Group Tour Itineraries

Lisa Cox, the executive director of the North Platte/Lincoln County Convention and Visitors Bureau has developed two exciting group tour itineraries. Whether you are a group tour operator, a bank club manager, or the “queen mother” of a Red Hat organization, your group will enjoy one of these thrilling events.

The North Platte Canteen Group Tour Itinerary

The first celebrates the hospitality and patriotism of the North Platte Canteen. For those of you not familiar with this moving story, from Christmas Day 1941 through April first 1946, volunteers from North Platte and surrounding communities met every troop train that came through town on Union Pacific’s main line. By the end of the war, more than 6.5 MILLION service personnel had been served.

This story has been told in a book by Bob Greene entitled “Once Upon a Town: The Miracle of the North Platte Canteen,” and by a documentary on Public Television entitled “The Canteen Spirit.”

Now your group can experience this story in the town where it all happened. On May 25 and 26, 2007, at the Quality Inn & Suites/Sandhills Convention Center, a play written by H.R. Long, “The North Platte Canteen” that has touched audiences all up and down the west coast will be performed in a dinner-theater setting. This will be followed by a Big Band Dance played by the Centennials.

The entire itinerary calls for a tour of Fort McPherson National Cemetery, the America’s 20th Century Veterans’ Memorial, and a guided tour of the North Platte World War II Canteen display at the Lincoln County Historical Museum. A special meeting of Canteen volunteers can also be arranged for your group.

Above The Chutes Group Tour Itinerary

NEBRASKAland DAYS is Nebraska’s official state-wide celebration held in North Platte each year in June. Now your group can experience the rodeo excitement up-close and personal with a Above The Chutes tour.

We have set up a special night of rodeo for your group on June 14, 2007. The evening begins with a catered meal at the rodeo grounds pavilion. When the rodeo action begins, you will view the action from high above the bucking chutes. See just what goes on behind the scenes to put on an exciting PRCA rodeo.

The entire itinerary includes a tour of the NEBRASKAland DAYS competitive art show where you will see some of the finest local talent on display, a tour of the historical Buffalo Bill Scouts Rest Ranch and a visit to the Fort Cody Trading Post.

All of that is the good news. Now for the bad news… Because of the limited seating capacity above the bucking chutes, this tour is limited to JUST ONE BUS GROUP! If you’re interested, you need to call Lisa Cox today to get your group booked.

For more information on both of these group tour itineraries, call the North Platte/Lincoln County Convention and Visitors Bureau at 800-955-4528, or e-mail at lcox@visitnorthplatte.com.

Winter Weather

The North Platte area is experience something we haven't had to contend with for a long time: Winter weather! Winter in this part of the Platte River Valley is usually extremely mild, with light snows and cold, but not frigid, temperatures. All of that changed just before Christmas when the first of two back-to-back storms hit us. There is now about 8-10 inches of snow on the ground, although all of the highways in the area, and most of the major streets have been cleared and are dry. Side streets and some of the streets in the smaller towns are a different matter, though, so EVERYONE BE CAREFUL OUT THERE!

Now the weather service is predicting 2-4 inches of new snow tomorrow. By now everyone should be ready for it, but our hearts go out to those who are still experiencing power outages from the last two storms.

For everyone making travel plans this winter, I would like to give you a couple of pieces of advice: First, keep an emergency kit in your car when you travel. This should contain:

• An emergency first aid kit
• ice scraper, shovel and small bag of sand
• three pound coffee can
• matches and candles
• blankets or sleeping bag
• high energy or dehydrated foods
• jumper cables
• flashlights
• battery operated radio
• extra batteries
• red flag or bandana to signal that you are in trouble.

These items could mean the difference between life and death should you become stranded in a snow storm.

Next, please check out the road conditions before you travel, or while you are on the road. You can do this easily by dialing 511 from any phone - landline or cellular. You can also check current conditions on the Nebraska Department of Roads website: http://www.511nebraska.org/ndortip/index.jxp

Checking current weather conditions and forecasts may also be a good idea. You can find these online at: http://www.crh.noaa.gov.

While we love to show off our hospitality to stranded travelers, we know it can be frustrating for you to not be able to reach your destination. If you're traveling through, have a safe trip, and make plans to stop and stay awhile.