City ❀ Country ❀ Beach
The Suites at Fall Creek has everything you need to unwind at its finest. If you’re looking for a place to recharge and refresh along with having everything nearby that Branson, Missouri has to offer then The Suites at Fall Creek is exactly what you’re …
My goal is always to inspire others to get out and travel. It’s always fun to visit new places and experience different things. Road trips are great because you can go at your own pace, stop anywhere you want, and eat at local mom-n-pop restaurants. …
Silver Dollar City in Branson, Missouri is the mecca for family fun. It is a theme park based on all things from the 19th century. It is a one-of-a-kind park because it has an attraction like no other theme park has, Marvel Cave. Silver Dollar City has thrilling rides, time period shows, beautiful shops, and friendly & helpful employees. Come along on our tour of fun at Silver Dollar City theme park!
Entrance
The fun at Silver Dollar City theme park begins at the entrance. As you arrive you are greeted with a water tower clock that really operates. What I loved about this park is that they built it around the natural beauty of the trees and mountains. This park is great on a hot day because there are many shady areas and stores to visit!
When we arrived we went to the Hospitality House and we made a donation to the cause that Silver Dollar City supports in exchange for our entrance. They help children in need in their community.
Birthday’s at Silver Dollar City!
If you have a birthday within a week or so of your visit to Silver Dollar City, you will get a birthday freebie! You have to go to the General Store to receive it. I won’t spoil what it is!
Navigating the Park
It is very easy to navigate the park because of the way it is laid out. First of all, on the ground of the park are bright signs leading you to places you may want to go to next.
Secondly, there are also sign posts with many of the attractions, rides, restaurants that you are looking for.
A third option, and I highly recommend this, is downloading the official mobile app of Silver Dollar City. You can access everything from here: tickets & passes, rides & wait times, show schedule, dining, craftsmen, shopping, exploring the park map, and what I liked the best was highlighting only those attractions, rides, & dining you want to visit. It’s a personalized plan for your fun day!
Shopping
The fun at Silver Dollar City continues at the stores! I loved them! There were so many to see and the products are top quality. Many are hand-made unique gifts! We bought a few for gifts others and for us to keep as well! One of my favorite stores was a quaint Christmas shop. It will put you in the Christmas spirit and it doesn’t matter what time of the year you’re visiting!
Dining
Since you saw photos of taffy and pickled bologna, I thought it was fitting to continue our tour of Silver Dollar City with dining options. Aside from fantastic sweets like fudge, taffy, assorted copper kettle candies & chocolates, and pickled foods, there are lunch and dinner spots to satisfy everyone’s appetites! There are also many tables outdoors.
We ate dinner at the Rivertown Smokehouse and it was really good. The platters include one or two meats, 2 sides, and a roll. Sandwiches, salads, and kids meals are also available. I especially liked their baked beans!
Employees
I have to mention the employees only because we have never received such friendliness and helpfulness than at Silver Dollar City. We were literally standing in front of the park sign routing our course and we had two different employees (not at the same time) come up to us and offer help. The retail employees were also very knowledgeable about the products in their stores.
One employee that stood out was a gentleman by the name of Mark that was our tour guide for the Marvel Cave attraction. I will highlight Marvel Cave at the end because we thought it was the BEST part of the park! Mark was super knowledgeable and was very safety conscious of the group. He made the tour so much fun with adventurous music clips, lights, and history behind the cave. Scroll & read through to the bottom to learn all about Marvel Cave. It truly are the employees who make the experiences come to life!
Rides
Silver Dollar City has rides for every type of thrill (or non-thrill) seeker. Personally, I don’t do rollercoasters, but our oldest son does. For him, the scarier the better. He said they were all great, but his favorite was Powder Keg.
Another rollercoaster is Wildfire. Check this video out!
Water rides are always great on a hot day. These are the kind of rides I love! Check these out!
This is the American Plunge water ride. Both the Mystic River Falls and the American Plunge rides are a lot of fun! If you rent a locker for the entire day (best option) and have a change of clothes, you don’t have to worry about walking the park dripping wet (and you will get wet)! Or, you can ride the water rides early in the afternoon and dry off as you walk around the park. This is best on a hot & sunny day.
These are a few more rides.
Shows & Experiences
This is where I truly believe Silver Dollar City stands out from the rest. The 19th century theme continues throughout the shows & experiences. From the blacksmith to the Wilderness Church, from the Grandfather’s Mansion (fun house) to the Saloon show, all of these make you feel like you’re in a different era.
Saloon 
The Showdown at the Silver Dollar show is the theme park’s longest running show since 1973. It truly is a classic and I really hope they stay for many years to come. It is funny, dramatic, action packed, and will keep you on your toes. You can even order a real drink from the bar! The pre-show begins outside the saloon with a real married couple capturing your attention and preparing you for what is to take place inside. The couple is as cute as can be and they make a great team!
Marvel Cave 
And now for the BEST part of Silver Dollar City theme park! Marvel Cave is unique because this is NOT a man-made cave. The theme park was built around it! You will literally descend nearly 500 feet below the surface. There is a part at the beginning of your tour that you have to be able to stoop low because there are many entrances and tunnels like that. You should wear good fitting shoes and, in my opinion, you should be comfortable in dark, tight spaces. Our tour guide, Mark, was absolutely wonderful. He was knowledgeable and made our experience so much fun! For more super interesting history on Marvel Cave visit here.
Not recommended for guests who may suffer from a fear of heights, visual impairment, difficulty with depth perception, claustrophobia or have a history of seizures. Guests will experience a one-hour walking tour which includes 700 steps and a difficult climb to exit. There are wet, dimly lit walking surfaces, enclosed spaces and narrow passages which require stooping, bending and twisting. The exit is a 3-minute cable train ride. Loading and unloading the train requires negotiating stairs, low overhead clearance and varied walking surfaces. Guests must be able to participate with limited assistance from companions. Guests must be able to traverse uneven walkways and steps. Guests must be able to maintain an upright and seated position with control of their upper torso, head and neck while on cable train. Guests must be able to brace and grip handrails with one functioning hand/arm.
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Overall, our family loved Silver Dollar City theme park and we would absolutely love to visit again one day. Make sure you visit and check it out for yourselves if you’re in Missouri! And if you’re visiting during the Christmas season, check out this Complete Guide to An Old Time Christmas at Silver Dollar City!
If you’re looking for great BBQ in Missouri outside of Silver Dollar City, make sure to stop at Hickory Log Restaurant & Lounge. The ribs, especially, are delicious! Check out other Missouri posts below!
During our family road trip toward our final stop in Missouri, we decided to have a BBQ dinner at Hickory Log located in Dexter, Missouri. They truly live up to their motto of “Famous for Bar-B-Q Ribs!” This restaurant with its rustic elegance décor has …
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Roosevelt Island is not as well known as Manhattan only because most people stay in Manhattan and don’t venture out further. This is a great shame because Roosevelt Island is a fantastic and historical hidden gem that is underrated.
Our family trip to NYC was nothing short of fun, but at the end of the day it was nice to come back to a quiet place where it felt like home. We stayed at the Graduate Roosevelt Island, which is a hip & trendy hotel situated next door to the Cornell Tech campus. It is the only hotel on the island and is fairly new.
If you are staying on Roosevelt Island or just want to visit, the Roosevelt Island Tramway is the best, in my opinion, and most scenic route to go. It is just about 7 minutes away from Manhattan. However, you can also take the subway.
Many movies have been shot in or around Roosevelt Island. One of the latest movies is “Spider-Man No Way Home.” The apartments just over the Queensboro Bridge, the bridge itself, and the Tramway were featured.
Queensboro Bridge is absolutely stunning at any time of the day or night!
The island actually has a lot to offer and that is why I call it a hidden gem. Roosevelt Island used to be called Blackwell Island. It is a historical hidden gem because it holds so much dark history that people should actually know about. We can learn a lot about its history. It used to be an island where they threw people with mental health problems into lunatic asylums. They even threw people who they didn’t know diagnoses for, like autism and dementia. It was a sad period in time, but we have come a long way from then. The island also had prisons and low cost community housing. It was basically a place to store the unwanted: the criminals, poor, disabled and sick people. To get the full details on all of this history visit the National Park Service website.
To get a glimpse of how all of this went down, there is a historical fiction perspective of a woman named Nellie Bly that lived through this horror in a movie that is available on You Tube called “Escaping the Madness.” I watched it and it was very eye-opening!
At the north end of the island are commemorative writings and statues of Nellie Bly along with the lighthouse.
The lunatic asylum today is now a beautiful apartment building named the Octagon Tower. The staircase is the original design! Inside the lobby are photos of what it used to be and is worth a visit.
By the way, the best way to get around the island is to take the red public bus that is free for residents and tourists. It has many hop on/hop off stops about every 15 minutes. This was such a great service for us. The island is walkable, but after long days in Manhattan, we were very appreciative to have this!
The Blackwell house was the highlight of our Roosevelt Island exploration! It truly is a historical hidden gem! We had a fantastic tour guide of the house and SO much history of the island! He was very knowledgeable and took his time with us.
We did visit during Christmastime and the island was beautifully decorated. It actually reminded me of a Hallmark Christmas movie!
There are many places to grab a drink and eat breakfast, lunch, or dinner. We actually ate twice at a restaurant that we, unfortunately, forgot to take photos of. Our first meal, once we settled in to our hotel, was there and our last meal before leaving NY. It was delicious! The restaurant was Granny Annie’s.
There is also a Subway and a Starbucks on the island, as well as a few other restaurants.
One other restaurant we also enjoyed was Nisi Kitchen. They have a HUGE menu selection! Their food was also delicious. We ordered an appetizer and I order the Rueben sandwich which was open-faced. I had never see an open-faced Rueben sandwich before.
This was the first major hospital in the U.S. to take care of those with the smallpox disease. These ruins of the hospital is also the place that the climax scene from Spider-Man vs Green Goblin is set. It is actually a really cool place to visit. You won’t be able to go inside because it is very dilapidated and it is surrounded by a fence.
This is the current regular hospital on the island, but it is situated on the north end of the island. The smallpox hospital ruins are on the south end of the island.
Four Freedoms Park Conservancy is the newest part of the island, aside from the hotel. It is a place to commemorate President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The views of Manhattan are fantastic from here and it is situated at the very south end of the island.
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Let’s face it. You want to have fun, get the most out of your trip, but you also don’t want to spend a fortune. We totally understand because that’s how we always plan our trips. New York City can be expensive and you’ll hear it …
Did you know that it is possible to have Disney fun without the price tag? Take it from me. I have lived near both Disneyland®, CA and Walt Disney World®, FL most of my life. I can assure you that there are many fun activities you can do that you don’t need to pay a dime for. Since I now live only 1.5 hours away from Walt Disney World®, FL this is my list of free things to do at Disney.
You may have visited here already and know that there is no fee to park , but did you know you can veer off to visit many Disney resorts from Disney Springs? First, let me be clear. Visiting Disney Springs can take you an entire day in and of itself. There is so much to do here. You can shop, eat, and enjoy some entertainment depending on the time of day you go. Make sure you bring some comfortable walking shoes.
My top three favorite places to shop at Disney Springs is the World of Disney store because they have everything that you could possible want under one roof. My next favorite store is Star Wars Galactic Outpost because in our household we are huge Star Wars fans. And, my other favorite store is The Art of Disney because there are just so much beautiful artwork there and we own a cell from the Snow White movie.
* Post-Covid policy of day guests visiting has changed in which they must have a confirmed resort stay or dining reservation in order to visit any Disney resort. This may change back in the future. Check with each resort prior to visiting for up-to-date information.
I mentioned that you can veer off to visit many Disney resorts from Disney Springs. Well, this is the beginning of your journey. After you have parked the car at Disney Springs, catch one of the busses that goes to a Disney resort. Now, if you want to ride the monorail make sure you catch a bus that will take you to a monorail location because not all Disney resorts have a monorail stop. The only resorts that have a monorail stop are Disney’s Contemporary Resort, Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, and Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort. You can ride a bus to a different resort, but you’ll have to keep getting on and off busses, which is just fine as well.
The monorail is a fantastic way to get around to three of the most popular and beautiful Disney resorts. One of the best times to visit the Disney resorts, well Disney in general, is at Christmastime! I can’t tell you enough how beautifully decorated all the resorts are during this time. It’s great to compare all of them and make sure you take plenty of photos.
The Grand Floridian is super elegant. When we got off the monorail and entered this resort, we were greeted by an attendant that reminded me of a butler. He was so friendly and gave us a lot of history behind the resort.
The Contemporary resort is the one most people are familiar with because if you ever take the monorail to get to Magic Kingdom, this is the resort the monorail passes right through it.
It’s shaped kind of like an upside down V. This resort has recently added another building behind it specifically for their vacation club members. However, there are shops and dining areas for anyone to use at this resort, like all the other resorts. To clarify, you don’t need to be staying at any of the resorts in order to enjoy the shops, dining, and even some on-site activities. As an added bonus, we found a special spot to view Magic Kingdom and would also make a fantastic spot to view the fireworks! This is just one of the spots we found for free that you can view Magic Kingdom fireworks!
If you’re into all tropical things and are basically a tropical gal like me, you will love this resort. Even if you’re not staying here, an employee at the front entrance will give you a lei. They treat ALL visitors like ohana (family), not just those who are staying here. And, if you love Dole Whip floats at Magic Kingdom, you can find them here as well. The grounds of this resort are stunning and you can also enjoy great FREE views of the Magic Kingdom fireworks! You can literally buy a Dole Whip float, have a seat and watch the spectacular fireworks. This resort makes for a beautiful evening.
There is a Disney’s Boardwalk Resort, but I’m not talking about the resort part here I’m talking about the boardwalk itself. The boardwalk makes for a great afternoon or evening spot to explore. Evenings are best because you’ll have better luck spotting some entertainment acts. If you didn’t get enough fireworks, you’ll get some great views of Epcot’s fireworks from the boardwalk. The boardwalk happens to be the “other” entrance to Epcot if you have tickets or if you’re staying at the Boardwalk Resort and you have Epcot tickets, this would be the perfect entrance. It is a lot less crowded!
Pre-Covid we were allowed to just drive up to the resort and tell them we were visiting the boardwalk and they were good with that. Post-Covid when we drove up, they only wanted resort guests to park there. If you want to visit the boardwalk now, I suggest you park at Disney Springs and take a bus directly to that resort, get off, and enjoy the boardwalk.
The aerial gondola’s of Disney’s newest transportation system, the Skyliner, is a fantastic way to get a bird’s eye view of Disney in general. It is also absolutely free and makes stops at other Disney resorts you can visit! The stops are Disney’s Riviera Resort, Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, Disney’s Pop Century Resort, and Disney’s Hollywood Studios. If you’re headed to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, you might as well make it a fun ride to & from and ride the Skyliner. The easiest, and free, ways to catch the Skyliner is to park at Disney Springs and then take a bus to one of the Skyliner resorts I just mentioned. The water taxi transportation is great as well and it stops at many locations. For more info on this click here.
Want a Disney zoo experience for free? Drive over to Animal Kingdom Lodge and check out the safari animals. I will honestly say that we have not visited this lodge, but we have had friends tell us you can visit as a day guest and see the animals without staying overnight. It might be worth a phone call to the resort if this is something you are interested in.
If you have other Disney free things to do that I have not mentioned, please comment below! I would love to hear them.
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