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I should have figured Orlando based on your handle.  Duh!  LOL  Yeah, that kind of will affect what time you get on the road.

I haven't taken that particular route (I live to the west of SDC), but if Google has that right (and they usually do) then that sounds like a great option.  yes, the traffic back up on the Branson West side is MUCH shorter than the other direction, so that should work well.  You're actually coming in early enough that you should be ok on the parking as well.  At that point this last Saturday they were still parking in their regular lots and not using the satellites, so I think you'll be fine.

I was planning on parking in Preferred.. Do you know how early that tends to fill up?

One thing with Missouri- the forecasts will change constantly, sometimes even within hours.  Unlike Florida where they go on for 15 minutes to tell you that every day is the same weather (that always amazed me watching the tv forecasts there), here's it's a constantly changing deal.  Two days ago they were talking about possible snow on Thursday, now it's looking warmer and little rain at all.  But that could change again by tomorrow.  lol  Hoping you get your warmer weather (though for Florida it'll feel like ice to you) and that everything gets open.  :-)

While our temperature may stay constant for 6 months out of the year, summer rain is frustratingly unpredictable here! :-) You can rarely be sure of it whether it's a 20% chance or 90%.

I'll keep an eye on the forecast for sure.. when I booked the flight it was showing high of 51, now it's showing 48. But yes, as a Floridian I will be in full arctic attire regardless! As long as Outlaw Run opens I'll be a happy camper.

Sirwillow and shavethewhales:

Wow thank you so much for taking the time for such detailed responses. I truly appreciate it.

Regarding coming from Springfield, it appears that taking the "EE" exit to Highlandville from 65 to cut over to US 160, then down to 13 to Branson West actually shaves off half a mile but adds 6 minutes according to Google Maps (again not accounting for traffic). The traffic I'm concerned about is the predicted backup (again according to Google) that builds from the 465/76 intersection to Indian Point Road, which seems to be a longer backup (and longer than 6 minutes difference). Unfortunately, I'll be flying in from Orlando  (a $92 roundtrip flight was the impetus for this very spur of the moment trip) and can't get on the road any sooner (already praying for no flight delays).

Regarding the weather, the forecasts that I'm seeing call for a high of 45-50, and according to SDC most rides operate in the 30s and all rides operate above 42, so except for the first couple hours of the day I think I'm pretty safe for most of the day if the forecast holds.

Thanks again to you both. Looking forward to a great day at the park!

Hello everyone, first time poster here and first time visitor to the park next Saturday. This site's been a wealth of knowledge and I'm very prepared for a very busy day at the park. I've tried searching the forums but have a couple questions in terms of dealing with the crowds that I wasn't able to find direct answers to:

1) We'll be driving in from St. Louis early Saturday morning with an expected arrival in the Branson area between 11-11:30. Google maps is showing that it takes about 10 minutes longer without traffic to come to the park via Branson West, so my question is, with the expected traffic getting to the parking lots coming from Branson, is this a better route to get into the park, or does it get equally jammed coming from both directions on 76?

2) With attendance of >20,000 expected, what impact does this have on wait times for the coasters? I've been to Dollywood many times on what appeared to be packed days (overflow parking, etc.) but everyone always seemed to be there for the shows and most of the ride wait times were relatively low, save the newest big coaster (last year, Lightning Rod). Is there a similar situation at SDC? Will it be worth it for me to purchase a Trailblazer pass if I'm going mainly for the rides and I can only go on Saturday?

Thanks everyone.