Road trip plans, Part 1: Check out Wichita or Oklahoma City for weekend trips
This is the first in a three-part series.
The Labor Day holiday is a few days away, do you have your three-day weekend plans set? Are you tossing around the idea of getting out of town for the weekend? Maybe, a longer trip?
Well, here are some locations to consider for weekend trips: Kansas City, Wichita, Oklahoma City, St. Louis, Twin Cities, or maybe Chicago.
You don’t want to go to too large of a city? Check out North Platte, Nebraska. Or maybe drive the Genius Highway in northern Missouri, and spend a night or two in Hannibal, hometown of Mark Twain.
If you decide to hit the road for the holiday weekend or any other long weekend, we’d like to offer some suggestions over the next few days.
Wichita, Kansas
How about checking out America’s cattle trails? About a 4.5-hour drive from Omaha, Wichita is home to the end of the Chisholm Trail. It runs through the Cowtown District. You can visit Hatman Jack’s store. Hats can be custom made. There are a variety of hats – Cowboy and others – on display. It’s kind of like a hat museum.
Old Cowtown is a living history museum that takes you back to the days of the cattle drives. You can take a trip back to a day in the life of a cowboy. The herd has been driven in, you have some spare money. What do you do? Grab a quick shower and shave at the barber shop. Head off to the salon for drinks and fun. Who knows? Just don’t end up in the marshal’s office.
Wichita is home to the Keeper of the Plains monument. It honors the region’s Native Americans. The monument is along the Arkansas River. It’s lit nightly with a ring of fire, which attracts several visitors.
No trip to Wichita is complete without a visit to the Nifty Nut House. This candy and nut store has to be seen to be believed. Retro candy is on display amidst the variety of nuts. People line up to order fresh nuts. The store has been named one of the top food attractions in the United States by Food Network’s Alton Brown.
The Sedgwick County Zoo is a cool place to visit. It has an outdoor penguin attraction. The zoo has animals we’ve never seen before – long-haired sheep from Central Asia, Scottish cows and French donkeys. It is a fun place to visit.
Wichita is home to the original Pizza Hut building. It was started by a couple of brothers near Wichita State University. Now, it’s a multi-billion corporation.
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Oklahoma City is about a 7-hour drive from Omaha. The Oklahoma capital has much to offer visitors.
Of course, there is the Murrah Federal Building memorial, site of one of the worst terrorist acts in our country’s history. The memorial is well done and is a sobering visit.
The state capitol building complex is an interesting place to visit. Oklahoma is proud of its Native American heritage and you can see that in a lot artwork and displays.
The complex has a lot of war and veteran memorials.
The National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum honors Native Americans and cowboys throughout the history of the West. A large scale model of the”End of the Trail” depicts a Native American’s sadness at the loss of his homeland.
The American Cowboy section examines the life of a cowboy.
Downtown Oklahoma City is a must-see. You can either walk along the canal or take a guided tour on boat. The attractions are interesting to see. Murals dot buildings with old postcards from the area.
A memorial to Oklahoma’s nickname – “The Sooner State” – depicts homesteaders jumping the gun to stake their claims as the territory was opened for settlement.
Bricktown is an interesting area. You have a mix of restaurants, stores and bars. It’s also home to the AAA baseball team’s stadium. The city honors some Oklahoma greats who have played baseball – Mickey Mantle and Johnny Bench among them.
The Oklahoma City Zoo if an excellent place to visit. It has a large elephant area that should be visited. You actually walk along a boardwalk built above the exhibit.
Oklahoma is part of the famous Route 66 highway that runs from Chicago to Santa Monica. We visited a few spots along the highway. We had dinner at Pops in Arcadia. It’s also home to a round barn. Mutt’s in OKC offers some great hot dogs.
Wichita and Oklahoma City are a couple of great getaway cities for a long weekend. If you venture into the Sunflower State or the Native America State, have a fun and safe visit.
For more information on these communities’ attractions, please visit:
