Dollywood is taking another run at improving its newest attraction.
The Tennessee theme park opened NightFlight Expedition on August 19 after months of delays. The $60 million attraction became Dollywood’s biggest ride investment to date and the 11th roller coaster in its lineup.
NightFlight was also one of the final major Dollywood projects promoted by Dolly Parton before her death on August 25.
Parton had remained closely involved with the park – which has even been ranked higher than Disney in recent years – throughout its growth, regularly appearing for major announcements and helping keep its Smoky Mountains setting and local culture central to the resort.
NightFlight was designed with those roots in mind.
“This ride truly is an adventure that lets you see the mountains the way I always remember them, full of wonder and beauty,” Parton previously said.
“I’m also excited that with NightFlight Expedition we’re able to tell stories about what happens in the mountains after the sun goes down.”
Just weeks after opening, however, the attraction is closing again.
NightFlight Expedition Will Close for Five Days
Dollywood describes NightFlight Expedition as the world’s first indoor family hybrid coaster and whitewater river raft ride.
The roughly five and a half minute attraction mixes coaster track with simulated flight, a boat section, and more than 500,000 gallons of whitewater.
Its opening had already been pushed back from spring 2026 while crews continued testing and adjusting the unusually complicated ride system.
NightFlight Expedition will be closed Monday, 9/28 – Friday, 10/2
byu/TTAPeopleMover inDollywood
Problems did not end once guests were allowed onboard.
NightFlight closed from August 25 through August 30 after manufacturer Mack Rides requested additional time to adjust the timing of the attraction’s turntable.
Visitors have since continued reporting periods of downtime and issues with some of the attraction’s effects and scenery.
One guest wrote on Reddit, “It doesn’t quite work. Rode [it] a few times last week. It misses its marks and timing a lot, so you are ahead of or behind the ride elements.”
The same guest added, “Also the [theming] is a lot of scrim and “sheets” which I’m sure looked better before all the leaking but, there’s no magic in a scene where the backdrops are sagging and wrinkled extensively from the corners inward.”
Dollywood has now scheduled another closure.
“NightFlight Expedition will be closed Monday, Sept. 28 – Friday, Oct. 2 as we make additional adjustments to provide a better guest experience. Check Dollywood social channels for any additional updates.”
The five day shutdown will be NightFlight’s second announced closure since it officially opened.
Dollywood has not detailed exactly what will be changed during the latest round of work.
Some guests have already questioned whether several days will be enough.
“Dollywood just needs to close night flight for the rest of the season and open it next season,” one fan wrote on Reddit.
Another said, “They are in a bad spot. They heavily advertised this as a new attraction. I could see them being worried about potential litigation if they close the ride entirely.”
Guests Question NightFlight’s Early Problems
NightFlight was promoted heavily throughout Dollywood’s 2026 season, making its delayed opening particularly noticeable.
“I think it went up before it was ready,” one guest said.
“It was front and center in all the season pass marketing, and I think that put a clock on it that the ride just couldn’t meet. I was expecting to ride it early in the summer, and here we are almost in October with it still not running consistently.”
Some guests have also speculated that the park wanted to get NightFlight running while Parton was still alive.
Dollywood has never said Parton’s health influenced the opening date.
One fan wrote, “Given the circumstances with Dolly’s failing health and them trying to get it open before she passed I’m not going to be too hard on them about it. They really need to just shut the thing down and fix/finish it. …”
“If Eugene came out tomorrow and gave a simple explination of they rushed it for Dolly, we know it has issues, we’re shutting it down to get it up to the level of quality our guests expect I would have a lot of respect for him.”
Parton was unable to attend NightFlight’s opening in person but recorded a message for guests.
“I’ve been wanting to tell everybody about our great new ride, NightFlight Expedition. You have fun, and I’m gonna see you down the road.”
Dollywood has made major changes to struggling attractions before.
Lightning Rod opened in 2016 as the world’s first launched wooden coaster but faced repeated reliability problems during its early years.
The park eventually replaced roughly 57% of the coaster’s wooden Topper Track with steel track before making an even bigger change for the 2024 season.
Dollywood removed Lightning Rod’s original launch and replaced it with a chain lift in an effort to improve reliability. New trains were also introduced, while the rest of the coaster remained largely intact.
There is no indication that NightFlight requires changes on the same scale.
Have you experienced NightFlight Expedition yet?
