I recently had the pleasure of staying at Baymont by Wyndham Gatlinburg On the River. Let me tell you that this place was amazing. Up until I took my Pandemic Road Trip I don’t think I ever heard of Baymont by Wyndham before. On that trip, I ended up staying at two of them. This one in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, and one in Cave City, Kentucky.
If you find yourself traveling to the Gatlinburg-Pigeon Forge area. Do yourself a favor and book a room here. You will not be let down. The view from your balcony is amazing. It’s a great way to start your morning with a cup of coffee or end the night listening to the rushing waters below.
I know the next time I am in the area I will be booking a room here. The rooms were clean. The staff was friendly and helpful and the location was great. We couldn’t have asked for a better place for our first time visiting Gatlinburg, Tennessee.
Hotel
Baymont by Wyndham Gatlinburg on the River is located right when you first enter town. This location is great when you factor in all the traffic Gatlinburg can get in the summer months. On my recent visit, it wasn’t unusual to see the traffic backed up all the way to the hotel. It’s a half-mile away from what I like to consider the main light in Gatlinburg (light #3).
From the outside the hotel has almost a log cabin look to it. It is four stories high with only the weight room, game room, and lobby being located on the first floor. An indoor pool and patio area is located on the second floor. I was told that floors 2 and 3 are queen bedrooms while the fourth floor is the king bedrooms. No matter which floor or room type you get you will have an amazing view from your balcony.
I think the balcony was my number one reason for selecting this hotel when I was looking for hotels in Gatlinburg. The balcony meets my expectations. Having my morning coffee sitting on the balcony was very relaxing. It was just what I needed to start my day.
At night time it was also very peaceful. Since we weren’t too close but also not too far away from the center of town we didn’t get all that noise. I was hoping for a better chance of getting some star photos from the balcony but sadly there was just too much light pollution.
Now Baymont by Wyndham Gatlinburg does have an indoor pool. When we stayed here the temp outside was 90 plus with high humidity. Sitting in the pool area didn’t feel too bad. It felt nicer in there than it did outside.
Unlike some other places I’ve visited with indoor pools (Courtyard by Marriott), you don’t get smacked in the nose with that chlorine smell or taste. Not sure if that is a good thing or a bad thing health-wise with the current Pandemic. But for me, it was refreshing not to have chlorine stuck in my nose.
Now the pool was a little on the small size. With current requirements on social distancing I would say maybe 2 families should be in this space (8 people). We had the area to ourselves when we visited so we didn’t have to worry about that.
Outside of the pool is a nice patio area. I could see myself sitting and relaxing here in the spring or fall. Not in the summer in the middle of the day. That Tennessee sun was glaring down on us. Just thinking about it now really makes me want to take a trip again in the fall to sit out here a marvel view with the changing colors of the leaves on the mountain side.
Baymont by Wyndham Gatlinburg On The River has a small exercise room. There is not much to it but enough for those of you that have to workout every day. It is located on the first floor right next to the lobby and game room.
That’s right they also have a small game room. During my the air hockey table was broken and I can only assume they have not fixed it due to Covid-19. The washing machines were also located in this area. They too were not working. Again I am pretty sure it is because of the current Pandemic we are facing.
Overall the hotel was very clean. I did not see any trash laying around and the trash cans appeared to be emptied daily. The staff was also very friendly. The housekeeper came around one day and give us fresh towels. We never asked for them but it was nice to get a few extra.
The only complaint I have with the hotel was the elevator. That thing was so slow. You never feel like you are even moving in it. I can’t tell you how long it took to go from the first floor to the third but it was a lot longer than it should have been. My suggestion to you is to take the ramps (that’s right ramps not stairs) to your floor.
The Room
I was very happy with the room. It was on the third floor which give us a nice view off the balcony. The room we had was two queen beds. Even with two queens in the room it didn’t make it feel small.
One of the things I liked best about the room was the hardwood floors. No carpet in the rooms. I think ALL hotels should switch to hardwood floors instead of carpet. It is easier to clean especially in times like this.
The room also had a nice little desk with plenty of space to put your laptop and do a little blogging or work at. There was also a microwave in the room which is helpful come breakfast time if you want a hot breakfast since they currently do not offer breakfast. Of course, there is a mini fridge with plenty of space to but your favorite drinks in.
Now the only down side (not really) was the size of the bathroom. It isn’t the largest bathroom but it is of average size. The sink is located outside of the bathroom but right next to it.
The water pressure in the shower was amazing. Getting the perfect water temperature for a shower was a breeze. Plus that shower head. So amazing. I’ve stayed at many hotels and this bathroom is at the top of the list. Oh, and the toilet could easily flush a golf ball through a garden hose. What more could you ask for?
Gatlinburg, Tennessee
Now I am just going to do a quick run down of the surrounding area. There is just so much to say about Gatlinburg that it deserves it’s own post. I would say I would much rather stay in Gatlinburg than nearby Pigeon Forge. Both areas are nice but it seems like everything in Gatlinburg is easy to walk to.
Now from the hotel you do have a 0.5 mile walk into the main area of town. It really is an easy walk with a lot to see on your way. Plenty of amazing local shops to check out with low prices. Don’t miss out on the antique shops. You never know what you will find in those places.
You won’t find any fast food in Gatlinburg other than a subway. They do have some “stands” that offer food fairly quickly but we didn’t try any of them. We did eat at Johnny Rockets, Bubba Gump, and Mellow Mushroom. The pizza at Mellow Mushroom was pretty good and that’s coming from someone who grew up in the Northeast and has plenty of delicious pizza from Philly and NYC.
There were plenty of other places to grab a bite to eat but most had long waits. We really wanted to check out Ole Red (Blake Shelton’s joint) but the wait was just too long. It will definitely be put back on the list for our next visit. I didn’t realize there was so much to do in this area when I first starting planning this trip.
So there is plenty of places to eat but what can you do to keep yourself entertained? So many things that I couldn’t dream of listing them all but here are a few. You can go mini-golfing at one of the many places. Hillbilly Golf looked really neat but my daughter wanted to go to Treasure Quest Golf.
You can go to an amazing aquarium. Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies has been voted the number one Aquarium in the US. While I don’t know if I agree that it is number one. It is definitely in the top 5 and worth checking out. You can get a combo ticket and visit some of the other Ripley’s places too.
You have Ripley’s Believe It or Not! A Haunted Adventure, a Mirror Maze, and of course 2 different mini golf to pick from. But Gatlinburg has more than just Ripley’s attractions.
You can also check out the Gatlinburg Space Needle which takes you up 400 feet. Skylift Park which offers the longest skybridge in North America. Or visit the Hollywood Star Cars Museum which has some famous cars from your childhood like the DeLorean from Back to the Future.
Gatlinburg is a great place to visit as a family, solo or as a couple. Couples and solo travels will like the many wine and whiskey tasting shops. Trust me there are many to pick from. But why only choose one?
I was unable to check any of them out since it was only my 9-year-old daughter and myself on our Pandemic Road Trip. I know if I find the right person I would come back out and spend the weekend relaxing and stopping at the many free wine and whiskey tasting places.
There you have it my review of Baymont by Wyndham Gatlinburg On The River. The hotel blew us away and was much better than I could hope for. The town of Gatlinburg was much nicer than I was expecting to and made it on my list of places to revisit.
Have you ever stayed at Baymont by Wyndham Gatlinburg? Have you ever stayed at any Baymont? Let us know how your stay was. Also, let us and our other readers know what your thoughts are on Gatlinburg. Would you visit again?
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Kozmo Photos 