Silver Dollar City Trip Planning

[Ryder Die]

Hello. I’m brand-spankin’-new here and I hope I’m posting this in the right place. Found you all in a search for theme park enthusiasts.

I live in Los Angeles, and last year we took a summer trip to Dollywood (fave: Thunderhead) and then rented a car and drove 8 hrs up to Cedar Point (fave: Steel Vengence). We had the time of our lives. We were never one for road trips, but last year’s vacay really inspired us. Oh, and we also stopped at the OG Kentucky Fried Chicken in Corbin, KY along the way up to Cedar Point. Highly recommended.

Ok, so now here’s my question. I have a family member that lives in Dallas, TX. We’re going to fly to her place and then we’ll all drive to Silver Dollar City in Branson, MO. Aside from the Six Flags Over Texas near her, are there any other theme parks along the way or nearby that we should visit? We love roller coasters, but we also love old-timey theme parks that have a great history. We love old fashioned rides (loved the horse racing carousel ride at Cedar Point), too.

Just trying to fill our week with possibly one more theme park.

Also, are 2 days good for Silver Dollar City? We did 2 days each at Dollywood and Cedar Point. It was end-of-summer offseason for both parks and we had so much fun.

 

[Zachary]

Welcome!

First off, if you liked Dollywood, you will LOVE Silver Dollar City—truly one of the country's best theme parks. Two days is perfect. I only did a single day on my trip out there and I honestly regret it. There's a ton of stuff that I would have liked to have spent more time with that I simply didn't have time for (shows, shops, dining mainly). The cave tour is 1000% worth every minute, but it does take a notable chunk of your park day—making two days especially valuable at SDC in my opinion.

Six Flags Over Texas is probably the most-right solution to your question, but depending on your route, there may be some other small stops you could consider. Coast2Coaster is THE tool for thoosies road trip planning. Give it a look, here: Coast2CoasterMap - Your guide 2 rollercoaster locations worldwide!

Hope that helps!

 

[Coasternerd]

I would say 2 days is good but a third might not hurt if you’re going during any events. Silver Dollar City does a fantastic job on their events and this year is the first year doing events most of the year. A way to figure out which way in the park you’re in, if you’re going downhill you’re going to the back of the park. If you’re going up, you’re going toward the front.

A couple of attractions there you should not skip while you’re there:
-Frisco Silver Dollar Line Steam Train is a great train ride and has a fantastic show element in the middle of the experience.
-The Flooded Mine is a shooting boat darkride, and it’s so fun. Didn’t have a crazy line any day I was there, and the coolness feels great.

I highly recommend the free cave tour of Marvel Cave while you’re there, but that can eat up a decent chunk of time, and do it earliest when there’s not a line, or you could spend a decent chunk of your day waiting and doing just the cave tour. If you have to add a 3rd day, do it just for the cave tour alone. I did it early in the day (I think around 10 or so?) and we weren’t done until about 12:30, and that was with no wait. The tour takes a good while, and the caves are GORGEOUS. I’ll include a picture here as well.

 

[MommaMeli]

Just going to confirm the comments above. Definitely do the cave tour. I prefer to do it first thing as there is little wait as most people go for the rides first. If you can add a third day, even to do just the cave tour, do it. Three day tickets are like $10 more than a 2 day. Bring good walking shoes. Theming here is great. Read a bit up on Bald Knobbers (Fire in the hole and the Train drama) and Ozark history to catch more of the details. Time Traveler is my favorite but I love the whole park.

 

[Themeparkfan09]

Went there last week and it’s one of if not the best theme park I’ve ever been too. I would definitely recommend riding rides like fire in the hole, outlaw run, and time traveler. Would recommend eating at river town smokehouse as the food there is excellent and would also recommend getting trailblazer passes if the lines are long.

 

[Ryder Die]

Thank you, all, for the awesome recommendations. Sounds like the cave tour is a must-see. I’ll def include that on my list.

I guess the two theme parks we will visit will be Six Flags Over Texas and Silver Dollar City.

Does anyone know if there are any road-side attractions between Dallas TX and Branson MO. Things like the world largest ball of yarn type of attractions? I love that sort of stuff too, and it would be fun to see something like this even if it’s out of the way a bit.

 

[jscll]

If you have an extra day, I would recommend a stop at Frontier City, it only adds 45 minutes to the drive time between the parks and splits the drive into two segments.

 

[Zachary]

Does anyone know if there are any road-side attractions between Dallas TX and Branson MO. Things like the world largest ball of yarn type of attractions? I love that sort of stuff too, and it would be fun to see something like this even if it’s out of the way a bit.

I have a soft spot for this kind of stuff too. I always use the state maps on Roadside America and have found some cool stuff over the years that way. Not familiar with any on the drive you're doing, but definitely take a look!

 

[Ryder Die]

Thank you, all, for your valuable insight. I appreciate it all very much.

I just happened to find Frontier City as well and came back here to ask if it was worth the side excursion on the way. Glad someone here noted it.

Also, thank you for the link to Roadside America. That will come in very handy.