The Top 10 Reasons to Travel to Fargo, North Dakota

With so many exotic vacation spots vying for your money and time, wouldn't it be refreshing to go somewhere that won't be mobbed by mai tai-drinking tourists in loud shirts, where there is not a mile of white sand covered with a semi-nude mob? If you answered, "Oh yes, please" then Fargo, North Dakota is the place for you.

Located between Minneapolis, Minnesota and, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Fargo is well known for the blazing success of their downtown renaissance. There is art, there are coffee bars, there is theater, and there are funky, family-owned businesses. For what more could you ask? Here is a list of 10 great things you can find there:

The Hotel Donaldson
This hip cornerstone of urban renewal has a lot to offer. Each guest room centers on the work of a different local artist. The ceilings are high, the décor is modernist, and the toilets are black. The place screams, "Culture!" When you're tired of exploring your room, you can head downstairs to the gourmet restaurant or, more fun, to Stoker's lounge. The menu is creative and not too expensive, the bar is fully stocked, and there is live music on weekends. Should you need a fix of greenery, head to the roof-top garden (growing year-round, thanks to heated beds) and relax in the hot tub. You don't even have to leave the building to have a lovely weekend getaway.

The Fargo Theatre
Built in 1926 and refurbished to its former glory, the home of the Mighty Wurlitzer is now the seat of artsy and foreign movies, as well as more intimate concerts and performances on its original vaudeville stage. The inside is beautiful, the neon is retro, and the organ is, indeed, mighty.

The Plains Art Museum
These folks are all about outreach to the community and offer free courses for children as well as classes and lectures for adults and a reference library. Cheap admission and two floors of fascinating artifacts and art make this museum a real winner. You can eat at Café Muse and visit the gift shop. They also have RPAG, the Rolling Plains Art Gallery - a semi-trailer filled with art and educational materials that travels rural North Dakota and Minnesota.

The Heritage Hjemkomst Interpretive Center
Whether you're looking for a replica of a Viking ship that actually sailed to Norway, a stunning stavkirke created of hand-carved wood inside and out, or just some local history, a short jaunt across the Red River to Moorhead, Minnesota can provide all of this plus some lovely walking trails on the grounds as well. If you're downtown, you can't miss it - the building is so tall and oddly shaped that it is a local landmark.

Trollwood Park and the Trollwood Performing Arts School
This is a 36-acre park, complete with a yellow brick road, a large playground area, and a performing arts school that dazzles the region with a different musical each summer. The program has won numerous national awards and is a favorite among local youth. There are refurbished farm buildings, two stages, a pretty gazebo, hundreds of trees, and miles of trails for wandering along the river.

The Maple River Winery
For those tired of that predictable grape wine, feeling nostalgic for dandelion or elderberry wine, or looking for something tasting of pumpkin, chokecherry, or wild plums, the Maple River Winery in Casselton, North Dakota offers something different. There are a few other wineries in the area, including Two Fools Vineyard and Point of View Winery, but this one is a quick 20-minute drive from Fargo and offers a wide variety of fruits. You can also buy jellies (with and without the wine), coffee roasted on-site, and T-shirts for those youngsters who aren't allowed to taste test.

Buffalo River State Park
When you're full of urban and urbane entertainment, pack up your tent and wander a few miles east into Minnesota. With over 1,300 acres of preserved prairie and forest, there are hiking and snowshoeing trails for everyone to enjoy. 250 species of wildlife make the park their home, as well. Add a swimming beach and some good fishing for a great vacation within a vacation.

Golf
Whether you're looking for disc golf, mini-golf, or a full 18-hole country club, Fargo can accommodate your desire to hit the links. There's Rose Creek, Edgewood, The Meadows, and Village Green for traditional golf. Disc golf devotees will find courses at Woodlawn Park, Oak Grove Park, and Iwen Park. The Children's Museum at Yunker Farm, the AmericInn Events Center, and Thunder Road offer very different mini-golf courses. The latter also boasts mini-cars and batting cages, if golf is too quiet for you.

Live Music
Fargo's eclectic music scene offers everything from a jazz combo at Babb's Coffee House or a Big Band swinging it at the Radisson to two-stepping at Buck's Roadhouse or screaming guitars at the newly-renovated and enlarged House of Rock at Playmaker's. There are two blues festivals each year, jazz in Island Park every June, WE-Fest (country-western) and Spirit Fest (Christian music) at the Soo Pass Ranch in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, and a wide variety of bands playing each evening during the Downtown Street Fair and Rib Fest at the FargoDome. Local and regional bands make the circuit of local clubs and are generally well-advertised with flyers downtown and in the local alternative newspaper stocked in most stores and restaurants.

Great Food
Everyone has to eat. There are over 30 places to do that in downtown Fargo alone - a tasty snack at Barbara's 1st & Deli or the Old Broadway Grill, pizza at historic Sammy's, authentic Mexican at Juano's, Chinese at the King House Buffet, a sub at Bertrosa's in historic Elm Tree Square, or something fancier at Monte's Downtown. If you'd rather visit Chili's, Red Lobster, The Olive Garden, or the like there are dozens of regional and national chain restaurants around the West Acres Shopping Center. While you're in the area, you can visit Widman's Candy and pick up some chocolate-covered potato chips for dessert.

While a pontoon boat tour on the Red River may not be snorkeling, there are plenty of great places and events in Fargo and the surrounding area. You can spend a day at the races then relax at a club and play a little blackjack. Whatever your interests, consider a more domestic site for your next vacation.