How long does it really take to fly from Gatlinburg to Mammoth Cave National Park? Here's a sample itinerary for a commercial flight plan. If you want to know the total travel time to reach Mammoth Cave National Park, you need to include time at the airports. Eventually, you'll be able to customize this itinerary to select other nearby airports and choose your preferred airline.
Thursday, 11:25 am: start in Gatlinburg
drive for about 1.5 hours
most airlines recommend you get to the airport at least 90 minutes before your flight, so arrive by 1:44 pm at the latest
12:49 pm: McGhee Tyson (TYS)
if you need to check luggage, make sure you do it at least 30-60 minutes before departure, or in this case, by 2:14 pm
1:19 pm: get your boarding pass and go through TSA security
allow enough time for long security lines during busy travel seasons or holidays, and prepare for the wait time
2:19 pm: arrive at the gate
once you're ready to board, you can get something to eat in the airport or just relax near the gate
2:49 pm: prepare for boarding
check your boarding pass for your group number or listen to the gate agent as they announce boarding, some airlines require you to be in the boarding area 10-15 minutes before departure or risk losing your seat
3:04 pm: board ExpressJet Airlines Inc. flight
you can scroll down to view other airlines that fly this route
3:14 pm: this is your scheduled departure time
but this flight is usually delayed by an average of 13 minutes
3:27 pm: so this is your actual departure time
it takes the plane an average of 16 minutes to taxi to the runway
3:43 pm: wheels up! take-off from TYS
fly for about 33 minutes in the air
4:16 pm: Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International (ATL)
Atlanta, GA is the same time as Knoxville, TN
land at the connecting airport
taxi on the runway for an average of 7 minutes to the gate
4:23 pm: arrive at the connecting airport
make sure you schedule enough time for your layover
there may be a minimum connection time for your flight
5:20 pm: get to your connection gate
with the average delay, you have about 57 minutes
if your incoming flight was delayed, you may need to run
5:35 pm: board Delta Air Lines Inc. connecting flight
you can scroll down to view other airlines that fly this route
5:45 pm: scheduled departure time for connecting flight
but this flight is usually delayed by an average of 5 minutes
5:50 pm: actual departure time for connecting flight
it takes the plane an average of 15 minutes to taxi to the runway
6:05 pm: wheels up again! take-off from
fly for about 40 minutes in the air
5:45 pm (local time): Nashville International (BNA)
Mammoth Cave National Park is 1 hour behind Gatlinburg
so the time in Gatlinburg is actually 6:45 pm
taxi on the runway for an average of 6 minutes to the gate
5:51 pm (local time): arrive at the gate at BNA
deboard the plane, and claim any baggage
if you're renting a car, check if you need to take a shuttle to car rental agency, otherwise you can ride in a cab, limo, or Uber for about 4 hours to your destination
9:51 pm (local time): arrive in Mammoth Cave National Park
Now finally, let's look at an example flight from TYS to BNA and figure out how long it would take to fly including take-off and landing, and time to taxi on the runway.
So now we can finally get an idea of the total travel time from Gatlinburg to Mammoth Cave National Park including time spent getting to/from the airports, an estimated wait time of 2 hours at the airport for TSA security lines and waiting at the gate, and the actual flight itself.
Total travel time: 8 hours
How far is Mammoth Cave National Park from Gatlinburg? Here's the quick answer if you have a private jet and you can fly in the fastest possible straight line.
Flight distance: 176 miles or 284 km
Flight time: 51 minutes
Compare this to a whole day of commercial travel with the airports and waiting in line for security, which ends up taking a total of 11 hours, 26 minutes.
Flying private is roughly 13.4x faster, and saves you about 10.5 hours in your total travel time.
Because of the curvature of the Earth, the shortest distance is actually the "great circle" distance, or "as the crow flies" which is calculated using an iterative Vincenty formula.
This is a relatively short flight in a private plane, but you might be planning to book a commercial flight. In that case, your travel time would really need to include how many minutes to get to your local airport, wait for security, board and taxi on the runway, land at the other airport, and get to your destination. The flight itinerary at the top of the page takes into account all these factors to get a more accurate estimate of your actual flight time.
Looking at flights on ExpressJet Airlines Inc. from TYS to ATL, and connecting flights on Delta Air Lines Inc. from ATL to BNA, here's a breakdown of the number of flights available each day:
Based on these statistical results, we chose Thursday for the flight itinerary above.
The most common route is TYS to ATL, then connecting to BNA, so that's what we used in the sample itinerary. However, you may want to explore travel alternatives, you could try one of these routes:
We picked ExpressJet Airlines Inc. for your main flight, and Delta Air Lines Inc. for your connecting flight, but there are other airlines that you should check if you're looking for the cheapest flight, or you need a different schedule. Check the websites of these airlines:
Trippy has a ton of information that can help you plan your trip to Mammoth Cave National Park. Start by reading the Trippy page on where to stay in Mammoth Cave National Park. Click the button below to explore Mammoth Cave National Park in detail.
The distance is the same either way if you're flying a straight line. But for a real trip, there can be plenty of differences so go ahead and check the reverse flight itinerary to fly from Mammoth Cave National Park to Gatlinburg, or go to the main page to calculate other flight times.
You can also compare the travel time if you were to drive instead. Get the full itinerary for a Gatlinburg to Mammoth Cave National Park road trip. Or if you're more interested in the distance, How far is it from Gatlinburg to Mammoth Cave National Park?
If you happen to know Gatlinburg, don't forget to help other travelers and answer some questions about Gatlinburg!