Branson, Missouri has become a mecca for fans of country music. The
small town in the mountains of Missouri grew by leaps and bounds as
more and more country music stars and fans discovered the area.
Branson had at least two
family music shows when it suddenly enjoyed a boom that put it on
tourist's maps across North America and after many years it is still
growing and drawing more visitors than ever before.It was nearly twenty
years ago that Scope discovered Branson as we travelled in our motorhome
through Missouri and neighboring states. We were not aware of its existence
and when we saw big name shows on advertising brochures in neighboring
towns we thought at first the shows must be impersonators.
Little did we know until we reached Branson that it had become "The
place for country music". Country music stars, probably tired of
the grind of road trips night after night and day after day, began building
their own theaters in Branson and building homes nearby so that they
could have a five or ten minute commute to their nightly shows. What
a break this must have been for them.When we first visited Branson there
was one major road through the centre of town (Highway 76) and everyone
had to travel it to get through town or to the shows. It was a nightmare
with traffic jams that took hours.
Now nearly twenty years later Branson has grown even bigger and better
and has constructed roads around the main street so people can get around
much easier. It was a delight to drive in Branson this time. These by-pass
roads are now becoming the locations for more and more theaters and
attractions.When we visited Branson this past year we took the time
to spend several days there and visit many of the shows and attractions.
We stayed at two major campgrounds so that we could report to our readers
not only where to stay but what to do too. We feature the first, Silver
Dollar City's The Wilderness Campground, in this edition and will follow
with the second, the Branson
KOA, next time.
In this issue we begin our editorial coverage of Branson and will continue
next issue (February) with stories and pictures. We visited country
shows, the original shows, and Elvis impersonator and even took a scenic
train from the station in old downtown Branson for a pleasant afternoon
ride.
There are several shows that should be on your MUST list when visiting
Branson so just in case you visit the area before our next issue is
published here are some of the ones we think you'll want to see:
Presley's Country Jubilee (one of the first two shows in Branson),
Baldknobbers (the other of the first two), The Grand Jubilee, Legends
in
Concert, Tony Roi's Elvis Experience, The World Famous Platters,
From Patsy to Present, Ride The Ducks, Dolly Parton's Dixie Stampede
and an absolute must - Branson
Belle Showboat.
Of course there are plenty more attractions that we did not visit either
because of time constraints or because the show was not playing when
we were there but in any event one could spend a couple of weeks in
Branson not only visiting the shows but also the great amusement park
Silver Dollar City
which is a vacation it itself.
We're touching on some of the things we liked when we were in Branson
and will present even more in our next edition. If you want to be sure
of reading it please see the coupon on page 52 of this issue.
If you travel to Branson before our next issue be sure to have made
a
campsite reservation or hotel reservation before you arrive. Be cure
to pick up the tourist magazines and maps because they not only offer
a great insight into what it going on but also contain some special
discount coupons that will make a difference in what you spend.
Remember all attractions do not advertise in all publications and maps
so pick up each one that is different because you will find more information
available. And yes if you are approached by a person at a desk in a
restaurant or outside an attraction they are promoting time share sales
and unless you are interested in time
shares it is easier just not to engage in conversation with them
because it will waste valuable time that you could be spending on other
things. Of course if time share is of interest to you check it out.Enjoy
our feature on fabulous Branson - a destination well worth the drive!