Oklahoma Tourism & Recreation Department’s The Weekender Series Brings Travelers Close-to-Home Trip Ideas

Looking for some close-to-home adventures that you can do on a tank of gas? The Weekender, a video series from the Oklahoma Tourism & Recreation Department, provides a new destination idea every other week.

The Weekender- Riversport OKC
The Weekender promotion featuring Riversport Adventures in Oklahoma City. (Photo by Oklahoma Tourism & Recreation Department)

OKLAHOMA CITY — With gas prices rising, close-to-home travel destinations are vital. The Oklahoma Tourism & Recreation Department creates short episodes of The Weekender video series every other week, each episode generating inspiration for those looking to travel close to home.

A new episode of The Weekender is published every other Wednesday on the department’s YouTube Channel and TravelOK.com. With the theme Eat, Stay and Play, each episode features a dining destination, a lodging option and at least one activity unique to the location. The episodes are easily digestible at around two minutes long.

The Weekender kicked off in July 2021, and there are now 20 episodes available on YouTube and the TravelOK website. Each episode highlights a distinctly Oklahoma destination, with viewers finding episodes placed around every region of the state. The most recent episode, featuring Oklahoma City, launched March 30. It features The Jones Assembly, Colcord Hotel and Riversport Adventures.

The following episode, debuting April 13, will feature destinations in Lone Grove and Hobart:  Frisco Creek BBQ in Hobart; Quartz Mountain Lodge; General Tommy Franks Leadership Institute & Museum and off-roading at Quartz Mountain State Park’s Eagle Roost ATV Area.

For those looking to plan new Oklahoma adventures, the TravelOK Trip Planner is an accessible tool that can get them started. It can help travelers get organized and maximize their time, so they can get the most out of their trips in Oklahoma.

The app provides a fresh way to explore what Oklahoma has to offer, including upcoming events, popular attractions, restaurants, oddities, lodging, shops, landmarks and much more. Travelers can create itineraries using Oklahoma attractions and events, or they can select pre-planned itineraries.

The TravelOK Trip Planner app is available to download on iPhone or Android; Just type “TravelOK” into the search box or follow the links on TravelOK.com.

Images displayed are available here.

The Colcord, Jones Assembly & Riversport Adventures
The Colcord Hotel (left) (Photo by Oklahoma Tourism & Recreation Department), The Jones Assembly (center) (Photo by Lori Duckworth/Oklahoma Tourism) and Riversport Adventures (right) (Photo by Oklahoma Tourism & Recreation Department) in Oklahoma City. These locations are featured in the March 30 episode of The Weekender.

Media Contact: 

Rylie Mansuetti, Oklahoma Department of Tourism & Recreation

Rylie.Mansuetti@TravelOK.com