When your adult group is planning a trip to Kansas City, you may want to visit the Chip’s Chocolate Factory. You will have the opportunity to enjoy a tasty treat and take a tour of the facility as part of the experience. The factory also has several items for you to purchase. The tour is known as the Chocology Education Tasting Experience and is perfect for any group size. During the tour, your group will learn about the history of chocolate, the process of making fudge, and the various stages of how cacao beans are turned into chocolate. Your group will have the opportunity to see the cacao beans in different stages such as nibs and powder. You will learn how it is harvested. The confectioner will also discuss beans being made into dark chocolate, milk chocolate, and white chocolate. When your guide discusses the history of chocolate, you will hear about different parts of the process. Specifically, they will talk about where it is grown, how it is harvested, and how it is made. The group will be given goodie bags filled with chocolate treats during the tour. The tour is 45 minutes long. The group will have the opportunity to witness the process of making delicious creamy fudge without marshmallows or cream in the recipe. Visitors will see steps in the process such as mixing, cooking, and how the mixture is cooled on special marble slab tables. Visitors will also witness a candymaker transform fresh ingredients into a loaf of smooth, creamy, fudge, and create unique chocolate confections. Chip’s has been making chocolate for over 30 years.

Virginia Beach is located near Williamsburg, Virginia. Your group can enjoy the ocean view during your visit to Williamsburg. There are several fun activities for the group to enjoy. Featured activities include: Flyboarding, Stand Up Paddle boarding, Fishing, Shopping, Dining, and other entertainment options. Entertainment options include the following: Mount Trashmore, Bush Gardens, American Indoor Karting, Nightmare House, Virginia Beach Amusement Park, Motor World, Flipper McCoys arcade, Golf Choices, and the Spirit of Norfolk Cruises. There are also tours for visitors as well. Featured tours and other famous locations include: the Boardwalk tour, Rudee Tours, Kayak Nature Tours, Historic St. Lukes Church, the Francis Land House, the Lynnhaven House, the Adam Keeling House, the Ferry Plantation House, the Adam Thoroughgood House, the Old Cape Henry Lighthouse, the Naval Aviation Monument and the Edgar Cayse Society. If your group enjoys museums there are several to visit. Featured museums include: the Old Coast Guard Station Museum, the Casemate Museum, the Virginia Living Museum, the Atlantic Wildfowl Heritage Museum and the Chrysler Museum of Art.

The Berkeley Plantation is located in Williamsburg, Virginia. The location is famous because the Harrison family including the 9th president William Henry Harrison resided in the house. Visitors can take guided tours of the Georgian Mansion and view the breath-taking landscape. The group will be guided by enthusiastic guides who are dressed in period costumes. Features include: the original 1726 mansion, a museum collection and beautiful gardens. The mansion is furnished with a magnificent collection of 18th century antiques. The museum collection contains artifacts from the Civil War as well as a unique collection of paintings that were made by artist Sydney King. The plantation also has a gift shop. The structure occupies a beautifully landscaped hilltop site that overlooks the historic James River. There are benches in the gardens for guests to sit and enjoy the peaceful setting. There are also five terraces of restored boxwood and flower gardens. The tour of the grounds is self-guided. Come visit this famous historic site today!

Exploring America > U.S. Cities > Williamsburg Tours

The Historic Yorktown Battlefield is located in Williamsburg, Virginia. The battle that took place at the location was the last major battle of the Revolutionary War. On October 19 1781, Charles Cornwallis surrendered which effectively ended the war and insured independence. Featured sites include: The siege, Yorktown National Cemetery, Victory Monument, the Moore House, Surrender Field, and the Nelson House in Yorktown. The Moore House is the place where two officers from the American and French Forces and the British Armies met to come up with a plan of surrender. The group can also observe   a cannon firing demonstration at Lamb’s Artillery. The demonstration features a volunteer living history gun crew that represents Colonel Lamb’s artillery regiment. The crew conducts periodic firing demonstrations with a reproduction 18-century siege gun, commemorating the merit and distinction which was displayed by Lamb’s Artillery during the siege at Yorktown. Colonel Lamb was born in 1735. Come visit this iconic historic site with your group today!

Who would think to look for a Hollywood Wax Museum in The Show Me State? Brilliant entrepreneur Spoony Singh – creator of the original wax museum in California – was inspired by his vision of bringing fans closer to their favorite stars, and opened the first Wax Museum in 1965. Fast forward 50 years: the celebrated Hollywood location is still going great guns, while another – located on Highway 76 – has become a top – and most photographed – landmark attraction in Branson, Missouri. Groups heading to this lively entertainment capital of the Midwest will experience a Hollywood star tribute like no other at Branson’s Hollywood Wax Museum; each of their remarkably life-like, life-sized wax figures is painstakingly crafted by a team of truly talented artists and takes at least three months to complete; ponder this fascinating art form while mingling with the A-listers! The Museum was recently revamped to include all-new amazingly-sculpted stars presented on sets from the most famous movie scenes of all time; everyone will recognize beloved Golden Age classics. Glide down the “red carpet”, skip along the Yellow Brick Road, meet and mingle with super heroes and super villains or throw on a wedding dress and “marry” a handsome celebrity. You and your group will pick up buckets of fun film facts and celebrity news on your unforgettable HWM adventure; perfect photo ops with “the stars” are plentiful, and the Museum’s Studio Store tenders guests the Midwest’s largest collection of celebrity-themed souvenirs and memorabilia – you’re certain to score the perfect memento of your visit to this mega-popular attraction.

Groups exploring the wide, wonderful world of Show Me State entertainment must definitely make a show at Dutton Family Theatre – an all-out, multi-genre musical extravaganza that’s excited and delighted guests of ALL ages for more than twenty years – a part of their fabulous Branson adventure. The Dutton family’s “love affair” with Branson, Missouri, began in 1997 when they first played at the Positive Country Theater, now the Pierce Arrow Theater. The following year they spent a full season in Branson at Barbara Fairchild’s theater – currently the “Starlight”. In 1999, Boxcar Willie offered the family the use of his venue for their show, which was renamed to “Dutton Family Theater” and purchased by the family in 2002. The Duttons, winners of “The Family Choice Award” are big on keeping things fresh while staying true to their tradition of world class family entertainment; their Branson venue saw a comprehensive makeover in 2011. Show director Amy Dutton says, “We design two completely new shows every year, and it seems that each show has several crowd favorites.” This mega-
talented family group of international touring and recording stars consistently deliver guests a lively variety show featuring everything from bluegrass to classical music. Each Dutton plays at least six instruments – violin, guitar, bass, viola, banjo, mandolin, keyboard, harmonica and drums, among others, and they’ve won recognition in national fiddling contests and as studio musicians and garnered effusive praise and awards in classical violin competitions. Their popular shows include high-energy dance and heartwarming and zany family comedy, offering Branson audiences appreciating a range of genres an impressive, flawless and well-rounded Dutton Family Theatre experience they will not soon forget; the Dutton “kids” and their offspring continue to do Mom and Dad Dean and Sheila Dutton proud.nded Dutton Family Theatre experience they will not soon forget!

Connoisseurs of the creepy and aficionados of the awful on Missouri holiday will definitely want to visit the clearly cracked Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Odditorium in beautiful Branson for a truly terrible tendering of all things weird and not so wonderful! The building itself, one of the most photographed in the world, appears rent asunder by a massive seismic event-which is the whole idea! While it’s common knowledge that the Golden State of California holds the record for shakiest grounds, Missouri’s New Madrid Quake of 1812 actually caused the Mississippi river to run BACKWARD for three whole days and rang church bells in Philadelphia-believe it or not. This popular palace of the preposterous is open daily and treats groups on Show Me State excursion to an eerie eyeful with its hundreds of strangely amazing exhibits and artifacts- when was the last time you saw a genuine vampire killing kit, a human unicorn, authentic shrunken human heads or a playing card replica of the Roman Colosseum?

Groups heading to the Show Me State with their hearts set on an out-of-this-world Branson vacation experience must not miss the opportunity to enjoy an enchantingly nostalgic cruise aboard the 278 foot paddleboat Branson Belle! Popular two and a half hour lunch and dinner cruises tender passengers unsurpassed views from aboard the grand lady of the lake, with a classic All-American menu of tender roast beef, oven fried chicken, garlic mashed potatoes, succulent sugar snap peas and a delicious homemade dessert accompany an exciting itinerary of dazzling showboat entertainment invoking all the glamorous spirit of a beloved- but-bygone era. Your premium paddleboat adventure begins upon boarding, when you are greeted by an affable emcee who will outline your tour for you, detailing the wonderful performances to come and offering a little history on the lovely Branson Belle, herself; after dining, feel free to wander the showboat and enjoy the stunning panoramic views of Table Rock Lake and the Ozark Mountains from her pristine outer decks. Once you’re back inside, prepare to be wowed by the talents of fine artists and musicians – enjoy performances by the world’s only aerialist/violinist, Janice Martin, The Showmen, fiddler Dean Church, accomplished pianist Julie McClarey, The ShowBelles female quartet, master of variety and funnyman Mike Bliss and others as you’re treated to a magnificent extravaganza of music, magic and laughs! One cruise on the beautiful Branson Belle Paddlewheel Showboat and you and your travel companions will see why she’s earned the important distinction of being “America’s most entertaining dinner cruise” – and the highlight of any Show Me State excursion!

Beautiful Branson is a vacationer’s dream; there is so much to see and do in this friendly city nestled deep in the Missouri Ozarks! Adventurous groups heading out on their Show Me State excursion won’t want to miss a lantern-light opportunity to explore world-famous Marvel Cave, right beneath good ol’ Silver Dollar City in the family-friendly destination of Branson, Missouri. In fact, Silver Dollar City actually came to be during the development and promotion of this natural wonder as a popular tourist attraction. 90 minute lights off, hand-held lantern tours of this remarkable living landmark, one of the deepest wet limestone caves in the country; are led and narrated by friendly and capable guides decked out in period costume who regale you with history, legend and lore as – heads ducked – you move steadily beneath the bustling surface, and descend into the eerily wet coolness of Silver Dollar City’s deepest, darkest secret, first discovered by native Osage Indians. As the tour commences you and your fellow spelunkers head down a long flight of stairs into the enormous and awe-inspiring Cathedral Room; photo ops are available here and are an absolute must. Your fascinating journey continues as you wend your way through various passages and rooms in 60 degree coolness (during the summer) and remarkably, a steady 60 degree warmth during the winter. You’ll follow an extended route through Marvel Cave, once nicknamed “The Devils Den” – stopping to explore intriguing, seldom visited areas along the way – and affording your trusty guide additional time to provide pertinent details, offer insights, and relate spooky ghost stories that may just put a lift in your stooped step. Watch your heads!

Groups on Show Me State holiday in search of a little extraordinary after-dinner entertainment may wish to work off their vacation-time splurge while wandering the shadowy streets of haunted Branson. You and your brave companions will be *treated* to photos, video and sounds of actual spirits of the departed as you pass by the city’s notoriously haunted locations. This popular 90-minute interactive walking tour of Historic Downtown Branson after dark is offered 365 nights a year and will at the very least engage the curious and pique the interest of the skeptics amongst you! Hook up with restless spirits at a local cemetery, learn about the haunting of Owens Theatre and a shootout at the train depot, run into a long-departed bank robber and explore a legendary lake area; this one-of-a-kind foray into the great unknown will leave you reveling in the “spirit” of your exploration! Boring? Not a ghost of a chance!

Exploring America > U.S. Cities > Branson Tours