Nothing says summer nights like an evening at the Drive In! Granbury’s Brazos Drive In offers so much more than just a couple of movies and some popcorn. With one screen and family oriented shows, it’s a place to take the kids, sit under the stars, play, talk and create summer memories!
1. Arrive EARLY! The Brazos isn’t just about the movie, it’s about the entire experience of being at the drive in with your family and friends! Although the movie doesn’t start until dusk, the gates open at 7pm and there is usually a line stretching down the highway. The vacant lot next door serves as an impromptu playground as they wait!
The BEST PLACE TO PARK is on the FRONT ROW! Very unique to other drive ins we have visited, there is a green space from the front row to the screen, and before the movie begins this space is filled with children running, playing tag, throwing footballs and frisbees, kicking soccer balls, doing cartwheels and blowing bubbles!
Once the movie begins, the children all return to their cars, but during intermission they return, this time loaded with glow sticks and flashlights, which bounce around like fireflies while they play!
2. Big Savings
For 2014, the cost to watch a movie at the Brazos is $20/carload, for up to 6 people, which works out to $3.33 a person, or $1.66 a movie! If you have more than 6, then it’s an additional $4/person, which comes to $2/movie, still a bargain!
Bring cash, the front gate doesn’t take credit cards. Well, you CAN leave your driver’s license at the front gate, go into the concession stand and pay with a credit card, then walk back to the front gate to get your license, but it’s much easier to just take cash.
Educators, First Responders and the military get a $5 discount.
3. Best Seating in the House
My second favorite thing about the Brazos is that NO ONE sits in their car to watch the movie! Bring your own chairs, so you can spread out! Enjoy the breeze. Chit chat with your neighbors, because everyone is from somewhere, and the casual atmosphere just leads to making new friends!
You don’t have to sit in a chair! We have one of those tall, queen size air mattresses that we inflated before the movie started, then we all laid on it with pillows and blankets while watching the movie! (We put a big cargo blanket under it so it wouldn’t pop on the rocks).
Pajama Party? Wear them in or change in the restrooms! It would be a great birthday party idea, too!
How fun is this? On our last visit, someone brought a couch in the back of their pickup! They took it out and sat on it while watching the movie, then loaded it back up when the movie was over!
If you bring blankets to lay on, don’t eat or drink on them. My kids never fail to spill a sweet drink, and then of course you get ants!
Bring a footstool or something to elevate your feet, to avoid bug bites. Some people bring those little battery operated OFF lanterns, too.
4. Vintage
The seating outside the concession area isn’t the only thing that gives the Brazos Drive In a wonderful, old school feel.
Open since 1954, it is Texas’ oldest, continually running drive in! It’s perfectly set in the Brazos River Valley’s beautiful town of Granbury, voted by Southern Living as one of the best small towns in the Southwest.
It’s not ALL old, at the beginning of the season, the Brazos upgraded to a new digital projector, replacing the old 35mm. If you get there early, and ask really nicely, they might show the kids the projection room. It was a highlight for my kids!
5. Concession Stand
What could be more retro at a Drive In than eating a Frito Pie, and they have them, along with fountain drinks, nachos, hot dogs, popcorn and LOTS of candy! The Concession Stand does take credit cards, too!
6. More Mommy Tips
The Drive In is the perfect way to watch a movie with very young kids, because they don’t HAVE to sit completely still and quiet for 2 hours. They can move around, play and walk around.
- If you plan to arrive before 7pm to wait in line, make a potty stop before you get there! Experience talking, we’ve had to give up our place in line because we didn’t.
- The stands for the speaker boxes are still there, but, like all Drive Ins, you now use your car radio as your speaker. It’s a low-frequency FM radio station, you tune in when you arrive.
- The Brazos is pet friendly!
- Start your car at intermission and let it run for a few minutes, to avoid having a dead battery at 2am. If your battery does die, don’t worry, they have someone who can jump it off for you.
- The restrooms don’t have changing tables
Brazos Drive In
1800 W. Pearl St. Granbury TX
Click HERE to visit their facebook page
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7. More Fun in Granbury
Granbury City Beach Park is a unique beach on Lake Granbury with white sand brought in from South Padre Island!
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Hood County Courthouse Square
The historic town of Granbury is the county seat of Hood County. Browse in the little shops, dine at one of the many terrific restaurants and explore the history of the area. Visit the Hood County Jail and Museum, built in 1885 or take the short walk to the Granbury State Historical Cemetery, where legend has it the notorious Jesse James is buried, after faking his own death in Missouri! A fun way to hear this and more stories in the Granbury Ghost Tour! Click HERE to visit the Granbury CVB .
Brazos Drive In Theater
1800 W Pearl St, Granbury
Click HERE to visit their website.
Keep Having Fun in the Texas Sun!
Michelle
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