laurel falls

Beautiful water fall after a tough climb, great half way point if you are heading to Cade's Cove. One you make it up you will love the scenery and the falls. Make sure to bring the camera.

This is one of the prettiest falls in the park. 1 mile in, 1 mile out on a paved path. Pretty steep, but saw lots of families with strollers making it just fine. Parking is tight. Short drive into the park.

Nice, easy, scenic trail. Paved trail that is okay for young children to enjoy. Trail is an easy ascent to the falls. I would recommend this trail as a warmup to more difficult trails. It's best to try and do this trail as early in the morning as possible. With this being one of the easiest trails it also is one of the most popular. Less of a crowd and most enjoyable if done in the early morning.

This a very easy hike with some nice mountain views on the way up and down. The falls are very nice and great for photos. It is a paved trail that is in need of some upkeep. We like to do this one early morning before doing a longer hike throughout the day.

The views were amazingly beautiful, and family event, weather was awesome and creeks and rivers everywhere...scenic view was breathtaking!!! We will return...

Nice, easy hike that has wonderful views of the mountains along the way and, of course, the beautiful falls at the end. Best time to hike this trail is early morning before the tourist flood gates open.

This was the perfect hike for me. Relatively short, about 2.5 miles, not a steep incline, and a great surprise at the end, the 84 foot high falls are just gorgeous. For those with small children, keep your eye on them, there are a few spots where the path narrows with no rails. Be especially careful if it rained earlier in the day (as it did for us) it can be a bit slippery, Definitely, my favorite hike.

The hike to the falls is really pretty. As far as physical exertion is concerned, I would rate the hike to the falls somewhere between easy and moderate. It's not easy, but it's not so difficult to be rated moderate unless you are really out of shape. The path is paved, although it's steep enough that anyone in a wheelchair would need to be pushed.

At first We thought the 1.3 miles was nothing, but once you start walking up the mountain, the trail feels really long, but the scenery makes it so worth it, the pictures come out amazing!!! I really recommend going here, be prepare for the walk

We trekked 2.6 miles round trip on a paved but uneven trail to Laurel Falls inside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. This is a trail that is somewhat strenuous for out of shape older folks but we made it to the falls no worse for wear. I would recommend taking a water bottle for refreshment and emptying the bladder before getting on the trail. Once at the falls you will see an 80' two tier falls and beautiful scenery along the way. Keep a diligent watch for your children as the trail traverses across dangerous steep cliffs, the trail has short, steep sections which can be slippery in wet weather. From Sugarlands Visitor Center, turn toward Cades Cove on Little River Road and drive 3.5 miles to the trailhead where there are parking areas on both sides of the road. The place can be a bit crowded at times during peak seasons of summer and fall and there is limited parking at the trailhead

My husband and I hiked this randomly today since it was the first sunny day in Gatlinburg all week. We were headed out of town, but saw it was a quick hike and tried it. It's paved, uphill most of the way to the falls, but easy for anyone to walk. View to the falls was beautiful, along with the falls. Glad we stopped!

We only came to East Tennessee for one night, but we wanted to do a little hiking before we left. With limited time, we had to decide between Laurel Falls and Grotto Falls. Laurel is a little shorter (1.3 miles vs 1.5 miles each way), was a much closer drive for us to get to (15 minutes vs 50 minutes), and the trail is paved. Although the choice seemed easy enough, the fact that the main road to the Grotto Falls trailhead was closed this time of year made things a little simpler.I'm not exactly in shape, but this wasn't a bad hike at all. There was a little ice on the trail here and there, but not much. It was pretty chilly at 16 degrees though. I'm sure the woods are even more beautiful in October/November. The falls were unsurprisingly the best part of the hike. Half of the falls were covered in ice, which was quite breathtaking. I wish it had been December, because a picture in front of the icy falls would have made for a fantastic Christmas card.Me: "I haven't seen any bears."Wife: "I think they're all hibernating; it's like 10 degrees out here."Me: "Why aren't we hibernating?"Wife: "Because we're stupid."Freezing temperatures aside, this was a spectacular hike with great scenery. It's one of the most popular trails in this part of the Smoky Mountains, and for good reason.Read my other reviews, complete with pictures:The Barbecue Fiendhttp://barbecuefiend.blogspot.com

It is a nice short hike to the falls...Ideal for beginners and the falls itself was beautiful too. I think that the maximum number of people hike this trail, so if you dont like crowds...you can skip this one...Parking was a pain....

We had a group of 20 ppl with kids ranging from 6 month old to 10 yrs old. We all had a great time. It's a 2.3mile hike roundtrip. The path is paved so we took baby strollers even though the sign warns you against it. The hike is nice but you need to be really careful with the little ones. The edges are steep.

Laurel Falls is a must see! It's picturesque and peaceful. We didn't see any wildlife on our hike because it was cold and foggy. It was a paved trail; however, it isn't suitable for wheelchairs or strollers. I wouldn't take young children on the trail either because there are high vertical drop offs and slick footing. It's a good hike for children 8 and up.