Pigeon Forge hotels offer a warm welcome to Winter visitors. The current cold snap of below freezing temperatures is predicted to end in the next few days as temperatures are expected to rise into the 40′s. The Smoky Mountain area continues to be a draw for travellers as Wilderness Wildlife Week begins. This week long event features over 150 speakers, demonstrations, and guided hikes relating to the flora and fauna of the Great Smoky Mountains.
Ripley’s Entertainment is planning a $5 million expansion to the popular Aquarium of the Smokies in Gatlinburg. The first permanent expansion to the facility in ten years will house about 20 African black-footed penguins. The indoor-outdoor Penguin Playhouse will hold 30,000 gallons of saltwater and include tunnels for visitors and penguins to view one another.
The African Penguin (Spheniscus demersus) is found on the south-western coast of Africa. Because of their donkey-like braying call they were previously named Jackass Penguins. Since several species of South American penguins produce the same sound, the African species has been renamed African Penguin, as it is the only penguin species that breeds in Africa.
Ticket packages for Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies are available at www.smr.travel, or by calling 1-888-482-7829.
Country Inn & Suites, Pigeon Forge is now Country Cascades. Along with the name change, Smoky Mountain Resorts plans several upgrades and changes to better ensure a satisfactory guest stay. New mattressses, bed clothes, drapes, dressers, lamps, and 32″ RCA flat screen TVs are just the beginning. All rooms are now NON-smoking!