City: Pigeon Forge, TN

Category: Accommodations

Telephone: (865) 868-0525; (888) 465-9644

Address: 119 Christmas Tree Lane

Description: If you can’t get enough stockings and sugarplums in December, then this hotel is definitely the place for you. It’s constantly Christmas at this 145-room inn, which opened in 2007, right across the street from a holiday-themed store called The Incredible Christmas Place (a huge shop selling everything Christmas all year long, which has been a staple on the Parkway since 1986). The two establishments have the same owners.The inn has regular guest rooms as well as one-, two-, and three-room suites. Every room has a microwave, refrigerator, and DVD player (you can borrow Christmas movies at the front desk), and some have balconies, fireplaces, and double whirlpool tubs. Each has at least a little Christmas decor (such as holiday throw pillows on the bed, wreaths, holiday artwork, and various Christmas knickknacks), but five of the suites are the most decked out—they each have two seven-foot Christmas trees. The walls throughout the inn are graced with winter-themed art prints by the area’s most celebrated artists (including Jim Gray, Robert Tino, G. Webb, Vern Hippensteal, Robert McDonald, Lee Roberson, and Terri Waters).The rate includes a hot continental breakfast with made-to-order omelets. Santa comes to breakfast every Thursday through Monday from mid-May through December 23 (he’s understandably busy on the 24th, and requires recuperation on the 25th), and the jolly guy even makes an appearance once a week in the off-season. On most Friday evenings, one of Santa’s elves reads Christmas stories in the lower lobby from 7:30 to 8 p.m. (complete with cookies and milk). During Christmas week, the inn has a live nativity out front. Kids can write and mail letters to Santa year-round (there’s a special mailbox just for this purpose).Don’t miss the three-story glockenspiel in the lower lobby. Every hour on the hour (from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.), it plays Christmas carols and chimes while cute little mechanical figures move about the enormous structure. The Inn at Christmas Place has an outdoor pool with a 95-foot, figure-eight waterslide, as well as an indoor pool with a large hot tub, a video game arcade, and a business center. One more amenity makes this inn stand out—it’s the only property in Pigeon Forge with doormen!