Planning a Central USA road-trip

[methylene]

Howdy!

 

My wife, brother-in-law, and I are planning a car-trip from Houston to eventually Cedar Point for about this time next year.

 

We were originally going to fly, but I figure we can drive and take a couple of extra days seeing other parks on the way for about the same price.

 

Our itenerary thus far is this:

 

Day 1: Drive from Houston to Dallas early in the morning. Visit SFOT during the day. We needn't stay long as we used to live in the area and have visited hundreds of times. (Drive: ~4 hours)

 

More Day 1: Drive into Arkansas. (Drive: ~4 hours)

 

Day 2: Visit Magic Springs & Crystal Falls. Drive to Branson, MO (Drive: ~4 hours)

 

Day 3: Silver Dollar City and Celebration City

 

***Day 4: Drive to Santa Claus, Indiana (Drive ~7 hours)

 

Day 5: Holiday World

 

Day 6: Drive to Sandusky, hit the Kalahari Waterpark (also our hotel) that evening.

 

Day 7: Cedar Point

 

Day 8: Cedar Point

 

***Day 9: Drive from Sandusky to ???

 

Day 10: Activity

 

Day 11: Drive from ?? to Houston

----------

 

I need your help to find something else to do on Day #4, along with places to stop at on the way home. It doesn't necessarily have to be an amusement park, either, as long as it is entertaining.

 

Thanks in advance,

 

Matt

[Loopy]

Sandusky to Six flags Great america, (6 1/2 hours)

 

Great america to Six Flags St. Louis.....

[USRoadTripper]

You might want to check out www.roadsideamerica.com. They have tons of listings for little offbeat stuff that can be found in the US. I *love* this site, and check it any time I am driving to a place I've never been. They list more mainstream touristy stuff like caves and museums, and really random stuff like world's largest strawberries and authentic shrunken heads! What an awesome site!

 

-Julie

[methylene]

Thanks for the suggestions, however they appear to be all for naught now.

 

My wife's family is going to spend a week in the Gatlinburg area next summer, so instead of doing the 'trek through the central plains' or whatever that strech of nothingness between Houston and Cedar Point is called, we're looking at doing the following:

 

Drive to Hot Springs, visit Magic Springs. Stay a night.

 

Stop in at Lake Winnie on the way into TN.

 

Visit Dollywood and enjoy Gatlinburg for a week (Ober Gatlinburg is a blast).

 

Drive to Atlanta and visit SFOG.

 

Possibly hit Visionland or whatever the heck their name is this week on the return home.

 

Had we done this two years ago we would have also hit SFNO as we pass through LA, but SFNO is SBNO, heh.

 

Of course, all this is pending whatever the Alvey's have up their sleeve for next summer's adventure.

 

Matt