There's No Place Like...Branson!
This past weekend, my husband and I packed up the car and the kids and headed south for a memorable trip to Branson! We stayed at a place called StoneBridge Village and Resort, which was just outside the main strip. StoneBridge was wonderful! Our 1 bedroom lodge provided us with plenty of room as a young family of 4, and the living room and full kitchen were much enjoyed amenities.
Since we have a 2 year old and a 2 month old, we selected shows with the kids in mind. We had to consider what we thought would keep our 2 year old interested.
When we first arrived, we headed to Branson Landing’s Town Square for their “Winter Wonderlanding.” This featured a variety of acts, including the harmonic voices of the Twelve Irish Tenors, and the high energy duo called Buckets N Boards. Fast paced percussion, spectacular tap dancing and rhythmic and musical comedy accompanied Bucket N Boards, and they kept our interest throughout their entire act. We also listened to performances from Clay Cooper, Spirit of the Dance, Spirit of Christmas, and Shake, Rattle & Roll. All of these groups were entertaining, talented, and enjoyable for our entire family.
Next, we headed off to our first show, which was Acrobats of China. These athletic acrobats did a variety of stunts to demonstrate their strength and grace, and the many acts kept our attention. It was an excellent display of contortion, balance, and flexibility.
The following morning, we set sail on the Showboat Branson Belle. We dined on delicious food while enjoying comedy, music, and dancing talent. The boat featured a group called The Showstoppers, who are a quartet of singers and dancers, and most of their performance was geared toward Christmas music. They had beautiful voices, vibrant costumes, and really helped get everyone in the Christmas spirit in singing their Christmas medley. In addition, the comedian, Christopher James, kept us all laughing with his quick wit, magic, and hilarious interaction with the audience.
That evening we attended the White Glove Gala at Silver Dollar City. We feasted on a wonderful spread of holiday food before heading over to the 5-story Christmas tree. The lighting of the tree was synchronized to a Christmas music sound show, there were 1,000 decorated Christmas trees, a holiday light parade, carolers, and over 4 million lights covering the entire park. We caroled our way to the Opera House Theater for a viewing of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, which beautifully set the tone for the start of the Christmas season.
The next day we bought tickets to “Ride the Ducks.” Ride the Ducks is a land and water sightseeing duck tour of Branson, and our daughter couldn’t wait to “ride the duck.” With Wacky Quackers on hand, we quacked our way through the history and hills of Branson, and made a splash into Table Rock Lake. This was definitely one of the highlights for our daughter.
One of our favorite highlights was the All New Sight and Sound Theatre, where we saw the performance of The Miracle of Christmas. This theatre has over 2,000 seats, and a stage that is over 26,000 square feet. 40-foot high sets and a stage on the left and the right of the theatre (totaling 3 stages in all) envelop you into the action. Live animals, including donkeys, goats, sheep and camels, enhanced the entire theatrical experience, and the message surrounding the birth of Christ was clearly proclaimed.
We finished the weekend with a visit to Dolly Parton’s Dixie Stampede. A pre-show featured comedy, music, juggling, and other entertainment before it was time to head into the actual show. From the biscuits and gravy to the Cornish hens, they made sure we didn’t go home hungry! We feasted on tasty home cooked foods while watching barrel races, horse riding stunts, various competitions requiring audience participation, and Christmas themed acts. The horses entertained our daughter, and she yelled with excitement as the cowboys and cowgirls raced by.
After 4 days in Branson with our young family, I can honestly say that there is something here for everyone! There are more live acts each night in Branson than in Las Vegas, so even the youngest children can still find entertainment and shows to enjoy. We also found the venues mentioned above to be very accommodating to us as a family with young children. They pointed out a cry room (before we even needed it), took our stroller and parked it out of our way while we ate or watched a show, ordered a kids meal for Ava without us having to ask, brought her a cinema seat so that she could see the show, and always greeted us with smiles and hospitality.
I would highly encourage a trip to Branson, especially at this time of the year. Everything is centered on the Christmas holiday, directing our gaze upward. Many of the entertainers and venues not only sang Christmas songs but gave testimony to their personal relationship with Christ. Branson is a family-oriented “gem in the hills” just waiting to be enjoyed by all!
Read more about Christmas in Branson in KC Going Places.
Written by Marisa Frymire