Wife and I left two Saturdays ago and got home yesterday. 1,900 miles round trip in our paid-off Civic.
Costs:
Gas: $190
Lodging: $95 (two cheap Airbnbs, one night each, rest was free dispersed camping on national forest land)
Food: $145 (cooler + camp stove every meal)
Parking tag: $15 (weekly tag covers the whole park)
Coffee/splurges/firewood: $45
Total: $490.
Hiked 70 miles had trails and overlooks to ourselves saw elk and a couple bears, perfect 45-65° weather.
November is the absolute cheat code. Anyone else doing off-season Smokies trips?
Just got back from a 9-day Smoky Mountains trip — $490 total for two people (mid-November, basically empty)
byu/NarniaHop inFrugal
Posted by NarniaHop
3 Comments
Where’d ya camp at? We love Elkmont campground, it’s so beautiful there.
You know, there are only about 200 elk in the Smokies. You are really lucky to see them.
My money saving trick was to go to the Blue Ridge mountains in Georgia in October, rather than the Smokies. Scenery is just as beautiful, and a lot less crowded.