My Favorite Holiday Weekend Getaways From Omaha

Chicago was the city that inspired an annual holiday getaway! It's a festive city with both indoor and outdoor experiences that your family won't forget.

Highlights:

• Shopping at the open air Christkindlmarket
• Dinner at Macy’s Walnut Room
• The holiday displays at Museum of Science & Industry, The Art Institute of Chicago, and The Field Museum
• Christmas carols at “Cloud Gate,” AKA, The Bean

Where to stay: Lowes Chicago. The location is great, and when we stayed there, they had the cutest holiday package for the room.

Downside: The drive is a long one from Omaha, and the weather is unpredictable in November and December. I'd consider flying if tickets were cheaper.

St. Louis should be on more families' radars for Christmas cheer. Our visit was filled with nostalgia and quirkiness and a ton of lights.

Highlights:

• The Polar Express train ride
• Garden Glow at Missouri Botanical Garden
• U.S. Bank Wild Lights at the St. Louis Zoo
• Weirdly Wonderful Holidays at The City Museum

Where to stay: St. Louis Union Station Hotel, Curio Collection by Hilton. It's decked out for the holidays and it's where the Polar Express departs.

Downside: There aren't too many negatives about St. Louis, but I will say that the city is spread out, so there is a lot of driving to get to each attraction. And yes, it is also quite a drive from Omaha.

You'd think Christmas time in Denver would be way too cold, but I discovered that's not quite the case. We walked quite a bit outside while in Denver, and soaked up the holiday atmosphere.

Highlights:

• Zoo Lights at the Denver Zoo
• Blossoms of Lights at the Denver Botanic Gardens - York Street
• Shop the open air Denver ChristkindlMarket

Where to stay: The Curtis Denver - A DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel. It's a funky, art-centric boutique hotel near the theater district in Denver. Some rooms are themed! It's not an ideal hotel for families with young kids (no pool), but teens will love it. The lobby decor is quirky and embraces the holidays.

Downside: The drive from Omaha to Denver is quite possibly the most boring drive ever.

There are two Kansas Cities, so they each warrant their own listing, right? Let's start with Kansas City, Kan., which is home to one of the few holiday experiences on this list that has a visit from Krampus.

Highlights:

• Knights of Lights by KC Renaissance Festival (this is where you'll find Krampus)
• Christmas shop at Moon Marble Co. in Bonner Springs
• Soak up the music and decor at Jazz at Legends Outlet Mall
• Experience Atlas9 and catch a screening of a retro holiday movie
• Festive pop-up restaurants that are kid-friendly like Twinkle inside several restaurant locations

Where to stay: Margaritaville Hotel, Kansas City. It's surprisingly family-friendly with a lovely indoor pool (and an even cooler outdoor pool...but we're talking about Christmas time in the Midwest so...).

Downside: What's not to love about a city with the Taco Trail and some solid barbecue options?

Kansas City's so great, I have it on the list twice. 🙂 The Missouri side of Kansas City has some long-running holiday traditions that are worth experiencing at least once.

Highlights:

• The indoor tree at Union Station
• Ice skating outdoors at Ice Terrace at Crown Center
• Crown Center's enormous Mayor's Christmas Tree as well as the Hallmark Christmas Experience
• Shopping the Merry Market at City Market
• Strolling around Country Club Plaza to see the lights

Where to stay: Sheraton Kansas City Hotel at Crown Center. You can't beat the location for walking to some of the city's free holiday activities. Plus the rooftop pool is heated. My kids still talk about the time they swam in that pool and it was snowing.

Downside: I hate driving around downtown Kansas City. I've been visiting for years and I almost always get lost because the interstate exits sneak up on me. OK, it's not that hard to drive around, but you know what I mean.

I went to Branson several times as a child, including a few times over Christmas. I recently brought my own family back to see how Christmas has changed (for the better) in Branson. Branson also boasts milder weather compared to some of the other Midwest destinations on this list.

Highlights:

• Epic lights and rides during Silver Dollar City’s Old Time Christmas
• Farm-to-table dinner at the Keeter Center, with its down-home holiday decor
• Dolly Parton Stampede holiday dinner show
• All the holiday shows at theaters. Too many to list!

Where to stay: The Ozarker Lodge. It's a retro-style boutique motel with tons of charm and holiday decor.

Downside: My main complaint about Branson is the traffic on the main strip, but we really didn't have an issue with it during our stay at The Ozarker Lodge. Its location kept us out of that busy area.

Minnesota in the winter? Sure! Why not? Our holiday visit to Minnesota included activities in Minneapolis, St. Paul and Roseville. We lucked out with the weather during our visit and didn't to use the thermal layers.

Unfortunately, since our visit, quite a few of our favorite festivities have changed. But, a few goodies still remain!

Highlights:

• Julmarknad Handcraft Market & Festival at the American Swedish Institute
• The lights in downtown Minneapolis
• Greasy spoon breakfast at Mickey's Diner in St. Paul
• If the weather's frigid, our favorite indoor places in the area are The Bakken Museum, Can Can Wonderland, Science Museum of Minnesota, and of course, the Mall of America (or more specifically, the indoor theme park, Nickelodeon Universe)

Where to stay: Best Western Plus The Normandy Inn & Suites. You've got a good location and an indoor pool. Almost all hotels in downtown Minneapolis charge for overnight parking, but at least Best Western is on the low end of the fee.

Downside: If you want to stay near all the action (AKA, downtown Minneapolis), you'll have to pay for overnight parking and it adds up.

Bentonville is an outdoor enthusiast's kind of place, even over the holidays. But even more surprising is how arts-forward the city is. Many museums are free.

Highlights:

• Ice skating outdoors at The Rink at Lawrence Plaza
• Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and its Winter Lights & Market
• Dining at the James Beard Award-nominated Mexican restaurant Yeyo's

Where to stay: We stayed at La Quinta when we were there, and it was fine. But I'd level up next time and get a hotel with more space like DoubleTree Suites. Both have indoor pools.

Downside: I suppose if there must be a downside to Bentonville, it's that it doesn't feel much like Christmas there. If you want a snowy escape, this isn't it.