Theme Park Guides | Tweetsie Railroad

Guide to Tweetsie Railroad

Tweetsie Railroad opened on July 4, 1957, as North Carolina’s first theme park. Entrepreneur Grover Robbins created the park after purchasing locomotive no. 12, previously part of the East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad (ET&WNC). Robbins named his park “Tweetsie Railroad” as an homage to the locomotive’s past. “Tweetsie” is a verbal acronym of ET&WNC and resembles the tweet of the former railroad’s locomotive whistles. A second locomotive was acquired in 1960 – No. 190, the "Yukon Queen" from Alaska's White Pass and Yukon Route.

Grover Robbins developed a couple of other theme parks in addition to Tweetsie Railroad. Grover and his brother Harry developed the “Rebel Railroad” theme park near Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, which would later become Dollywood. Grover also developed The Land of Oz theme park in Beech Mountain, North Carolina, which still operates today, with a seasonal festival.

Tweetsie Railroad’s locomotive shop has provided services to other theme parks, including Busch Gardens, Six Flags, Disney World, and Dollywood (Source: WataugaDemocrat.com).

Travel Tips

• Three airports are all two hours away from Tweetsie Railroad – Asheville, Greensboro, and Charlotte. Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) is the best option since it’s less than two hours southeast of Tweetsie and close to Carowinds.

• There are a few other attractions within an hour of Tweetsie Railroad:

  • The Land of Oz in Beech Mountain, NC

  • Wilderness Run Alpine Coaster in Banner Elk, NC

  • Mystery Hill in Blowing Rock, NC

Must-Do Attractions

• The Wild West Train Adventure is a train ride, wild west show, and the premier attraction at Tweetsie Railroad. For the Halloween season, the train becomes the Ghost Train. During Tweetsie Christmas, the train passes by many holiday lights and scenes.

• The Chair Lift to Miner’s Mountain is a nice ride up the mountain, which brings park guests to the top section of the park.

• The Mouse Mine Train is a miniature train and also a dark ride.

• Barrels of Fun, opened in 2023, is Tweetsie Railroad's only roller coaster—an SBF Visa spinning coaster.

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