CC Doug Kerr

Located in the Heart of the Cove

Unlike the visitor center and concession areas of most tourist attractions, the one at Cades Cove is located in the heart of the Cove, not at the end of the trail. Probably the most important aspect of its location is its proximity to the bathrooms. This way you don't have to rush through the last five miles and miss half of the adventure. It is also where things are concentrated, a place where you and your family will find exciting places to explore. You can easily spend an entire day close to the visitor center and not travel more than one-half of a mile in any direction.

Near the Cades Cove Visitor Center

No matter where you stand when you are close by the visitor center, you are standing near Cove history. At some time during the life of the Cove, you would have been standing close to a store, a post office, a grist mill, a sawmill, a cemetery, a school, a barn, a corncrib, a smokehouse, a sorghum mill, and close, very close there would have been other houses, and barns. The Cove was not the home of a few people and a few houses and farms. There were several homes throughout the valley. At one point eight-hundred or more people were living in the Cove. You see only seven homes today.

CC Brent Moore

Remember the Cove

Halfway around the Cades Cove Loop Road, you will find the Cades Cove Visitor Center. The visitor center, operated by the Great Smoky Mountains Association, is an intricate part of Cades Cove itself. Integrated into the historical display, it meshes with everything around it.

The visitor center does not sell food or soft drinks. However, they do have water, and public restrooms are available. It is where you can buy hundreds of small trinkets, park maps, t-shirts, key chains, homemade jams and jellies, and books about the national park. The center is where you go to buy a memento of your Cades Cove experience. Did you know that "Memento" is the imperative form of "meminisse," a Latin verb that means "to remember?" While you are in the Cove, you will want and think you need a trinket to remind you of your visit; however, nothing can be further from the truth. You will only need to see a cool, clear creek, a mountain peak, fall leaves, or listen to the sound of silence and you will find yourself drawn back to your Cades Cove experience. So, go ahead and buy your trinket for it will remind you of your day in the Cove, and be assured that your "memento" will cause you to "remember" the Cove. But, that memory will also be triggered by various thoughts and experiences throughout life. I thought about Highway 73 and the Cove every day during basic training in July and August as I marched in the blazing hot sand of Texas. I did not remember the Alamo; but, I smiled as I remembered the Cove on the third Saturday of October.

Visitor Center

Hours:
The Cades Cove Visitor Center opens at the same time every day 364 days a year, 9 AM, closing only on Christmas Day. But, daily closing time varies by month from, 4:30 PM winter – 7 PM summer. Occasionally; they close due to weather conditions.

Entrance Fee to the Cove and the Visitor Center is Free

ADA Accessibility
Designated accessible parking spaces are available near the sidewalk to the restrooms. Ramp access to the visitor center containing information, exhibits, and books are available. Restrooms and water fountains are located outside the visitor center and are handicap accessible.

The trails/walkways through the complex of historic buildings nearby are level and surfaced with hard-packed gravel. Most building interiors can are viewable from the outside doorways. The Becky Cable House is accessible via a ramp. The interior of the Cable Mill is accessible when open.

Pet-friendly; kind of

Pets are allowed in cars and alongside the road in Cades Cove, provided they are kept on a leash. They are not permitted in the fields or inside any historic structures. Pets should not be left unattended in vehicles or RVs.

CC Doug Kerr

CC Stephen Conn