Ober Gatlinburg, now branded Ober Mountain, is reached by an aerial tramway that lifts off right from downtown Gatlinburg and carries you two and a half miles up the mountain, which is half the appeal before you’ve even gotten to the top. Once you’re up there, it runs as a year-round mountaintop amusement park, with an alpine slide, a mountain coaster, an ice skating rink, black bear habitat, and chairlift and tram rides with some of the best overlook views in the Smokies.
In winter it switches over to Tennessee’s only ski and snowboard resort, modest by western standards but a fun, low-pressure way to try skiing if your group has never been. The rest of the year the slides, coaster, and amusement rides take over, and the base station downtown has its own shops and an aquarium-adjacent arcade if you’d rather browse than ride.
The tram ticket is separate from ride tickets, and you can also drive up via the Ski Mountain Road if you’d rather skip the tram, though the ride itself is part of the experience most guests want. It’s right in downtown Gatlinburg, an easy walk from the Parkway for anyone staying on the Gatlinburg side of our collection, and a good half-day plan that pairs naturally with dinner back in town afterward.
