I’m a professional traveler, and many people like me have certain goals — some admittedly silly — when it comes to travel. Some want to visit all seven continents, or a certain number of countries by a certain age. I turned 49 years old in September 2023, and I was determined to visit all 50 states before turning 50. So, a few months before my birthday, I made a plan to visit Wisconsin as No. 49 and North Dakota as No. 50. Milwaukee was easy, but North Dakota proved to be logistically more difficult.

I live in Orlando, Florida, and there are no direct flights to Fargo, my chosen destination and North Dakota’s largest city. Technically, I could fly there with a layover, but that posed a couple of problems. First, air travel these days is crazy. A layover means more opportunities for my luggage to get lost, more opportunities for delays and more opportunities for me to get hurt during transfers between my power wheelchair, an airport aisle chair and an airplane seat. Plus, there are no on-demand wheelchair-accessible taxis in Fargo and no public bus service between the airport and downtown, so I didn’t know how I was going to get from the airport to a hotel.

I decided to do something off the beaten path and throw a little adventure into the mix. I would use Delta frequent flyer miles to fly nonstop from Orlando to Minneapolis. There I would spend one night, take the Greyhound bus — my first — direct to Fargo, spend two nights there, and reverse the whole process to get back home. In both Minneapolis and Fargo, I found hotels only a few blocks away from the bus stations so that I would be less dependent on local transportation.

Now I had to figure out what I was going to do in Fargo. I reached out to the Fargo-Moorhead Convention and Visitors Bureau for help putting together an itinerary of best things to do and places to visit in a short amount of time. Here are the highlights of my 48 hours in my 50^th state as a wheelchair user.

Day 1

Check-in at the Jasper Hotel. Once I arrived at the downtown Fargo Greyhound station, I rolled a few blocks north on Broadway and checked into the beautiful Jasper Hotel. It’s ideally located in the middle of downtown with easy access to dozens of shops and restaurants, and in 2022, was ranked by readers of Condé Nast Traveler magazine as one of the top 15 hotels in the Midwest. The Jasper has a great restaurant and lounge downstairs, and the wheelchair accessibility in my ADA junior suite, Room 1419, was phenomenal.

Explore downtown Fargo and murals. North Dakota weather can be extremely difficult to predict, so, after checking in, I took advantage of partly cloudy skies to spend the afternoon exploring downtown Fargo. The sidewalks are wide, curb cuts are ample and most businesses have push-button door openers. Being the art geek I am, I was thrilled to discover there are approximately two dozen beautiful hand-painted murals around the downtown area, most of which are easy to photograph from your wheelchair.

Dinner at Rosewild. After spending half a day on a bus and several hours rolling around downtown Fargo, I was ready for a good meal inside the Jasper Hotel at an award-winning restaurant, Rosewild. The menu pays homage to the rich flavors of the region, drawing inspiration from local produce and North Dakota traditions. It’s open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, with a menu that includes burgers, steak, fish and pasta.

Day 2

Breakfast at BernBaum’s. I make a point of asking locals where they like to eat in any city I visit, and my hotel bartender was very emphatic that I have breakfast at the iconic BernBaum’s only a block away. It’s a traditional Jewish deli with Nordic influences, where you can find favorites like homemade bagels, latkes and knishes. And instead of a number to take back to your table while waiting for your order, they’ll give you a cute plastic animal.

Fargo-Moorhead Visitors Center. It’s always a good idea to stop at the local visitor’s center if you’re exploring a new city, but this one just west of downtown Fargo is an important stop for two reasons. First, if North Dakota is your 50^th state, you can join its Best for Last Club. You’ll get a certificate as well as a T-shirt congratulating you on your major accomplishment. Plus, you’ll see the infamous wood chipper used in the movie Fargo, autographed by the Coen brothers.

The Hjemkomst Center. Located across the Red River from downtown Fargo, this museum and cultural center in Moorhead, Minnesota, proudly displays the region’s Scandinavian heritage. In the late 1800s, one of every three Norwegians emigrated to this area, which is part of the reason for that distinctive North Dakota accent, you betcha! You can see a Viking ship and the replica of a medieval Norwegian church, as well as artifacts and local memorabilia.

Lunch at Pounds. If you love a great burger and fries in a 1980s-themed environment, then Pounds in downtown Fargo is a great place for a late lunch.

Shopping in downtown Fargo. I loved so many things about the shops and galleries here. First, even if they are in older buildings, most have push-button door openers and accessible entrances. Second, most are locally owned, and it’s cool talking to the gallery and store owners while browsing. Third, there’s not a tacky souvenir shop in sight.

Plains Art Museum. I was thrilled to get a private guided tour of this small-but-impressive art museum a few blocks from Broadway in downtown Fargo. The holdings lean toward modern and contemporary art, but they prominently feature North Dakota artists, indigenous themes and community collaborations.

Dinner at Spaghetti Western. A nice, big Italian meal hits the spot after a busy day of sightseeing, and Spaghetti Western fits the bill. They make the pasta in-house, and on the menu you’ll find favorites like spaghetti with Grandma’s meat sauce, pasta carbonara and spinach ravioli. Don’t forget to end with their tiramisu or cannoli!

Day 3

Breakfast at Marge’s Diner. Another great recommendation by my hotel bartender, Marge’s is a local institution and a short roll of two blocks from the Jasper. There’s Midwestern nostalgia everywhere, and brunch, complete with mimosas, is served every day.

Taking the bus to NDSU campus. While I love the absence of tacky souvenir shops downtown, it does pose a problem when you are shopping for North Dakota-themed souvenirs to bring home to friends and family. But inspiration struck and led me to take the very accessible public bus from my hotel about a mile-and-a-half north to the North Dakota State University campus bookstore, where they have every type of gift you can imagine.

Gallery 4. A local art gallery owner saw my real-time Instagram posts about Fargo and invited me to visit Gallery 4 downtown. Before heading to the bus station, I had just enough time to swing by this charming space and do one of my favorite things: supporting local artists by buying one of their beautiful pieces.

While I feel like I saw most of what Fargo had to offer in my 48 hours, I do wish I had the chance to stay a bit longer. The accessibility was phenomenal, the people were so friendly, and the fall colors were just starting to turn. This little corner of North Dakota truly was the best for last.