The Big Vacation
Our kids have had quite a summer vacationing with several grandparents, going from Albuquerque to El Paso to St. Louis. When they finally got back, it was time to take them on a trip with us.
Our choices ranged from Los Angeles to Minneapolis, to Memphis and Houston. We decided, though, that the best "bang for our buck" with maximum excitement was Branson, MO, the live entertainment capitol of the world.
I wanted to completely plan the trip before we left - hotel, shows, activities, there'd be no spare moments on this trip.
In searching things to do and places to stay on the web, we found that almost every website for Branson is owned by Westgate Resorts. We looked into a timeshare last year in Dallas and was not impressed, so we'd keep researching. Well, I found a deal that was (seemed) too go to pass up, I called and guess who answered? Yep, Westgate Resorts. I got a silver tongued young lady on the other end that lasso'd me quick. I told her that I needed to check with the wife since we had already decided against the timeshare/90 minute presentation thing. She says to me, if you call me back I'll throw in free tickets and $30 towards dinner. We were already getting a great deal on the room . . . So you guessed it, I called her back after checking with the other half. (A mistake I now regret.) - More on that in the next post.
Now back to the vacation.
SATURDAY
We arrived in Branson that afternoon, checked into the resort and headed for a place to eat. We had tickets to a show called The Promise. So I figured we should find a place to eat in that area. We found a place around the corner from the Mansion Theater called All American Cafe. They had a live saxophonist playing. The food was alright. The kids loved The Promise, it's a play about the life of Jesus. It was not only my third time to visit Branson, but also my third time to see this show. It's very good.
SUNDAY
We got up Sunday morning and had to sit through a timeshare presentation. Once we got away from them, it was more fun in town. We had tickets to see Legends In Concert. The kids, my daughter especially, likes Elvis, so I thought this would be a good show for them. There was also Shania Twain, The Blues Brothers, Johnny Cash, and The Temptations. It was a very good show.
That night we had tickets to The Dixie Stampede. A dinner and show much like Medieval Times. The kids loved it. I'll admit that I enjoyed it, too.
MONDAY
The next morning we went to see the Amazing Pets show. Both kids love animals and what better way to see them than trained. We also had breakfast there at the attached restaurant, but service wasn't very good.
This was supposed to be our last day in Branson, but we decided to stay an extra day to shop around and play a little.
Next we headed for the Shepherd Of The Hills Inspiration Tower. I love to go up into towers, although it was not my first time in this one. Then we headed for a few souvenir shops and on to Ride The Ducks.
Looking for a new place to eat, we decided to check out Branson Landing. Built downtown, on the river. This was new since I had last been to Branson. It reminded me a lot of Kemah.
We were going to take the kids to a magic show but they decided that they'd rather go swimming at the pool instead.
TUESDAY
The first order of business on Tuesday was to check out of the resort and check into a place we found the day before. It was a little cheaper and ALOT friendlier. Then on to more fun. We went to a local winery called Stone Hill Winery, where we toured and found out that they are the most awarded winery in Missouri. Then we hit The Track, a go-cart track elevated above the ground on wooded tracks. It was a blast.
Then we headed back to Shepherd Of The Hills for their Historic Homestead Tour. It was very interesting and educational.
We finished the day off at Celebration City, one of their local amusement parks. We closed it down after the fireworks at 10:00 PM.
WEDNESDAY
Well, it was time to leave Branson, but while we were in the Ozarks, why not do one more thing that I enjoy - caving! We took a small detour from our route home and went to Hurricane River Cave in Arkansas. They've found a sabertooth tiger dating back 30,000 years and an indian boy skeleton in this cave.
Alas, Wednesday night brought us back home where we needed to rest up from our busy trip.
And That's What I Think.
Our choices ranged from Los Angeles to Minneapolis, to Memphis and Houston. We decided, though, that the best "bang for our buck" with maximum excitement was Branson, MO, the live entertainment capitol of the world.
I wanted to completely plan the trip before we left - hotel, shows, activities, there'd be no spare moments on this trip.
In searching things to do and places to stay on the web, we found that almost every website for Branson is owned by Westgate Resorts. We looked into a timeshare last year in Dallas and was not impressed, so we'd keep researching. Well, I found a deal that was (seemed) too go to pass up, I called and guess who answered? Yep, Westgate Resorts. I got a silver tongued young lady on the other end that lasso'd me quick. I told her that I needed to check with the wife since we had already decided against the timeshare/90 minute presentation thing. She says to me, if you call me back I'll throw in free tickets and $30 towards dinner. We were already getting a great deal on the room . . . So you guessed it, I called her back after checking with the other half. (A mistake I now regret.) - More on that in the next post.
Now back to the vacation.
SATURDAY
We arrived in Branson that afternoon, checked into the resort and headed for a place to eat. We had tickets to a show called The Promise. So I figured we should find a place to eat in that area. We found a place around the corner from the Mansion Theater called All American Cafe. They had a live saxophonist playing. The food was alright. The kids loved The Promise, it's a play about the life of Jesus. It was not only my third time to visit Branson, but also my third time to see this show. It's very good.
SUNDAY
We got up Sunday morning and had to sit through a timeshare presentation. Once we got away from them, it was more fun in town. We had tickets to see Legends In Concert. The kids, my daughter especially, likes Elvis, so I thought this would be a good show for them. There was also Shania Twain, The Blues Brothers, Johnny Cash, and The Temptations. It was a very good show.
That night we had tickets to The Dixie Stampede. A dinner and show much like Medieval Times. The kids loved it. I'll admit that I enjoyed it, too.
MONDAY
The next morning we went to see the Amazing Pets show. Both kids love animals and what better way to see them than trained. We also had breakfast there at the attached restaurant, but service wasn't very good.
This was supposed to be our last day in Branson, but we decided to stay an extra day to shop around and play a little.
Next we headed for the Shepherd Of The Hills Inspiration Tower. I love to go up into towers, although it was not my first time in this one. Then we headed for a few souvenir shops and on to Ride The Ducks.
Looking for a new place to eat, we decided to check out Branson Landing. Built downtown, on the river. This was new since I had last been to Branson. It reminded me a lot of Kemah.
We were going to take the kids to a magic show but they decided that they'd rather go swimming at the pool instead.
TUESDAY
The first order of business on Tuesday was to check out of the resort and check into a place we found the day before. It was a little cheaper and ALOT friendlier. Then on to more fun. We went to a local winery called Stone Hill Winery, where we toured and found out that they are the most awarded winery in Missouri. Then we hit The Track, a go-cart track elevated above the ground on wooded tracks. It was a blast.
Then we headed back to Shepherd Of The Hills for their Historic Homestead Tour. It was very interesting and educational.
We finished the day off at Celebration City, one of their local amusement parks. We closed it down after the fireworks at 10:00 PM.
WEDNESDAY
Well, it was time to leave Branson, but while we were in the Ozarks, why not do one more thing that I enjoy - caving! We took a small detour from our route home and went to Hurricane River Cave in Arkansas. They've found a sabertooth tiger dating back 30,000 years and an indian boy skeleton in this cave.
Alas, Wednesday night brought us back home where we needed to rest up from our busy trip.
And That's What I Think.
posted by KMAN @ 7/22/2008 12:46:00 PM
2 Comments:
At July 24, 2008 2:57 PM,
4angels said…
sounds like you had a great time, and the kids had a summer that will be rememberable for them. Wow it all sounds like so much fun.
Nothing exciting here but I will be glad to get to see you when you come down. "cause I miss you all.
At March 11, 2020 6:30 AM,
Giovanni Carlo said…
I love to watch legends in concert live but I only see them at Youtube since my place is far from US
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