I attended a press trip to Branson, Missouri sponsored by the Stone Castle Hotel and Conference Center

and received complimentary lodging, food, and admission to attractions, to include Silver Dollar City

All the opinions are my own.

Silver Dollar City, It’s More Than A Theme Park

Visiting Silver Dollar City was the biggest reason I was excited about this whirlwind trip to Branson, MO. I knew we would be doing and seeing a lot while we were in Branson, but I was most excited about Silver Dollar City, it’s more than a Theme Park, it was truly an experience like no other.

This wasn’t my first visit to Silver Dollar City, but it was my first trip there during the day and not during the holidays. As we entered the theme park, we were whisked away to the Eva & Delilah’s Bakery, now we already had breakfast, but we would soon learn that eating every hour was what we were going to do for the whole 3 days.

What is Silver Dollar City?

Silver Dollar City is an internationally awarded 1880s-style theme park located in Branson, Missouri, that features over 40 thrilling rides & attractions, live shows & concerts, 100 resident craftsmen demonstrating America’s heritage crafts, 18 award-winning restaurants and 60 unique shops – all sitting atop one of Missouri’s deepest caves. World-class festivals and events are showcased from spring through Christmas – during which the park is illuminated with over 6.5 million lights! Start planning your Branson vacation today!

The Eva & Delilah’s Bakery

The  smelled amazing, everything is baked fresh every day, and we were given tastings of their most popular treats, along with the Time Traveler Cupcake. After the bakery tour, we were on to our next experience, a stroll through the town and a story of the olden days when Silver Dollar City was created.

Local Talent at Silver Dollar City

I had the privilege of meeting one of their pickers, Greg Becker, he was so sweet to take a picture with me. It was just the beginning of an amazing trend that we were soon to learn, everyone in Branson is sweet, polite and downright amazing.

Food, Food, and More Food

After the quick tour of the old town and we were treated to a buffet lunch and introduction video of Silver Dollar City, yes, I did just say we ate again.

The food was buffet style and they also brought out their famous Campfire Skillet and Time Traveler Ice Cream.

Learning the history of Silver Dollar City was great and to learn the story of why they include the Time Traveler theme into the city.

Lunch was over so we strolled around the theme park while we waited for our next event to start, we got to see where a few of the episodes of the Beverly Hillbillies was filmed.  During lunch we chose either the cooking demonstration or riding the roller coaster I love roller coasters, but unfortunately, it was to cold to ride them yet, the temperature must be above 36 degrees before they will allow guests to ride them, it is for safety reasons. I chose the culinary cooking demonstration prior to arriving to the park and was very excited about it.

Meeting a Silver Dollar City Founder

We had a little time to stroll through the city on the way to the cooking demonstration, and to our surprise, were joined by one of the founders of Silver Dollar City, Mr. Herschend. He was so sweet and agreed to take a selfie picture with us, and then he was on his way to walk the grounds.

Local Artisans at Silver Dollar City

Our next stop was a demonstration by a genuine blacksmith. We didn’t get to stay long, as we were on our way to the cooking demonstration, but it was very interesting to see how metal was worked back in the day, and this process is still used to this day in for some metal work.

Our next stop was the Brown Candy Factory, yep, more food. We met June, the sweetest lady in the world, and were treated to our very own bag of candy, after a few yummy tastings, of course.

There was one more stop we had to make before we started our Culinary Experience. A few of us stopped in at the Hillcreek Pottery Shop and visited with Master Potter Jeff Walter.

Picking out which coffee cup I like best was really hard, you know how much I love my coffee, I am the same with my coffee cups.

These chip and dip plates were great too, perfect for a Fiesta back in San Antonio.  Jeff creates functional clay pots, bowls, and pie plates using his signature red glaze.

So many places to visit and so little time, we didn’t get to visit them all and I can’t wait to go back and see more of Silver Dollar City. For a full list of things to do, places to eat, and shopping choices, please visit https://www.silverdollarcity.com/theme-park/Attractions/Craftsmen.

Culinary Cooking Demonstration by Midwest Living

Now it was time for our Culinary Cooking Demonstration, and you guessed it, more food. I was truly excited about this experience, because as many of you know, I don’t cook.

Our instructor that day was Master Craftsman of Culinary Arts – Debbie Dance Uhrig. She taught us how to create Thai Noodles with Burnt Butter and Lemon Poppy Seed Bread.

My family will be so excited if I can create this dish for them, our instructor really made it seem simple, and it tasted amazing.

Marvel Cave Tour

Our visit was almost over, but we still had a little time to visit one more attraction. The roller coasters were finally beginning to open, as the weather was starting to warm up. Our tour guide had mentioned the story about the cave earlier, and well, I do love caves and the stories behind them, so I opted to explore the Marvel Cave.

The pictures don’t do it justice, it was magnificent and humongous and really, really far down into the earth, which, well, you guessed it, we had a really, really far trip back up.

It was completely worth the walk, trek, crawl, whatever everyone did to get it done, we accomplished it. And the tour ended with a fun train ride back to the entrance of the park.

Shopping, It Really Is One Of My Favorite Things To Do

There was a little time to do some shopping before we had to meet up to head to our next destination, can you guess what that was going to be, yep, more eating. Where did we go?

I picked up a few of my favorite t-shirts at the gift shop, the Life is Good brand, and purchased matching t-shirts for the girls, Molly and Riley, I sure was missing them. https://www.silverdollarcity.com/theme-park/Attractions/Shopping

By far, this adventure was amazing, and I can’t wait to go back, Silver Dollar City is perfect for any family vacation, and I must tell you, the Holiday’s in Silver Dollar City, are extraordinary. Be sure to check it out, you won’t regret it. https://www.silverdollarcity.com/theme-park/Festivals/An-Old-Time-Christmas

A Little History About Silver Dollar City

Silver Dollar City, an 1880s theme park located near Branson, Missouri, presents six world-class festivals from April through December. The 100-acre park has 12 stage venues, 30 rides and attractions, 12 restaurants, 60 shops and 1500 employees, including 100 resident craftsmen. But it began as an accessory to a hole in the ground.

The hole, first called Marble Cave because the limestone walls were thought to be marble, was one of the first attractions in what would become Branson. Eons old and hidden beneath the hills, it was first discovered by the Osage Indians in 1500, described by geologists in the 1860s and explored in the 1880s by adventurers who lowered themselves on ropes 200 feet into the main chamber. One of those adventurers was a newspaper publisher who began to write about the cave’s beauty and mystery.

https://www.silverdollarcity.com/theme-park

https://www.silverdollarcity.com/theme-park/Guest-Services/History