COVID-19 and TN State Parks
Tennessee State Parks, in an effort to flatten the curve of COVID-19 while continuing to serve Tennesseans, is joining the CDC and the Tennessee Department of Health by encouraging residents not to travel, but to visit only their nearby parks. The park system is also announcing a series of operational changes effective March 26. View Press Release
Adjusted Hours for All State Parks
Tennessee State Parks are transitioning to daytime schedules for all 56 state parks, opening daily from 7 a.m. – 6 p.m. The new schedule goes into effect on Thursday, March 26, and will be in place until at least April 10.
Public Facilities Temporarily Closed
During this period, all public gathering spaces at state parks (such as visitor centers, golf courses, restaurants, shelters, playgrounds, etc.) are closed. Rentable facilities (like shelters and pavilions) with prior reservations between March 27 and April 9 will be fully refunded. At this time, rentable facilities with prior reservations between April 10 and April 30 will be honored.
Overnight Accommodations Temporarily Closed
Between March 27 and April 9, all park cabins, lodges, group overnight facilities, campgrounds and backcountry campsites will be closed. Current guests will be asked to check out by March 27 at 4:30 PM local time. Park staff will process refunds for any dates a reservation extends beyond the required checkout date. Future reservations made for periods between March 27 and April 9 will be automatically canceled. The parks will waive cancellation fees during this time. At this time, upcoming reservations between April 10 and April 30 will be honored. This is subject to change as the situation evolves. Online reservations will remain available for trips with check-in dates after April 30th.
Day-Use Activities
Visitors can still enjoy hiking, biking, lakeside strolls, disc golf, fishing and other passive outdoor recreation activities during daytime hours. Limited restrooms and bath houses remain open on a park-by-park basis. Access to paper maps and brochures should be available outside Visitor Centers. Visitors can also download the mobile app or visit the park trail maps page to find materials for specific parks.
Social Distancing Strongly Encouraged
Tennessee State Parks strongly encourage guests to practice social distancing and follow guidelines for hygiene while visiting the parks. When planning a trip to a state park, we encourage you to visit one near your home.
Group Guests
Per Governor Lee’s Executive Order 17, social gatherings of 10 or more people are prohibited. If you are a group planner, we encourage you to communicate directly with the park at which you have planned your event. This will allow park staff to work directly with you and answer logistical questions pertaining to your particular event. Parks can assist groups of 10 or more with rebooking to a date later in the year.
Park-hosted Event Cancellations
Tennessee State Parks are canceling all park-hosted events from March 16 to April 15, 2020, in the interest of public health. We do apologize for any inconvenience this poses to you. If you purchased a ticket to a paid event, we are working diligently to cancel and process refunds in our reservation system. As always, thank you for choosing to support Tennessee State Parks.
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