I was pretty impressed with Silver Dollar City

[BarryHom]

A long time ago, I was walking in the flea market and one of the booth people asked, "Have you ever thought of going to Branson?" Why no! Why would I want to go to Branson? To see Yakov Smrinoff? He's still around??? Branson...the place where celebrities go to die, as the Simpsons said.

Fast foward a couple of years...as a roller coaster fan, I decided to head to Missouri and do Silver Dollar City, among other parks. I heard of Buzzsaw Falls and Wildfire being pretty good rides, so I decided to try them out.

To my surprise, the rides were pretty good, but the whole park was outstanding. The opening of the park is the most grandoise production I've seen at any park. It left me with a big smile on my face. The park employees (they call them Citizens) were very friendly, even rivaling or exceeding Disney's. The park doesn't have too many rides, but they are overall outstanding examples of the genre. Wildfire is one of the few B&Ms without a loop in the first drop and a very smooth ride. Buzzsaw Falls is a unique flume ride/roller coaster hybrid. Thundernation is a roller coaster with the lift hill in the middle. The shows are pretty good too. I didn't get a chance to do the cave tour, but I will save that for a future visit.

I didn't think much of Silver Dollar City when I was planning, but I ended up doing two days there. It's now one of my top 5 parks. Celebration City down the street is pretty good too, although it lacks shade. The Ozark Wildcat is now my #2 wooden coaster. It has great turns, is smooth, and has great airtimes. The coaster seats are so comfy!

Now maybe we need to have Riddle Con here next year?

 

[Cindy B]

So, you're back now?


I could tell by the postcards that you really enjoyed Silver Dollar City...


I like woodies best , so I know I would like Silver Dollar City.

Is Buzzsaw Falls similiar to Journey to Atlantis?

 

[Sonya]

I have been going there for as long as I can remember, when the park was a lot smaller. It's always been a lot of fun, and next time you MUST go on the cave tour! It's a great place to go in the fall.

 

[BarryHom]

Originally posted by Cindy B
I like woodies best , so I know I would like Silver Dollar City.

Is Buzzsaw Falls similiar to Journey to Atlantis?

There are no woodies at Silver Dollar City, only at Celebration City. Buzzsaw Falls has the same idea as Journey to Atlantis, but the coaster track is longer and it only has one drop.

 

[Cindy B]

Originally posted by Barry Hom
There are no woodies at Silver Dollar City, only at Celebration City. Buzzsaw Falls has the same idea as Journey to Atlantis, but the coaster track is longer and it only has one drop.

I'm sorry Barry... I got it confused!


Buzzsaw Falls sounds like my kind of ride!

 

[disykat]

We enjoyed Silver Dollar City too, despite some setbacks. We went at 3 one day so we could have 4 hours that night and then the next day too for one day's admission cost. Unfortunately our first day afternoon turned into a "washout". Luckily we got out of the caves before the storm started or we wouldn've had to walk out! Due to the rain all the rides closed, the food and shops closed, the trams to the parking lots weren't working etc. Luckily it was still warm we dried out quickly. The next day was beautiful.

They have lots of great water stuff and we got almost as wet the next day! Everyone was a lot happier about it though because the sun was shining and everything stayed open.

 

[Planogirl]

Wow! I've wondered about this park and now I see that we need to visit it. We love visiting the Ozarks anyway so this would make a nice trip.

What did you think of Branson itself? I was not particularly impressed when we drove through it once.

 

[Pooh93]

Glad you enjoyed it. DD's and I really enjoyed SDC in June. Good, clean wholesome fun! I liked the Buzzsaw Falls too. Had never experienced anything like that.

The opening is awesome and really sets the tone for the whole day. I found all the people that work there to be very nice. At Fire in the Hole, which we rode about 8-9 times, because youngest dd loved it, the guys working there would talk to dd everytime and say stuff like "you back again?", and they'd always tell us to have a good day when we finished the ride.

 

[becka]

I am glad you had a good time at SDC. I have not been in many years but since I attended college in Branson I went several times over those 4 years. I know the park has expanded a great deal since I was last there and I hope to get some time to get back to see it again since it is such a great park.

 

[dianeschlicht]

I was last to Silver Dollar City when I was in high school, and you don't want to know how long ago THAT was! I remember the great shows then too.

 

[jfulcer]

Barry, I know you probably didn't really visit things like this, but do they have any rides for smaller kids? Kinda like the basic airplane/car/helicopter/motorcycle/animal going around in a circle over and over again???

 

[WDW Poly Princess]

Barry! You came here and I never knew?!

I'm going to go cry now.

 

[Pooh93]

but do they have any rides for smaller kids?

Yes, they do a whole section is dedicated to them. Even though my kids are older all they wanted to do for about 2 hours each day is climb the treehouse and play in the sand station.
(kids don't get their bodies in the sand)
See link http://www.silverdollarcity.com/rides/sawyer.asp

There is an old schoolhouse that is neat for the kids to check out. Really takes you back to the "old days."

You can walk into a glass shop and watch them actually make the glass and the person explains how it is fired. Kids really thought that was neat. Of course, I didn't take them into the actual shop. I didn't want to own the place....if you catch my drift!

 

[Jeafl]

I love Silver Dollar City too. It's a great blend of attractions and rides. My kids love watching all the craftsmen there too. It's really a great deal if you take advantage of their "arrive after 3, next day free" offer. You can definitely see it all in a day and a half. Glad you enjoyed yourself Barry!

 

[BarryHom]

Originally posted by Planogirl
What did you think of Branson itself? I was not particularly impressed when we drove through it once.

Branson doesn't seem like a bad place. The shows seem geared towards an older crowd, perhaps even senior citizens. The main strip has a lot of cheap hotels and some minor attractions. In other parts of the U.S., the strip would be called Kinsella Ave., I-192, or International Drive.

 

[BarryHom]

Originally posted by jfulcer
Barry, I know you probably didn't really visit things like this, but do they have any rides for smaller kids? Kinda like the basic airplane/car/helicopter/motorcycle/animal going around in a circle over and over again???

There's the kiddie coaster in the Tom Sawyer Island area (the name escapes me at the moment). It reminded me of the High Speed Thrill Coaster at Knoebel's. It gave some wicked laterals!

 

[BarryHom]

Originally posted by WDW Poly Princess
Barry! You came here and I never knew?!

I'm going to go cry now.

Sorry, but I didn't know anyone lived there!