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BEST things to do in Missouri 🐟🛍️🥾
35
items Everything you should see when planning a trip down to Missouri! This list is sorted by categories not by location so watch out when picking where you want to go!
Map
Sections
9
State & National Parks 🥾
Caves 🦇
Shopping 🛍️
Amusement Parks 🎢
Places to Eat 🌮🌭🍔
Museums & Actvities 🦖🦕
State & National Parks 🥾
Missouri is one of the prettiest states when it comes to scenic waterways and caves! We have 1 official National Park and lots of national waterways, monuments, and historical sites!
Echo Bluff is a statepark located on the Ozarks National Scenic Riverways! You can stay right on the water at the Timbuktu RV & Tent Campground or across the street in the Echo Bluff Lodge! Echo Bluff has over 15 trails along the water and around...
Echo Bluff State Park
Haha Tonka is one of the BEST state parks in the LOZ area! There are over 20 miles of hikes and SO much history at every stop. You’ll see tons of wildlife like ducks, fish, and otters and meet lots of people. The Castle Trail and Spring trail are the...
Ha Ha Tonka State Park
The Ozarks National Scenic Riverways stretch through a large part of Missouri and span through many other state parks and towns. There are rentable kayaks and canoes as well as campground you can stay at while exploring the many trails and float trip...
Ozark National Scenic Riverways
The St. Louis Arch is located in the heart of St. Louis and is our one and only National Park! You can ride an elevator all the way to the top of the Arch and look over the Arch Park underneath. This arch was also featured in the Percy Jackson books ...
The Gateway Arch
The lake of the Ozarks state park is my favorite state park to camp at!! McCubbins Point is the best tent or car camping location you’ll find in our LOZ state parks. It has such good views of the lake and nice big spots for friends to hang out and bu...
Lake of the Ozarks State Park
Johnson’s Shut Ins is a super unique state park towards the St. Louis Area. The rock formations you find here are what are known as the “Shut-Ins”. The state park has lots of trails, a restaurant, and a gift store. You can hike about a half mile in t...
Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park
Dogwood Canyon is not a state or national park, but it is one of Johnny Morris’ Nature Parks. This area has bike trails, walking trails, a restaurant, a HUGE treehouse, places to swim, and areas nearby to camp. There are waterfall trails and all sort...
Dogwood Canyon Nature Park
Elephant rocks have some super cool HUGE rock formations that you can hike up and see and are located very close to to Johnson’s Shut Ins State Park!
Elephant Rocks State Park
Eminence is home to some of the last fully wild horses, you can stay in surrounding campgrounds and catch a glimpse of them early in the morning or sit in the fields and wait to see them
Wild Horses - Ozark National Scenic Riverways (U.S. ...
Caves 🦇
Missouri has around 20 show caves and over 7,500 known cave systems throughout our state! Every cave has something unique to offer, you should definitely check one out when coming to Missouri!
When visiting the cave state, Bridal cave is a must see! There’s over 8 rooms you can see on their guided hour-long tours that happen every 20 minutes in the summertime! Bridal Cave features drapery formations, a wishing well, the frozen niagara, and...
Bridal Cave & Thunder Mountain Park
Fantastic Caverns offers a unique way to see a cave by riding a train jeep through the rooms. Fantastic has lots of history and is located to lots of very popular towns with many other attractions around!
Fantastic Caverns
Smallin Civil War Cave is one of the only caves that is completely wheelchair and stroller accessible. This cave has tons of civil war history that you’ll learn about when taking a guided cave tour! This is also a cave where you’ll be able to see bat...
Smallin Civil War Cave
Ozark Caverns is filled with tons of information and wildlife. This is a state park here in Missouri and is run by park rangers with degrees in nature research or cave studies. There are always tons of research projects going on and lots of new stuff...
Cave Tours - Lake of the Ozarks State Park
Jacob’s Cave is known for the Jacob’s Cave Swap Meet that takes place twice a year in spring and fall, they have tons of vendors and all sorts of products. Usually they sell bunnies, the usual farmers market items, and fun toys! You can also go on a ...
Jacob's Cave
Meramec Caverns is known as the Jesse James Cave here in Missouri! Theres tons of history and famous people that have gone through it!
Meramec Caverns
Shopping 🛍️
Missouri is home to Bass Pro’s very own Johnny Morris. We have lots of property’s owned by him and his team as well as some making their way to our towns! We also have tons of shopping malls and cute old towns!
There aren’t many stores left at the Osage Outlet Mall, but we do still have Eddie Bauer, Crocs, Bath & Body Works, and a few others! Within the next few years, we’ll be getting a bass pro and a LOZ visitors center so watch out!! Our outlet mall ...
Osage Beach Outlet Marketplace
Bass Pro in Springfield Missouri not only has the normal Bass Pro Shops but is also home to the Wonders of Wildlife aquarium and museum! You can go to the Lake without stopping by bass pro and checking it out for a few hours!
Bass Pro Shops
Amusement Parks 🎢
Missouri has some of the most famous amusement and water parks! Here’s just a few that even the locals like!
Silver dollar city is known to locals as the hillbilly disney/six flags. There are tons of rollercoasters, stores to shop around in, experiences to do, samples to try, and in the winter you can even tour the christmas lights!
Silver Dollar City
Super splash is our newest waterpark in the heart of Missouri down in the Lake of the Ozarks. Formally Big Surf, it has now been remodeled and added to and is just as fun as ever!
SuperSplash USA
Six Flags is a Missouri amusement park located in St. Louis Missouri! St. louis has TONSS of activities for kids and adults, this is a great town to stop in when you want to get in your shopping, playing, and walking around. Afterwards make your way ...
Six Flags St. Louis
Like a mix of Six flags and Supersplash USA, super fun family excursion!
Worlds of Fun
Places to Eat 🌮🌭🍔
Lamberts is one of the most famous restaurants near Branson Missouri known for their “thrown rolls”. They are a home style Cafe that usually has at least a 45 minute wait around lunch and dinner time. When you step inside the restaurant you’ll notice...
Lambert's Café
Almost like an indoor food truck style eatery, so many options of where to eat and different styles of food
City Foundry STL
Museums & Actvities 🦖🦕
Willmore Lodge is a historic building built in 1930 by Union Electric. It was built during the construction of Bagnell Dam which created the Lake of the Ozarks in the early 1930s. Willmore Lodge is now home to the Bagnell Dam museum where you can wal...
Willmore Lodge
The discovery center is a super fun place to stop at with your kids in Springfield! They are made for all ages and have lots of science based activities and facts to learn about!
Discovery Center of Springfield
Wonders of Wildlife is an aquarium located inside the Bass Pro Shops in Springfield, Missouri. You can buy tickets at the front desk and spend all day petting horseshoe crabs, stingrays, swimming with sharks, and walking around the enormous tanks of ...
Wonders Of Wildlife National Museum & Aquarium
This is the coolest place to go with your kids they are into space, dinosaurs, or anything science related! This museum has their own planetarium where you can lay on the floor and listen to the speaker teach you about the different constellations an...
Saint Louis Science Center
The MOST FUN place for kids EVER!!! They have all sorts of tiny towns with working machines for kids to use and so many handsome learning opportunities! There are fully stocked tiny grocery stores where your child can be the shopper or the cashier, n...
The Magic House, St. Louis Children’s Museum
Festive Events 🎄🎅🤶
This is such a fun holiday tradition at the lake with great actors who are so engaging with the kids!
Polar Express St. Louis
Come visit Santa down at Bridal Cave in december! You can talk with santa, get a treat, go on a cave tour, and even make your own ornament! This santa is truly the best and most realistic!
Bridal Cave & Thunder Mountain Park
Concert Venues 🎶🎤🎵
The Ozarks Amphitheater is located in Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri right next to Bridal Cave and the Camdenton City Square! They always have great shows with beers, food, lawn and chair seating!
Ozarks Amphitheater
The Hollywood Casino Amphitheater is a HUGE concert venue with great bands every year! The majority of their seating is in the lawn and you can rent chairs or bring your own blankets! There are food vendors and concert merch stands all around.
Hollywood Casino Amphitheater
Owned by Johnny Morris/Bass Pro, saw Hozier here last year, SOOO good!!!
Thunder Ridge Nature Arena
Where to stay 🛌💤
Rippling Waters is such a cute, quiet place to stay when you want to come to the lake for peace instead of partying! The owners are so kind and accommodating and have so much stuff to do around the area. You can take a fishing tour, swim on their bea...
Rippling Waters Resort
One of the coolest hotels that makes you feel like you’re inside the jungle! You can stay in the rooms surrounding the pool which have plants everywhere, complimentary breakfast close by, and porches within the trees!
Springfield, MO Hotel- Oasis Hotel & Convention Center, an Ascend Hotel ...