Weekend Traveler

OAKLAND, Calif., Dec. 27 (UPI) -- BRANSON SET TO ADD NEW ATTRACTION

The nestled-in-the-Ozarks entertainment Mecca of Branson, Mo., is about to open its latest tourist attraction. Organizers tell United Press International that Celebration City will open sometime in the spring. The new park is set on the 112-acre site of the Branson USA theme park.

The new attraction will be the most costly ever attempted in Branson.

The same people who have owned and operated the nearby Silver Dollar City will be in charge at the new park and recreation area.

Developers say they are trying to provide a fun place that will draw a "younger audience." Plans call for entertainment that will look back at the "colorful eras of the just-passed 20th century."

More than 500 people will be employed in Celebration City. Bob Montgomery, who brought Legoland north of San Diego to national attention, has been tapped to run the new park.

Meanwhile, preparations continue in the project that will bring the Roy Rogers and Dale Evans Museum from its old site -- just beside Interstate 5 in Victorville, Calif. -- to Branson. No firm date for that opening has been announced.

TOURISTS RETURN TO RAILROADING DAYS

Recapturing the old days of railroading can be great fun. Many cities made their fortunes as "railroading centers." Some, such as cities in the East with museums, have cashed in on the nostalgia. Cities such as Barstow, Calif., proudly display their railroading past and present. A McDonald's there is right by the present-day mainline tracks and is housed in old railroad cars.

Even off-the-tracks places have railroad museums. There's a great one in Sonoma, Calif., and even one in Griffith Park in Los Angeles, complete with its own operating railroad.

And we can't forget the real, scaled-down steam trains that circle Disneyland.

But one of the best places to see trains and talk about railroading is the Casey Jones Home and Railroad Museum in Jackson, Tenn., between Memphis and Nashville.

The Shaw family has preserved the legacy of Casey Jones, the "steamrolling engineer," fabled in song, who was a real person.

The 100th anniversary of Casey's last run was celebrated several years ago in Jackson.

Today the park there features Casey's well-preserved home, several engines and trains. And, you can spent the night in a "motel" made from restored cabooses.

There's even an adjacent village that looks like the 1800s and one of the most well-stocked restored country stores in the nation.

There's more information on the Casey Jones park on, of all places, a Kentucky Web site: thinkwestkentucky.com/rail/caseyjones.html on the Internet.

ORBITZ OFFERING FREE AIRPORT PARKING

The folks at the on-line travel broker Orbitz.com have hooked up with nearly 50 major airport parking lots and are offering a free parking deal through their Internet site. Go to orbitz.com and click on the special parking promotion.

Cities from Boston to Miami to San Diego to Seattle ... and points in between ... are listed with airports that have parking lots participating in the deal.

The rules call for the booking of a flight or a hotel room though Orbitz between now and the end of next September. With that purchase you'll get two days of free parking at an Airport Discount Parking lot that is participating. The free days are redeemable also through the end of September.

All of the listed lots offer free shuttle service to the terminals they serve and have assistance with baggage provided.

TAKE TIME TO THANK THE NEW SECURITY PEOPLE

The new federal inspectors are in place at the nation's 400-plus airports. They deserve your appreciation. We talked to federal employees at the major airports in Las Vegas, Los Angeles and Oakland this week and got similar responses. Most say that they are happy to be part of the new uniformed national security force.

One supervisor told UPI that she was warmed by the fact that so many passengers were taking the time to interact with the inspectors, often to compliment them. "But," she continued, "we could use some more positive feedback."

Inspections are now the same all over the country. With the federally mandated program in place passengers can know exactly what to expect, airport to airport.

It's a far cry from the days of the locally hired screeners who varied in expertise and accuracy from place to place. And remember the days when uniformed National Guard officers were on hand?

For the most part, the holiday travel season has been going well with inspections happening in an organized, rather swift manner. The weather threw a wrench into a lot of Midwest and New England travel, though, leaving some people who had made it home for Christmas having to reschedule their return flights.

A FINAL THOUGHT ...

The biggest snag observed at airports this week was caused by passengers who forgot that they needed to have all their paperwork in hand before going through preliminary screening. Make sure you have tickets or an authorized printout of information from your airline and your ID in place as you enter the terminal. And continue to mark all luggage -- checked and carried on -- on both the outside and inside with your information and a contact number at your destination.