First Trip to Silver Dollar City: June 2026

I've had Silver Dollar City on my bucket list for years, and this past June we were finally able to get there! Since Emily and family live only a few hours away from Branson, I did some research into how to get us, Emily, and several of the kids' cousins there for the best bang for our buck. Thanks to a "Save Your Dollars at Silver Dollar City" Facebook group, I was advised to buy Diamond season passes for both Allison and I. With those two passes we got two free bring a friend tickets, two $10 bring a friend tickets, two $29 tickets per day we visited, and used a coupon for four $40 tickets. 

We took just Tyler and Oscar on Monday the 22nd with our $29 tickets so all the other discounts would be available for Emily's family on the other days.  Allison and I also got a nice perk with our diamond passes where we can use the fast pass Trailblazer line for the first hour the park is open every day we visit the park. Unfortunately at least half of the rides were closed when we first arrived due to a massive thunderstorm that went all through the night, and it was still raining hard up until around 8:30am. We heard huge thunderclaps that night and lightning flashes were so bright the lightning couldn't have been more than a few hundred feet away. Only a couple rides with Trailblazer access were even open during that 1st hour time frame. To top it off, I thought the park opened at 10:00am, not at 9:30am, so we only had 30 minutes to use our Trailblazer pass in a large park where we were completely unfamiliar with the geography. 

Since Fire in the Hole is their newest ride and I'd heard the line gets long later in the day, we opted to go there first. It's an indoor ride, so it doesn't shut down during inclement weather. With our trailblazer access we were on the ride within a couple minutes. Oscar and Tyler went there as well and waited about 30 minutes for their ride.

Fire in the Hole is a family friendly dark ride that's mixed with RMC (Rocky Mountain Coaster) elements and a splash at the end. The coaster part is nice and smooth like all RMC's, and the dark ride effects are well done. It's a great one for families looking for a little thrill but not too much.

After "Fire in the Hole" Allison and I went over to Wildfire. We missed being able to get in the Trailblazer line by about 10 minutes, but thankfully our standby line was only about 10 minutes long. The only other open rides where we could have even used our Trailblazer access had short standby lines anyway, which made me feel less bad about inadvertently arriving at the park 30 minutes after opening.  

Wildfire is a good coaster known for its high speed Cobra Roll, but I'm more into drops, launches, and airtime than intense inversions. I loved the initial drop and the beautiful views while you're on it, but I didn't love it enough to ride it again even though it was the only large coaster open. I always need a break after a coaster with forceful inversions. Instead we started walking back towards the front of the park to activate the photo pass I'd pre-purchased with our season passes.  

After Oscar and Tyler rode "Fire in the Hole," they got photos with Lucky the Rescue Dog then came over to Wildfire. We conveniently ran into them just as we were walking away from Wildfire. This worked out nicely since Allison didn't want to go with me to the front of the park. She stayed with Oscar and Tyler while they got in line for Wildfire. The line had gotten much longer by the time they got over there. Their line ended up taking about 40 minutes.

I caught the end of the 11:00pm Silver Dollar Circus show then went up to the front of the park to activate our photopass.

I had started looking for a way to retrieve our season pass refill bottles when Oscar texted to tell me Time Traveler had opened. They were nearly to the front of the line for Wildfire by then, so they stayed and got their ride in before meeting back up with me. 

Thankfully I wasn't too far away and was able to walk over to ride Time Traveler as a single rider. I should have gone right over, but instead I spent a few minutes trying to figure out where to get our refill bottles. Once I figured out how to get to guest services and saw how long the line was, I decided to go to Time Traveler and come back for the bottles later. By then the line was about 20 minutes. If I'd gone right over, it would have only been about 5. By the time I was done with the ride, the wait was over an hour. Whenever closed rides open, they update the app, and everyone rushes over there. If you're they're quickly, you'll get on quickly, but if not, the lines quickly go from 5 minutes to 60-90.

Time Traveler is a total standout among coasters. The spin is controlled just enough to allow you to have a different perspective on the ride each time. I'm not a huge fan of inversions, but I definitely preferred them with the spin than a straight up inversion without one. It considerably reduced the blood rushing to my brain feeling that I don't like about inversions. It felt more like being off to the side than going straight upside down. 

Oscar and the kids had picked up food and gone in to see the 1:00pm Silver Dollar Circus show. I grabbed our bottles and picked up some lunch then joined them for the end of it.   

I'd now seen the ending of the same show twice. Fortunately I was able to see the whole thing with the Anderson cousins the next day. It's a great show!

After the show Oscar used the nearby bathroom  while the rest of us got in line for the Barn Swing. As he left to join us he saw Powder Keg had just opened. He texted us while he hopped into a super short line. The Barn Swing line was slow with only one swing going, so we hopped out and went back to Powder Keg. By the time we got in the line, it ended up taking about 30 minutes before we got on the ride (they were only running one train), and by the time we were off the ride, the standby line was 90 minutes long.  

After Powder Keg we walked over to Time Traveler where the line was down to about 45 minutes. It would have been longer, but thankfully, they had two trains going and the line was moving well.  We also rode Thunderation. This is its final season, and I'm not sad to see it go. It was a little rough for me, and next year they're replacing it with a brand new family coaster called "Miner's Mountain Express."It's going to be made by Mack Rides, the same manufacturer as Time Traveler, so I'm sure it will be buttery smooth compared to it's 33 year old predecessor. 

We then grabbed some cinnamon bread and saw most of the Chris Stanley show. During the show we saw Outlaw Run had finally opened. I asked if we should go right over to it, but everyone was tired and just wanted to sit and watch the show, though we did go there afterwards. We weren't that far from it, but I am terrible at following the map in the app and took us the wrong direction. Once we got there, the line was about 45 minutes. To amuse themselves in line, Oscar and Tyler did silly things with their eyes, an ability Tyler clearly inherited from Oscar. 

Outlaw Run is fast and intense! I know I was holding onto the lap restraint for dear life. I don't know how anyone holds their hands up without getting thrown around. It's an RMC hybrid coaster built in 2013. RMC often takes already existing wooden coasters and converts them into hybrid coasters with steel tracks (like Iron Gwazi), but Outlaw Run was RMC's first wooden coaster built entirely from the ground up.

We had originally thought to finish up our day on Time Traveler, but after climbing down and up a couple flights of stairs, Tyler said the line was too long and ran out. We followed him at our own pace just to not be able to find him when we got out. We texted him and went over to wait for the 6:30pm train. He had decided to ride Thunderation without telling us, and he got done just in time to ride the train with us. Yes, Time Traveler had a longer line than Thunderation (30 minutes vs 10), but after climbing all those stairs, I would have rather just waited long for a better coaster than hike out of the area to ride a worse one. Tyler seems to be all about getting in as many coasters as possible regardless of quality. 

The train ride takes you through the Ozarks scenery and puts on a little show for you during the middle of the ride. The bandits "rob" the train of any gold and silver you have. When they saw kids with braces, they'd say they needed all that silver on their teeth. Sometimes people would give them stickers or other fun cheap things, and they'd act like they were the greatest treasure in the world. Some people would also give them coins, which the conductor would make sure all got back to their original owners before the train moved on.

While we were still at Silver Dollar City, Emily and her crew arrived at the hotel. We had set them up in a couple studios near the main hotel amenities. That evening I brought Tyler up to them to stay with James while I took Mary and Bonnie down to stay with us in our two bedroom. Allison bunked with Bonnie in the 2nd bedroom while Mary took the couch. 

On Tuesday Allison and I wanted to arrive right at 9:30am to make good use of our Trailblazer pass. Mary and Bonnie came with us and did their own thing for the first hour, and Emily, Millie, and James joined us a bit later. Oscar had his fill of the theme park after one day, and Tyler felt he needed a day off from the theme park too, though he did come back with us on Wednesday. 

We had hoped to ride Time Traveler, but like the day before, it was closed when the park first opened. The weather was cloudy and cooler than usual, but there wasn't rain or lightning, so I'm not sure why it was delayed. Powderkeg was also down. Instead we used our pass at Outlaw Run and Barn Swing, though we really didn't need it for either of those rides. Both had pretty empty lines since they're on the other side of the park. Thunderation was open when we came back to check on Time Traveler, so we went on that, and thankfully Time Traveler opened just before our first hour trailblazer was up. The pass was definitely helpful for Time Traveler since it had a decent sized standby line. People could tell it was going to open soon after they entered the park, so they waited it out and the line got big fast. Thankfully there were only a couple people in front of us in the Trailblazer line, and we were on the ride within just a few minutes. 

Emily arrived shortly after our ride on Time Traveler, so we went up to meet her at the front of the park and had some photos taken of us on the giant rocking chair. 

While we were waiting I heard back from Mary that they were in line for Mystic River Falls. Allison wanted to go with them, so I dropped her off at the exit and went back to the front of the park.

It took a few minutes to get them in since I accidentally redeemed my water park passes for them instead of my theme park passes, but guest services got it all taken care of for us. Once we were all in the park I took them down to the fire district where several children's rides are. Lucky's Dizzy Dogs was a HUGE hit with Millie! Emily had shown Millie YouTube videos of several of the rides here a few days before their trip, and Millie was super excited to go on everything she could. 

We all waited eagerly to see how Millie would take to riding "Up the Ladder." She was the same age Bonnie was when she rode the Frog Hopper at Silverwood, which completely terrified her at that age. Both she and 3 year old James had cried the entire ride. Thankfully Millie's ride was much more successful. She got a little concerned at the highest height, but otherwise she enjoyed it thoroughly and was asking to do it again the next day.

After playing in the Firehouse, they came out to meet Lucky the Rescue Dog. Millie went back to the Firehouse with Bonnie while I took Mary, James, and Allison on Firefall. Mary and James were nervous about it but ended up really enjoying it, especially Mary. It made her feel more daring about riding new rides and roller coasters.

Emily and Millie then went on the Marble  Cave tour. Powderkeg had finally opened, which Mary, Allison, and I all wanted to ride. Bonnie and James didn't want to go to either the cave tour or on the coaster. I convinced them to tag along and said they could just wait through the line with us if they didn't want to ride the coaster, but that we all needed to stay together.

It ended up being a really long wait, around 90ish minutes. Normally I wouldn't wait that long for this coaster, but I intentionally chose to wait in the hope of motivating Bonnie and James to ride it with us. I figured they'd be more likely to do it after waiting all that time, and I was right. By the end of the line they said "how about if we go on this coaster, we get dippin' dots after?", which I happily obliged. Mary thoroughly enjoyed the coaster and James tolerated it. Allison, was of course, having a grand old time with her hair flying behind her.

Bonnie was feeling fine until the coaster moved tracks to start its big launch. She was in hysterics for most of the coaster, but she realized she'd overreacted after it was over once she knew she was safe. I explained to her that coasters are actually safer than playgrounds due to the tremendous safety protocols they're put through and potential liability for getting sued if the restraints fail. 

Emily made a collage of serene Oscar on Powder Keg vs a screaming Bonnie next to me all pumped up and ready to go. 

Overall I think Powder Keg is a fairly tame family coaster, but the launch that gives it its name is fun. 

Before getting dippin' dots, I took the kids to the Silver Dollar Circus, which they all loved. They finally got to sit down after that 90 minute wait in line, and they were glued to the performers and wanted to meet them when the show was over. 

We reunited with Emily and Millie at the Dippin' Dots place then went over to Fire in the Hole. There was a decent sized line for it, but it moved fairly quickly and we were only in it for about 30 minutes. Fire in the Hole was a big hit with their family. The little bit of roller coaster track is just enough to excite them without scaring them.

After playing with some bubbles, we wandered around and found the Grand Exposition district, which was an area we hadn't discovered on our first day. It's family friendly with lots of rides Millie could do but that are bigger and more enjoyable for adults and big kids than most of the rides in the fire district. 

Since Emily and family seemed happy with all the offerings at Grand Exposition, I took Allison on Time Traveler. Mary thought about coming with us, but she said she would save Time Traveler for the next day. We met back up on the Flooded Mine. Allison's gun was defaulting in her favor and giving her points every time she shot from it regardless of if she hit a target.

Just before the park closed, we managed to squeeze in a ride on Mystic River Falls. It's an excellent rapids ride! It's similar to Infinity Falls at Sea World Orlando with an elevator to take you up to a big drop, though I think Mystic River Falls might be a bit longer overall and have a bit bigger of a drop. It sends you down a little twisting water slide before you drop too. 

Millie was borderline on tall enough for it, maybe even a bit too short for it, but the ride operator still let her on. Everyone enjoyed it, though Millie was confused by our getting wet. She said "but we're supposed to be in our swimming clothes!" 

That evening Oscar went shopping while several of the kids went swimming. The store was busy late! This parking lot photo was taken at Walmart at 9:44pm!

The next day we returned for another fun day, this time with Tyler. He'd enjoyed his day off but was eager to swim and hang out with his cousins when they came back Tuesday evening. He originally didn't think he wanted another day at the theme park, but he changed his mind. Emily wasn't sure how long Millie would last on day two right after a big full day, but she was eager to ride her favorite rides again and ended up making it from opening at 9:30am until about 4:30pm. 

Allison and I first ran to Outlaw Run, though our 1st hour trialblazer was unnecessary with how uncrowded it was. Time Traveler was not open yet, but they said it wasn't a long closure and could open anytime.

Powderkeg was actually open during the first hour and running two trains. Our 1st hour trailblazer definitely helped there. It got us on the coaster quickly and we were able to go back to see if Time Traveler had opened. It had indeed, and we were able to ride it twice before our hour ended. This was the day we made the best use of our first hour trail blazer benefit.

During that first hour, the older kids went on Mystic River Falls and American Plunge several times while Emily took Millie on the family rides in the Grand Exposition district.

We all met up in Grand Exposition around 10:45am. Mary, Tyler, and Allison really liked the Electrospin ride. We then explored Grandfather's Mansions and went on the 11:30am Train ride. After the train, Mary was asking to ride Time Traveler. She was nervous while waiting in line for it, and while she was putting her bag away I thought for sure she was going to chicken out. But she came back, rode in the very back seat with Allison, and she loved it! While we were at their house the Friday before coming down to Branson, she'd told me she was nervous about riding coasters because she didn't like that stomach drop feeling you get on the drops. By the end of this trip, she told me she was starting to like that stomach drop feeling. 

Oscar had an excellent lunch at the Mexican place across the street from the resort and went to the hotel owner's lounge area to work on his book.

After Time Traveler we got lunch. Getting food for various picky kids is challenging! Emily picked up several food items with the "Tasting Ticket" she bought while I hiked back uphill to get Chicken Fingers for Tyler at one restaurant and mac and cheese for Mary and Allison and a sandwich for me at another restaurant. By the time I got back down with that food, Emily and all of her kids except Mary had gone back to play in the Fire District. 

After eating my kids joined their cousins in the Firehouse while I chatted with Emily. We then rode Fire in the Hole together. I like how the raw photo here shows Mary and I in front of Emily and Millie. In the photo with a border, the border cuts us off.

There'd been some rain and lightning that had closed the splash pad in the Fire district along with some rides, though we could see Mystic River Falls from where we were sitting, and that never closed. I even got a message that the pools were closed at our resort (they close both the indoor and the outdoor pools when there's lightning). Most of the rides in the fire district remained up since the lightning was distant and most attractions are either indoor or low to the ground.

Once it was clear the lightning storm was on its way out, Mary came with Allison, Tyler, and I on the Barn Swing. She was nervous for it, but then loved it, just like Time Traveler. We rode it 3 times! 

We met back up with everyone else at the Christ Stanley show and ate Cinnamon bread. Allison got called up as a volunteer and was given a balloon dog named "cat." It was good to see the whole show this time and sit down for a nice breather.

While we were at the show I got a notification that the pools had opened back up at the hotel. This worked out nicely since several kids were getting worn out and wanted to swim, so Emily took Millie, James, and Allison back to the hotel. I took Mary, Bonnie, and Tyler on Mystic River Falls.

I then took Tyler on Outlaw Run while Mary and Bonnie went looking for American Plunge with terrible directions from me. 

I love my face in these ride pictures! Outlaw Run is intense!

It took Mary and Bonnie a long time to find American Plunge thanks to my horrible directions. We got done with Outlaw Run quickly and actually saw them coming down the plunge here. I was at the photo station retrieving their photos from earlier in the day and was able to tell the employee "those girls right there! I need their photo." After I'd retrieved all the photos from earlier, Tyler and I ran to join them for another ride. 

We finished off with Time Traveler, which closed, then reopened, then closed, then reopened again. It was a lot of stair climbing, but we managed to get in one last ride before heading out of the park. Poor Bonnie was in the shops and kept getting conflicting texts from me if we were going on it or not. 

That evening Allison was making an easy Mac while playing her tablet and forgot to put water in it. It made for quite the burn stink the rest of the night even with the fan on and all the windows open. 

Oscar went shopping while I was getting a nice shower and sitting in the jetted tub in our bathroom. He made excellent steak, potatoes, and Caesar salad for dinner. Emily and I felt spoiled like we were in a fancy restaurant! It was a great way to end our final day at Silver Dollar City.