The Dragon and surrounding area is AWESOME. Definitely worth the trip. I struggled a little with my car, which is having some charging issue where the battery runs down, but in other respects the trip has been great.
I caravanned with my father and his wife from AL up to Tellico Plains, TN to a The Lodge at Tellico Plains
http://lodgeattellico.comwhere they really enjoy staying. I think it was their seventh or eighth visit there. It was very nice, but small and minimal. If you are a biker they have a great motorcycle garage you can rent space in for about $5. Lots of people there with BMW GS-style adventure/safari bikes for a weekend event.
Tellico Plains is a small crossroads town at the west end of the Cherohala Skyway. It's got some basic services and a couple of restaurants. There's a good old-school place for diner-style breakfast in the historic center of town called the Town Square Cafe / Randy, proprietor.
It was raining like crazy and my battery was dead, so we had a down day at the lodge waiting out the weather.