BRANSON



OCTOBER 30 - NOVEMBER 2, 2023
$799 PER PERSON (Single add $200)



​ONLY SIX SEATS AVAILABLE AS OF AUGUST 23!

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Includes all of this:

+ Transportation via 56 passenger luxury motorcoach.

+ 3 nights accommodations at Lodge of the Ozarks,

TripAdvisor's #1 rated Branson hotel!

+ Eight meals - 3 breakfasts - 2 lunches - 3 dinners

including dinner at the highly rated Keeter Center at College of the Ozarks! + 3 top shows plus 2 attractions...

> Queen Esther at Sight & Sound Theater

> Hughes Family Christmas Show!

> The Haygoods Christmas Show!

> Guided tour of the Titanic Museum with authentic reproduction of the staircase, bridge, and staterooms.

> Self-drive cart tour of the beautiful Lost Canyon Cave and Nature Trail, followed by lunch at White River Fish House at Branson Landing!



Day One





We will have an early departure from Keller. Enroute, the guide will tell about the early development of the US Highway system, and how it almost brought the state governments of Texas and Oklahoma to blows over who controlled the bridge over the Red River. Our route takes us through 75 miles of beautiful, hilly vistas around Lake Eufaula. You will hear of how the Five Civilized Tribes met at Eufaula when Oklahoma was still a US Territory and developed a proposal that the territory be admitted as a state named Sequoyah. It was presented in the US House of Representatives but failed by just one vote.


There will be a lunch stop in Fort Smith, Arkansas, where you will hear of Judge Parker and of the soon to open U S Marshall National Museum, and of Fort Smith's unique public art program. Lunch is on your own. After lunch we travel north through the through the Boston Mountains with it's impressive vistas, possible resplendent in it's fall colors. We will make a brief comfort stop in Rogers, Arkansas before the final leg of the journey to Branson, Missouri.


On this final portion from Rogers to Branson, your guide will tell you the surprising story of the founding, growth, and development of Branson as one of America's most popular tourist destinations.


We will arrive by 6:00pm for dinner at Florentina's Restorante, a favorite of Senior Getaways travelers over the past 10 years. After dinner, which is included, we will travel the last 10 minutes of today's journey to our Branson hotel, the Lodge of the Ozarks, right in the heart of the theater district. You should be in your room by 7:30pm.



DAY TWO





The Lodge of the Ozarks is known for their hearty breakfast, which is included in your tour price. Serving is from 7:00am to 9:00pm. But don't eat too much. We have two more big meals today!


We will depart from the hotel at 8:57am sharp for Top of the Rock's Lost Canyon Cave and Nature Trail! Top of the Rock is a world class resort with multiple restaurants, a golf course, nature trail and museum that has been developed by Johnny Morris, founder and CEO of Bass Pro Shops. We will experience the 2.5 mile long Lost Canyon Cave and Nature Trail via personally driven 4 or 6 person golf carts. The trail has multiple elevation changes, bridges, water falls and spectacular vistas of Table Rock Lake. Afterward we will tour the Ancient Ozarks History Museum. with 75,000 artifacts, about one third of Johnny Morris' personal collection.


Our included lunch this afternoon will be at White River Fish House, a Bass Pro Shop restaurant at Branson Landing. The restaurant is a floating barge in Lake Taneycomo with floor to ceiling windows for great views. After lunch, you will have an opportunity to stroll through Branson Landing before heading back to the hotel for a short break.


After the rest break will will board the bus for the short ride to the beautiful Sight & Sound Theatre, one of only two like it in the world. Visually stunning inside and out, the 2000 seat theater features a 100 yard wide stage and 40 foot tall sets! The current presentation, Queen Esther, dramatically enacts the Old Testament book of Esther with 150 people and 35 animals in the cast!


After the show we will go the the Keeter Center on the campus of College of the Ozarks for our included dinner. Your guide will explain why the C of A is called Hard Work U. The Keeter Center is ranked as one of the top small hotel and meeting venues in America.


We will be back in the Lodge of the Ozarks by 9:00pm



Day three





Enjoy leisurely breakfast buffet this morning before setting out for a full day of fun. We will start with a visit to the world renown Titanic Exhibit with a costumed guide who tells amazing stories of the people on board April 14, 1912. View up close the vast collection of artifacts that have been recovered from the sunken Titanic. Walk through full-sized reproductions of the famous staircase, staterooms, and ship's bridge.


Following the tour will will have lunch at Billy Gail's, a top spot for breakfast and lunch for almost 40 years, Billy Gail's is home of the 14" pancake, so big it doesn't fit on the plate! Breakfast is big here and served all day, but their catfish is equally popular.


After lunch, it's time for another show! Don't worry about falling asleep after a big lunch. The Haygoods show is very, very high energy with laser light effects and even drones enhancing some of the best harmonies you've ever heard. The Haygoods are made up of five brothers and one incredibly talented sister who have been performing in Branson since 1993, making this their 30th year in Branson, with almost every show sold out! Today's show will be the first of the Christmas season, with the first act featuring their standard show, and the second act their Christmas show.


It's less than 5 minutes from the Clay Cooper Theater, where the Haygoods perform, back to our hotel, Lodge of the Ozarks, which is adjacent to the Hughes Brothers Theatre. Dinner tonight is in the Hughes Theater's balcony restaurant before the show.


The Hughes Family Christmas Show is arguably one of the two best Christmas shows in Branson, or anywhere! There are FIFTY members of the Hughes family that will perform, including the founding five brothers and their wives, children and grandchildren. You will be amazed at the talent and stage presence of every member of the family, down to the smallest child. The Christmas message come through strong in this show.


After the show, just walk next door to your room at Lodge of the Ozarks.



day four





Enjoy the breakfast buffet this morning before we board the bus for the return trip to Texas. We will depart the hotel at 8:15am.


After a comfort stop at the Missouri Welcome Center in Joplin at 10:05am, we will leave Missouri and enter Oklahoma. Depending on traffic, weather, and the punctuality of the group, we hope to visit a couple of iconic Route 66 sights around Tulsa.


Lunch will be on your own, at a location to be determined. We have a couple of places in mind that we think you will like.


During this portion of the trip our route takes us on, or near, Route 66, so you are likely to hear several renditions of the well known 1948 song that celebrates the Mother Road. Your guide will also talk about the history of Route 66 and of the surprising history of the song, including some things your guide just recently learned!


After lunch, we will motor on down the highway until we reach Davis, Oklahoma where we have our traditional last, and most popular, comfort stop of the trip. The stop will be at the Chickasaw Welcome Center, adjacent to the Bedre Fine Chocolates factory and factory store. Clean, plentiful restrooms, free coffee, and exquisite chocolates! Every group tour leader's dream!


Our planned arrive time back in Keller is 7:00pm. When we left, it was still October. Now, Halloween has come and gone, it's November, and we have already seen Christmas shows! What a great trip!





scenes from branson