In-demand destinations for summer vacation​

THE TENNESSEE MOUNTAINS​ The neighboring mountain towns of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge landed the Volunteer State on Expedia’s in-demand list, coming in at number 3 behind two perennial

Florida favorites, Orlando and Destin. “Advance bookings are up 25 percent over this time last year, with some groups already booking holiday travel,” says Tom Goodwin of Mountain Laurel

Chalets, a Gatlinburg vacation rental company. Travel advisers say the towns, which are just 8 miles apart, appeal to their clients because they’re both family-friendly and within a day’s

drive from major cities such as Atlanta, Cincinnati and Louisville. Another selling point: As gateways to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the two offer a variety of outdoor pursuits

— fishing, hiking, rafting, wildlife viewing and more — in a serene setting. For some visitors, the setting alone suffices. “We love Gatlinburg. It’s our go-to place to get away; we stare

at the mountains and just do nothing,” says Ohioan Pam Kesse, 68, who has been visiting the area with her family for 30-plus years. Kesse adds that while she can’t hike due to health issues,

just sitting on the porch soaking in the beauty of the surrounding landscape brings her peace. Gatlinburg is also appealingly walkable, with a compact downtown, centered on a main street

called the Strip, lined with kitschy souvenir shops and distillery tasting rooms highlighting the flavors of Tennessee moonshine. Visitors can wander through Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies

and take an elevator at Gatlinburg SkyLift Park up to the SkyBridge, a pedestrian bridge spanning 680 feet across a 140-foot-deep gorge. Families tend to favor Pigeon Forge for its

kid-pleasing, action-packed attractions, the headliner being Dolly Parton’s Dollywood, an Appalachian theme park where country music meets roller coasters. The kiddos have just as much fun

on rustic-themed water rides at Dollywood’s Splash Park. Grownups like the town’s robust outlet shopping scene, budget-friendly chain hotels and casual restaurants. Families have good reason

to base themselves in Gatlinburg, however. “With more people being vaccinated, multigenerational travel is huge this year — and larger groups often prefer short-term rental houses, which

Gatlinburg has in abundance,” Greene says. Miramar Beach Norm Lane/Alamy Stock Photo THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE​ The Gulf Coast communities of Miramar Beach and Rosemary Beach, both currently

trending high on Vrbo, also have short-term rentals aplenty, plus white-sand beaches made of pure quartz crystals. But Jamie Jackson, a travel adviser with Charleston-based Wanderlust Travel

Boutique, is seeing an increased interest in these communities for yet another reason: “Everybody who wanted to go to the Caribbean and didn’t want to take a COVID-19 test now wants to go

to Florida.” Indeed, COVID concerns prompted Prya Vin, 50, to visit Rosemary Beach for the first time in spring 2020, along with her husband and their two children, then 17 and 19. The

family typically travels internationally, but the pandemic prompted them to instead vacation in a destination drivable from their Plano, Texas, home. The Florida Panhandle community so

charmed them that they have already returned twice, and Vin now dreams of owning a home there someday. “You feel like you’re in another world, like you’re in the Caribbean, with the style of

houses. Everything just feels homey and safe,” she says. Pedestrian-friendly Rosemary Beach feels so homey because it’s a New Urbanist planned community with cobblestone streets, upscale

homes and cozy cottages just a short stroll from a private beach open only to homeowners and guests. Buildings are no more than 50 feet tall, and it offers many green spaces for community

gatherings, as well as restaurants and small boutiques you can walk or bike to. The bucolic setting attracts affluent travelers looking for a laid-back beach getaway. “It’s retro in a way,

but with modern-day amenities,” says Lou Flowers, 60, a Memphis resident who has been making regular visits with family and friends since 1997. “People ride bikes, walk their dogs and walk

to restaurants, the beach, to church. We park our car when we get there and never get back in it.”