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[sanddunerider]

23000 people @ the park on Saturday........

[Copper]

24,900 is the record day.  Saturday did not break the record.

[Joy]

This would be why my friends and I went on a Friday last month, and why our next visit will be this Friday. I've been there on a Saturday during Christmas before and... yeah. Never again.

[How-doFolks]

Thanks for the review BackInTime9, cant wait to see them pictures. 

[sanddunerider]

14,000 on sunday,,, the PTB were expecting 6500................ HMMMMMM, wonder if 75 degree weather had anything to do with it

[saloongal]

We were also there on Saturday.
While we waited in traffic to get to the park, it wasn't intolerable. From the 465 intersection, paying to park and getting to a spot took 25 minutes (The exact length of Prep and Landing).
Although we parked near stop 1, we decided that it looked easier to just walk in, and we were correct. The little gate that used to be the season pass entrance (where you enter through the Ozark Marketplace) had turnstiles open with no lines, so we buzzed right through. Electric car and stroller rental was a madhouse and thankfully we have no need for either. It was about 1:45, so we decided  to take  a quick restroom break and head on down to get in line for Santa. We did that, and after his arrival at 2:30, we were done and had our pictures in hand by 3:10, not too bad. Went to geyser gulch to wait for the next Frosty showing (my kids should have that thing memorized but they still love it), watched Frosty at 4 while having a snack, walked through Jingle Junction, and went to the measuring station. The youngest finally got his blue armband! (That means 42inches) so we headed to TNT. We had a moderate wait, but it was worth it. Decided to check the train line; after seeing that, we just let the kids play in HDH for a while. The train line was going down the corkscrew path. I can't imagine how long that would have made the wait time. While the kids were in HDH, I snuck up to the bakery. The line was terribly slow. I wish they had a way to have a cinnamon bread line so those not getting it aren't in line not moving because no bread is ready.  So after finally getting the kids a cookie, we went to FITH. The line was quite quick and the seats were dry. Grabbed a drink and a corn dog and headed for the square. The kids ate and watched the tree. It was nearing 6 so we decided to walk around a bit more. However people were lining up for the parade and apparently felt that letting people get through to get to stores may result in losing their spot, so that was short lived. We got some taffy and decided to find a parade spot of our own. We ended up on the TNT side of the long flower bed. There I witnessed a parent let their child climb on and pretend to ride the display reindeer as they took pictures and laughed. Not surprisingly the child broke some of the antlers off and no one in their party made any attempt to correct that. I nearly bit my tongue in two. The parade was okay, I don't know that it was worth the rude shoving behavior that over took a lot of the guests, and we probably won't make an extra effort to watch it again. After the parade we rode TNT two more times with no wait and it was an incredible closing to the trip. We got back to the car around 8. Traffic flow leaving the city was smooth and we were on the road in no time.
Most importantly the kids had an incredible time.

[Okie Hillbilly]

We were there on Saturday also. Came through Nixa and Branson West, sounds like it was the right choice. No line till we turned off 76. Parked in lot 3 and got in the park around 1:00. It was FULL of people. Lines weren't terrible tho. Ate a chuckwagon burger and fries soon as we got in. Rode TNT 5 times (Kids loved it after dark), GS once, WF once(excellent after dark). Rode train middle of the afternoon, we got on 2nd train knowing it would be crazy at dusk (our favorite time for Granpa's story). Saw new construction on OR. Man, thats a lot of wood! As has been previously stated, the crowd around the parade was wild, shoulder to shoulder. Kids loved the parade (big Kid too)! We were standing on an empty flower bed and had a good view, near the big skillits of succotash (man that stuff was good). The icicles on the trees in the square really looks neat. Prolly our only regret was not seeing the Homestead Pickers. The little cabin fills up in a hurry. Had a good time as usual. Weather was unbeatable, a hoodie was just enough coat to stay warm. Can't wait till next year!

[palallin]

Interesting that you mention the near-hostility those who are waiting for the parade can show.  Full Disclaimer:  our family has no interest in the parade, has never seen is, and has no intention of doing so.  So when we try to get through the the crowds and get accused--out loud (very loud)--of trying to usurp their places to see it, we try to tell them we have no desire to see the parade, just want to get around or stop for a minute to get our bearings.  The usual reply is a sneer and a "Hurry up!" 

Not very Christmas at all--nor very Christian.  If we could avoid the route, we would, but it circles around the whole city.  It is one of the reasons why, despite how much I love Christmas, OTC is no higher than my 3rd favorite festival at SDC.

[saloongal]

Interesting that you mention the near-hostility those who are waiting for the parade can show.  Full Disclaimer:  our family has no interest in the parade, has never seen is, and has no intention of doing so.  So when we try to get through the the crowds and get accused--out loud (very loud)--of trying to usurp their places to see it, we try to tell them we have no desire to see the parade, just want to get around or stop for a minute to get our bearings.  The usual reply is a sneer and a "Hurry up!" 

Not very Christmas at all--nor very Christian.  If we could avoid the route, we would, but it circles around the whole city.  It is one of the reasons why, despite how much I love Christmas, OTC is no higher than my 3rd favorite festival at SDC.

I should mention that a very nice mother, who was near us and had kids several years older than mine asked her children to let mine stand in front of them since they could see over my kids. But for the most part the entire park seemed in a poor mood as a result of the parade.

[DollarCityBoy]

What is it about a parade that brings out the worst in people? We try to avoid it as well. We saw it this year, strictly because we were already standing in line for hot chocolate. People just get so pushy when it comes to the parade. We experienced the same problem at the Magic Kingdom this past September; rude rude rude!

[Gilligan]

When I was sitting in a wheelchair, I had a couple of kids trying to climb over me and they had parents standing right there who ignored them.  We try to stay away from the parade while it's on Main Street, but we had a pretty good view from the the tables at Wagon Works this year.  Another good spot is in GE - plenty of space for everyone.

[Okie Hillbilly]

I appreciate the tip about seeing parade from GE. We'll try that spot next year. Parade was really neat tho even with the crowd. The Evangel University band was pretty awesome. Seems a lot of people are afraid to say "Merry Christmas" anymore, but I heard it a lot at SDC. Also, there was a nice Santa Claus talked to my Daughter near the homestead. Even gave her a little gift. You gotta like things like that.

[Joy]

We stood right outside the Frisco Barn, on the back side of it, where we could see Red Gold. We were able to catch the parade with no one standing in front of us and got it as it began, and as soon as it passed, we walked over to Red Gold with our Show Lover's passes and got in to our showing of It's A Wonderful Life. It worked out perfectly.

[Parson B Ready]

We arrived in Branson about 9:30pm Friday Night (11/30).  After a quick stop at Branson Towers to pick-up our Coaster Christmas registration, we headed down the road to Homestay Inn where Paige was waiting to greet us. After visiting for a while we checked into our hotel rooms and went to bed.  After eating breakfast at Homestay (love the waffles) we arrived at SDC around 9:00am.  Around 9:30am we took a group picture and made our way to the Riverfront Playhouse for even more breakfast and  park presentations.  SDC had a wonderful spread of giant cinnamon rolls, apple turnovers, cupcakes, coffee and wassail. Yummy!  We heard presentations from SDC (got to see the full Outlaw Run pov for the first time), Six Flags, Schlitterbahn, and Worlds of Fun.  Received a gift bag of Outlaw Run themed merchandise from SDC, and a souvenir cup with free tickets from Schlitterbahn.  Worlds of Fun and Six Flags also had give-aways.  But since there were not enough for everyone (This years Coaster Christmas had a record registration of about 160) they had a drawing for those items. 

After park presentations it was on to ERT the kids rode Powderkeg 3 times and Wildfire twice.  This ERT was a life-saver given the crowds that would hit the park later that day. After ERT we met by FITH  and exited the park to Outlaw Run.  It was lunch time.  They had two little buffets set up—one in what will probably become a retail area and the other in the loading zone.  The buffet consisted of two different types of "skillets", potato soup,  and a new tomato soup.  They had hot chocolate, coffee, tea, and bottled water for drinks.  Apple dumplings were for dessert!!!!  They told us to eat as much as we wanted....and we did!  After we finished eating we got to walk to various places around the roller coaster.  Down near the base of the lift hill we got to "make our mark" under an ACE Outlaw Run sign.  We were allowed to sign the wood beams of the coaster with a sharpie marker.  Though this area will never be visible by the general public, at least we know that our names are there. 

After Outlaw Run we used the rest room and then went to wait for our special seating for Dickens.
The Christmas Carol was excellent as usual.  After Dickens we were free to enjoy the park at our own leisure. (Originally we were supposed to watch It's a Wonderful Life next, but this was postponed to Sunday due to the size of our group).

While the kids headed over to Thunderation with grandma.  Mom and Dad made a quick trip to the parking lot to deposit our free stuff in the van and pick up the stroller.  Next we headed back to the Grand Exposition, so the kids could ride some rides and I could people watch, and enjoy the lights and music.  While in the Expo my daughter pointed out that I was sitting across from Jim Duggar the father of the  "19 Kids and Counting Family".  My wife is a big fan of the show and she got her picture taken with Jim and Michelle along with some of the kids.  I sat across from them for quite a while. (When you find an open bench, you take it!).  And it was nice to see how gracious all of the Duggars where when it came to taking pictures and signing autographs. They seemed to be very friendly, down to earth people. After the Grand Expo we went over to visit the one and only Terry Sanders portraying Santa's assistant "Clarence Peabody".  He was the first to tell us of how massive the crowds were that day. Next we went to ride the Flooded Mine (while the parade was going on). There was very little wait.  After the flooded mine we went to see Frosty. Next back to Thunderation.   After the first parade, the park slowly begins to empty out. So the kids were able to ride a few more rides.  I made a stop at the candy store and bought some Pecan Brittle (Yum) and at the Taffy store for some Wildfire Taffy.  Stopped at the stand on the square for some Hot Chocolate with the works, found a bench and enjoyed the lights and music while the kids finished riding rides and the women went shopping.  As has already been reported, crowds exceeded 23,000 that day.  But other than the crowded streets, the crowds didn't really impact us very much.  Thanks in a large part to the ERT earlier that day.

Sunday we arrived at SDC around 11:00am for the Coaster Christmas behind the scenes tour of the Frisco steam train.  This was really neat.  We got to see the original SDC train that was once owned by Henry Ford.  Found out that the "train wreck" that you see on the train ride was originally just spare parts that came with another SDC train.  The highlight of this tour was the kids (both young and old) being allowed to climb up into the cab of one of the trains and ring the bell and sound the whistle. Another interesting tidbit about the train:  their trains continue to burn oil instead of propane because the propane doesn't burn hot enough to generate enough steam to get the train up the steep grade in the back.
After the train we were allowed to hang around Outlaw Run a little more until they led us up to the square to await rope drop.  At rope drop our family attended services at the Wilderness Church.  The service was really nice.  We were unable to make it to the Coaster Christmas showing of It's a Wonderful Life.  So we didn't get to see that show. Hopefully next year.  After service we went over and ate Dinner at the Mill (for free courtesy of Coaster Christmas).  Then we split up and did our own thing. We met up to watch the parade (In addition to the Grand Expo, another good place to watch the parade is by the exit of the Flooded Mine.  There is a very small strip of space between the wall and the road.  There is usually no one there, and there is no way for anyone to stand in front of you, because there's barely enough room for you to stand there) I ended the day sitting on a bench on the square drinking hot chocolate with the works and watching the Christmas lights while the women shopped (sound familiar).  As we were getting ready to leave the park, we saw Santa Claus walking toward the hospitality house.  He looked exhausted.  We wished him Merry Christmas.  And to our surprise he walked over to where we were and stood and talked to us for a while (If it were me, I would have just said "Merry Christmas" and kept walking).  He commented on  size of the crowds and said "That's a lot of children!"  Can you imagine dealing with that many children (not to mention their parents!).  Anyway, it meant a lot that he came over and talked to us, even though you could tell he was very tired.  All in all it was a great trip and a great visit.  Thanks so much to SDC and ACE for giving us such a great discount and treating us so well.  Our family has visited SDC for Christmas every year for the last 10 year.  I don't know if a visit this year would have been if it weren't for Coaster Christmas and the discount at Homestay. 
"And the Parson exclaimed as he left the city in sight, "Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night."

[sanddunerider]

Parson, I knew you had a full weekend but i had NO idea!!  what a weekend... congrats.  Now i regret not doing the coaster christmas.... maybe next year, But it wont be anything like you expierenced this year... WOW!!  what a deal!

Good meeting you and your family sat evening,,,

be safe,,

Merry Christmas to you and yours..!!!