04/27/2026
It's that time of year! Tonight is the last night to enter the raffle: https://www.gatlinburg.com/great-smoky-mountains/fireflies/?fbclid=IwY2xjawRcSoxleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFmQkl5cVk5eWc0SkJsUUZCc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHljEKHtqeNxJ6H-pPEF5JMZhhaydr6Op5ynNgMCR8UoK-mtSzQDN9UQPs3XG_aem_H5a1BrV4Nj5aLufEN1CbrQ
If you're going to be staying during late May and want a chance to see the fireflies do their thing at Elkmont - you have to enter the raffle from the Parks to see if you can secure a pass.
Every year in late May or early June, hundreds of visitors near Elkmont Campground see the naturally occurring phenomenon of Photinus carolinus, a firefly species that flashes synchronously. Synchronous fireflies (Photinus carolinus) are one of at least 19 species of fireflies that live in Great Smo...