My SDC Park Tips (input welcome)

[Dragon Dad]

Hello all.  I love this site and rediscovering my favorite park through others' eyes.     I'm coming back this fall with the family and my excitement for my upcoming trip has rubbed off on a coworker who has decided to go to SDC with her husband  for the very first time in a few weeks for their anniversary (no kids yet)!  As they have never been to SDC and I want their first visit to be as enjoyable as possible, I put together the following list of tips to give them.  I welcome your input as to if these are all still accurate and if you have any to add.

Here they are, in no particular order... 

1. Silver Dollar City's website (www.SilverDollarCity.com) has a lot of important information regarding hour of operation, daily shows schedules and special events.  These vary by date, so be sure to review the website before your visit. 

2. Also, Silver Dollar City's website has good information regarding the park's many shops, exhibits, restaurants and rides as well as a very useful 'Frequent Asked Questions' page (http://www.silverdollarcity.com/services/faq.aspx)  that you should consider reviewing beforehand, especially if this is your first visit to the park.

3. Expect a lot of walking in the park, so wear comfortable shoes.  Also, check the future daily forecasts on www.weather.com for Branson, MO prior to your visit so you can pack appropriate clothing. 

4. The admission gate and town square areas open at 8:30 each day before the rest of the park's scheduled opening time.  You can take advantage of this to arrive early and avoid the bulk of the traffic from visitors arriving later when the park opens. 

5. If you do arrive early, there is usually live entertainment in the town square and, weather permitting, a very patriotic flag raising ceremony before the park is opened.   Also, the Molly Mill restaurant in the town square opens at 8:30 each morning and serves a wonderful breakfast buffet.     

6. A tour of Marvel Cave is included in your park admission.  These tours are very popular, leave at scheduled times and can each include only a limited number of persons.  If you want to be included on a cave tour, be sure to stop at the Cave Information Desk in the Hospitality House building as you enter the park and ask about that day's available tours.

7. The traditional cave tour a one-hour walking tour which includes 700 stair steps and a difficult stair climb to exit, so visitors should consider doing it when they are rested and their energy levels are high. 

8. The Sullivan’s Mill bakery bakes fresh breads and cookies daily that often sell out before the end of the day, including very popular small loaves of cinnamon bread.  You are allowed to purchase your bread at the Mill early in the day while it is still being made and then pick it up later that same day after it has been baked. 

9. Similar to Sullivan's Mill, many of the popular items in Eva & Delilah’s Bakery are made fresh daily and may be sold-out before the end of the day.  Keep this in mind if there is a favorite treat you really want.

10. The shops in the park can take your purchases to the "Ozark Marketplace" building at the park exit so you can pick them up as you leave.   The service is called "package pickup".  Ask your shop-keeper about it and when the cut-off time for the service will be that day.

11. If you ride the Steam Train, the best seats are in the middle two cars, looking out the right side windows.

Thank you in advance for your help.

[sanddunerider]

Hmm.

.  If you need some where to stay, as a SDCFAN member you can get room at Homestay Inn for 40.00 pe nite, give paige a call for reservations or infor 417-336-2666

Located on the west edge of branson, great location, about 10 minutes from SDC

[Dragon Dad]

Thanks! Actually, already knew that one and have the rooms booked.  And they we're kind enough to offer to add my co-worker's room to my reservation.  They're great people on the phone and I'm Looking forward to staying there for the 1st time.

[Ozarks Gal]

Wow, Dragon Dad, great list! You've come up with a pretty comprehensive list.
A couple things to add:
* Refillable mugs will be a $ saver if you plan to drink anything besides water in the park. But water is free!
* If you are a smartphone user there is a Silver Dollar City app (both Android and iOS) that has much of the same info as the website, but also tells you the wait time for the new Outlaw Run, Thunderation, and Lost River (if they are ride-lovers). It also tells you the weather restrictions for the rides. As Fall approaches and temps cool down this can come in handy!

Just a note on #7, most of the stairs in the cave are on the way down. You get a train-ride to exit the cave (unless part of the cave path is flooded out that day--but they should tell you that before the tour starts).

[MCLFLN]

Here is one that might help a few people. Even though I go almost every year at least once, I no longer purchase my season passes during the discount season at the end of year. The reason for this is that cost/risk ratio for what you save versus if I don't make it down isn't worth it to me. (about a 5 to 6 hour drive from the central part of Illinois)

Last year when I was about to purchase my season passes the lady heard us speaking about how my Parent's already had theirs. She said she could give me a discount on my 1 day passes since I was with season pass holders.... Then at the end of the day, covert them into season passes. She said this was my cheapest option.

[kscarver]

The tips given are great. A few more:
The crowds now make a dash to Outlaw Run as soon as the chain drops. The crowds also move clockwise around the park, hitting the rides, and shops at the top of the park. Try going to lower part of the park where it less crowded and work your way to the top. Also don't sweat the weather as you could spend the day in shows and shops if the weather turns bad.
Hope you have a great trip.

[cowboy]

Hmm.

.  If you need some where to stay, as a SDCFAN member you can get room at Homestay Inn for 40.00 pe nite, give paige a call for reservations or infor 471-336-2666

Located on the west edge of branson, great location, about 10 minutes from SDC

If you call, the phone number is just a little different: it is 417-336-2666

Jay

[Gilligan]

Sorry if it's been mentioned, but...enter the park on the left side.  That way you'll head down the steepest hill instead of trying to trudge back to the top when you're tired. 

[sanddunerider]

sorry about that, I edited the phone number on my thread, it is correct now..

[SDC0412]

Here are a few things I discovered.

1.  Sundays are normally light crowd days.  Also July 4th is a great day to go if you don't have anything else going on.
2.  Cut over to Hwy 13 and enter from the West side.  I never have to wait in traffic when I enter from the Branson West side.
3.  For an inexpensive and healthy snack, go to the store that sells apple butter and buy a beautiful apple for $1.
4.  Arrive before the park opens.  You can usually ride anything you like for about an hour before the park fills up.