kids love the bouncy pillow.  Pool is a little small.  Sites are small but efficient in the standard section.  Friendly staff

Nice park,  great location, pool and grounds!

October getaway

The positive:  Great and friendly staff, clean facilities.  There was an otter living near our site.  Close to park entrance.

The negative:  Photos of tent sites along the Little Pigeon River are misleading as can be.  Being in Pigeon Forge I knew not to expect complete solitude but this was over the top nonsense.  When the noise of the amusement parks and traffic dies down you get about an hour of peace before the food warehouse on the other side (about 50 yds) starts loading trucks non stop through the night.  We were awakened every night at 1 am or later to the sounds of tractor trailers backing up. The came the loud bangs of the trucks actually being loaded.  We left a night early and drove halfway home because we couldn’t tolerate it any more.  Do not stay here ever if you actually like real camping.

Great staff/Horrible Tent sites

There are lots of activities for the kids. Campsites in the newer sections are very nice and worth the upgrade charges as you are not as crowded. The older part of the park is well maintained and nice, yet was designed and laid out in an era of smaller RV's so it is a little crowded. Bathhouses are very nice and well maintained. We stayed over the Thanksgiving Holiday and the park was full to capacity. 

Family Friendly full service

Small campground with full hookups and cabins. Great location to walk to the streets of Pigeon Fotge

Great location 

Being unfamiliar with the area and this chain of campgrounds, I just wish I had done more homework here. Booked a last minute trip in a hurry and “you get what you pay for” didn’t work out with this campground. Other, more secluded sites were dramatically lower, but I blame myself for not learning about the campsite first. The campground is very crowded and loud- I was shocked when we saw it was smack in the middle of an extremely commercial area. Not something I would have thought to check first for camping! Upside was the convenience of the general store for forgotten items and two very nice bath houses. Big downside was how loud it was every night. Just across the river our site sat on were restaurants and a busy road. Our tent site was covered in goose droppings when we arrived and anytime we left we came back to a new mess. It had to be cleaned off daily just to use our site, but maintenance was responsive in assisting with that. The sites are small and very close together, which was new for us. Had a lot of activities to offer campers, but wasn’t our style.

Great shower houses, overcrowded campground.

Nice campground with a bunch of amenities for the kids. Including a lazy river and pool.

Great place for kids 

Nice pool, right on the river so you can fish. Also adjacent to a massive open field park that’s great for the kids or dogs. Super close to Dollywood.  

Nice accommodations 

Very clean and spacious bathroom/showers, staff great and perfect distance to tourist and Nature destinations

Family friendly

This is not exactly the camping in the woods without hookups atmosphere. This is more of a every want/need met glamping RV Resort. And it’s awesome!

The RV sites are large and level, full hookup. There are gorgeous cabins that look more like tiny homes, and the atmosphere at this park is a great way to retreat. 100 ft max for RVs. 

Very kid friendly, pet friendly (Kamp K9), lots in the area to go do and see. Pools, hot tub, kitchen, firewood for sale, fishing access, snack bar, cable tv, and WiFi.

The staff here is awesome, very helpful and knowledgeable. The park is very clean and well kept.

Cellular service for TMobile was not very strong but AT&amp;T provided plenty for streaming and working. 

Glamping in Pigeon Forge

Pluses:
Nice, clean, updated facility with excellent amenities including heated lazy river. 
Good location for commercial stuff in PF, Dollywood, getting to several areas in different direction of Great Smoky Mountain National Park. 

Minuses:
Lots of add in costs to use some amenities like pedal carts, no balls for games. 
WiFi was horrible all 3 days there
You are packed in with other RVs everywhere. 

Pretty good?

Close to everything, right in the heart of pigeon forge. Best bath houses we’ve ever been too, all other reviews were spot on! Was here in December and and camp was about 1/3 full, nice large level spots, most are concrete. Our neighbor did say he got here when the park was full and it was tight to get parked, and cars parked everywhere. You can walk to a few restaurants and it’s a longer walk to shops. Nice park (open field) for walking next to campground, great for fur babies. 

Best city camping there is!! 

This KOA is in the perfect location next to the Old Mill and all the attractions. We spend several weekends each year at this location and the new lazy river pool alone is enough to keep the kids entertained.

Love This Place!

Check in and out were effortless and efficient. The playground kept our kids entertained almost the entire weekend. They have a swing zip line that everyone was taking turns on. The bounce pad was a blast. When that wasn’t enough to wear out our little ones we headed to the heated pool to enjoy some swimming. Everyone was polite and helpful. The grounds are kept clean and there is even an area to have your dogs off leash. Overall it was a great trip. The sites were a little tight but luckily we had plenty of guidance backing into our spot. 

Quiet and relaxing 

Very nice, clean,and super convenient location to everything.  Spots are a little more spacious than some other KOA's I've visited!

Standard,  clean and near everything 

Our back in site was very difficult to get into. We also noticed another campers were parking, they also had issues getting into their back in sites.  
There are many things for children to do at this campground.
Trolley also pick up right at the main entrance of the campground.

Lots for kids to do

The staffs works around the clocks even after hours keeping the campground clean. They constant clean bathrooms and showers and stopping by to make sure all is good and a friendly chat.  The staffs are knowledgeable of the area and provided great tips and hidden gems to check out. 

One of the best campground in Pigeon Forge 

We love this campground and often visit, this year we had our family reunion. It was the first time many had seen a campground and they utilized the deluxe cabins. Everyone had a wonderful time and loved the resort like amenities. They took a vote and decided to make this our annual destination.

Family Friendly

Pluses, the staff was great, the place was clean, and the park was close to lots of stuff to do. 
Minuses, the sites were cramped, and trying to get in or out of the place, to do anything that was nearby, was a pain in the neck. 
We would probably not stay here again because of the traffic, traffic related noise, and cramped sites.

Nice, but overcrowded and brutal traffic

Typical KOA, everything was well maintained lots were nice sized, and they had lots of fun activities for the kiddos. 

Lots of different stays available here, pull through lots, tent sites, and cabins

Nice KOA property

This KOA campground is within Pigeon Forge and accessible to where you want to go.  A busy campground but quiet while campers do their own thing.  The staff is superb and always checking on guests.  

Hidden

We arrived super late, but our checkin info was ready for us along with a map to our site. The campground had a ton of amenities, so good if you have kids. There was a pool/hot tub/lazy river, playground, trampoline, corn hole, and more. Bathrooms were clean, we didn’t shower there. There was even a dog wash! The spots were a little tight and our sewer connection was a foot up off the ground so drainage at site 122 was a bit of an issue. Foliage was very pretty and at its peak the first week of November! Close to gatlinburg and pigeon forge 

Lots of Amenities

The campground is located in the town of Pigeon Forge with the entrance on one of the main roads across the road from Dollywood Park.  Facilities include a heated swimming pool, lazy river, jacuzzi, children's playgrounds, and more.  the problem is that the spots and alleys are a bit narrow making it a bit difficult to maneuver a big rigs or large trailers.  My truck was hit by a trailer maneuvering into one of the spots.

A little bit tight 

Campground is within walking distance to Patriot Park where you can access all lines of the transit system.  Dollywood and North line also stop right outside campgrounds front gates.  Has all the amenities you’d expect in a KOA.  

Nice Campground Convenient Location

Nice Camp ground, they moved tent camping up close to road, they used to be next to Pigeon River but now those are premium RV spots. It's closest camping to Dollywood. Storm blew through and flattened our tent, KOA refunded the cost of the last night as we were unable to stay.

Pigeon Forge Gatlinburg KOA

Nice place, friendly staff drives you to you site some site are very tight newer sites and pull through are great.   Awesome lazy river and hot tub.  Very close to downtown and 2 or so miles to Dollywood   I will stay again 

Koa in june

Nice campground all in all. We had a site right on the river. Had we been in a site away from the river, we’d have been packed in like sardines. 
Another thing to be aware of is even though you ask for adjacent sites when booking 2 under the same name you most likely won’t get it. 

We got lucky!

We rolled in with a 3 day reservation and were assigned spot 13 right next to the pool. I was a bit nervous about noise in the evening but that wasn't a problem at all and we were right in the middle of the action. Great playground for the kids and a really nice pool with a lazy river. Make sure to bring your own floats. We'll definitely be back and will request the same spot. 

Fantastic campground for families 

This campground is very close to a main road with lots of traffic and street noise(police, ambulances, cars/motorcycles playing loud music). The water went out several times over the 5 days we spent here. The wifi was spotty but we didn't use it much for that reason. We were charged $2/child/day for our 3 kids which I thought was an unusual fee to impose on families. I wouldn't stay here again nor recommend it to anyone. They nickel and dime for every little thing and the sites are pricey to begin with.

Not my kind of campground

Really friendly staff. Nicely stocked store. Clean and large laundry room with TV. We loved the lazy river in the pool. Our site was concrete and level but as with most KOAs not cheap. 

Great pool! 

The campground is very close to everything, and it has all the amenities you'd need. The staff is very helpful, and they keep the campground clean. 

Great 4 night stay. 

I have camped at a KOA Camp Ground before and just loved it


Gatlinburg KOA Camp Ground

We were there on a Saturday night in August and it was completely sold out. It's a very busy campground with close together spaces but that's to be expected at that time and place. 
The staff was awesome and it's a great facility, shockingly with that many people it was absolutely silent at night. 
If you want to be in that area at that time it's pricey but hard to beat; however, I have no desire to be in that busy of a campground. There is a good chance we would like to see it in the off season. 

Photos of Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg KOA Campground

Real photos from real campers