BJ’s Wholesale Club – Travel Benefits for the Smokies

Can Sevierville’s largest wholesale store help save on your next trip to the mountains?

Had I been born in another time, I might have become a travel agent. Before the ubiquity of online travel sites, one of my hobbies was reading travel guides for various destinations and planning imaginary trips around the world. I dream of Australia, Egypt, London, Paris, Ireland, and Italy, as well as large cities in North America. 

In fact, though Travelocity had become a thing by the time I was old enough to travel internationally on my own, I booked through an agency. I was glad I did when a lost ticket nearly left me stranded at Charles De Gaulle in Paris. My agent was on the phone at what must have been 5 a.m. in the States, feverishly working with the airline to get me onto the flight. That was going above and beyond for a budget traveler who hadn’t spent much on his off-season vacation. 

Still, as my comfort with internet travel sites grew, my old passion for planning was rekindled. I’d spend hours searching for the best possible prices in exotic locales, building the best packages for air and hotel I possibly could. I got to the point where I could predict to the day when the off-season pricing would end. Ultimately, I planned a few very nice budget vacations for myself – despite not having what you’d call world-traveler money – and put together some packages for my friends. 

Over the years, some of the regulations regarding travel sites have changed, taking some of the fun out of it, and as we’ve added kids and responsibilities, the time I can devote to my “hobby” has lessened. Although I suppose that, from a certain point of view, this website helps me scratch that old itch. 

Recently, while working on a story about the new BJ’s Wholesale Club in Sevierville, I came upon the Club’s travel options, “Powered by Priceline,” and was curious what a wholesale company could do to help with your Smoky Mountain vacation. 

Does BJ’s have travel services?

Yeah. And tires, home improvement, and wireless internet. But it’s the travel that intrigued me. 

BJ’s Travel offers cruise options, car rentals, vacation packages, and hotel bookings. For our purposes, we’re going to focus on the hotel options for a couple of reasons. First, they’re not running many cruise options on Douglas Lake. Secondly, I assume the majority of visitors – the vast majority – arrive via car. I’m sure a lot of people fly into Knoxville and rent a car, but not enough to make car rental a major part of vacation packages. 

If you are flying in or need to rent a car, BJ’s has you covered. However, I don’t know if it’s much of an improvement over what you’d get anywhere else.

Setting up the test

What we will do here is pick a random week in the spring, the summer, and the fall of 2026. Ask the internet to price vacations for six days for a family of four – two adults and two kids, ages 9 and 13. We’ll compare BJ’s results for common properties with those on hotels.com and the hotel’s own website, and look for discrepancies. I don’t know that this random sample will be scientific enough to give us a definitive answer, but it will certainly, at least anecdotally, tell us whether BJ’s helps enough to make a membership worth it. Editor’s Note: Prices are always subject to change and were in effect at the time of this writing.

Welcome to spring

The Park Vista – A Doubletree Hotel by Hilton – Gatlinburg

Our first – The Park Vista, located at 705 Cherokee Orchard Rd in Gatlinburg – is rated at 8.5 on BJ’s and 9.0 on hotels.com. The lowest listed – non-disability friendly – rate on BJ’s is for two king beds with a city view. The listed rate is $172 a night or $1,033 for the six nights of our mid-April stay. If you click through to the final page, it’s $1,116.56 with taxes and fees.

On Hotels.com, the same room is listed at $150 per night for a total of $1,014, including taxes and fees. That is a member rate, but the membership comes simply with signing up. There is no membership fee. Just to be sure, I clicked through to the end, and the total with taxes and fees is $1,014.

On the Park Vista site itself, the same room is listed at $169 per night with an “Honors Discount.” Hilton Honors is free to join. The total with taxes and fees is $1,142.24. It should be noted that to realize maximum savings, all three are non-refundable rates.

In this case, BJ’s saves you about $25 under the hotel’s site, but comes in about $100 more than Hotels.com.

Margaritaville Resort Gatlinburg 

Looking to waste away in the Smokies? Per BJ’s, a double queen guest room – fully refundable – will cost $272.33 per night, for a total of $1,842.30 after taxes and fees.

On Hotels.com, the same fully refundable room is $260 per night, for a total of $1,760, with a $250 deposit. You can get the same non-refundable rate if you pay the entire amount when booking. 

On the Margaritaville website, the room is listed at $293 a night, fully refundable. With additional taxes and fees, the rates are $1,977 for the week. The resort is located at 539 Parkway in Gatlinburg.

The Ramsey Hotel and Convention Center, Pigeon Forge

We leave the quiet burg in the mountains for the neon lights of the Forge. With BJ’s, we found a non-refundable rate for the classic two-queen room at $226 per night and $1,356 for the week at the Ramsey. After taxes and fees, it was $1,522.80. On Hotels.com, the same room was $192 per night, for a total of $1,294. 

On the Ramsey website, the classic two queen – with the book direct 10% promo is $185.85. The rack rate is $206.50, btw. With the promo discount, the rate for the six-night stay is $1,251.70, better than either of the internet rates. Ramsey is located at 3230 Parkway in Pigeon Forge.

Hotel savings in the summer

Park Tower Inn Pigeon Forge

With BJ’s going 0-3 in the spring, maybe we’ll have better luck in the summer. We’re doing a mid-June weekend stay in the mountains, checking in on Friday night and checking out Sunday. Same family unit details.

We look to the Park Tower Inn, rated a solid 6 for pleasant on BJ’s site. BJ’s offers a non-refundable rate of $140 per night for a two-queen-bed room and an all-in price of $355.32 for the two-night stay.

The same room on Hotels.com will come in at $151 per night and an all-in price of $339. Through the Park Tower Inn website, the room is $161 a night, with an all-in price of $360.75. The Inn is located at 201 Sharon Dr. in Pigeon Forge.

Country Cascades Waterpark Resort 

With Bj’s, a queen room with two queen beds will run $119.61 per night and all-in pricing of $302.52 for the weekend stay at this 8.4 rated hotel with waterpark, where the park is included in the room rate.

The same room on Hotels.com is $117 nightly but $263 total. Booking on the Country Cascades website and selecting the advance purchase rate, the all-in price is $285.13. The Resort is located at 204 Sharon Dr. in Pigeon Forge.

Baymont by Wyndham Sevierville, Pigeon Forge

The BJ’s non-refundable rate is $84 per night, and a weekend price is $193 for a double queen. With taxes and fees, the price for the 2.5 star hotel is $214.

On Hotels.com, we have a first: the BJ’s rate is better. Huzzah! The rate for a double queen bed is $101 a night, for a total of $227. Wow. On Baymont’s website, the member advance rate is $98.96, and the all-in rate is $222.53.

Friends, if you’re looking for the hook-up at Baymont, BJ’s is it. The Gatlinburg location is found at 293 Parkway. Baymont in Pigeon Forge is located at 130 Wears Valley Rd.

Hotel savings in the fall

Holiday Inn & Suites Pigeon Forge Convention Center By IHG

Can BJ’s make a comeback and make this thing respectable? We chose six nights in late September so we can do a little leaf peeping.

Our two-queen premium top-floor balcony river-view room comes in on BJ’s at $170 per night and $1,176 for the week. The all-in price is $1,294.74. Oh my.

On Hotels.com, the same room costs $226 per night, for a total of $1,521. We’re at two in a row for BJ’s. The hotel website lists the best rate of $203 per night and $1,367.16 overall. BJ’s is on a roll. This hotel is located at 2905 Parkway in Pigeon Forge.

Cambria Hotel Pigeon Forge

A standard two queen bed room at the Cambria Hotel will run $149 a night and $1,005.66 for a non-refundable room through BJ’s.

At Hotels.com, the same room will run exactly the same! It’s $149 per night, and all-in is $1,006. Both are slightly less on the hotel’s own website, where the non-refundable rate is $148 per night, and the all-in rate is $994.48. Cambria is located at 375 Jake Thomas Rd. in Pigeon Forge.

River Terrace Resort and Convention Center Gatlinburg

This 3.5 resort center has a 7.8 good rating. We’re going with a two queen bed, river view room because if you’re going to be in the River Terrace Resort, you ought to be able to see the river. On BJ’s, the room will be $167.33, and all-in will be $1,132.02.

On Hotels.com, we have another tie. The same room will be $167 per night, with an all-in price of $1,132.05.

On the River Terrace website, for the same room, we find a Loyalty Member rate of $142.23. The book early and save – pay-in-full rate is $138.49. The most comparable rate to the above listing is $167.33 and includes a daily Grab N Go breakfast. The all-in cost for that rate is $1,132.

Breaking it all down

What did we find out? Nothing definitive, I’m afraid.

• Hotels.com outperformed BJ’s in five of the nine entries we tested.
• BJ’s outperformed both on two occasions
• BJ’s and the Hotels website tied twice
• The Hotels won outright twice, and all three tied in the final entry. 

The unscientific results indicate that you should probably check BJ’s when you’re planning a Smoky Mountain getaway in terms of price comparison. But I wouldn’t expect wild savings, except at the Holiday Inn & Suites Pigeon Forge Convention Center By IHG. As for the other BJ’s travel option, you’re on your own.

Will you consider checking with BJ’s when you travel? Let us know in the comments and on the socials!