The Lake of the Ozarks is centrally located in Missouri and easy to reach with a within a two and a half-hour drive from either St. Louis or Kansas City. Commercial air travel can get as close as Columbia and then the drive is reduced to approximately one and half-hours. Lee C. Fine Memorial Airport can be found just south of Osage Beach and has a 6,500 by 100-ft. runway, plus terminal building, parallel taxiway, fuel and tie down service.

Approaching by car from the north on the Highway 54, one arrives first at the Bagnell Dam area. The first mile west of the dam is known as "The Strip" and is home to a variety of restaurants, hotels, motels, amusements, arcades and shops such as boutiques, souvenir and crafts. Next, one arrives at the intersection of Business Highway 54 and Route HH where one finds Horseshoe Bend, the Village of Four Seasons, fine accommodations, restaurants, and golf courses. A little further down the road is The Lake of the Ozarks Community Bridge, a toll bridge spanning the main channel of the lake.