Free Things to Do on Your North Dakota Family Vacation

As my family and I traveled through North Dakota, we were pleasantly surprised by the number of free tourist attractions in North Dakota. These free tourists spots definitely made our North Dakota vacation more affordable. Listed below are my top recommendations for free things to do in North Dakota.

State Capitol Tour, Bismark, North Dakota
You may be surprised by the look of North Dakota's State Capitol because it looks more like a skyscraper than a State Capitol. In fact, the building's 19-stories makes it the tallest building in North Dakota. Be sure to check out the observation deck on the eighteenth floor. They also have photos of the 1930 fire on display which destroyed the original Capitol building. The State Capitol is located at the end of North Sixth Street in Bismark.

North Dakota Heritage Center, Bismark, North Dakota
While visiting the State Capitol, I recommend you also stop at the home of the State Historical Society of North Dakota which is located on the State Capitol grounds. The museum has exhibits showing the history of North Dakota. The Heritage Center also has archives and a research library. The address is 612 East Boulevard Avenue in Bismark.

Enchanted Highway, Gladstone to Regent, North Dakota
My family and I really didn't know what to expect when we set out to find the Enchanted Highway. The Enchanted Highway is a thirty-two-mile stretch of prairie highway which has gigantic metal folk art sculptures made out of scrap farming and industrial materials made by Artist Gary Greff. His sculptures include geese in flight, a tin farming family, Teddy Roosevelt on horseback, grasshoppers, pheasants and deer jumping over a fence. Each sculpture has a place to park so you can walk around these sculptures and ponder why these gigantic sculptures are out in the middle of no where. You will find the start of the Enchanted Highway at the I-94 exit 72S.

The Roger Maris Museum, Fargo, North Dakota
If you are a Roger Maris fan, or even a baseball fan, you will love this tiny little museum located inside of the West Acres Shopping Mall in Fargo. Visitors get to sit in actual Yankee Stadium seats while watching a video of the life of Roger Maris. On display are Roger Maris' baseball uniforms, many of his bats, his home run balls, along with his Sultan of Swat Crowns.

Frontier Village, Jamestown, North Dakota
If you have ever dreamed of seeing the world's largest buffalo, then Jamestown is the place to go. This 26-foot tall, 46-foot long statue is a must-have photo opportunity. The frontier village is also fun to walk through. It features buildings including a barbershop, church, blockhouse gate, drugstore, jail house, post office, log fire hall, log headquarters building, mine shaft, pioneer schoolhouse, print shop, caboose and a railway depot. Look for signs for the "World's Largest Buffalo" off of I-94, exit 258.

Medora, North Dakota
The entire time we were in North Dakota everyone kept telling us that we had to check out Medora, North Dakota. Medora was founded by a French nobleman who came up with the idea of shipping refrigerated meat via the railroad instead of trying to ship live animals to slaughter houses. The city has now become one of the most popular tourist attractions in North Dakota. Be sure to check out the historic buildings in Medora, the Painted Canyon Visitor Center and the surrounding Badlands.

Scandinavian Heritage Park, Minot, North Dakota
Being Norwegian, I made sure we stopped at the Scandinavian Heritage Park. The Park includes a nice walkway which takes you past replicas from Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland. The Gol Stave Church is a beautiful full-size replica of the Gol Stave Church in Oslo, Norway. The Scandinavian Heritage Park is located at 1020 South Broadway in Minot.

Geographical Center of North America, Rugby, North Dakota
If you are looking for something to brag about, stop by Rugby, North Dakota. Rugby is the geographical center of North America. There is an 88-foot monument you can pose in front of to prove to your friends that you were actually in the center of North America.