Economists break down how the pandemic impacted Montana tourism | Regional

As travel picks up again, the University of Montana becomes new findings published on the impact of the pandemic on the Montana tourism industry.

Last year, Montana saw a 12% decrease in visitors from the state, but when compared to states like California, which saw a 55% decrease, the state of Big Sky did pretty well.

Our travelers are much more of a car market, so 85 to 90% of our visitors are more likely to come here with their personal vehicle and the air traffic has been really hard hit and we are not as dependent as a state like California, ”said Jeremy Sage, interim director of the institute for tourism and recreation research.

The study also shows that last year visitors opted for campsites instead of hotel rooms.

“Our understanding and reading on this is that people have been looking for these wide open spaces and relocated their travel destinations to a place where they feel safer last summer,” said Sage.

So people flocked to rural destinations like Glacier or Yellowstone National Park.

But this study shows that tourists spend 16% less than in previous years. UM researchers say this is largely due to restaurant capacity and indoor and activity closures, leaving people with fewer options to spend.

So the question remains. What can we expect in 2021?

“We don’t expect large group travel to resume like we saw before the pandemic,” Sage said. “We expect a return from small group tours where families or a group of friends come to our wide open spaces.”

Early figures already suggest that the losses suffered by Montana’s tourism industry last year will be made good this year.

“If you look at bed tax revenue in the first quarter, it’s up 52% ​​in Glacier Country, the northwest corner of our state, which is only 1% down from 2019, so these are big numbers to come out of.” said Sage.