Lisa Konicki, who heads the Greater Westerly-Pawcatuck Chamber of Commerce, said Tuesday that Yankee, Family Fun and Reader's Digest magazines have featured articles highlighting the Westerly and South County area of Rhode Island.

"Westerly has been receiving some fabulous national recognition," she said, including the front cover of the July-August issue of Yankee magazine featuring Napatree Point. The article, about the "Ten Best Beaches," also includes a two-page spread about the Watch Hill section of Westerly.

In addition, the magazine names Napatree Point as among the "Best Walk" areas in the country.

Konicki said Family Fun magazine's June issue included Watch Hill among its favorite beach towns in the country. The current issue of Reader's Digest also features an article on the "Most Scenic Drives in America" and highlights the South County coastline in Rhode Island. Among the local highlights mentioned in the magazine are Watch Hill, Misquamicut Beach and Burlingame State Park.

"You can't buy this kind of publicity," Konicki said. "To have the villages of Watch Hill and Misquamicut included significantly bolsters them by this kind of favorable review," she added.

Konicki said the South County region has been mentioned in past national magazines, but the favorable publicity this year helps the region's growing tourism industry. "If you look back over the past couple of years, we seem to garner national headlines on a pretty consistent basis," she said.

South County, officially called Washington County, includes 11 towns along the southern coast of Rhode Island. For tourism and marketing purposes, local groups tend to refer to the area as South County.

Konicki said Westerly has already been added to the nation's 12 Most Distinctive Locations by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.