Places to hang your hat

You can choose fine spots in the middle of the action, but nature is the star outside the city.

By STEVE PERSALL
Published May 6, 2007

Once you settle in to Big Cedar Lodge, about 10 miles outside Branson, you might not budge for the rest of your trip. In addition to beautiful scenery, the lodge offers free and moderately priced activities.
	[Big Cedar Lodge]

BRANSON, Mo.

If you want to go country during a visit to Branson, you really should go country all the way.

Our two nights' lodging was split between Branson's mom-and-pop motel strip - a bargain for family vacations and reunions - and the region's premiere lakeside resort, a tranquil, modestly priced getaway for anyone.

What we paid for what we got in both places was reasonable, but escaping Branson's tourist vibe for the Ozarks' great outdoors was priceless.

Branson's downtown entertainment strip primarily offers economy motels or bed-and-breakfast hospitality. That will change next year when construction is completed on a Hilton convention center near the new Branson Landing shopping district.

Anchoring the strip is the Grand Country Inn (toll-free 1-800-828-9068; www.grandcountry.com), with an array of on-site tourist diversions. Room rates include free admission to Splash Country Indoors, an adjacent water park open 365 days a year, and price breaks at the buffet restaurant and shows. Splash Country tickets are $15 daily for nonguests, so parents with children begin saving money at check-in.

A short walk leads to the complex's homespun gift shops, miniature golf and Grand Country Music Hall with daily shows starring musicians, comedians and trained pets.

Grand Country is the MGM Grand of Branson, offering a bit of everything fun that the strip offers, without the slow drive along two-lane Highway 76. Nothing fancy; a room that cost $115 (including tax) on a Friday night was Motel 6 material down to the finicky shower head.

However, budget-conscious families won't mind Grand Country Inn's ordinary accommodations.

A peaceful escape from the strip

We sought something restfully romantic for the final night of our Branson stop. We found it 10 miles outside town in a private log cabin with fireplace and whirlpool tub at Big Cedar Lodge (toll-free 1-800-225-6343l; www. big-cedar.com). There are a variety of accommodations with rates as low as $80, but typically expect to pay about $150 to $300.

That's a small price for backwoods reality that Disney World's Wilderness Lodge fakes for a fortune.

Big Cedar Lodge opened in 1920 as a retreat for wealthy Missourians, opened to the public in 1948 and was purchased by the Bass Pro Shops sporting goods empire in 1987. There's plenty to do besides fishing on this 800-acre property, including blissfully doing nothing on a cabin's porch overlooking Table Rock Lake.

At one end of the porch sat a stainless steel gas grill waiting to be used. Big Cedar's room service delivers cookout packages for do-it-yourselfers, ranging from hot dogs ($10.95 per person) to 12-ounce rib-eye steaks ($29.95 per person) with sides, salads and condiments included.

You can cut costs by stocking the full-service kitchen. Plan well since the nearest grocery store is 15 minutes away.

The cabin's interior was equally captivating; walls adorned with beautifully mounted catches and kills, stained glass touches, rustic wooden furniture hand-carved by local artists and a floor plan making one room seem like four.

Cabins are also available with lofts or two-story and multiroom configurations for larger groups, or choose among three hotel-style lodges with similar designs.

It is comfortable lodging that's tough to leave, although Big Cedar offers plenty of enticements, including canoes, trails, games and a fitness center, all free.

Family events are available for $15 or less, such as bingo, fishing a stocked pond, photography tours and crafts classes. Bass Pro Shops sponsors the on-site Little Cedar Kids' House for babysitting ( $15 per hour or $40 a day) while parents enjoy a sunset champagne cruise on a restored 1920s Chris-Craft runabout or some other adult pastime.

Dining opportunities run from soup and sandwiches at Truman Smokehouse to posh entrees at Worman Steakhouse and Top of the Rock restaurant. Buzzard Bar was the recommended watering hole, but a long line sent us back to Dick Clark's place in Branson for a St. Patrick's Day toast.

One day's stay wasn't nearly enough time to enjoy everything. I assure you there will be another, longer visit.

Honestly, southern Missouri was never my idea of a vacation spot. Experiencing Big Cedar's woodsy charm, plus the area's quaint nostalgia, changed that. Folks around here refer to Branson as the Las Vegas of the Ozarks, but they may have that comparison backward.

We experienced those tourist destinations back-to-back, and now affectionately refer to Las Vegas as the Branson of the Mojave.

[Last modified May 4, 2007, 20:49:53]