Nearly 6 million visitors to national parks spent about $729 million in Montana gateway communities last year, according to estimates released by the National Park Service on June 23. That’s an increase of more than 60% from 2020, when parks saw a slow start to the summer season after the COVID-19 pandemic forced shutdowns.
Visitors spent over one-third of their travel money on lodging, and over 16% on dining. Gateway communities near Yellowstone National Park drew the seventh-highest spending of all parks nationwide, while communities near Glacier National Park drew the eleventh-highest.