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[tchrrx]

I am a Disney Worldaholic who would like to find a theme park a little closer to home.  I had several friends recommend SDC to me.  I am a crazy ultra planner, and I like to know the best order to rides the rides.  Can you give me an idea as to which rides need to be hit first thing in the morning & which can be done anytime? 

If you were to plan a SDC day (or 2) for a family who enjoys all types of rides, shows, & food, what would you recommend?  Thanks!

[DollarCityBoy]

Hi and welcome to our forum's! We are glad you found us, and hope that SDC becomes a special place for you and your family.
*My first tip would be to read as many of our threads as possible. There is a wealth of knowledge and information from many of our members on here.
*As for the rides:Wildfire, Powder Keg & The Giant Swing are the 3 that you might want to hit first.
*The Classic SDC attractions (that are still opperating) are Grandfathers Mansion, Fire In The Hole, and the Flooded Mine. Try to make it a point to hit all of these.
*Try to go to Opening Ceremony, it is a good start to the day, and gets you in the spirit of the City.
*Molly's Mill has a wonderful Breakfast Buffet.
*The Mine (Located beneath Molly's) is fun for dinner, and has great atmosphere.
*Definatly try to visit SDC for 2 days. The park can be seen in 1, but you get more out of it if you visit for at least 2 days.
*Sunday's are my personal favorite days to visit the park (typically less people). There is also a church service at the Wilderness Church on the Square open to the public.
Hope this helps, ENJOY yourself, catch your breath, and try to take it all in.

[MissinTheGreenTrams]

If you go for two days, make one a beline for the roller coasters and swing, the next day a beline for the train. All of those rides fill up FAST! See the saloon show. Its a hoot! There are also many come and go shows/concerts throughout the day that are nice. If you like to pinch pennies, bring a small cooler with sammiches....bottled water is also a must! If you want to try the food there I like the corn dogs funnel cakes and everything deep fried to satisfaction! Go to Browns Candy Factory and get your free peice of peanut brittle! YUM! Dont cram everything into one day. Oh and the Lost River of the Ozarks is a must ride. Get there when they drop the cord to let people on (11am) or there will be a wait till christmas 2015! American plunge is the same. Both wonderful rides. See the demonstrating craftsmen at your leisure. Rest midafternoon with the Sons of the Silver Dollar.

[Ozarks Gal]

If you are a crazy planner like me, you might want to take a look at SDC's website: http://www.bransonsilverdollarcity.com. There is a lot of useful info on the site.
Get to the park as early in the day as you possibly can. You will beat the bigger crowds later in the day.

Ditto riding Wildfire, Powder Keg & The Giant Swing first thing, as well as the Train if you are interested. Their lines will be the longest later in the day. There are two more roller-coasters: Thunderation (which almost always has a pretty short line) and Fire-in-the-Hole (a gentler, indoor coaster--usually very fast moving lines). If you are going on a warm/hot day, the Lost River of the Ozarks is very fun for getting wet. Lines for this are usually long (in my experience). There is also the American Plunge for getting wet, and it has shorter lines. This is a current map of the City if it helps you plan a route for rides.

Saloon show is one of my favorite shows on the park. Like Trams said, many of the shows are outdoor theaters that allow you to come and go as you please instead of waiting in line for seats. If you hear something that sounds good to you, stop for a spell and enjoy!  This page gives the current show schedule, and it doesn't change that much during the summer as far as I know. As you get close to your trip date you may want to look at it and decide if there are any shows that sound can't-miss to you and your family.

As far as food, it really depends on what your family enjoys. My favorites are the Giant Skillet meals scattered around the park and Riverside Rib House. For dessert you must get a funnel cake! (I prefer a half powdered sugar/half icing myself). Here is the food guide from their website if you feel like planning ahead. Trust me, as you walk around the park your nose will let you know what smells good!

Part of what makes SDC stand apart from other parks is the Craftsmen on site. You MUST go to Brown's Candy Factory at the very least. I like to watch the Glassblowers (just nextdoor to the candy). Sullivan's Mill is also a personal favorite of mine (I love to bake, plus the smell of baking bread is so yummy when you walk in).


Welcome to the boards! If you have any questions, please ask. Everyone is more than willing to help.

[Joy]

Everyone else have made great suggestions, so I'll just say this: I know what it's like to plan ahead for a Disney World trip, so I have a tip.

Be relaxed. Don't get too caught up in following a plan. SDC can get crowded, but even on the busiest days of the Christmas Fest, I've been able to do everything I wanted to do by the end of the day.

Enjoy the atmosphere of the park. Once you've caught the big coasters (and really, depending on the day of the week, Wildfire shouldn't have too bad a line at any point of the day; Powderkeg is always the longest because of train capacity), make sure to just stroll around and take in the sights and smells and sounds.

If you give yourself two days at the park, you should be able to do everything you wanted.

And I definitely recommend Sunday as the best day of the week to visit; the crowds are typically smaller on Sundays.

I don't think I saw anyone suggest Marvel Cave... I highly recommend it, especially on a hot day. It has a lot of steps, but most of them you are navigating down instead of up (but if you're there on a day when the weather is threatening storms, I'd skip the cave, 'cause if thunderstorms come through, you have to walk back the way you came because they won't run the cable train at the end when there's lightning around; which means you have to walk UP all the steps you went down).

[FireInTheHole]

My two cents:

When you enter the park, go left to avoid coming up that Cardiac Hill.  When you go left, you can hit the log ride(line goes fast), Wildfire, Powder Keg, and The Fire In The Hole all in one swoop.  You can then cross over and ride the Tom Sawyer ride, Lost River, or both.  You can then hit either the flooded mine, or go back down and it Grand Exposition(please ride the Racing Regalas...super fast).  Then, on your way back up, you can ride the flooded mine(if you have not already), and then ride the train.  If you don't want to do that, then go past the flooded mine and hit Thunderation(line is usually really short).  I don't care for the Barn Swing, so I left that off.  If you are fast and get there when the park opens, you should have no problem riding the "bigger" rides with little to no wait.  In the summer, I have seen the line to Wildfire and Powderkeg really long and really short too.  I am sad to say that usually the line to The Fire In The Hole and Flooded Mine are too short.  They will usually just let you stay on the Flooded Mine until your fingers hurt from shooting so much.  Don't miss the shows.  They run many times during the day.  So, to avoid the heat, I would choose to go to those during the middle of the day.  However, most older people and families choose to do this as well.  Take advantage of riding the Powderkeg and the Wildfire at night...so much fun. 

Food:  anything

DO NOT FORGET TO TOUR THE CAVE.  DO THE LANTERN TOUR IF YOU CAN(do not go into that cave soaking wet from the water rides.  You will regret it!) 

That's just how my wife and I do by ourselves.  We are twenty somethings who absolutely love SDC.  With our kids in tow, we usually spend much of our time on Flooded Mine and at The Grand Exposition!

[MissinTheGreenTrams]

Racing Re-gattas make me sick.