When you think of a road trip for an adventure, Oklahoma is not the first state that would come to mind. But surprisingly, there are a lot of things to do in Oklahoma. Since it’s not a far drive from Dallas, we take trips there more often now. More surprisingly, there are more than 10 people who live there (including my sister and bro-in-law.) Here are a list of the things we have done in OK and plan on doing in the near future.
The National Wildlife Refuge System in Oklahoma includes many parks and places like Deep Fork, Salt Plains, Wichita Mountains, Ozark Plateau, Little River, Washita National Wildlife Refuge and more! There are many things to do in these locations such as fishing, hunting, wildlife photography, bird watching, hiking, walking or biking trails, paddling and more!
Broken Bow Cabins
We went to Broken Bow, OK for my husband’s 30th birthday bash with a few friends and spent the weekend at the cabins. The cabin was wonderful and had everything you could possibly use in your own house. The kitchen had mostly every appliance, utensils and gadgets we needed to cook. The living space was very tidy and rooms were spacious enough for couples. The extra outdoor games and the campfire area outside were a great final touch!
We spent the weekend hiking the trails of Beavers Bend State Park and enjoying the cold waters of the Mountain Fork River. From evening until after midnight, we sat around and enjoyed the campfire and the company!
There were only a few things we needed to bring for the cabin trip, including food. We packed so much food and went all out on all the meals with steak, ribs, brisket, chicken, sausage and more! Besides the food, we did have a few other things, which I highly recommend you take for a cabin trip (or any long road trips).
Portable Car Jump Starter
This is important to have in your car because in most areas with forests, cabins and lakes, there is limited to no internet connection or range to reach out for any help in the case your car battery dies. Having this jump starter allows you to jump start the car yourself with the battery pack instead of having to wait on someone else and use their car. The USB port for charging smaller items and the strong LED flashlight features on this starter also comes in handy for road trips like this.
BBQ Grill Set
Most cabins have a grill, but not a grill tool set, so we had to bring our own. I found this highly recommended Stainless steel set one on Amazon. However, the one we used for the weekend was a cheaper set from Walmart, similar to this, Walmart 17pc Grilling Tool Set that also includes everything you will need for the grill. The skewers worked great for smores…yum:)
Ice chest & Ice Packs
Ice chests are a must for cabin trips because you need to bring all your food to the cabins (and take home the left overs). Walmart has this 75 qt Wheeled Ice Chest which would have been great for our trip. We could have fit everything into one ice chest and rolled it instead of carrying several smaller ones. You can always pick up some ice (at a gas station further from the cabin rentals) or Amazon offers this best selling ice packs for smaller ice chests.
LED flashlight
For any outdoorsy trip, it’s important to have a flashlight in your car or in the tool/safety kit with you. This LED one is great because it can be used secondarily as a tool to break your car glass in the case of an emergency. It’s water resistant and has 5 adjustable modes.
Air fryer
We took our air fryer with us to the cabins because we weren’t sure if they had one there. It came in handy for hot dogs, fries, chicken and more while the grill was being occupied with other things. It’s very convenient because we didn’t have to keep an eye on it. Just put the food in there and forget about it until it beeps. Overall, it’s a safe, efficient and quick way to get food warmed up or cooked. I’m definitely glad that we took it with us as we were a group of six.
What else?
Besides these must have items above, you also need charcoal, lighter fluid, bug spray, sunscreen, etc. You can get these from the local Walmart there or check out my Must Have post. You also need to bring your own booze. Even though there are plenty of liquor stores nearby, you’ll save a good amount if you purchase them prior to your trip.
Tip: The shops closer to the cabins are twice as expensive as the ones that are further away. Plan ahead and buy all the things you need before heading out to the cabins.
Now the main question:
How do you book a cabin and plan your trip?
Broken Bow makes that party easy and has all their cabin rentals and information online. The one we booked was from this website and there are many similar sites that are also directly linked to them. There may be other ways to book, but when places like this have direct websites, I prefer not to book through a third party.
To plan your activities, look into the state parks nearby such as Beaver Bend State Park or Hochatown State Park. We stopped at the Forest Heritage Center, which is a museum and information center! Though we didn’t explore the museum, they were able to give us plenty of information on activities to do in the area. They had a variety of water sports, such as kayaking and land activities like horse back riding. If you want something a little different, there are several wine shops, wineries and breweries nearby. There are even many activities for children, such as petting zoo, go karting and ziplining!
Would we do it again?
For sure! It was a great experience and we had wished we stayed an extra night there! We’re already looking into planning our next cabin trip, with our family this time!
Lake Texoma
Lake Texoma (one of the larger reservoirs in the US) east of the Red River, which divides the OK and TX borders. Technically, part of these bodies of water is also located in Texas. But for the sake of not cutting OK’s only possible blog post short, I’ll let them have it. Although there are many things to do in Lake Texoma, camping and fishing are probably the favorite and most common of the activities.
Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City; OKC has several interesting places to visit including the Oklahoma State Capitol and the Centennial Land Run Monument. The OKC National Memorial & Museum is a must visit if your in town and want to learn some OKC history. I wasn’t aware of the details of the 1995 bombing until we visited the site. Although it’s an emotional site, it’s wonderful to see all the victims still being remembered and honored.
Addresses:
Oklahoma State Capitol: 2300 N Lincoln Blvd, OKC
Centennial Land Run Monument: 200 Centennial Ave, OKC
Memorial & Museum: 620 N Harvey Ave, OKC
Arcadia, OK
Another fun place to visit nearby OKC is the Pops 66 Soda Ranch. It is located right off of highway 66, in the town of Arcadia, Northeast of OKC. This place has a wide variety of coca colas ranging from root beer to bacon soda! If you’re going in a group like we did, I recommend each person getting a different flavor. This way, you can get a taste several soda flavors without it being too overwhelming. The flavors vary in strength, so even if you like bacon, you might not enjoy bacon soda or vice versa. It also has a small restaurant inside as well as some photo op outside with the huge soda bottle (not pictured).
Address: 660 W. Highway 66, Arcadia, OK.
If you’re interested in knowing more, check out their website here!
Scissortail Park
For the evening, we headed to Scissortail park in the middle of OKC and had a great time. There was so much going on; people walking/jogging, kids playing in the park area and events going on. We started off with pedal boating during the sunset, which offered a great view. The prices were reasonable; about $12 per boat for 45 minutes. Although the wait was about 20 minutes, it was worth it. It was a relaxing yet fun activity, great for young adults or families. Then we walked around the park and attempted some of the activities there for kids:) We waited until dark to walk across the bridge to see the scissor-tailed figure up close.
Myriad Botanical Gardens
We got a chance to check out the Myraid Botanical Garden this time around and it was great. Even though there weren’t as many flowers in October, there was still a lot to see. We spent so much time just standing and watching the big pond filled with Koi fish and little ducklings.
Would we go again? Yes, I would love to go back during the spring time when it’s not as cold and when the flowers will be blooming.
Is it kid friendly? Most of it is safe, however you do have to keep an eye on them when you are close to the water area. There isn’t a barrier between the pathway and the water, which can be a problem with toddlers.
The Devon Tower ( also known as Devon Energy Center, pictured on the left) is the tallest building in Oklahoma at 50 stories high. It stands tall over the Botanical Garden and downtown OKC. It also served as a great background for my pictures 😉
Where to eat in OKC?
Here are a few of our favorites in Oklahoma City and neighboring cities!
Empire Slice House is hands down one of the best pizza places I’ve been to. The place was packed and had a New York feel to it, which was great. We were able to split the pie into two types of pizza; so we chose the notorious P.I.G and the Evil Empire. Both were great and we were stuffed after just two slices each. Their pizzas are huge and one pizza fed the four of us.
Would we go back? For sure. It’s only the best pizza in town. The prices were also very reasonable considering how big the slices were. The service was also on point.
Address: 1804 NW 16th, Oklahoma City
The Garage Burgers and Beer, OKC
My sister and bro in law took me to The Garage to try out their burgers. And boy, were they amazing! They have about 3 locations just within the OKC area and after having their burgers, you can see why. They even have gluten free bun options and a vegan burger that’s just as good! I mean, come on! Definitely a must try and re-visit kind of place!
Stay tuned for the following places that are on our list for upcoming things to do in Oklahoma! Follow me on Instagram @travelmania360 for new posts!
<<COMING SOON>>
Kitchen No. 324
Oklahoma City Zoo
Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park
Tiger Safari
Turner Falls Park & Cabins (holding off on this secondary to the recent incidents that happened here)
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