Planes, trains and automobiles

All on board for June conference in Bismarck

By Patricia Stockdill

Planes, trains or automobiles – members heading to the Bismarck 2008 Outdoor Writers Association of America conference in June have a myriad of travel options. Bismarck has several daily flights in and out of the city via Northwest Airlines and Minneapolis or United Airlines through Denver, making connecting flights a breeze. A toll-free Northwest Airlines telephone number will soon be available for OWAA members to book Northwest Airlines flights with a 10 percent to 20 percent discount for conference attendees. (Watch future issues of OU for more information.) All OWAA members have to do is call the toll-free number, requesting the “Zone Fare” discount, said Bismarck-Mandan Convention and Visitors Bureau Director of Sales Sheri Grossman.

Allegiant Air provides another option, especially for OWAA members in the southern and southwestern United States. Allegiant flies directly from Las Vegas to Bismarck several days a week, so members can connect from other airlines, such as Southwest or Delta, and head directly to Bismarck.

To make things even easier, the CVB posts flight schedules from all three airlines in and out of Bismarck on its Web site, www.discoverbismarckmandan.com. Click “Getting Here and Around” for links to car rental details, flight schedules – updated monthly directly from the airlines – and other information.

Car rental agencies can also make things easy when OWAA members make their car rental arrangements early. That way they will make certain they can meet OWAA needs and have the necessary number of cars available for conference attendees, said Grossman. Conference headquarters, the Best Western Ramkota Hotel, provides airport shuttle service.

Bismarck is also readily accessible for those wanting to hit the highway. Interstate 94 travels the entire east-west direction across southern North Dakota directly through Bismarck. U.S. Highway 83 treks across the Central Plains states literally from border to border from Canada to Mexico.

Rimrock Stage offers bus travel. A link to bus information is available on the Bismarck-Mandan CVB Web site.

But perhaps one of the most unique options to get to Bismarck takes OWAA members back to a slice of nostalgia, a time when life’s pace was slower, gentler, and entertainment included the chug-chug serenade of a train. If you live close to Amtrak’s Empire Builder line, grab a bunch of OWAA friends, travel as a group and rent a car for the last few miles into Bismarck.

Amtrak’s Empire Builder makes daily stops in Minot, 100 miles north of the Capitol City of Bismarck. Major car rental agencies, including Avis, Hertz, National, Enterprise and several local agencies are available in the Magic City of Minot. Contact the Minot Visitor and Convention Bureau, 800-264-2626, and the staff can provide additional transportation information.

More Amtrak information is available by calling 701-852-0358. Amtrak’s reservation number is 800-872-7245.

Amtrak stops at Devils Lake, so OWAA members might want to plan a fishing stopover for walleye, white bass and northern pike.

Whether it’s plane, train or automobile, getting to and around Bismarck is a breeze – and it’s another reason for the Bismarck OWAA conference to be a must on members’ 2008 to-do list.

Contact the Bismarck-Mandan CVB, 800-767-3555, for more Bismarck-Mandan OWAA conference travel information.

Patricia Stockdill is a freelance writer and photographer and 11-year member of OWAA. She writes from Garrison, N.D.

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