I've always found good deals using VRBO. If you plan on hiking in the Smoky Mountain National Park, I would recommend staying in Gatlinburg. I always liked staying on Ski Mountain in Chalet Village (we live there now
)
Recommended Hikes:
Spruce Flats Falls at the Tremont Institute - about 2 miles round trip (my personal favorite)
Andrews Bald - starts at the parking lot of Clingmans Dome - about 3.5 miles round trip
Abrams Falls - about 5 miles round trip - located in Cades Cove
Charlies Bunion - about 8 miles round trip - located at Newfound Gap (also a personal favorite)
Visit and swim in the Greenbrier area - has Porter's Creek Trail (easy trail) and Ramsay's Cascade (difficult trail but beautiful)
Check out this website -
www.hikinginthesmokys.com