March 23, 2019

Anakeesta


Welcome to Anakeesta on the strip in downtown Gatlinburg.

You board a chairlift to go up to the where all of the activities are located.  There is also the choice of riding in an enclosed chondola which seats 6.  You'll see us passing a couple here in a few photos.

Up we go.

You can see some chondolas just ahead of us (the red cabins)

It takes about 30 minutes to get up to the top.

Here's a better look at the chondolas.

Looking back down at Gatlinburg.

Here's the top of lift.

At the top of the mountain there are several boutique shops and restaurants.

There is a nice fire pit to keep guests warm during the evening.

Some more boutiques

The view up here is amazing

Nothing like sitting in a rocking chair while looking at nature.

They are working on a new section called Vista Gardens.  It features a nice water feature.

There is also a tree house village playground to explore

It's actually a lot of fun

And yes, adults can explore here too

Looking up from below at the tree house village  playground

The next adventure is the Tree Canopy Walk

Long rope bridges connect viewing platforms on this amazing walk through nature.

The bridges bounce, which is really cool.

You will get a workout navigating all of the bridges.

You have to go back uphill to exit the walk.

The evening caught us before we could go back down the hill

Heading back down you can see Gatlinburg all light up.  The line of lights on the hill is the Gatlinburg Skylift.  The Space Tower is there in bright white on the left.  The green neon is the aquarium

Here you can see the aquarium better.

Coming in for a landing.  We had a great time up in Anakeesta.