Tourism Matters to Montana
Tracking and Acting on Key Bills

Tourism Matters to Montana, an organization that comprises regional and community destination groups, actively tracked and acted upon various bills during the legislative session. Together with many organizations and businesses, Tourism Matters played an instrumental role in advocating for the proper allocation of the Lodging Facility Use Tax revenue toward initiatives that support tourism, promote community development and address the needs of rural and tribal communities.

One significant bill the organization supported and worked toward passing was SB 540 which allocates Montana Office of Tourism lodging tax in a way that will ensure funding for traditional promotional projects and programs and money to support rural tourism development meant to enhance the visitor experience while maintaining a balance with the quality of life for residents all across Montana.
https://tourismmattersmt.org/bill-watch

Tourism Sales Update

Northwest USA Spotlight was held in Missoula in April and was attended by 14 domestic tour companies. Our Group Sales Associate, Aerionna Skrutvold, hosted a pre-FAM and spotlighted three communities as well as Glacier National Park. One operator said it was the best FAM they’d been on in 37 years in the industry. Our Director of Sales, Debbie Picard, attended International Roundup in Boise as well as Meeting Professionals International’s World Education Conference. IPW, the largest trade show for international buyers, was held in May in San Antonio, and the Montana booth saw a record number of appointments.

Public Relations Update

Glacier Country Tourism’s Director of Communications, Lucy Guthrie Beighle, also attended IPW, where she met with 25 international journalists and bloggers. In June, she hosted blogger Valerie Stimac for an Astrotourism trip. We have also assisted with and been featured in a number of publications this past quarter, including two articles in AFAR Magazine, one on northern lights and one on the Glacier National Park reservation system in, an article in Northwest Travel and Life on Glacier Park International Airport and an article in Meetings Today featuring Glacier Country as a meetings destination. 

Destination
Stewardship Update

Jenna Boltz, our Director of Community Engagement and Destination Stewardship, has been actively visiting communities throughout the region. Her role involves connecting nonprofit organizations, business owners and residents while listening to community members' ideas on how to protect recreational and cultural assets. Meetings and listening sessions have been conducted with various groups, including the Clark Fork Coalition, Mission West Community Development Partners, and Blackfeet Nation Tribal Tourism supporters. These sessions have resulted in a network of connections and growing awareness of existing and proposed stewardship-related projects that address issues like experiential degradation, cultural preservation, collaboration opportunities, and more. Through ongoing engagement, we are discovering community-driven programs and projects that align with our Destination Stewardship Plan.

Research
and Trends

In April and May we heard from various business owners in Flathead County about slow business. We looked at data and found these trends: 1) Increases in average daily rate (ADR) continue to drive up hotel revenue, concealing decreases in supply and demand; 2) Movement trends have changed, shifting back toward outdoor recreation and away from retail, sit-down restaurants and bars; and 3) Resident spend is down, potentially escalating the feedback that retail and bars are less busy. Conditions to consider are below-average snowfall, and increased travel to Europe with international borders opening and the high cost of domestic travel. We will continue monitoring trends in the Flathead and in all eight of our counties as we saw a cool, rainy start to the summer followed by low water levels in Flathead Lake. On the bright side, Going-to-the-Sun Road's June 13 opening is one of the earliest dates we have seen in years.