From Museums to Ferris Wheels Branson Has It All!

December 13, 2018

From museums to ferris wheels, Branson has so much to do for the family during your visit.  You can gain a real understanding of what happened the night the Titanic struck an iceberg and actually feel the temperature of the sea water at the Titanic Museum.  And you can get a stunning view of the Ozark Mountains on the Branson Ferris Wheel at the Track Family Fun Park.

I was invited by Stone Castle Hotel and Conference Center as part of a media FAM to explore Branson, Missouri. All opinions are 100% my own.

My trip to Branson was filled with Christmas Shows, a theme park visit, a paddle boat ride (including a show and dinner), amazing restaurants and a movie.  But there was still so much more we were going to do on this trip!  The Titanic Museum and Branson Ferris Wheel were also on the agenda.

The Titanic Museum

My son and I are amazed by the story of the Titanic.  I especially loved the movie that came out 21 years ago.  But to actually see, hear, and feel the artifacts, stories and photographs of what happened that night was eerily fascinating.

Due to our tight schedule for the day we had to take an abbreviated tour of the Titanic Museum that is a self-guided walking tour through a one-of-a-kind exhibit.  The museum features many original artifacts from the ship and has an exact replica of the $1 million grand staircase.

When we arrived, we were told that we could not take pictures or videos inside of the museum because of the precious artifacts housed there.  But I feverishly took notes on my phone from our tour guide.  Our tour guide Jim, conversely shared with us an astounding number of facts as we weaved through the museum’s exhibit.

Fun Facts about the Titanic Museum

• The museum is a half-scale model of the Titanic itself.
• Each guest receives a boarding pass which represents one of the passengers or crew members (see photo below).
• There are 400+ original artifacts and items valuing $4.5 million.
• You can touch a real iceberg.
• There are sloping decks that emulate the various angles of the ship as it went down that you can walk on (or try to walk on).
• You can view the various cabins and suites from first class to third class.

Thank goodness I took notes because there was so much information to learn about that one visit isn’t enough to really learn about that fateful night and the 37 seconds from the time the iceberg was spotted to the time the ship struck it.  Those 37 seconds were spent trying to turn the ship to avoid catastrophic damage; sadly 35 minutes later it was clear the ship would not survive.  It took two hours to fill the lifeboats.

Passengers of the Titanic

To give you some perspective on the fate of the ship’s passengers here are some more facts:

• 2,208 passengers were on board, 712 of them survived
  • One fifth of the men lived
  • 433 women were on the ship, 322 survived
  • 133 children were on the ship, 67 survived
    • Seven children were in first class
    • 27 children were in second class
    • 97 children were in third class
    • Two children were part of the crew

Did you know that there is a famous polar bear that belonged to one of the children on the ship?  The bear belonged to Robert Douglas who was six when he was on the Titanic.  He survived that dreadful night; but was struck by a car at the age of 9 and was killed.

There are so many more stories I can share from my experience on the tour, but the one that really stayed with me was one of the last stories Jim told us.  One of the survivors of the ship couldn’t go to baseball games and his grandson asked him why he didn’t take them to games.  He told his grandson that when the crowd cheered at a baseball game, it made the same sound as the people going into the freezing water as the ship was sinking.  Wow!  That story gives me the chills!

I consider a stop to the Titanic Museum a MUST DO when you visit Branson, MO.  Here’s a quick recap from my Facebook live sharing with you the view of the Grand Staircase and some of the items in the gift shop.

Track Family Fun Park

If you are looking for some fun and adventure with your family, the Track Family Fun Park has it!  We arrived early to the park to ride the Ferris Wheel and it was the perfect Autumn morning for it.  I rode in a car with Tina Brown from Footprints in Pixie Dust and the view was beautiful.  The foliage in Branson had just reached its peak so we could see the beautiful colors in the distance.

The Branson Ferris Wheel

But the best part of the Branson Ferris Wheel is the story behind it!  The Branson Ferris Wheel came over to Branson, MO from Chicago’s Navy Pier.  When Chicago’s Navy Pier Ferris Wheel was created, the design was inspired by George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr.  He designed a revolving steel observation wheel for the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago.  It’s first ride was on June 21, 1893.

Fun Facts About the Branson Ferris Wheel

• When it was in Chicago, The Chicago Navy Pier Ferris Wheel opened on July, 1, 1995
• It was 150 feet tall
• It displayed 16,000 lights
• There were 40 gondolas to seat 6 people per car
• Total capacity 240 riders
• The last spin in Chicago was September 17, 2015 to make room for a bigger ferris wheel.
• While in Chicago for 20 years, it provided 17 million rides!

The ferris wheel moved to Branson, Missouri in 2016 and offers its riders a view of the several theaters, landmarks, attractions and best of all, the Ozark Mountains!  It has special enhancements of its own now that it is housed in Branson. Check it out!

• There are an additional 16,000 LED fixtures holding 144,000 individual lights.
• Each individual light can be computer controlled.
• The foundation was constructed using over 4 million pounds of concrete, over 6 million pounds of gravel, 80,000 pounds of steel, and piers that go down as far as 23 feet into the solid rock.

Check out the video of the delivery and installation of the Branson Ferris Wheel from Chicago, IL to Branson, MO.

Then the installation and next chapter for the Branson Ferris Wheel.  The footage for this footage was captured by the Haygoods’ documenting production crew.  They also helped design the lighting for the ferris wheel.  I love how the businesses of Branson work together with each other.

Attractions at Track Family Fun Park

The Track Family Fun Park doesn’t just have a ferris wheel.  In addition to the Branson Ferris Wheel you can also do the following:

• Drive Go-Karts on 14 different tracks featuring:
  • Heavy Metal High Rise track that is over four stories tall.
  • The Wild Woody high-rise wooden track with hills and thrills, twists and turns.
  • The Lumberjack
  • A Road Course Track
  • Classic Go-Karts
  • Rookie Go-Karts
  • Kiddie Go-Karts for children beginning at 4-years-old
• Rides and More
  • Enjoy Bumper Boats or Bumper Cars
  • Kids Rides
  • Batting Cages
  • Laser Tag
  • Laser Maze Challenge
  • Skycoaster
  • Mini Gold
  • Route 76 Glow Golf
  • Arcades
  • Wild Woody Mining Company

I know when I go back I want to ride the Go-Karts with my kids and my daughter would love the batting cages!

Make sure you add the Titanic Museum and Branson Ferris Wheel to your itinerary when you travel to Branson with your family!

What would you do if you came to the Track Family Fun Park?  Leave me a comment of what your favorite activity would be.