1. Why Missouri Is Called The Show Me State
Home of Mark twain and Huck Finn, a lineup of winning sports teams, major cities and small towns, a modern day Athens, amazing rivers winding through world-class parks, atop a cavernous underground waiting to be explored. That’s
Missouri. Or Missouruh, depending on whom you ask.
2. Missouri Won’t Drain Your Bank Account Dry
With a cost of living that is nearly 9 percent cheaper than the national index, Missouri is a state in which you can not only live, but thrive.
3. Buying A Home In Missouri Comes Easy
The national average price for a home is $181,400. But data shows that the median home price in Missouri is just $132,000, raking in a nearly $50,000 savings.
4. Missouri’s Economy Is Strong
While most states are still struggling to slowly recover from the recession, the state of Missouri is well ahead of the game. The state boasts an unemployment rate of 5.90 percent, falling under the national average of 6.30 percent.
5. You’ll Love The Job Market In Missouri
With major cities like
St. Louis,
Kansas City,
Springfield, and
Columbia, the state of Missouri is blanketed with great job opportunities. The biggest industries in Missouri include food processing, aerospace, transportation equipment, education, and beer making.
6. The Cities Aren’t The Only Places To Love In Missouri
While Missouri’s big cities are a popular place to live, the surrounding suburbs are the most desirable places to live.
Bellerive is ranked on
AreaVibes as Exceptionally Livable with a livability score of 85, making it the most popular town in Missouri to live.
Mission Woods,
Westwood Hills, and Leawood are all outside of Kansas City and are three of the top five cities across the state for low crime, great schools, big yards, close communities, and proximity to their respective cities.
7. Missouri Never Goes Dark
When the sun goes down in Missouri, just follow the lights for something fun to do. In Kansas City, check out the Record Bar where you can get some great food and drinks for trivia nights during the week along with local and national bands on the weekends. Club lovers will dance the night away in St. Robert’s Trinity Entertainment Complex which features different theme nights including concert hall nights, poker nights, and nightclub nights to keep it fresh. And you can reach the sky at Three Sixty Rooftop in St. Louis where you can enjoy drinks at the bar with friends at over 400 feet in the air.
8. Missouri Leaves Your Fingers Sticky
Missouri isn’t famous for its barbeque by chance. You’ll find some of the best ribs, pulled pork, and other bbq staples throughout the state. Start at Pappy’s Smokehouse in St. Louis before moving on to Arthur Bryant’s in Kansas City or Jack Stack Barbecue in
Lee’s Summit among many more.
9. This Is Baseball Country
Baseball fans will have a tough time choosing between two of the top names in baseball, the St. Louis Cardinals and the Kansas City Royals. Busch Stadium offers amazing views of the city’s famous Gateway Arch while Kauffman Stadium boasts a carousel, activities for kids, and some of that world-famous barbeque. The smaller leagues keep baseball swinging outside of the big cities, with the River City Rascals playing in O’Fallon and the Cardinals’ triple A team in Springfield.
10. Missouri Does Just Fine Without An Ocean
This might be the Midwest, but you won’t go without beaches thanks to the beauty of the Lake of the Ozarks. It’s the largest lake in the state and comes with over 1,150 miles of shoreline and a main channel that is 92 miles long. Visitors come to cool down and enjoy a variety of water sports with friends and family along with nearby attractions including miniature golf and shopping at outlets.
11. Missouri Is A Spelunkers Paradise
There might be an endless amount of fun to be had aboveground in Missouri but it’s also the state where you can have the most fun underground, too. Missouri sits on top of a record number of 5,500 caves and offers a variety of tours for visitors to learn about and see for themselves firsthand.
12. Why Missouri Should Be Called The Drink Me State
Whether you like to sip from a great bottle of red by the fire or prefer a romantic date at a vineyard, Missouri has you covered. With over 120 wineries across the state, Missouri is a wine country in its own right.
13. Missouri Is Great For Families
Visit an 1800s-themed amusement park or a dude ranch along with racing go-karts and checking out Ripley’s oddities in Branson. Get up close with the wildlife at the Kansas City Zoo, St. Louis Zoo, and a variety of parks and petting zoos throughout the state. There are dairy farms and farmer’s markets, art museums, carnivals, playgrounds, and so much more, helping to make Missouri one of the best states in the country for families.
14. Missouri Commute Times Vary
The national average for daily commutes is 25 minutes each way according to USA Today. But data from Zip Atlas shows that Missouri comes in under at 23 minutes overall, a number which changes depending on where you are in the state. Kansas City commute times can soar as high as 44 minutes each way according to Zip Atlas and St. Louis isn’t much better at 37 minutes. However, Springfield is way low with an average of 20 minutes.
15. But Information Moves At The Speed Of Life In Missouri
Kansas City was the first city across the country to score the highly-coveted Google Fiber service in 2012 which expanded to over 20 KCMO suburbs over the next three years. Along with improving internet service, it also helps bring competition to the service monopolies, helping to make prices affordable for everyone.
16. Missouri Sings The Blues With Smile
If you like the blues, Missouri will help keep you singing them. Along with the National Blues Museum, you’ll find a variety of ways to celebrate and enjoy the blues and jazz scene including the Old Webster Jazz & Blues Festival, the Roots N’ Blues Barbeque Festival, and much more.
17. Every Month Is Oktoberfest In Missouri
With a beer scene that started with an onslaught of German immigrants, Missouri’s recent craft beer explosion has only made drinking hops even more excited in the Show Me State. It’s even home to Anheuser-Bush, arguably one of the biggest names in brew. Visitors can come here to drink beer or celebrate it around one of the many breweries and festivals.
18. Expect Hot Summers And Cold Winters
Missouri weather is marked by hot, humid summers and cold winters. Most places in Missouri experience highs in the upper-80s and low-90s in July, while January brings highs ranging from the mid-30s to the low-40s. Snow can vary greatly, though, with southern Missouri cities like Springfield averaging 17 inches of snow annually, the same as northern areas like
Trenton and central cities like St. Louis. However, other southern Missouri towns like Poplar Bluff only average an annual snowfall of five inches.
19. Missouri Springs Eternal
While the rivers might make up most of the attention, Missouri wouldn’t be the Show Me State without its amazing springs and watering holes. The Ozarks contain one of the highest concentrations of natural springs in the country and are an amazing way to spend the day escaping the Missouri heat.
20. Hold Onto Your Hats… Literally
Missourians should be on alert for a tornado watch at any time of the year. The potentially devastating weather events can and do hit regularly, with the highest concentration in the months of May (12 on average) and June (6 on average). Most Missourians don’t even flinch, though, as they usually pass over as bad storms at worst. But you should always have an emergency and evacuation plan as well as supplies just in case.
21. Get Your Kicks On Route 66
Route 66 is much more than just a few Instagram-worthy signs along a highway. Along with providing some of the most scenic views in the Show Me State, you’ll also find iconic and vintage road stops like the Route 66 Drive In Theater.
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