My wedding anniversary is mid-September and we're lookng for a place within a short (2-3 hours) drive of Tulsa to go for the weekend or maybe just one night.
Not OKC- we lived there for a couple of years. Eureka Springs is an option- we've only been once, for one night, so any suggestions for there are welcome too. Big Cedar resort in Missouri looks really nice, but a little far if we can only go for one night. Although I would love to know if anyone's been there what they thought, maybe for a future trip. We'd like to be able to have a nice dinner, maybe go hiking, and just relax.
Thanks for your help!
I've been wanting to stay overnight at the Price Tower Hotel in Bartlesville. Take a tour of the old Phillips Mansion while you are in Bartlesville. We enjoyed the tour of the old mansion. I can't suggest is a great place to eat in Bartlesville though. I'm picturing smothered chicken and a cucumber and tomato salad with a fruit bowl dessert.
I recommend my old stomping grounds, the Ouachita Mountains. I stayed at the Eagle Creek cabins near Octavia ( http://www.guestcottages.com/ ) back in 1996 and would recommend it to anyone (unless they have changed since then). You could also look into the lodge on top of Rich Mountain at Queen Wilhelmina State Park in Arkansas, and there are cabins at Beaver's Bend State Park near Broken Bow. You'll find some of the best (if not THE best) scenery in the region. Octavia is about 3 hours from Tulsa, as is Rich Mountain. Beaver's Bend is a bit further, maybe 3.5 hours.
quote:
Originally posted by Hometown
I've been wanting to stay overnight at the Price Tower Hotel in Bartlesville. Take a tour of the old Phillips Mansion while you are in Bartlesville. We enjoyed the tour of the old mansion. I can't suggest is a great place to eat in Bartlesville though. I'm picturing smothered chicken and a cucumber and tomato salad with a fruit bowl dessert.
Hey, I was going to mention the Price Tower. There is a restaurant near the top of the price tower and its great. I've been looking for an excuse to stay in a room there.
Otherwise, I'd say you are on the right track thinking Eureka.
quote:
Originally posted by jne
quote:
Originally posted by Hometown
I've been wanting to stay overnight at the Price Tower Hotel in Bartlesville. Take a tour of the old Phillips Mansion while you are in Bartlesville. We enjoyed the tour of the old mansion. I can't suggest is a great place to eat in Bartlesville though. I'm picturing smothered chicken and a cucumber and tomato salad with a fruit bowl dessert.
Hey, I was going to mention the Price Tower. There is a restaurant near the top of the price tower and its great. I've been looking for an excuse to stay in a room there.
Otherwise, I'd say you are on the right track thinking Eureka.
Agree with Eureka Springs. Lots of bed and breakfasts and more than a few nice restaurants and shops.
I was going to say OKC but you took care of that. What about Joplin, MO? A bit farther is that Music City in Missouri who's name escapes me now. They say that's quite a place to see, but rather expensive. (OK, I just remembered the name it's Brandson, Missouri Music Town~ I know I spelled it wrong). Two-Three hours driving time really limits you. If you can increase that time limit and do a longer vacation you can go visit the Dallas/Fort Worth area, theres lots to see and do there. The Texas State Fair in Dallas is coming up soon too. There is also Wichita, Kansas but that is over three hours. I wish you the best.[:)]
Here's an easy drive due east of Tulsa. Lots of 'cabins' along Hwy 7 to rent. National Park areas with river valley and mountain hiking trails! My wife and I went there on an anniversary weekend about 4 yrs ago. Cool little towns to drive through and have lunch/dinner etc.
Arkansas Scenic 7 Byway
http://www.arkansas.com/things-to-do/scenic-drives/arkansas-scenic-7.aspx
http://www.byways.org/explore/byways/2155/travel.html?map=Northern_Section
http://www.arkansas.com/outdoors/motorcycling/Lets_Ride_08.pdf
http://littlerock.about.com/library/weekly/aa040801a.htm
http://www.arkansas.com/city-listings/city_detail/city/Jasper
Is Jarrett Farms north of town still open? It was very nice we've stayed a couple of times. The dinner was amazing. There were tons of places to hike, we didn't because it was winter. Here's their website if they are still an option, you could still hit Bartlesville for some culture as well.
http://www.jarrettfarm.com/rec.htm
quote:
Originally posted by mrB
Here's an easy drive due east of Tulsa. Lots of 'cabins' along Hwy 7 to rent. National Park areas with river valley and mountain hiking trails! My wife and I went there on an anniversary weekend about 4 yrs ago. Cool little towns to drive through and have lunch/dinner etc.
Arkansas Scenic 7 Byway
http://www.arkansas.com/things-to-do/scenic-drives/arkansas-scenic-7.aspx
http://www.byways.org/explore/byways/2155/travel.html?map=Northern_Section
http://www.arkansas.com/outdoors/motorcycling/Lets_Ride_08.pdf
http://littlerock.about.com/library/weekly/aa040801a.htm
http://www.arkansas.com/city-listings/city_detail/city/Jasper
I second this idea. AR 7 is a great drive. If you do choose this option, you should drive back to I-40 along hwy 123. It goes through the valley while hwy 7 goes along the ridges. A beautiful drive.
Considering your limits, what about going to Fayetteville? The unversity has a hotel on Campus and you can walk to Dixon Street for dining and shopping, one of my favorite used bookstores is Dixon Street Books. A plus is the Farmers Market that congregates around the old Town Square. And there is a bakery/coffee shop just down the hill from downtown, I do not remember the name right now but excellent pastries much better than the Panera bread ilk.
Another suggestion is the lodge at Quartz Mountain. Beautiful setting, hiking, birdwatching, quite, serene and a good restaurant. Try to get a room facing the lake.
And Wichita is only 2 1/2 hours drive. Nice museum, Old Town Bistro for some nice dining that doesn't cost a ton. The river is nice for walking along.
Paris, Texas and get to see the Texas Effiel Tower? Hey, it is a thought.
Ozark, Arkansas and you can do a little wine tasting.
Here is a retreat the wife and I like to go to. It is about 9 miles east of Tahlequah. Very secluded and the people that run it are great.
We used to go to Eureka Springs a lot but since we found this place we have not been back.
http://www.roomatthetopoftheworld.com/
Thank you so much for all the great ideas! We will check them out and make our plans. And we'll have several places to keep in mind for future quick weekends.
Thanks again!
Let us know what you plan to do. Whatever you do I hope you have a good time.[:)]
There's always one of my personal fave's Canebrake Resort if you are looking for seclusion and time alone.
The guest cabins are new and very nice. The whole place has a great vibe.
If you are looking for more things to do and see, I'll 9th or 10th the suggestion of Eureka Springs. Perfect time of year to go there.
QuoteOriginally posted by southerngirl
Big Cedar resort in Missouri looks really nice, but a little far if we can only go for one night. Although I would love to know if anyone's been there what they thought, maybe for a future trip. We'd like to be able to have a nice dinner, maybe go hiking, and just relax.
>I stayed at Big Cedar a few years ago. We went middle Oct for the fall colors. It was beautiful. The resort is very nice but wish we had upgraded our rooms.
Agree that it's too far for just one night.
If you do decide to go, check out Dogwood Canyon Nature Park while you're there. We took the Wildlife Tour - fun. Dogwood also has horseback riding, fishing, kayaking & paddleboats. Branson is close by as well.
[qupte]I second this idea. AR 7 is a great drive. If you do choose this option, you should drive back to I-40 along hwy 123. It goes through the valley while hwy 7 goes along the ridges. A beautiful drive.
[/quote]
Good idea but if you do that, you miss the upper end of 123 and the Sam's Throne area. It is almost as beautiful as the lower end. There are a couple of 10 mph hairpins that will take your breath away.
If you do take 7, be sure to stop and eat at the Cliff House 7 miles south of Jasper. So named because it sits on the side of a cliff overlooking the "Grand Canyon of Arkansas". Not to be confused with the other one, but pretty impressive for a flatlander.
If you decide to explore that area of Arkansas, I recommend Tim Ernst's Guidebooks (//%22http://www.timernst.com/guidebooksmaps.html%22) .
For more info, google "Sam's Throne" and "Cliff House Jasper".
There's lots of good ideas mentioned on this thread- another one I thought of was driving down to Lake Texoklahoma, or just spend some time in northern Texas near the Red River..[:)]
The Canebrake resort looks beautiful- that might be perfect if we can only go for one night, being about an hour from Tulsa.
Still considering Eureka Springs too- any nice hotel or b&b recommendations? Last time we stayed at the Basin Park Hotel in the middle of town- location was great, hotel was ok. We would want a hotel in town to be able to easily walk to shops and restaurants.
Also, has anyone been to the Stillwater Blues Festival? http://bluesfest.stillwater.org/
quote:
Originally posted by southerngirl
Also, has anyone been to the Stillwater Blues Festival? http://bluesfest.stillwater.org/
If your wanting to do this, check out what Guthrie has to offer for staying overnight or for the weekend. [:)]
quote:
Originally posted by southerngirl
The Canebrake resort looks beautiful- that might be perfect if we can only go for one night, being about an hour from Tulsa.
Still considering Eureka Springs too- any nice hotel or b&b recommendations? Last time we stayed at the Basin Park Hotel in the middle of town- location was great, hotel was ok. We would want a hotel in town to be able to easily walk to shops and restaurants.
Also, has anyone been to the Stillwater Blues Festival? http://bluesfest.stillwater.org/
This is walking distance to downtown, Eureka Springs.
http://www.bentonplace.com/
Spring Street Overlook is located in downtown Eureka Springs. It's what my group calls a B No B...it's just a little 2 room Inn. The front suite has a balcony above Spring Street and the back suite has a private garden. I like it because it is downtown and has it's own private parking. No worries about parking for shopping or driving for drinking.
The Basin Park is not that great of a hotel. The New Orleans is much better. However the NO has no elevator. The Crescent on the hill is pretty cool too but then there's that drive to town. There are paths all through town that take you up and down the hill if you want to hike. Going down isn't bad....going back up is the killer.
Spring Street Overlook (//%22http://springstreetoverlook.com/%22)
quote:
Originally posted by Porky
quote:
Originally posted by southerngirl
Also, has anyone been to the Stillwater Blues Festival? http://bluesfest.stillwater.org/
If your wanting to do this, check out what Guthrie has to offer for staying overnight or for the weekend. [:)]
I'm not sure, but I think that is where Karen Silkwood lived, or she worked at the Kerr McGee plant in Guthrie. I remember reading about that in a book about her life.
quote:
Originally posted by sauerkraut
quote:
Originally posted by Porky
quote:
Originally posted by southerngirl
Also, has anyone been to the Stillwater Blues Festival? http://bluesfest.stillwater.org/
If your wanting to do this, check out what Guthrie has to offer for staying overnight or for the weekend. [:)]
I'm not sure, but I think that is where Karen Silkwood lived, or she worked at the Kerr McGee plant in Guthrie. I remember reading about that in a book about her life.
No that would be Crescent Einstein.
Oh and the Blue Whale is no where near there and there are no Whataburgers anywhere close either.
quote:
Originally posted by unreliablesource
quote:
Originally posted by sauerkraut
quote:
Originally posted by Porky
quote:
Originally posted by southerngirl
Also, has anyone been to the Stillwater Blues Festival? http://bluesfest.stillwater.org/
If your wanting to do this, check out what Guthrie has to offer for staying overnight or for the weekend. [:)]
I'm not sure, but I think that is where Karen Silkwood lived, or she worked at the Kerr McGee plant in Guthrie. I remember reading about that in a book about her life.
No that would be Crescent Einstein.
Oh and the Blue Whale is no where near there and there are no Whataburgers anywhere close either.
OK GG. You cleared that up.[xx(]