Here's what i just told another guy last night.
Here's one site that has a bunch of MO fishing guides listed. Just have to check the ones in the area of branson to see what they guide for.
http://www.fishingreporters.com/missouri/fishing-guides.htmlYou will be down around Bull Shoals and taneycomo and tablerock. Bull shoals is decent for cats, channels and flats. Taneycomo is pretty much rainbow and brown trout. Tablerock has some real nice flatheads and some good channels.
That part of the state leans a bit more to hybrids, stripers, wipers, white bass, walleyes, crappies and trout. I know there's some good catfishing on bull shoals and tablerock, just can't tell you where. There's a few catfish guides down there.
One spot i can reccomend is right below powersite dam just up river from forsyth. Tablerock still has a lot of standing timber in places to fish for flatheads. Don't feel you have to have a guide, especialy if your fishing for channels.
There's an excellent walleye fishery in bull shoals and some pretty decent stripers. Go a lil south to the border and into arkansaw and you run into norfork lake which is an excellent striper lake. Im talking 20-25lb bass that will tear up heavy cat gear. Not dinky lil largemouths. Might be your best bet to look for striper fishing.Or hit taneycomo for rainbows and BIG brown trout. Id go to norfork for a guided striper trip myself if i used a guide.
If you camp take bear precautions with your food ect.
Be sure to take PLEANTY of MONEY as nothing in Branson, silver dollar city or celebration city is Cheap. Expect large crowds and heavy traffic, real heavy traffic.
Lots of shows, lots of hotels, lots of campgrounds, lots of people.
I live about 2 hours north and i don't go down there except to fish for walleyes early in the spring and whites a lil later on. I go the long way around the avoid the traffic.
I once spent two hours going from the highway half way across town in branson. Maybe 1 1/2 miles.
Here's a site might be helpfull in many ways to you.
http://www.explorebranson.com/listings/index.cfm?action=showAll&catID=4¬ify=1