A surprising number of romances are set at some sort of Christmas-themed hotel or resort. If you crave an extravagantly decorated Christmas with all of the ambience and events and none of the stress, and you like the option of celebrating it all year, The Inn at Christmas Place is here for you. As ever, this is neither a review nor an endorsement – it’s just what happens when I Google odd things instead of wrapping presents.
The Inn at Christmas Place is located in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. It’s near Dollywood, which looks like a lot of fun and which also goes all out for Christmas. It’s also five miles away from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which looks simply gorgeous.
I’ve profiled several destinations that specifically did not allow kids. In contrast, this is place super kid-friendly. It has a heated indoor pool and hot tub, nighttime cookies, and a really fabulous looking buffet breakfast. The presence of small children who get a sugary cookie right before bed may not scream romance, but on the other hand I’ve never felt more of a glow of adoration towards my husband than while watching him do things with our daughter. It’s a different kind of romance.
Most of the rooms are pretty simple rooms with a tasteful amount of decor, but once you start looking at suites the decorations get lavish. The best suite is, of course, The Santa Suite. I say “best” meaning “most lavishly decorated,” and I say “most lavishly decorated,” meaning “Santas everywhere.” So many Santas, you guys. There’s even a big Santa statue seeing you when you’re sleeping and knowing when you’re awake. For me, that’s the premise of a horror film but if you find it to be a wonderful distillation of holiday cheer, more power to you. You get a special gift from Santa, and the room has a fireplace and a full size kitchen and a two-person whirlpool.
The Inn has a daily calendar of fun events, including storytime and music with Santa, crafts, games, cookie decorating, carols, and gingerbread house making. Even my grinchy heart thinks that the Appalachian doll-making looks cool, and I do love a good marshmallow roast. Best of all, parents, you do not have to organize these events and, and I can’t stress this enough, YOU DON’T HAVE TO CLEAN UP. My heart grows three sizes just thinking of it.
If this is not enough Christmas magic for you, you can cross the street to The Incredible Christmas Place, which is a 43,000 square foot Christmas store where you can buy things like Christmasopoly and a “2000 Switch It Light Set.” If my family tried to install 2000 lights and then play Christmasopoly there would be blood on the walls, but perhaps your family is more functional than mine. You can also look at their blog (The Yule Blog) for tips on how to make the holiday perfect. “Add glitter to almost anything,” they say. It’s like they know me!
Ultimately, only you can decide if this is a romantic destination, a fun one, or both, or neither. I’m not going to lie, the Santa Suite creeps me the heck out and just thinking about the store makes me want to lie down with the covers over my head. However, I do like the more subtle decorations in the regular rooms, and the idea of having a big family Christmas without actually having to do very much. I mean, good heavens, the lobby has an actual glockenspiel clock. That’s not something you see everyday. What do you think?
Glitter is horrible on so many levels, and tbh I get mad every time someone sends us a Christmas card with glitter on it. The really bad ones go right to the bin.
I know there is environmentally conscious glitter out there, but honestly…I still don’t like it in most contexts.
The clock is cool, tho. It distracts from the garish carpeting.
I wish I’d known about this place when my mother was still with us. Screw romance, what a great girls trip this would have been! Between the inn and the Christmas store, she would have been in her version of heaven. In fact I hope this is her heaven.
For the record there are 2400+ lights
just on my Christmas tree.
Ha, we were just in Pigeon Forge last month, and to say they really do Christmas is a bit of an understatement! It was fun for a visit (family live nearby) but I’m not sure I’d want to deal with the crowds. It definitely put us “in the spirit” though!
This is my first holiday season in a long while not to be working retail, and I’m taking tentative steps toward developing a Christmas spirit. It looks like it’s going to be a bit more time yet before I might actually enjoy the holidays, though. Immediately on seeing the Christmas Place photo, all I could think was what a ginormous pain to stock that section. I’m pretty sure there’s still glitter in my clothes and various orifices from stocking and cashiering last year. *shudder*
So for me this would be more of a Halloween destination, chills and thrills galore! Bwa ha ha ha haaaaaa instead of ho ho ho.
I’ve stayed here on a girl’s trip and loved it! The beds are super comfortable and the service is top notch. And the included breakfast is delicious. It’s one of my top 3 hotels I’ve ever stayed at.
When I saw the first photo I thought that would be hell! Then I saw your caption….LOL.
I can´t help wondering what they do the rest of the year – just the storage for all those lights and glitter must be a pain!
It’s crazy and amazing at the same time.
They constantly switch some of the decorations so there’s always something new to find, but the Christmas decor stays up all year. they don’t do as much programming the rest of the year except for “Christmas in July” but they keep the cookies and decor.
Honestly, I was disappointed by the pictures on their website. I had visions of CHRISTMAS IN CONNECTICUT or the Vermont ski lodge in WHITE CHRISTMAS. Except for the decorations, this seems … sterile, and not particularly welcoming. I’m sure it’s lovely and other commenters seem to like it, just not for me.
@ No, the Other Anne – Wishing you success on your holiday retail withdrawal and hope you find some joy in the season this year! My husband retired from retail management a few years ago and it takes a while. This year, he has been known to tune in Christmas music on our satellite radio and has done some of the gift shopping. Baby steps.
@ DonnaMarie – I immediately thought of my mother-in-law and thought the same. She was the first person I ever met who decorated the bathrooms for Christmas. Her holiday tablescapes were epic.
The Inn at Christmas Place looks like fun to me! No cleanup after crafts or s’mores. YAY. And, probably a more romantic destination when kids are in school. 🙂
I have never stayed here but I can vouch for the surrounding area. There are TONS of things to do for all ages in Pigeon Forge, and it is an outlet shopper’s paradise. There is also lots going on in nearby Gatlinburg (or what’s left of it, after the fire; I know the Park Grill survived and that is a must dining experience.) Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge is also the Appalachian Las Vegas as you can get a quickie wedding in one of their wedding chapels with no blood test or other preliminaries. (Hubby and I almost did.) We used to go camping in the National Park at least two or three times a year before my husband got sick; the amenities are great and it was a gorgeous environment. The Smokies have always soothed my heart; the Cherokee believe God lives there and I think they’re right.