Our Gatlinburg hotel is far more than just a place to sleep during your time in the Smokies. Here are 3 fun facts about our lodging that makes us stand out and creates a home away from home that you’ll want to return to year after year.
1. Our Hotel is Steps Away From All Things Smokies
One of the greatest benefits to staying at our hotel is being just steps away from both downtown Gatlinburg and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. We are also located next to a tranquil stream that gives our guests the opportunity to relax after exploring America’s favorite national park and all of the area’s top shops, attractions, and dining spots. A short walk will take you to The Peddler, NOC Gatlinburg, Old Dad’s, Gatlinburg Trail, Ober Gatlinburg’s Aerial Tramway, Crockett’s Breakfast Camp, Sugarland Cellars, Ripley’s attractions, Gatlinburg Space Needle, Gatlinburg SkyLift Park and much more.
2. Gatlinburg’s Grand Tradition
Since shortly after our doors opened to guests in 2000, our hotel has been known as “Gatlinburg’s Grand Tradition”. Over the past 20 years we have welcomed many of our guests a countless number of times due to their love of the cozy, authentic and classic Smoky Mountain experience that we offer. We take great pride in being a locally owned and operated hotel that was created to be a traditional mountain lodging destination. From our custom-made hickory furniture and beds to the local art that you’ll find on our walls, we are all things Smokies. If you’re looking to immerse yourself in the mountains, the culture of southern Appalachia and the history of Gatlinburg, then we are definitely the place for you!
3. Our Gatlinburg Roots and Family Values
Our hotel was built to pay homage to not only the Great Smoky Mountains but also to our owners’ grandmother Hattie McGiffin Ogle. As one of the first pioneers of hospitality in Gatlinburg, Hattie was well loved and known in Gatlinburg. The Bearskin Motel was her pride and joy from the 1940’s until the 1980’s. Hattie loved treating her guests as an extension of her family and providing them with an experience that would last a lifetime. In 1997 Hattie’s family decided that the best way to carry on Hattie’s legacy and to extend the family values and love for hospitality that she had instilled in them, was to build Bearskin Lodge on the River in her honor. At 102 years old Hattie had the opportunity to see the beautifully designed Bearskin Lodge on the River completed and open to guests for the first time. Though Hattie passed away 2 years later, she is quoted as saying that she knew that her grandchildren would carry on all of the work that she had poured into the Smokies throughout her lifetime. So today, we strive daily to provide our guests with an experience that would make our Hattie proud, time after time.
Click Here to learn more about the history of Bearskin Lodge on the River in Gatlinburg, TN.
