See inside a Craigslist RV turned Dolly Parton-themed Airbnb

Making custom RVs, what a way to make a living. 

These Tennessee Airbnb hosts worked much longer than 9 to 5 turning this camper van into an homage to country music legend Dolly Parton. Now, they’re inviting folks to sail away with them for $99 a night before taxes and fees.

“My daughter said, ‘You know what, mom, what do you think about giving a big, giant, beautiful nod to our local queen, miss Dolly Parton?’ And I’m like, ‘Brilliant,’” Adrienne Smith told Insider of the inspiration to turn a 20-foot camper bought for $2,500 off Craigslist into a tribute to the music icon.

Adrienne, her husband Dean and their daughter, Tayler, purchased the RV three years ago and subsequently invested some $20,000 turning it into a “not too kitschy, but a little kitschy” livable celebration of the “Jolene” singer. 

“She inspires us to do better for ourselves, and we take proceeds off of [the RV] annually and donate to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library,” Adrienne added to Insider. Where the Smiths live in Maryville, Tennessee — an hour from Dollywood — Parton isn’t just a nationally beloved entertainer, Adrienne explained to the publication, but a “local hero.” 

In building their short-term rental shrine, they incorporated both Parton’s image and aesthetic, commissioning tattoo artist Mira Mariah to create a Dolly mural on the vehicle’s exterior and filling the interior with various usable Parton tchotchkes. Dolly records and photos decorate a sitting space, pink plates fill the cabinets, a patterned kitchen towel encourages users to pour themselves “a cup of ambition” per the song lyric, a bathroom poster features the Parton quote “The higher the hair the closer to God,” and the Tennessee vanity plate reads “Partnme.”

Guests can also enjoy a covered, grill-equipped outdoor space adjacent to the trailer, which is shared among guests from the Parton-mobile and the other two Airbnbs the Smiths run off their 6-acre property: A lofted aircraft hangar and a train car tiny home.