Williston one of nation’s top getaways

Williston has been receiving a lot of attention at the national level recently stating that the Bakken Formation has the potential for as much as 4.3 billion barrels of recoverable oil - the largest find ever in the Continental United States - and that oil exploration in the Williston Basin could last two decades.

However, that's not the only thing Williston has going for it. In fact, it has a whole lot more and has been recognized by some national publications as such.

Back in March, Outdoor Life magazine ranked Williston 18th nationally in its top 200 towns for outdoorsmen and most recently, Williston was ranked 53rd nationally in Midwest Living's "100 Best Small-Town Getaways" listing and is included in the publication's "Best of the Midwest 2008" guide.

"This shows that our community is a great place to live and it's a great place to visit," WIlliston Convention and VIsitors Bureau Executive DIrector Amy Krueger said. "These awards are very special to us. At the Convention and Visitor's Bureau, it shows our work is paying off and it shows we're in the right places and doing the right things."

Midwest Living editors have been visiting the region's small towns for more than 20 years, and their list of the "100 Best Small-Town Getaways" guarantees its readers will find a place to escape for shopping, sightseeing and relaxing.

Williston is one of four North Dakota towns ranked by Midwest Living. The others are Medora (ranked 30th), Valley City (ranked 88th) and Jamestown (ranked 94th).

Since Midwest Living's first issue in 1987, its editors have been on a continual quest to uncover the best cities and towns. For this official Top 100 list, the editors looked specifically at the 8,500 towns with populations less than 20,000 in the Midwest and added a layer of research that spanned several months and ranked towns in 12 categories: attractions, vibe, scenery, walkability, shopping, dining, lodging, arts scene, outdoor activities, proximity to major cities, multi-day potential and wild card (for special events such as festivals). The winners, first highlighted in the June 2007 issue, are featured in "Best of the Midwest 2008," an annual guide from the editors of Midwest Living to the region's top attractions.

"Having four North Dakota towns recognized by a leading regional publication's Top 100 listing is a true tribute to the quality experience each of these communities offers its visitors," North Dakota Tourism Director Sara Otte Coleman said. "Midwest Living editors have spent years uncovering the best places in the Midwest for a getaway, so this is a great pat-on-the-back for these towns to be recognized. This list shows that from a visitor's perspective they're great communities to visit."

In its ranking of the top 100 small towns, Midwest Living had a brief description about each of the communities. For Williston, it said, "Restored frontier Fort Buford at the historic junction of the Yellowstone and Missouri rivers."

According to Krueger, that's just one of several things to see and do in Williston such as Fort Union, the Confluence Center, paddlefishing, model airplane park, Go-Cart races, remote control race car track, movie theaters, bike trails and parks. Williston also has the last remaining drive-in movie theater in the state. They also had the first drive-in movie theater in the state.

Not bad for a community that has the ninth highest population in the state, but is ranked fifth in taxable sales. Also, its caviar was recently ranked third nationally by Bon Appetit magazine and the Links of North Dakota is ranked as a top 100 golf course by Golf Week and Golf Digest.

"We may not be on the same scale as some of the bigger cities, but we still have it," Krueger said. "People need to go out and see their own attractions that we have right here. We need to experience it before we say it's not here locally.

"We continue to grow as a community and continue to promote our attractions, our parks, our establishments within our own community," Krueger added. "It's a small community and we love that small town feel that it has. But we are growing and we want to keep that community feel and keep everything we have. We want to continue to be a support for our community and promote it."