Wife wants to getaway for a couple days while we are still young enough to have a good time. We’ve been to the normals, Destin, Orange Beach, Gulf Coast, etc. Was looking for a new place to visit. Also have a 12 year old son if that will make a difference. Just curious as to where the Pack weekday vacations.
Best 2-3 day summer vacation within 5 hours?
- Thread starter Dogdazey
- Start date
Within 5 hours of where, Jackson? Details Bob. If you are in Columbus, that means Nashville and Atlanta are under 5 hours, not so much from Vicksburg.
Rent a house boat on Lake Ouachita. Just out from Hot Springs. Everyone will love it. Crystal clear water, fishing, and fun. Last year it cost us around $2500 for the week. So a few days would be cheap
Yeah 5 hours lends itself to the theory of relativity. Gatlinburg is worth a visit. Dollywood is better than expected.
I said 5 hours but really meant driving distance and didn’t want to spend an entire day getting there.
Nashville might be stretching the 5 hour requirement, but the Sound Waves waterpark at the Opryland Hotel is really nice. And since it's exclusive to guests, it's not as crazy a scene as the usual waterpark.
Of course, there's the normal toursity things to do in Nashville too.
Of course, there's the normal toursity things to do in Nashville too.
The 12 year old may enjoy Great Wolf Lodge in Grapevine, TX. Indoor waterpark so you’re not dying in the heat… catch a rangers game and do whatever in DFW.
Lake Ouachita like someone else mentioned is one of the top 5 cleanest lakes in America. Close to Hot Springs and it’s got a lot to do.
Gatlinburg has all the outdoor stuff and dollywood
Atlanta for a Braves series… tickets are cheap because they suck right now. Georgia Aquarium is incredible and Stone Mountain could be fun. 6 flags right there too.
If you’re a fisherman then white river/norfork river in north Arkansas is great and it’s not too far from silver dollar city in Branson
Broken Bow, OK has an awesome lake, putt putt, ridiculously nice cabins, great trails
Lake Ouachita like someone else mentioned is one of the top 5 cleanest lakes in America. Close to Hot Springs and it’s got a lot to do.
Gatlinburg has all the outdoor stuff and dollywood
Atlanta for a Braves series… tickets are cheap because they suck right now. Georgia Aquarium is incredible and Stone Mountain could be fun. 6 flags right there too.
If you’re a fisherman then white river/norfork river in north Arkansas is great and it’s not too far from silver dollar city in Branson
Broken Bow, OK has an awesome lake, putt putt, ridiculously nice cabins, great trails
I recommend the walk in beer cooler at your local convenience store. **
seriously, I like the Arkansas suggestions even though I’ve never been it sounds nice. Another suggestion would be New Orleans. You can stay downtown, take a riverboat cruise up to the zoo & then back after you’re done there. The WWII museum downtown is excellent & they have an aquarium too. And of course plenty of good restaurants.
seriously, I like the Arkansas suggestions even though I’ve never been it sounds nice. Another suggestion would be New Orleans. You can stay downtown, take a riverboat cruise up to the zoo & then back after you’re done there. The WWII museum downtown is excellent & they have an aquarium too. And of course plenty of good restaurants.
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Find a cabin on a mountain somewhere in the Ozarks around Branson on Airbnb
You can go eat or shop or whatever in Branson then then go to your cabin out in the woods and where it’s quiet.
You can go eat or shop or whatever in Branson then then go to your cabin out in the woods and where it’s quiet.
I am assuming you're in the Jackson area....it's a little over 5 hours, but go to Chattanooga. It's got a great, walkable downtown, good food, the aquarium, white water rafting, and plenty of other options.
Don’t know if you’re a baseball fan or not but if so, maybe consider St. Louis. If the cardinals are in town, Busch is a great place to watch a game. St. Louis has a great zoo, that is free. There is a place called city museum there that is like a huge indoor playground. Your kid will love and you will likely have a lot of fun too. Obviously, St. Louis has earned its reputation of a dangerous place but we’ve never felt in danger sticking to popular places and my family has always enjoyed our weekend trips there.
Take the train to New Orleans. It's like visiting another country. See the quarter (during the day) if y'all haven't. Otherwise explore other parts of the city.
Hot Springs is a good long weekend trip and 5 hours from Jackson.
Also have the Incline Railway, Lookout Mtn and the minor league baseball team as well.
Huntsville. Visit the rockets.
Wondering the same. Got me thinking. I looked up a few rental companies and it appears they'll provide a pilot to move it to a cove for you. And you can pay to have it moved again during the week if you want. Not sure if they let you drive those bad boys. Some of them were 85' long and 16' wide.
That makes sense. I myself am Captain of a 22' party barge (and not to mention a Sixpacker) so obviously I'm fully qualified, but seems like a helluva lotta boat for the average schmuck.
What I've learned from this tread: too many SPSers have no idea of what 5 hours from Jxn means.
New Orleans for the best food in the world. Gulfport has a great model train and Lego museum.
Yep. They take you out and bring you in. Other than that, you drive it. Just pull up on a beach or bank wherever and rope off. Easy with 2 men. If you aren’t terribly far away, they’ll bring you ice and whatever you want, for a fee. But not crazy. It’s fun to drive. Goes about 12 knots
A little intimidating at first. But i drove a 90’ boat it Disney for 2 years back in 2000-2002. So im very qualified. Kidding. Intimidating but once you go, its easy
Literally 5 hrs and 4 min to Hot Springs from Jackson. But it is about 20 past. So you right. Lol
****We’re just used to driving back home from a football game after it takes an hour and a half to get out of the parking lot. Once we get moving we cover more ground than the average driver***
And stay at the Union Station Hilton Hotel if you can.
Great light and sound show every hour.
Really cool hotel and a short Uber ride to Busch Stadium
I second Broken Bow. It is mountains adjacent. The town(s) are nothing if you are expecting Gatlinburg type entertainment but you can have a very nice quiet weekend there. The lake is awesome, places to swim in the state park in the cold water and the cabins/condos are top notch. But boy are they proud of them price wise lately.
We rented one on a new promotion a couple of summers ago and they have since doubled in price. The locals told us that it is the weekend getaway spot for a lot of folks in Dallas/Fort Worth that want to get out of the city for the weekend.
Maybe you're just a poor and don't realize how far our private planes can go in 5 hours.**
2nd STL. The Arch National park is cool too. Eat on The Hill for a more authentic Little Italy than in Manhattan.
I’ve been saying this a lot lately but when it comes to big cities & safety… This year I’ve been in STL, Chicago, NYC, & hitting Mia/FLL in a cpl days. If you grew up running around Jackson and like everyone else around here hitting weekend trips in Memphis & Nola, there is nowhere in the US more dangerous. The French Quarter is 10x more sketchy & dangerous than anywhere I’ve traveled this year. If you know how to carry yourself, aware of surroundings, & avoid the worst areas you have no business in, you’ll be fine. It quite literally doesn’t get worse than where we’re from.
If you are a wine drinker I highly recommend NE Georgia. There are a lot of good wineries around Dahlonega. We usually stay at the Dahlonega Inn on Main and take day trips other towns in the area stopping at wineries along the way. The owner's brother does wine tours where he drives you around to different wineries in the area for the day.
I've seen people mention Hot Springs AR and we usually make one trip a year over there. The city has a unique history and the boathouses are very interesting. Normally we go when the horses are running at Oak Lawn. You can do and see everything in town in two days. I highly recommend booking a private bath and massage at the Quapaw Bathhouse.
I've seen people mention Hot Springs AR and we usually make one trip a year over there. The city has a unique history and the boathouses are very interesting. Normally we go when the horses are running at Oak Lawn. You can do and see everything in town in two days. I highly recommend booking a private bath and massage at the Quapaw Bathhouse.
With a 12 year old, I would suggest the Branson area. It's probably more like 7 hrs but a lot of fun with kids. They have Silver Dollar City, Whitewater water park, and tons of the putt putt, go cart, shows, etc. stuff to do. If you want water stuff, lake Tanycomo (sp?) is pretty nice.
When our kids were around that age, we got season tickets as a package deal to the theme parks> water park early in the day, late lunch, SDC and roller coasters till they closed, then go carts or ??. Our kids never got tired of it. Be prepared to give the wife half a day-ish to hit the outlet malls. They still had a black and decker outlet last time I was there to give break from all of the shoes and clothes stuff.
City Museum is a cool but strange place. Very abstract. Went there with a group of kids. Went looking for a place to buy a coke. squeezed through a bunch of "pathways" and eventually found a pool hall with few people drinking bear and playing pool somewhere in the middle of it. Probably couldn't find it again if you paid me.
I hear the Natchez Trace National Park is nice this time of year. **