I hail from a Hindu household, and I’ve seen way too many festivals celebrated over the span of a year. There’s Sankranti, Holi, Diwali, Dussehra, Ugadi and the list goes on. My family was never too big on celebrations. I remember the occasional poojas and fireworks once a year, but even that seemed to fade out as we grew up. Christmas, although never celebrated in my house, has always been a favorite of mine. As children, all we know about any festival is the fun part. That remains the case with me even today and this led to my trip to Branson, Missouri last Christmas.
I see Christmas as a jolly time of the year when the entire world is decked up with lights. Needless to say, I love lights. The world seems magical when it is lit up and I enjoy that feeling every December. Knowing this, bae thought Branson would be a great place to visit for Christmas. He was right. Branson’s celebration of Christmas is on point. I remember entering the city, feeling like I needed a lifetime to take the beauty in.
We stayed at a Holiday Inn that was smack dab in the center of the most decorated street I’ve ever seen. The hotel was constructed on the declining side of a cliff, so the gorgeous view of the Ozarks with their complimentary breakfast was just the beginning of a great stay.
The biggest attraction of our trip was Silver Dollar City. We were visiting for 3 days, so we got the 2-day entry tickets to Silver Dollar City. We went over to check it out, on the day of our arrival at Branson. Arriving anytime after 7 pm would mean a long line to get in and find parking. We got lucky though and found ourselves decent parking without trying too hard. Pro tip girls – Wear comfortable shoes and proper winter clothing. I wore the wrong heels and dressed fairly lightly on the first night. Not to mention there was an ice cold wind blowing all through. I was quite uncomfortable because the park is huge and involves a lot of walking in the freezing cold.
The stuff you read about Silver Dollar City having five million lights and one thousand decorated trees is absolutely true. For someone who loves Christmas lighting, this would be the perfect retreat. The lights, the music, the shows, the food, the rides, it is too much to do in just one night. The place was packed. We spent the first night just soaking in the beauty. The next night, I wore comfortable boots and earmuffs and we tried again. This, however, was on Christmas Eve, so there weren’t as many people as the previous night. It had also rained earlier that day, so the place was a bit damp. We, however, enjoyed our time there as it was relaxed and we could go through at our own pace.
Another thing about Branson is that smaller communities and residential areas, come together and put up a display of lights that you could drive through each evening. One such place that we visited was called Shepherd of the Hills – Trail of Lights. It’s a drive-through trail with lit up displays all along the trail. I can’t even begin to describe what the experience was like. Here are a few snippets from our trail.
We also visited the Titanic Museum and a Celebrity Car museum, both of which I didn’t care for. I found the Titanic Museum to be kinda morbid. There was a lot of history in there that was interesting to read about and hear about, but it was also quite depressing. We were each handed a boarding pass when we entered, which had a character description of a passenger of the original Titanic. At the end of the museum tour, was a huge display which had the names of surviving passengers. Tourists could look through the list to find out whether they survived the crash. The Celebrity Car museum, on the other hand, was a total rip-off. I mean, I have never been a car enthusiast myself, but even bae found it to be a rip-off. I found my dream car, but that was about it.
On our last day in Branson, as we were leaving, we visited the last place on our list. Big Cedar lodge, is a beautiful and romantic retreat in the Ozarks. We would have loved to stay here during our visit to Branson, but they were completely booked. We visited though, to see one of their attractions called Top of the Rock. This includes a breathtaking view of the Table Rock Lake, a world-class Golf course, and the Lost Canyon Cave & Nature Trail, among many others.
We started off with the Lost Canyon Cave & Nature Trail experience. They rent out 2-seater and 4-seater Golf carts, to people, to take out onto the trail. The trail includes the Lost Canyon Cave, which is the first stop. At the center of this cave is a waterfall, where they also have a bar with refreshments to purchase. When the trail ends, you just return the Golf Cart to the welcome center and take a shuttle to the top, to enjoy the view of the Lake & the Golf Course. They also have a restaurant with this breathtaking view to dine at. I couldn’t describe the beauty of this place enough, I think the pictures speak for themselves.
Do you love lights too? You know how to celebrate this Christmas then. Have you already been to Branson, Missouri? I would love to hear all about your trip. Let me know in the comments below. 🙂
