disney versus branson

Last month, we took the kids to Disney World in Florida. We hadn't had a family vacation in several years, and my parents had offered to pay for part of the bill. Although we had a good time and the kids enjoyed visiting with their grandparents in such an exciting atmosphere, I walked away feeling a bit let down. Our last trip to Disney World was three years ago, and even though we enjoyed ourselves during that visit, we were in no hurry to return. Disney Word is expensive, and this stay only reinforced our feelings that all they care about is the cash anymore. For the price that the vacation ended up costing all of us, we could easily have booked a trip to Europe. And while Disney has few comparisons, there are other amusement parks where you can have just as much fun for a lot less cash, especially when you realize the real source of the fun - being with your family.

One local amusement park alternative for us is Silver Dollar City in Branson Missouri, which is about an hour away from us. Branson is quickly becoming the non-coastal entertainment capital of the United States. It is almost like a family-friendly Las Vegas, minus the gambling and the need for an alibi while you're there. Best of all, they've got a little something for everyone. We were a bit turned off by the town at first, assuming that all Branson had to offer revolved around country music and nostalgic celebrity impersonators, but we soon discovered other attractions like the Butterfly Pavilion, Acrobats of China and the infamous "Ripley's Believe it or Not" Museum.

Silver Dollar City reminds me of another park we had visited once before called Dollywood. SDC has an Ozark hillfolk theme, though. In addition to the rides, there are Ozark craftsmen and women peddling their wares, and a real underground cave tour. As a testament to the park's attractions that don't revolve around thrill-rides, you should see how many people pay the entrance fee, knowing that they aren't going to ride any of the rides.

Unlike Disney World, Silver Dollar City is set into the hills, and walking can be a little strenuous here and there. Some of the hills are steep, and tend to get crowded during peak seasons. It's confusing in places and difficult to navigate without a park map. The best thing you can do is to not try to rush through it. We had purchased season passes the first year we were living here, so that we could visit often and not feel guilty about staying for only a few hours at a time. This beats paying for daily admission several times during the year, and feeling the need to drag the kids around for the entire day to get our money's worth. Like any theme park, the food is overpriced, but thanks to the Ozark theme, it isn't your typical fare. Instead, you can get lots of grilled meat dishes and BBQ favorites.

Our absolute favorite ride in SDC has to be the rollercoaster called "Powder Keg". Instead of taking you up a large incline and dropping the coaster to get started, this one actually shoots you from 0 to 53 miles per hour in less than 3 seconds! We rode a similar coaster in Disney's Hollywood Studios that was themed around the band Aerosmith, but it wasn't as much fun. If you've never ridden a coaster that launches you onto the track instead of dropping you down a hill, I highly recommend it. Even my six-year-old couldn't get enough.

So after a rather disappointing (and expensive) visit to Disney World, we're considering picking up season tickets again to Silver Dollar City, and to save our cash for a few weekend trips to Branson this year. Although I'd never want to live there (too busy for me), I'm glad that we are only an hour away from Branson, so that we can let loose and have some fun without maxing out my credit card every time.