River Terrace Resort and Convention Center

Reviews

• JH

  Jacob Howell

  Apr 3, 2026
  3.0
  Rooms were mostly fine, beds were a little hard but no big deal. There wasn't very many outlets in the room and none that were close to the bed and the door to our room was really hard to open you had to really push on it in order for it to open. But other than those small issues the room was fine. The bathroom on the other hand was not the bathroom was very dated. You could see chips of paint falling off the walls. And in the bathtub same thing. The nozzles for the water in the tub felt like they were going to fall off. The location of the hotel was wonderful walking distance to the aquarium. Several restaurants and shops. Right behind the main strip of Gatlinburg. All in all definitely not the worst hotel I have stayed in but it did leave a lot to be desired.
• HV

  Heather Owen Vinaik

  Apr 2, 2026
  5.0
  When we check in Dani was at the front desk and she is very helpful, friendly and customer oriented. Dani is also informative about the procedures at the resort example don't leave food in your car due to the black bears as they will destroy your car getting to get to the food. Also, maintenance and housekeeping are friendly and quick to response to your request. The view here is a descent view as we were able to see Anakeesta, Gatlinburg Space Needle and the mountains behind the town. It is a quite little resort in a great location as you can walk to almost everything that Gatlinburg has to offer. The resort it a bit older but it has it charm with the views, spacious rooms, and the friendly staff. The location to downtown Gatlingburg is superb. You can even catch a glimpse of a black bear roaming the woods if you are lucky.
• SI

  Shelley Iverson

  Mar 29, 2026
  3.0
  We’ve stayed in Gatlinburg multiple times, and this was probably one of the more disappointing stays. When we pulled up, there are a lot of buildings there, and from the outside it definitely looks older, but that alone wasn’t a huge concern. The staff at check-in was really nice and friendly. They also had what they called a grab and go breakfast, which felt more like a basic continental breakfast. The issues started once we got to our building. If you have a larger vehicle, you are required to park underneath the building, while smaller vehicles can park up top. That setup honestly doesn’t make sense. The lower parking is tight, hard to get into, and not easy to navigate with a truck or anything on top. We had kayaks on our truck and barely cleared it. We actually scraped the top, and there was no clearance marking, which made it even worse. It was also raining, and there were gaps in the ceiling in the underground parking area, so rain was coming down on us while we were unloading. It was 41 degrees out, so yeah, not ideal getting wet while unloading. Then we found out the elevators were out, so we had to carry all of our luggage up to the 5th and 6th floors. The room on the 5th floor smelled strongly like smoke, a mix of marijuana or CBD and cigarette smoke. It was disgusting. The room itself seemed fairly clean, but the smell was awful. I called the desk and they said they could not move us, so we ended up opening the windows and doors even though it was cold outside. The other room on the 6th floor was also outdated, but it did have some nice features like a fireplace, balcony, and even a spiral staircase since it was a two-level setup. The balcony view over Gatlinburg and the river was nice. That said, there were still a lot of issues. The kitchen had basically nothing in it that you could use. No utensils, no cookware, nothing. The ice situation was also frustrating because there were no convenient working ice machines nearby. My friend also wanted to use the hot tub in his unit, and that did not work either. Overall, there was just a lot wrong with this place, and we paid way too much for what it was. I’ve stayed in Gatlinburg many times, and this was subpar at best.
• MF

  Mike Faulk

  Mar 23, 2026
  2.0
  This is not a resort. It's a motel 6 from 1989 at best. I stayed here for a timeshare presentation with Westgate Smokey Mountain Resort and this is where they put me. That is not a good look for a company trying to get me to spend tens of thousands of dollars with them. Check in was easy enough, but I was told from the start not to place the room key in my wallet or on my phone or it would stop working. I did neither of those, and the keys didn't work the first time I used them. The desk clerk went through 5 or 6 cards before she could get them to program. The room walls are wood paneling from the 80's that have has painted over. The ceiling is a square panel drop ceiling like you find in church basements. Zero overhead lighting; two lamps is all you get. "Kitchenette" was not useable. Has a microwave, coffee pot, stove and fridge. Microwave and coffee pot are three prong plugs. ALL of the plugs were two prong except for the fridge on the other side of the room. I informed the front desk of this and she told me only the microwave was to used and nothing else. The stove wasn't even supposed to have power according her, um, but it did. I asked her how I was supposed to use the microwave with only a two prong outlet and she said she would have maintenance come look at it; they did not. Pretty sure the furniture was left over from the Revolutionary War. No cleaning service at all, not even every other day or every third day; just none at all. Bathroom was quite gross. Tub had what appeared to be black mold in it, and the paint was pealing. Yes, the paint; they painted the tub. Toilet was the smallest I had ever seen and it was not attached well; rocked when you sat on it. Both sink tops were broken and halfway fixed. The WIFI is extremely slow and inconsistent. The TV is the newest thing in the room by at least 10 years. There are no curtains. There are blinds but any light from the outside comes right through them. Onsite restaurant is closed, but there is plenty of eateries within a few minutes walk. This place is in an amazing location. Just off the main strip, which is easily walked to. It's just not a good place to stay if you like your room to be clean, updated, and maintained. I would never stay here of my own accord and I really should have done more research.
• SF

  Sara Faulk

  Mar 23, 2026
  2.0
  Location is great, conveniently located within walking distance to downtown Gatlinburg and staff was friendly. However, the room was seriously outdated and it’s evident that maintenance has been neglected. The kitchenette has a microwave and coffee pot that is not usable due to the outlets being the old 2-prong style (see pic). Lighting is horrible throughout the room with old fluorescent bulbs and no overhead light or efficient bedside lighting. Furniture is beyond acceptable wear and has decades of grime build up on dining chairs. Only 2 of the chairs have any cushion left. Bathroom sinks have damage that has not been repaired properly. The tub is by far the worst, peeling paint and mold throughout. The faucets are loose and well beyond intended use.

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