Family Life,  Family Travel,  North Carolina,  Southeast

Land of Oz Theme Park – Making Dreams Come True

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As a parent I am always looking for opportunities to create magical memories for my children. Having four kids, I have discovered that for some children it’s easy to come up with ideas for these special occasions. And for others…well…it’s a little more difficult.

For me that child has always been Cullan. Cullan was 3 when he first discovered the Wizard of Oz and fell in love with Dorothy. He is 9 now, and still obsessed with all things Oz related. I never thought that his interest in the Wizard of Oz would last this long.

Cullan (4) requested Dorothy and a tornado from the face painter at a local festival

Let me give you some examples of the difficulties that a parent faces when their child is obsessed with a 1939 movie in the 21st century. When Cullan was 4 he would cry because there was no Wizard of Oz aisle at Walmart. He didn’t understand why his brother and sister could always find the toys they wanted (Spiderman and Paw Patrol).

Cullan (4) and his Wizard of Oz drawing

There were never any coloring books or art projects he could buy, so he made his own crafts and Perler bead creations instead.

Cullan (5) and his Perler bead creation of Dorothy

Buying birthday party decorations and a cake topper were also not an option. Room decor was easier to find, so that was a plus. Everywhere we would go Cullan would find something Wizard of Oz related. When he was five we were grocery shopping when he begged me to buy this loaf of bread because the package looked like Dorothy’s dress.

Cullan (5) and “Dorothy dress” bread

In the summer of 2015 when Cullan and I were visiting family in Texas we were lucky enough to be in town during a traveling exhibit called Fantasy in Sand. We had finally found an exhibit that was right up his alley – they even had a gift shop! I had never seen Cullan so happy before – made my mama heart so happy!

Cullan (5) at Fantasy in Sand

Over the next few years we went to several theatre productions of the Wizard of Oz, and even though I could tell he enjoyed every single one, I could also tell he wished for something more.

Cullan (4) and Sara at a Wizard of Oz play

Several years ago Cullan had heard that there used to be a Wizard of Oz theme park, but that it had closed down. I don’t know why I never looked into this at the time. Then earlier this year I saw a few Facebook posts about Land of Oz, and I immediately started looking into planning the ultimate surprise trip for Cullan.

Land of Oz is a theme park in Beech Mountain, North Carolina that originally opened in 1970. The idea behind Land of Oz was for guests to feel like Dorothy as they walked through the park and ventured from Kansas to Oz, and down the yellow brick road to the Emerald City. After a devastating fire in 1975, they finally closed their doors in 1980. Over the past several years, the current owners have slowly restored the park and open it to the public for special events a couple of times a year. We were able to attend during their Autumn at Oz Festival and 80th-anniversary celebration of the 1939 movie release.

One night in September, after baseball/softball games, we came home and told the kids to shower quickly and come downstairs for a surprise. While they were getting ready, I snuck outside and loaded up the van with our suitcases. When everyone was ready we told them to get in the van because we were headed to a hotel in Tennessee for the night. We wanted to wait as long as possible before letting Cullan know where we were going because we knew how hard it would be for him to wait. I strategically booked a hotel in Tennessee because I knew if I told him we were going to North Carolina, he would immediately know where we were headed.

The next morning we surprised them with matching shirts that I had made, and Cullan knew right away that his dream of going to Land of Oz was coming true. After a quick hour’s drive to Beech Mountain, we were ready to start our adventure.

At the base of the mountain there is a parking area, and a place to check-in and shop, eat, and enjoy some entertainment while you wait for a bus to take you to the park entrance at the top. Our bus driver was great – very entertaining and provided us with a lot of history about the park.

After you get off the bus there’s a short uphill walk where you can enjoy the view before walking into Kansas. Every 30 minutes there is a live production of a few scenes from the movie. We arrived in the middle of the scene, so we just walked around on our own for a bit while we waited for the play to start over from the beginning.

We took pictures with each of the characters and then headed into the house where Aunt Em encouraged us to quickly head down to the storm cellar because a storm was coming.

We walked down a flight of stairs through a dark area with black lights and neon images on the wall and then walked up another flight of stairs into the storm-ravaged house. As you exit you are greeted (surprised!) by the Wicked Witch who is waiting to ask why you killed her sister.

As you enter Munchkinland you have a chance to meet Glenda and the Mayor before starting your journey down the yellow brick road.

The rest of your walk down the yellow brick road is a leisurely stroll with several meet and greets with the characters and ample opportunities for photos.

I had a Wizard of Oz passport book for Cullan that I purchased at Half Price Books before the trip. He loved getting to collect each character’s autograph.

We weren’t sure which characters we might meet along the way. Cullan was excited when he saw the Winkies and Flying Monkeys.

Hadassah was a little hesitant to go up to the Wicked Witch, so Rob had to hold her. All of the actors did a great job of staying in character, and their costumes were phenomenal. Perfect movie replicas! (Especially when you have a young fan that pays great attention to every little detail.) He was very impressed with how much the lion resembled Bert Lahr.

In true fan fashion, Cullan had to lay down in the poppy fields and pretend he was Dorothy.

At the end of the yellow brick road you reach the gate to the Emerald City. The kids enjoyed getting to act out this part of the movie themselves. They rang the bell first and the gatekeeper opened the gate to let us know the bell was out of order. Cullan quickly knocked on the door and we were allowed to enter the Emerald City.

The Emerald City is made up of souvenir vendors, food vendors, the official Land of Oz souvenir shop and a stage. A little bit after we got to the Emerald City, it started to pour down rain, so we decided to grab a seat and enjoy watching the final show two times.

We took the bus back down the mountain and went to their Movie Exhibit Museum that they had as an 80th-anniversary special. We weren’t allowed to take photos inside, but they had some of the original costumes from the movie as well as lots of memorabilia. The kids liked the photo op area at the end.

Our last stop was at a souvenir shop across the street where Cullan had a lot of fun taking pictures with these character cutouts.

I am so glad that we heard about Land of Oz. Not only did Cullan get to have a magical day, but I could tell Silas, Micah and Hadassah enjoyed themselves too. Cullan has already been asking to make this an annual trip, (of course!) but we will see.

What magical memories have you made with your loved ones? We would love to hear about your experiences, and maybe we’ll discover another place we should go and visit. Leave your comments below.

For more info on our day at Land of Oz, check out our YouTube video.

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