I've posted this in the Dragonball Run forum but want to make sure more people see this:

IF (we have at least 25 people who say they want to go back) we all decide we want to go back to Deal's Gap in April we would need to decide if we want to do the standard hotel stay OR another possibility is to do a group of Mountain Cabins.

The best location really seems to be around Pigeon Forge.

Option #1
There are lots of hotels in Pigeon Forge, some of the hotels that could accommodate 40 cars and up to 80 people are:

Econolodge
Mainstay Suites
Music Road Hotel
Country Inn & Suites
Governer's Inn
Ramada Ltd.

Links to most of these hotels can be found at:
http://www.mypigeonforge.com/Hotels-list.asp

Hotel Pros:
1) We've done this before, we know how it works.
2) Everyone is at one location.
3) As in Knoxville, most everything is usually close by.
4) Everyone has there own room to have some privacy.
5) Booking a room is simple, with only a 24 hour cancellation notice.
6) Can be pretty cheap, Knoxville was $69/night.

Hotel Cons:
1) Same old thing, we've done this before.
2) Not very memorable, just another hotel.
3) Not very personable, everyone has their own room where they go to and hide.
4) Can be pricey for what you get, just a run of the mill room.

Option #2
There is a large Mountain Cabin Resort in the area called Eagle's Ridge, the website is http://www.eaglesridge.com/index.html.

I like the idea of putting together something a little more memorable. Before you ask, all the roads to the various cabins are paved.

Cabin Pros:
1) Beautiful mountain views
2) Much more memorable accommodations, really feels like a vacation.
3) Groups of people can get together and share a cabin
4) Some cabins have outdoor Jacuzzi's
5) Price may be reasonable if several people share a cabin.
6) If we plan meals, we may even be able to get together and cook! Which may end up being cheaper than going out to a restaurant.

Cabin Cons:
1) More planning involved.
2) People would need to commit to the reservation.
3) May be more expensive for some who aren't sharing with others.
4) Restaurant accommodations not across the street so we would either drive to a place or cookout at one of the cabins.

As for a meeting place, Eagle ridge has a clubhouse that we could rent which holds around 80 people. Also, we could designate one of the larger 7 bedroom cabins as the "Main Meeting House". The cabins are situated on a 75 acre hillside. We can request cabins that are near each other but they are on 1 acre plots of land.

Let me know what everyone thinks, the cabin idea may work and be really fun! Please post your replies in the Dragonball Run forum.

 

The cabin idea and something different than samo-somo motels sounds neat. Price wise are we talking double a motel room, or even more? A ball-park number would be helpful.

 

ops, missed your last comment on where to post.

 

dlq04, I know that I didn't post a price. I called them but I need to wait until Monday to talk to someone who would give me a "Group" rate. I'd say that it would be more expensive than the $69 rate we had in Knoxville but if we split the cost among everyone in the cabin it may work out okay.

If the cabin is $800/night but sleeps 14 then that's only $57/person per night. Not bad. Check out the pictures on the link I posted.


When I get cost more info, I'll post it.

PS, there is a delete function if you want to repost your reply on the other thread.