Dollywood Looking For Sunny Days

Rain, rain, stay away. That's what folks at Dollywood are saying these days as workers gear up for the expected crowds at the National Harvest and Music Celebration and Smoky Mountain Christmas, two of the theme park's signature events.

"When the sun is shining we're doing okay," said Dollywood spokesman Pete Owens upon returning from a morning full of meetings on a rare sunny day in September. "The economy doesn't seem to be impacting us as much as the weather."

According to Owens, Dollywood attendance is off less than 5 percent over expectations. He attributes some of the decline to a sluggish East Tennessee economy. Also, the closure of Goody's and cutbacks at other companies have taken a bite out of Dollywood's group business.

"More than 40 percent of the days Dollywood has been open have been impacted by rain," said Owens as he talked about the first two-thirds of the 2009 season....

http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2009/oct/06/d...for-sunny-days/