BRIGHTER IN Branson
Missouri town is worth a visit during the holiday season
Branson, nestled in the scenic Missouri Ozarks, pulls out all the stops when it comes to Christmas. From the first week in November, the entire town lights up with decorations virtually everywhere you look, including more than 1,500 decorated trees and drivethrough lighting displays. The biggest show in town is Silver Dollar City, a re-created 1880s Ozarks town featuring millions of lights, live holiday entertainment, seasonal foods, thrill rides and craftsmen demonstrating their skills. h Many of Branson’s 100 live shows, performed at 40 theaters, offer special productions just for the holidays. Other family favorites include a skating rink that rivals the one at New York City’s Rockefeller Center, the annual Adoration Parade celebrating the birth of Christ, a ride on Branson Scenic
Railway’s Polar Express and shopping (including the best fruitcake you’ll ever taste, made by students at the College of the Ozarks). h Add Branson’s small-town friendliness, lodging options in all price ranges and the fact that Branson is within a day’s drive of one-third the U.S. population, and it’s easy to see why November through December is one of Branson’s most popular seasons.
More than 1,500 Christmas trees
Christmas trees have a long tradition, but Branson kicks it up a notch with 1,500 trees greeting visitors at shops, restaurants, hotels and attractions, earning it the nickname “America’s Christmas Tree City.” Many are conventional with the usual lights and assortment of ornaments, but others are as imaginative as the creators who built them, such as the giant centerpiece at Branson Landing with its animated lights set to music.
Recycling takes on a new meaning with “trees” made from more than 500 go-kart tires (at The Track Family Fun Parks) and wine bottles (at the Hilton Branson Convention Center). The Branson Community Tree, on 76 Country
Boulevard next to the Ferris Wheel, is adorned with nearly 10,000 crystals taken from a former theater’s 16-foot chandelier. But the most awesome spectacle is at Silver Dollar City, where an 8-story tree serves as a canvas for an animated music and light show.
Silver Dollar City
This recreation of an 1880s Ozarks town celebrates the season with “An Old Time Christmas,” hands down the most spectacular holiday destination in the region. A dazzling 6.5 million colorful lights – the equivalent of almost 700 miles of strung lights – fill every nook and cranny of Silver Dollar City.
In addition to its 8-story tree that’s a high-tech wonder, there’s a Christmas
parade, a living nativity, a Broadwaystyle Christmas variety show, a re-staging of Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” a steam train that invites sing-alongs, Santa’s cottage and seasonal foods. And that’s in addition to Silver Dollar City’s usual offerings, including more than 40 rides and attractions geared to all ages, Marvel Cave (the site’s original attraction), craftsmen demonstrating their skills and shops.
Drive-through Christmas displays
Several drive-through Christmas displays light up the season, making this safe, social-distanced adventure a favorite with carloads of families. The Trail of Lights at Shepherd of the Hills has been lighting up the night for more than 30 years as it winds through 160 acres, culminating in a cup of hot cocoa.
Let There be Lights at Promised Land Zoo features lit displays of secular and religious figures, including animals ranging from monkeys to reptiles, which isn’t surprising considering that this is a zoo. If you get there before dark, you can see some of the live animals in their enclosures, but in any case be sure to check out the real, live reindeer.
Christmas shows
Shows are huge in Branson, so it’s little wonder that its 40 theaters offering 100 different live shows make a big deal of Christmas. Many theaters create special productions just for the holidays, like Silver Dollar City’s take on Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” or The Hughes Brothers Christmas Show.
Other shows add seasonal tunes to their lineup, including the Presleys’ Country Jubilee and Baldknobbers Jamboree Show, both credited with launching Branson into the entertainment business more than 60 years ago. There are dinner shows (like Dolly Parton’s Stampede), tribute bands, magicians and illusionists, comedy acts, acrobatics and music ranging from gospel to hot hits of the 1950s though ’80s.
Christmas shopping
Branson is a shopping destination any time of the year, which is why it’s also popular for Christmas gifts. Tanger Outlets offers deals at stores ranging from Chico’s and Helzberg Diamonds to Disney, while Silver Dollar City features artisans at work.
Downtown, Branson Landing offers specialty stores, restaurants, experiences (a zipline over Lake Taneycomo, anyone?) and Santa’s Wonderland at Bass Pro Shops. No visit to Branson would be complete without popping into Dick’s Oldtime 5 & 10, in business for 60 years and packed to the rafters with everything you can imagine and plenty that you can’t.
At The Grand Village Shops on 76 Country Boulevard, it’s Christmas all year at Kringles Christmas Shop with its well-known collections (like Christopher Radko) and ornaments for every interest and hobby, from fishing to music to sports.
Nearby is Sugar Leaf Bakery & Café, which offers a scrumptious chocolate yule log, but if you love fruitcake, you owe it to yourself to visit College of the Ozarks, where students turn out 25,000 fruitcakes every year in addition to jellies.
Skating rinks and snow tubing
It doesn’t snow or freeze much in Branson, but that doesn’t mean you can’t glide figure eights on a skating rink. Ice Skating at The Wheel partners with The Holidays on Ice to create a real ice skating experience. Located beside the Branson Ferris Wheel and Community Christmas Trees, the rink is the same size as The Rink at New York City’s Rockefeller Center.
At Big Cedar Lodge, the synthetic Winter Wonderland Ice Rink has a bucolic setting above Table Rock Lake. If skating isn’t your thing, try Snowflex tubing at Wolfe Mountain, where you can fly down a 400-foot series of hills on a synthetic run.