Branson - or somewhere else within 4 hours of Southern Illinois.

eilatan&nhoj88

My husband and I have gone to the same close to home spot for our honeymoon and anniversary every year so this year we are planning a 2 night getaway for our 7 year anniversary. We are thinking about Branson because I've heard it's a lot like Gatlinburg. I'm wondering if anyone can recommend things to do other than music shows and somewhere to stay thats nice but not too expensive? Or if you can recommend somewhere else good to go and things to do? We don't like dealing with the traffic of St. Louis and never find much to do there. Thanks for an suggestions.

Disneygeek77

I personally like Branson.  My favorite attraction is Silver Dollar City.  We also enjoyed DixieStampede, but the food isn't great, just ok.  I have also heard good things about the Branson Belle Showboat.  My sister also went to a place called Dogwood Canyon and said it was very beautiful and we will try to go there next time.  

Last time we were there we stayed at Marriot's Willow Ridge Resort.  It is actually a timeshare for Marriot's Vacation Club, but they let you rent out hotel rooms.  I know when I first checked in I was afarid they would be pushy trying to sell their timeshares, but they weren't at all.  They asked me if I would be interested in attending a meeting about the timeshares and I said " No." That was it.  No phone calls, no flyers under our door, no tracking me down every time I entered the lobby.  Just a one time No and that was it.  

The resort itself was very nice.  We got a studio room and although it wasn't big, it was still adequate as it had a kitchenette and a good sized bathroom.  We also enjoyed the pools but unfortunately were not able to enjoy other amentities like the fire pit.

als1982

Disneygeek77, SDC is great, as is Dixie Stampede and Showboat Branson Belle.  I also like Whitewater, but would recommend avoiding Celebration City and also Ripley's Believe It Or Not.  You might also check out Fantastic Caverns near Springfield and Lambert's Cafe (which always has a wait, so go at off-peak times).  There is also tons of shopping!  (Both outlet and at Branson Landing, which is an event in itself - the fountains there were designed by the same company that did the ones at The Bellagio.) In college we used to have frat formals at Kimberling City Inn, which was condo-style on the lake and really nice.  My parents also used to use Priceline to bid on open rooms at Chateau on the Lake.