National Buffalo Museum and Frontier Village

The National Buffalo Museum and its herd of bison and the Frontier Village are Jamestown's premier tourist destinations. The village is a nice diversion, especially for kids, but don't miss the National Buffalo Museum just south of the village. Driving up to Frontier Village, the first thing you see is Frontier Fort, the replica that has a gift shop on the main floor,and a rustic wood-paneled bar-restaurant on the top floor. Just past the fort sits Frontier Village, open and free to visitors. The village is made up of about two dozen old buildings and a couple train cars brought in from around the region. Visitors can walk inside the buildings and view the scenes within, although most of the building interiors are fenced off with only a small area for visitors. During high season in the summer, there are stagecoach rides into the buffalo pasture for $5 (look out for the herd's signature albino bison) and $3 pony rides for children. You can visit other times of year, but it's more of a ghost town. However, the National Buffalo Museum, just south of the village, is worth a visit anytime, especially for those interested in Native American culture and history. For a small fee, visitors can walk through a museum packed with bison information, Native American artifacts and a surprisingly nice gift shop at the end with a great variety of Western-theme gifts and local products. Outside, "Dakota Thunder," a giant bison statue, begs for a goofy we-were-here photo.