Imagine stepping into a cabin made entirely of glass, then rising 600 feet above the mountainside while watching the landscape unfold beneath your feet. That's not a fever dream. It's the Crystal Express, which debuted at Anakeesta in Tennessee this May, and it's genuinely the world's first all-glass gondola ride.
The 56 cabins feature transparent floors and walls on all sides, delivering a full 360-degree experience with nothing but air (and glass) between you and the Great Smoky Mountains spreading out below. The four-minute ascent from the Parkway station to Anakeesta's summit transforms what was once just a practical lift into something closer to an adrenaline-laced nature experience. For most people, this is how a mountain should be seen.
A $100 million bet on mountain magic
The Crystal Express is the flagship piece of Making More Magic, Anakeesta's sprawling $100 million expansion. Bob Bentz, a founding partner, explained the vision in a statement: visitors should feel transported from the moment they board. The new system isn't just about spectacle, though. It operates at triple the capacity of the previous gondola, which means shorter waits even during peak season. The renovated Parkway station now lets families push strollers directly into cabins without folding them up, a small detail that matters enormously when you're corralling kids.
General admission ($39.99) includes unlimited access to the Crystal Express plus the AnaVista observation tower, BirdVenture (an aviary-inspired adventure zone), and the Treetop Skywalk. Some attractions require additional fees. Check Anakeesta's official site for current pricing and seasonal hours.
Fireflies and treetop heights
Beyond the gondola, the expansion opens new chapters for the park. Firefly Village gets a complete redesign as a "whimsical storybook escape," and the Treetop Skywalk reaches new elevation. But the most inventive addition might be the year-round Firefly Experience.
Here's the problem the park identified: the Great Smoky Mountains host a rare phenomenon called synchronized fireflies for only two or three weeks each summer. Thousands of visitors descend on the region hoping to catch this natural light show, but timing is everything. Miss your window by a few days and you might see only a handful of flickers. Anakeesta solved this by bringing the experience inside the park, available year-round without any seasonal restrictions. It's a clever way to capture one of the Smokies' most magical moments on your own schedule.
Cable cars are having a moment
Gondola rides aren't new, but they're experiencing a renaissance. For decades they served purely functional roles in ski resorts and alpine regions. Now they're attractions in their own right. Late last year, Paris unveiled a new urban cable car system (the longest in Europe), proving that cities see aerial transit as entertainment as well as infrastructure. Mountain destinations followed suit, recognizing that suspended journeys over dramatic terrain have become a draw themselves.
The Crystal Express takes that trend to its logical extreme. Everything is transparent. You're not passing through a landscape; you're passing through space with a landscape as your companion.
Planning your visit
Anakeesta sits on a mountaintop in Pigeon Forge, within reach of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. If you're already planning a trip to the region, the park easily fills a day or two. Summer brings the biggest crowds, though the new gondola's increased capacity should help distribute visitors more evenly. Spring and fall offer better weather if you're sensitive to heat and humidity.
The all-glass design means anyone nervous about heights faces a real test. If you've ever gripped the armrest on a glass-floored skywalk, the Crystal Express will feel similarly intense. But that intensity is also the point. You're meant to feel suspended, present, awake to the view in a way a regular cable car never demands.
