For our honeymoon and one year anniversary, we went to the Food and Wine Festival at Disney World. It is one of my absolute favorite things! If you've never been during the Food and Wine Festival at Epcot, please do yourself a favor and check it out!
This year, we wanted to stay closer to home and just take a short trip. So, we decided to go to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee for a couple of nights at the Margaritaville Hotel at the Island. It was wonderful! There is so much to do that is within walking distance of the hotel and the hotel itself is brand new and amazing!
It was hard picking only six of my favorite things from the trip, but here's a list of six things and places that caught my eye and made me swoon throughout our vacation!
1. The Apple Barn
I remember going to the Apple Barn and walking around with my family when I was a kid. So, every time we visit the Pigeon Forge area now, I still have to go look in all of the shops and watch the apple fritters being made. It was also decorated for Halloween and Fall, which made it even more festive!
2. The Margaritaville Hotel
The hotel was wonderful! Everyone was very friendly and it was super clean. One of my favorite things about the hotel, was the location. There is so much to do at the Island, within walking distance. The Island is made up of tons of restaurants, entertainment and shopping. You could literally park your car and not have to drive again until you leave. There's plenty to do in that one area. It was awesome!
Each hotel room has a walk in tile shower with a rain shower head from the ceiling! Seriously, like a spa! The shampoo, conditioner, etc. in the rooms are all Bath and Body Works products. I know!! How cool is that?!
Each room also has a gas fire place.
The bar area in the hotel was great! They have Happy Hour every afternoon and the bar staff was awesome!
How gorgeous is the lobby?
A rooftop pool overlooking the Island.
3. Pina Colada from the Margaritaville Hotel
I'm a total sucker for a good pina colada. I would almost consider myself a connoisseur of yummy pina coladas. ;) My all time favorite one is from The Conch House in St. Augustine, but these were wonderful too! The bar at the hotel was great! They also had an outdoor area where you could sit by a fire pit or play corn hole.
4. Breakfast at Paula Deen's Family Kitchen
I've been a fan of Paula Deen for years and years. I was super excited to finally be able to eat at one of her restaurants! I also love breakfast foods! So, we decided to go to the restaurant for breakfast our first morning in Pigeon Forge. Paula Deen's Family Kitchen is only a short walk across the Island. (Which makes you feel a little better about pigging out when you get there! Hey, you totally exercised on the way there!) The restaurant is decorated beautifully and is on the second story of the building, with views that overlook the Island. The first story of the building has an adorable store. We visited the store the night before we ate there.
Make sure you bring your appetite with you when you go! All of the food is family style and all you can eat. We got chicken and waffles, biscuits and gravy, eggs, hashbrown casserole, sausage, and fruit (we felt like we needed something a smidge healthy in there!) Everyone also gets the most yummy raisin cinnamon roll before you even place your order!
After we ate breakfast, we were so full, we went back to the room, relaxed, and watched TV for a while. I also made a cup of coffee in the Keurig in our room.
5. Stages West
Being a Southern girl, we love our cowboy boots! I even wore a pair at our wedding reception. This store had the most awesome selection of boots ever! Literally any type of boots you could think of, they had. They also had a really cute selection of winter clothes! Check Stages West out when you're in the area. It's on the corner of the main road, when you are turning into the Island area.
6. Old Mill Farmhouse Kitchen
There are a ton of cute shops at the Old Mill area in Pigeon Forge. I've heard great things about the restaurant there too. The Old Mill Farmhouse Kitchen was such a precious store! They had all different types of soup mixes, sandwiches, cornmeal, and kitchen utensils. You could try samples of some of their more famous items. The yellow jalapeño cornbread was awesome! I also loved all of the Farmhouse decor throughout the store. How cute is this huge galvanized tier display?
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