Go down South for straight up fantastic fireworks
You can shoo the excess relatives out of the house by telling them you have to get ready for your fantastic New Year's Eve, Day and beyond family excursion. Tell Uncle Floyd you'd just love to do one more load of his laundry, "but we're leaving town."
The trick is you want to get far enough away so they won't follow, but not so distant that you're adding to holiday stress. Look south to Tennessee, then straight up for the fireworks.
Gatlinburg attracts more than 9 million visitors every year, and the family-friendly destination doesn't disappoint with its year-end festivities.
On Dec. 31, the delightful mountain town of 3,000 swells to more than 40,000 people welcoming 2008 with a street party, live entertainment, a ball drop from the town's 342-foot Space Needle and an impressive fireworks display that illuminates the skyline and views of the Great Smoky Mountains.
The 19th Annual Fireworks Show, Ball Drop and Street Party are just part of the excitement. You can make plans to Dance With the Sharks at Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies, a state-of-the-art, 1.4-million-gallon aquarium. On New Year's Eve, the annual Dance With the Sharks celebration offers two dance floors, a 12-piece band and DJ, hors d'oeuvres and a champagne toast at midnight.
Teens might prefer to hit the Hard Rock Cafe for food, music and NYE countdown. Ober Gatlinburg Ski Resort and Amusement Park features New Year's Eve skiing, snowboarding, ice skating, bungee jumping, go-kart riding, a black bear habitat and riding on the nation's newest aerial tramway. Departing regularly from downtown Gatlinburg to Ober Gatlinburg, the 120-passenger tramway guarantees magnificent vistas of Gatlinburg and the Smokies.
Gatlinburg beckons with lots of reasonably priced accommodations, dozens of dining options, shops and attractions as well as the natural beauty of one of our most popular national parks.
If you aim to get there fast, fly into Knoxville, Tenn., and drive the 42 miles to Gatlinburg. Distance between Chicago and the Tennessee town is about 580 miles.
For more information on Gatlinburg Winter Magic events that continue through Feb. 29, go to www.gatlinburg.com or ring the Gatlinburg Chamber of Commerce at (800) 568-4748.
New Year's Eve and Day are perfect days to visit Gaylord Opryland Resort in Nashville, Tenn., so the kids can enjoy ICE, a modern tradition in which 2 million pounds of the cold stuff is transformed into an indoor winter wonderland with interactive, larger-than-life ice sculptures and slides.
Through Jan. 2, the display celebrates the 50th birthday of "How the Grinch Stole Christmas!" by Dr. Seuss. You'll see the Grinch's frozen mountaintop lair, 20-foot-high slides for kids to travel to Who-ville (with real smoking chimneys and Whos galore) and intricately carved, interactive ice sculptures.
Get more information about the attraction, part of Gaylord Opryland's A Country Christmas, by visiting www.wefrozethegrinch.com or call (888) 898-5859.
The Gaylord Opryland Resort features colossal, climate-controlled glass atriums that contain lush indoor gardens, streams, waterfalls, fountain shows and pathways that wind past shops and restaurants. Take a ride (indoors) on a Delta River flatboat or hop aboard a free shuttle that will take you to a show at the Grand Ole Opry, the longest-running live radio show in history.
The resort offers a drop-in children's resort, Le Petite Academy Kids Station, where infants to 12-year-olds can stay for an hour or play for a day.
While the kids are building Legos or painting a masterpiece, you can cruise down the Cumberland River aboard the General Jackson Showboat, a vessel designed to recall paddlewheel riverboats that cruised Southern waterways in the 1800s. Located just minutes from the resort, the boat presents midday country music and comedy cruises; evening cruises include a show and dinner.
Travel to www.generaljackson.com for details on all, including a special New Year's Eve cruise.
Choose from two New Year's Eve parties at the Gaylord Opryland Resort: a Masquerade Gala or the Delta Island Party boasting Nashville's largest indoor New Year's Eve fireworks show.
The resort, an easy 10 minutes from Nashville International Airport, has more than 2,800 guest rooms and is the largest non-gaming in-hotel facility in the continental U.S. For more information and reservations, call (866) 972-6779 or swing over to www.gaylordopryland.com.