521,086 reasons to save money!

All 521,086 acres of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park are now OPEN!  So you have even MORE reason to take advantage of our big 15% off savings on all open dates in October.

But every day you wait is a day you will miss out on the beautiful colors.  We just heard that the color peak is now forecast to be late this month, and we have dates open right at that time.

Just go to our websites for all the information:
   Smoky Mountain Tower - www.SmokyMountainTower.com/Specials
   All Decked Out - www.SmokiesRentDirect.com/All-Decked-Out/Specials
You will need to enter coupon code October15 to get this deal - but all the instructions are on our websites.

Tell your friends.  Share this post.  We hope you can take advantage of this great deal AND enjoy Gatlinburg AND the National Park!

Why am I doing this?

Okay, it's October.  The leaves are turning and the peak is probably just a week away in Gatlinburg.  But we still have some REALLY GOOD open dates this month at All Decked Out and Smoky Mountain Tower.

So I'm going to do something I've never done before.  I am going to lower the price for all open nights in October by 15% - down to $152.15 a night.  With tax, that's a TOTAL of $171.55 per night.  Remember, we don't charge ANY extra fees - just our low nightly rate and tax.

Here's a calendar of the nights available at each cabin:

As of this minute, there are 11 nights open at each cabin.  But that can change.  So you MUST make your plans quickly and make your reservation NOW.

To get this great discount, just go to our websites as follows:
   Smoky Mountain Tower - www.SmokyMountainTower.com
   All Decked Out - www.SmokiesRentDirect.com/All-Decked-Out

Click the "Book Online Now" button on the left side, enter your arrival and departure dates, and click "Review & Book."  On the page that opens, go to the Coupon Code section and enter this code: October15 (be sure to enter it exactly as shown - coupon codes are case sensitive).  Click "Redeem" and you'll see that you have saved 15%!  Now, just complete the required information and you're all set.

We are announcing this Special Deal here first.  But you only have a 24-hour head start.  Then we'll post it on all our advertising sites.

Oh yes, why am I doing this?  Because I REALLY want you to enjoy the leaves in Gatlinburg this year.  All the reports are for a spectacular year, and the weather appears to be cooperating, too.  So we hope you can stay with us THIS MONTH!

The bathroom shelf at Smoky Mountain Tower

Every time we go to Gatlinburg, there is always some work to be done.  Way back in August last year, Phyllis started repainting the shelf that's in the main bath at Smoky Mountain Tower.  On our most recent trip, she added a little more frills to her paint job - especially in the upper corners.  So here are a couple of pictures of the process:

The next step is to add circles in those little pink squares in the corners.  We'll let you know when that gets done.

Slowly but surely...

"There's nothing to do if the Park is closed."

Some people are saying that, if the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is closed, there is no reason to go to Gatlinburg.

That is a MYTH!  In fact, one of the reasons we purchased All Decked Out and Smoky Mountain Tower is because there is SO MUCH to do in the area - and the Park is just one piece of that pie.

Check out this website for a more complete response to this myth:

http://www.visitmysmokies.com/blog/smoky-mountains/great-smoky-mountain-national-park-update/

If that doesn't give you enough things to do, try the websites for Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, which are less than 15 minutes from either of our cabins:
   www.Gatlinburg.com
   www.PigeonForge.com

We hope you will join us this month for God's great display of colors.  From what we've heard, it's supposed to be especially good this year.  We're pretty confident you won't be disappointed!  Of course, you can always write to us if you have any questions.

See you in the Smokies - Park or no Park!

Do you like exotic food?

I just have to show you one more picture from Grand Cayman.  We had a great dinner at 'Over the Edge' on the north side of Grand Cayman.  This was our meal:

Starting at the top left, the yellow items that look like bananas are fried plantain.  Then that purple item was boiled turtle in a wonderful wine reduction sauce.  Moving clockwise, you'll find fried conch and mahi-mahi (by the lemons).  On the bottom right is a breadfruit salad (breadfruit is like potato and is featured in Herman Melville's 'Mutiny on the Bounty').  Then we had green vegetables and rice.

This may not be something you will find in a Gatlinburg restaurant, but it was all VERY delicious.  I ate every bite!

As we get a little later in the year, we may tell you more about the Cayman Islands.  We had a wonderful time.  Now, it's back to work on giving you the best Smokies vacation possible.  We've had several October bookings since we talked about the fall colors - including folks who are coming to All Decked Out from California, just to enjoy the spectacular color display.  But we still have some open dates.  So please check our calendars at www.SmokyMountainTower.com/Availability or www.SmokiesRentDirect.com/Availability.  You don't want to miss out on the colors AGAIN, do you?

We're taking a break...

We love Gatlinburg.  But when we visit, we spend most of our time working on All Decked Out or Smoky Mountain Tower.  So this week, we're taking a REAL vacation to celebrate our 52nd anniversary.  We're staying at the Holiday Inn Grand Caymanian in the Cayman Islands - our favorite 'out of the country' place to relax.  We celebrated our anniversary on Monday by taking a tour of the island, including a stop at the "blowholes."  Take a look:

When a wave comes in, the water shoots 40-50 feet in the air through a hole in the rocks.  It's quite spectacular.

We have lots more pictures and will try to make an album so you can enjoy our trip with us.  The Cayman Islands are a great place to visit if you want an alternative to the mountains.  Please write to us for more details on how we may be able to get you a special deal.

The fall colors are coming...

If you're keeping up with us, you know that we just made a fast trip to Gatlinburg and stayed at Smoky Mountain Tower.  This picture is a view from the main floor deck, looking at the trees on the west side of the sunroom (sorry, it was a cloudy day):

As you can see, the trees are starting to put on their fall color show.  The dogwoods are usually among the first to change - but the others won't be far behind.

Our local sources tell us the peak color at the top of the mountains could be as early as the first full week of October.  So that should make Gatlinburg pretty spectacular around the third or fourth week of the month.

And you can enjoy it.  October is always a full month for us, but we just had a cancellation due to illness.  So Smoky Mountain Tower is open from October 19 and on into November.  We hear it's supposed to be a pretty good year for color.  So this is the time to experience it for yourself.  To make your reservation, just go to our website at www.SmokyMountainTower.com and click the "Book Online Now" button.  Or click on "Availability" to check dates.  Our calendar is always right up to the minute, because it's tied into our reservation system.

The colors are coming ... and we hope you will join them in Gatlinburg!