Since I’m such a historian of Branson, I love creating top tens, and reminding people that Branson is a place of history. Here are some condemned hotels you might of forgotten about.

1)Melody Lane Inn-my favorite of course, that is now a steak house. This property boasted 140 rooms, and was one if not the best located hotel in Branosn. It was missed after the 2012 Tornado.

2) Fiddlers Inn-closed down because the managers were doing some things they shouldn’t this was a great boutique hotel, that was located behind the old Christie Lane theater, that is now Bigfoot.

http://bransonisfun.com/bigfoot-sightings-branson-mo/

This link above is an article on bigfoot sightings.

3)Silver Fountain inn-pictured above this was a very cool property. Dixie Stampede and Fritz are there now, but what a location. It will be missed.

4)the old Days inn-422 rooms the most ground floor rooms in Branson this behemoth was quite the spot back in the day. Spread out over 7 acres, this property had more bus tours than you could shake a stick at.

5)Hillbilly Inn-still standing but half demoed this down home, hoedown hotel was located, and is on the 76 stip.

6)Branson inn-Located where the new Hospital project is, this hotel was an exterior corridor property and was the first viewed when you came into town.

7)

Get Married in Branson, what that looks like an actual wedding!

Branson is the ideal place to get married. So much to do here, and so little time. That’s when I was surprised to be a party to a plain, simple, yet elegant wedding. And I got to put it on video as well. A hotel I’m doing some work for, asked me to come and film this little tid bit. So enjoy this is worth the watch.

Branson Favorite Glenn Campbell has passed away

One of Branson’s Favorites died today. I had met him many times, and he was always very personable. When i worked at Roy Clarks I got to talk to him often, and chat about that Wichitaw lineman album and what it meant to me.

I purchased several albums at the theater as I got them for a very good deal, and even got an occasional t shirt. Glenn’s guitarist also gave me some guitar lessons. He was a very nice guy. I used to stand on the side of the stage and watch him pick, and man could he. He always used that white and blue guitar pictured above, and left Roy’s to go and open the Grand Palace. He will surely be missed. R.I.P Glenn Campbell.

Branson’s Camelot more than you ever imagined

Branson has always been obsessed with Camelot and Castle themes. They have been all over. From snazzy hotels,to amusement parks, to Stonehenge esque developments, it has all been here. From Stone Castle Hotel to the early 90’s Camelot on Highway 86. The Castle theme has been so popular. Mutton Hollow even had a castle that is now a church. It’s just referred to as the castle.

 Hotels-several hotels have used the castle theme, and not all of them have survived. King’s quarters, hasn’t been open all year. Yet Castle Rock seems to be doing great.

 Them Parks-Celebration City, and Camelot on 86 have since closed, and either gone for a while or closed rapidly.

Attractions-the front of the Hollywood wax museum has a Castle of Chaos. And Stone Castle Hotel boasts several theme rooms named after Camelot style Lore.

When it comes to Castles Branson just can’t be beat. Stay tuned for more great stories

Indian Ridge Development of Branson West the Beginning of the End

I use this phrase a lot but I believe a lot of  people think there is Gold in them there hills.  And here in Branson, we have struck a lot of Gold. Great Shows, scenery, attractions and shopping. But, not every formula works, but more than most a lot of things do work. And a lot has. But compared to a lot of projects, Indian ridge faired to be one of the worst. It was a multi range development, with Housing, a theater, a water park and so much more.

The Original developer had big plans and brought on many partners, to complete this very ambitious project. And I had the opportunity to actually meet this developer Jim Shirato. And he  was a very nice guy, and very smart. A friend of mine and I went out on his boat, had drinks and talked about life. It was a very fun evening on Table Rock lake.

As you drive out to Branson West you can’t help but miss this development on the left hand side. The houses loom large as they were built with such ambition. I really wanted this development to succeed, as at the time, it had a water park and theater attached to it. Which would of been great to draw guests too and away from Branson. But now we have 5 water parks, and another one on the way, so now not so much.

And the tail of this ended the way, some things do. Investors creating shells to move money away from original investor’s and to defraud. Luckily Jim Wasn’t involved on that end of things and did not go to prison. Maybe someone will take this development over, and do something with it. We shall see. Leave your comments below and your thoughts about Indian Ridge.

Why you can’t miss Vaskins Deli when you come to Branson

We love going to vaskins on a Saturday. The food is fantastic, there is a lot of room to dine. And my kids like it as well. This time around I had a salad with lamb in it and feta cheese. My kids always get the hot dog, as you can see below. The soup was lobster Bisque that I had with the salad and it was amazing. The menu has a lot to offer, and the location can’t be beat. It’s right next to the big paddle wheel across from summer winds welcome center.

How to get Discount Tickets to Dixie Stampede

If you look in the right places you can find discounts to almost anything in Branson, Mo. Accept for the top tier shows, attractions, and events, that are always in demand. These kinds of things like Silver Dollar City,Dixie Stampede, Ripleys, and titanic are kind of tough. But here are my tips and tricks for getting discounts to the STEDE.

1)$2.00 of coupons-you can find these at any front desk, just about and they are good for $2.00 off of any ticket.

2)Groupon from time to time will have discounts to Dixie. So they are worth checking out.

3)Reserve Direct carries discount from time to time. So they are worth checking out as well.

http://www.reservebranson.com/ds/dixie-stampede-branson-missouri?rdid=rbdx5645&gclid=CjwKCAjwzYDMBRA1EiwAwCv6JkTo1MH7SfMTG7l9dyFRFkcpEPc2DJ-ECKXiEkXaglLVx74JUkZFkRoCyvEQAvD_BwE

4)Combo tickets-when you buy one you get a discount on the second. This is a good way to save as well, if you plan on going to two events. Here’s the link to Dixie’s site

Branson Discount Combos

Showboat Branson Bell on the water at night full video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuro2SudEF0

You can actually see the show going on through the window when I did a close up shot. A pretty intimidating ship, when you get up next to it.

Whatever Happened to the Cabin at Lakeside Wildernes Forest?

Imagine you’ve been walking for a bit, on a hot summer day. Up Hills and trails, and stone steps, all the way to the edge, looking over you can see all of C of O, from  top to bottom. That’s what it’s like hiking at Lake Forest. The cool thing was, when you got to the center you ran into this old stone house, that has been there since the civil war. And was rumored to have been a hide a way for people running from Union and Southern Armies. Well last year, during a cold spell, some folks hid in there again. But this time before leaving they set it  on fire, and burned it to the ground. Now there isn’t much left, accept some pictures I grabbed last time I was there. More updates coming soon.

Maximize Back to School Savings with Tax free weekend & More!

Sometime there is a fire in them there hills. And here in Branson it’s tax free weekend. (Friday Aug 4th=Friday Aug 6th) There are several ways to maximize your savings. Many online & Brick and mortar stores are having sales. So put these special tools in your tool belt, and come to Branson and grab a vaction & savings.

1)Target-if target is your game there are several things you can do to maximize savings. For one the Target Red card, it saves you an additional 5% on your purchases and you can use it tax free weekend. Also there add comes out every Sunday so get that too. Also you’ll save tax as well on any school oriented purchases.

2)Walmart-is also another maverick involved in Back to school extravaganzas and it’s online add is worth a look before you come to town. It’s not as glamorous as target, but worth the time.

3)Tanger Mall-At Tanger it’s about the stores. So much variety for any back to school ensemble, this is a must stop. Sketchers, Nike,Polo,Oshkosh, Vitamin world and one and on. Vitamin world was a joke bTW. So much to do and so little time.

There is more to come in the part two of this story. thanks for reading.