Is Dodge City worth the trip?

Hi. My Mom is a huge Gunsmoke Fan and always dreamed of visiting Dodge City. We are planning a vacation for 2009 and I%26#39;d like to know is Dodge City worth the airfare, car rental %26amp; hotels? I%26#39;d be coming from AZ, and she from NY. And if yes, how many days do we need? Where should we stay, eat, visit? Should we fly into Kansas City and add that to the trip to fill up the week? Should we add Wichita, Topeka or Oklahoma to make the week trip worthwhile? OR SHOULD WE JUST FORGET IT, AND REALIZE IT WAS JUST HOLLYWOOD? Thanks.

Is Dodge City worth the trip?

If you were driving through Dodge City on the way to some where else it would be worth a short stop but as a destination on its own I would say forget it. Wichita has a more authentic cattle drive era town than Dodge City unless Dodge has made some changes in the last couple of years.

Several years ago a local museum had a clipping from a Wichita newspaper of the 1870%26#39;s about an incident that happened to Wyatt Earp when he was a deputy law enforcement officer here. It seems Wyatt and some of his buddies were in the back room of a saloon on a Sunday morning playing cards when Wyatt somehow managed to shoot himself in the foot. So much for the Hollywood legend of the great Wyatt Earp.

If you wanted to base yourself in Wichita for a few days there are some interesting places to make day trips too but nothing really spectacular such as you will find in Arizona.

Is Dodge City worth the trip?

I was about to say that there are a lot of places in Kansas worth visiting, but Dodge City is way down on the list.

But rereading what you say about your Mom, maybe not. For example, my impression of the original Little House on the Prairie near Independence, was that it doesn%26#39;t amount to much. But then 3 couples on motorcycles pulled up and one of the women was a huge fan of Laura Ingles%26#39; books. She was so excited and thoroughly enjoyed it. Her enthusiasm transferred to the other members of the party and I think they were all having a good time.

So, while it isn%26#39;t a destination I would choose, I say go for it. You can mix in enough other places to have a great weekend. There are many other things to add to the weekend depending on your and your Mother%26#39;s other interests. from a World Class aviation and space museum, zoos %26amp; wildlife parks, the ongoing recovery and ';greening'; of Greensburg, Wichita%26#39;s museums, and Dalton Gang Hideout, to many other things.

If the airfares aren%26#39;t outrageous, fly into Wichita.