When you’re planning your trip to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, one of the things you’ll need to decide is where to fly into.
In this guide, we’ll look at the closest airport to Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
‼️ It’s worth noting that although this is the closest airport, it may not be the best airport for your trip to Great Smoky Mountains National Park. For more detailed information about other nearby airports, read my Guide to all the Airports Near Great Smoky Mountains National Park. ‼️
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What is The Nearest Airport to Great Smoky Mountains?
The park straddles the borders of North Carolina and Tennessee, so let’s look at the airport near Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s Tennessee and North Carolina sides.
Tennessee: McGhee Tyson Airport (TYS)
Located south of Knoxville’s downtown area, this is East Tennessee’s main airport. It’s around 40 miles from Gatlinburg and is the nearest Great Smoky Mountains National Park airport on the Tennessee side.
The airport offers nonstop and seasonal commercial flights to over 30 US destinations. You can fly via Delta, American, Frontier, United, and Allegiant airline services.
This airport near Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a good option if you’re staying or visiting Gatlinburg, Townsend, Pigeon Forge, or Cades Cove.
From McGhee Tyson, you can drive to US-129 S, then take the US-321 N going to Line Springs Road in Sevier County. Head towards Little River Gorge Road, then turn left going to US-441 N.
Location
McGhee Tyson Airport is located south of Knoxville, Alcoa in Blount County.
Distance Knoxville to Smoky Mountains National Park
🔰 Distance from Knoxville – Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Gatlinburg: 42 miles
🔰 Distance to Townsend: 21 miles
🔰 Distance to Cherokee: 73 miles
Travel time Knoxville to Great Smoky Mountains National Park
⌚ Travel time Knoxville TN to Smoky Mountains National Park, Gatlinburg: 1 hour and 10 minutes
⌚ Travel time to Townsend: 30 minutes
⌚ Travel time to Cherokee: 2 hours
What airlines fly out of McGhee Tyson Airport? Which airports connect to there?
✈️ Delta: Atlanta, New York – La Guardia, Detroit, Minneapolis−Saint Paul
✈️ American: Chicago – O’Hare, Charlotte, Miami, Philadelphia, Dallas – Fort Worth, Washington D.C. – Reagan
✈️ Frontier: Orlando – International, Denver
✈️ United: Chicago – O’Hare, Washington D.C. – Dulles, Houston – George Bush, Denver
✈️ Allegiant: Fort Lauderdale, Houston – Hobby, Las Vegas, Minneapolis−Saint Paul, Orlando – Sanford, Phoenix, Punta Gorda, Sarasota, St. Petersburg Tampa Bay, West Palm Beach
✈️ Seasonal flights (Allegiant): Austin, Baltimore/Washington D.C., Boston, Chicago – Midway, Denver, Destin/ Ft. Walton Beach, Myrtle Beach, Newark
➡️ Find the cheapest flight on Skyscanner
Rental car options
🚗 Onsite: Alamo, AVIS, Budget, Enterprise, Hertz, National, Dollar, Payless
➡️ Book a car through Discover Cars
Getting from McGhee Tyson Airport to Great Smoky Mountains National Park
🚘 Car rental
🚍 Rocky Top Tours (Shuttle service)
Pros
- Closest domestic airport to the park entrances on the Tennessee side
- Several nonstop flights to other states
- Plenty of car rental services are available here
- Visit the nearby areas like Gatlinburg, Townsend, Pigeon Forge, or Cades Cove
Cons
- Only domestic flights are available
- Less convenient for the North Carolina side of the park
North Carolina: Asheville Regional Airport (AVL)
Asheville Regional Airport is a small airport lies near the town of Fletcher, south of Ashville and is the closest airport to Smoky Mountains’ North Carolina area.
It’s serviced by major domestic airlines with direct and seasonal flight routes to get you to different US states.
Getting around Asheville and nearby areas is easy with plenty of ground transportation services available at this airport like taxis, public transits like Asheville ART Public Transit and Apple Country Transit, and limousine services.
Six car rental companies operate onsite at the airport so you can rent a car and easily access the park from here.
To get to the Cherokee entrance, get on I-26 W. Drive to US-74 W and take I-40 W going to US-19 S/Dellwood Road in Lake Junaluska. Head towards Exit 103 from US-74 W and follow US-19 S towards Blue Ridge Parkway. You’ll eventually reach Swain County and the Cherokee park entrance in about an hour from the airport.
Location
Asheville Regional Airport is near the town of Fletcher, nine miles south of Asheville.
Distance Asheville to Great Smoky Mountains National Park
🔰 Distance to Gatlinburg: 86 miles
🔰 Distance to Townsend: 117 miles
🔰 Distance to Cherokee: 68 miles
Travel time Asheville, NC to Great Smoky Mountains National Park
⌚ Travel time to Gatlinburg: 1 hour and 45 minutes
⌚ Travel time to Townsend: 2 hours and 30 minutes
⌚ Travel time to Cherokee: 1 hour and 10 minutes
What airlines fly out of Asheville Regional Airport? Which airports connect to there?
✈️ Allegiant: Austin, Fort Lauderdale, Houston, Key West, Las Vegas, Minneapolis, Newark, Orlando/Sanford, West Palm Beach, Ft. Myers/Punta Gorda, Sarasota, Clearwater-St. Pete. *Seasonal: Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Destin
✈️ American Airlines: Charlotte, Dallas/Ft. Worth *Seasonal: Austin, Boston, Chicago, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C.
✈️ Delta: Atlanta *Seasonal: LaGuardia, Minneapolis
✈️ JetBlue: Boston
✈️ Sun Country Airlines: Minneapolis
✈️ United: Chicago, Newark
➡️ Find the cheapest flight on Skyscanner
Rental car options
🚗 Onsite: AVIS, Budget, Enterprise, Hertz, National and Alamo, Dollar and Thrifty
➡️ Book a car through Discover Cars
Getting from Asheville Regional Airport to Great Smoky Mountains National Park
🚘 Car rental service
Pros
- Closest airport to the Smoky Mountain’s Cherokee entrance
- Budget flights are available
- Can also visit Asheville
Cons
- Only domestic flights are offered here
- Limited flight routes
- Limited car rental companies
- Some flights are seasonal
Great Smoky Mountains Airport Map
Travel Insurance for Great Smoky Mountains National Park
When you’re flying to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, TN, consider getting travel insurance too. Make sure it includes trip cancellation, in case you need to cancel your flight before your travel, so that you can get a refund.
➡️ A great insurance option is Travelex. It has coverage for all you’ll need. You can choose the best travel insurance plan for your trip here or get a quote right now:
Have a great trip to Great Smoky Mountains! I hope this guide to the closest airport to Great Smoky Mountains National Park has helped you plan your trip to Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
More Planning Resources for Great Smoky Mountains National Park
⭐ Great Smoky Mountains National Park Guide
⭐ Planning A Trip to Great Smoky Mountains National Park: 7 Mistakes to Avoid
⭐ Best Hikes in Great Smoky Mountains National Park
⭐ How to Get to Great Smoky Mountains National Park
⭐ The Best Airports Near Great Smoky Mountains National Park
⭐ 10 Tips For Visiting Great Smoky Mountains National Park
⭐ Best Time to Visit Great Smoky Mountains National Park
⭐ Visiting Great Smoky Mountains National Park: What To Expect Throughout the Year
⭐ 10 Fun Facts about Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Which airport close to Great Smoky Mountains National Park did you choose? I’d love to know. Join my private Facebook group National Parks Collectors and comment and let me know (you can also pick up extra planning tips, share your photos and stories with other national park lovers and more).
Now you know which the Great Smoky Mountains nearest airport in Tennessee and North Carolina, Pin It to your Great Smoky Mountains National Park board for easy reference!
James Ian is a national park, camping and hiking expert.
He has dedicated his life to travel, visiting more than 80 countries, all 7 continents and most of the national parks in the United States. With over 35 years experience in the travel industry, James has worked on cruise ships, at resorts and hotels, and as a travel planner who’s helped hundreds of people plan successful trips to US national parks.
Based on his experience visiting our national parks multiple times, in-depth research and expertise as a travel planner, James has published detailed itineraries for many of the major national parks in the US. These itineraries, as well as in-depth park guides, and other resources will help you have your own incredible trip to US national parks without stress and hassle.
As a national park expert, James has contributed to many publications, including USA Today, Newsweek, Time Business News, Savoteur, Best Trip, and Wired.
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