Nestled in the beautiful Ozark Mountains, Branson is a spectacular destination for convention and business travel, as well as for family-friendly vacation travel. Home to more than 100 live shows ranging from rock ’n’ roll to bluegrass, country to jazz, Broadway to swing, Branson is known as the live-music show capital of the U.S. Branson event venues offer access to spectacular entertainment, a variety of unique venues, top-notch dining and shopping and group-friendly outdoor adventures. In fact, Branson ranks as Missouri's top vacation destination, welcoming more than 8 million visitors each year.
Getting to Branson is easier than ever, thanks to the new Branson Airport and nearby Springfield-Branson National Airport. Opened in 2009, the $155-million Branson Airport is located just 10 miles south of downtown Branson and is the first privately financed and operated commercial service airport in the United States. Branson Airport features nonstop service to many major U.S. cities, including Atlanta, Denver, Chicago and Houston – with more flights to be added soon with the announcement of Southwest Airlines' new service to Branson. Branson-bound groups can also use the Springfield-Branson National Airport, which is located 50 miles outside of the city. Serving southwest Missouri, Springfield-Branson National offers 70 daily flights with connections to eight international airports. Springfield-Branson National Airport's new $115-million terminal, opened in 2009, makes traveling to such nonstop destinations as Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles and Las Vegas easier than ever. Once in downtown Branson, groups can hop aboard the free Historic Downtown Branson Discovery Trolley, which provides daily trolley service throughout historic downtown and to all Branson Landing shopping and dining destinations, as well as the Branson Convention Center.
Known as the crown jewel of Branson Landing, the Branson Convention Center is a modern, state-of-the art facility featuring 220,000 square feet of flexible meeting and event space. The center, which sits along Lake Taneycomo and within walking distance of historic downtown Branson, is part of the $490-million Branson Landing development project, a shopping and entertainment district complete with restaurants, marinas, condominiums and a boardwalk. The two-level Branson Convention Center features a 47,000-square-foot exhibit hall, 23,000-square-foot ballroom and 10 meeting rooms ranging from 1,200 to 5,500 square feet. The center is conveniently connected to the Hilton Branson Convention Center Hotel with 292 rooms and located directly across from the 242-room Hilton Promenade.
Branson's first AAA 4 Diamond resort, Chateau on the Lake Resort & Spa features 43,500 square feet of meeting space, including an elegant 32,000-square-foot ballroom. The hotel has 301 guest rooms, panoramic views of Table Rock Lake and incredible dining options. The Spa Chateau offers 10 treatment rooms, exotic European therapies, yoga, Pilates and much more.
Big Cedar Lodge, tucked into the wooded hillsides of the Ozark Mountains with incredible views of Table Rock Lake, is a breathtaking resort inclusive of 246 unique accommodations, 19,427 square feet of meeting space in the Grandview Conference Center, a full-service marina, spa, special events and numerous outdoor activities including hiking and horseback riding. The Radisson Hotel offers 472 guest rooms, 15,000 square feet of meeting space and a location right in the heart of shopping, golf, dining and shows. Options for small to medium-sized groups include: The Grand Plaza Hotel, Thousand Hills Golf Resort, The Stone Castle Hotel, Westgate Branson Woods Resort, Stonebridge Golf Resort, Lodge of the Ozarks, The Camden Hotel and The Payne Stewart Golf Course.
Branson is home to a variety of unique venues that welcome group events on everything from a paddleboat cruiser to a canopy setting among the Ozark treetops. The 700-seat paddlewheel Showboat Branson Belle cruises the beautiful Table Rock Lake, offering both public dinner cruises and private charters. Dinner cruises include a three-course meal and exciting entertainment in the three-level dining area. VIP seating and a secluded 40-seat Club Room is available for private groups. Groups may also gather at Branson Zipline and Canopy Tours, where they can soar through the treetops over rugged bluffs and the forest floor of Wolfe Creek Preserve, just seven miles north of Branson. This unique attraction also offers a variety of private group spaces, which include the Observation Deck, the partially covered Xplorer Balcony and the Prospector Pavilion, a covered, Amish timber frame structure with table seating.
Additional Branson unique venues include Silver Dollar City, mid-America's largest theme park. The internationally awarded park is designed to resemble an 1880s craft village, complete with a dozen home-style restaurants, 60 unique shops and 40 daily live shows, in addition to thrill rides, water rides and family activities. Silver Dollar City offers outdoor covered facilities for groups of 100 people or more, as well as customized event services and group rates. For a uniquely glamorous group event, Branson's Titanic: The World's Largest Attraction offers private event space at the bottom of its recreated Grand Staircase, as well as catering services for sit-down and progressive dinners. The extremely popular attraction has been built half-scale to the original Titanic, towering 100 feet above sea level in the heart of Branson. Branson's Titanic: The World's Largest Attraction is designed to give guests the feeling of being passengers on its 1912 maiden voyage. Guests can experience life on board as it was 100 years ago by walking through recreated parlors, hallways, and cabins and down the Grand Staircase.
