| Montana Department of Commerce

Below are the current markets where Montana has a presence, as well as future markets we hope to explore. We’ve met tour operators and agents at IPW from most of these markets and are continuing relationships with these partners to help them market Montana to their clients.

Canada

Canadians comprise the majority of international visitors to Montana, making our northern neighbor the top market. Most visitors have come from our drive markets, which include Alberta, Saskatchewan and British Columbia. Montana’s presence remains steadfast in this market, and research shows that young, middle-class Canadian families are still interested in visiting Montana and finding cost-effective trips. This aligns with our current marketing in these provinces, so Montana has stayed the course.

We’re beginning to study the rest of Canada to explore expanding our presence to other provinces or territories. We've done many Brand USA campaigns in Canada. Those interested in learning more can reach out International Travel Trade Coordinator Emmie Bristow at emmie.bristow@mt.gov. We’re also attending the International Indigenous Tourism Conference in Edmonton in February.

United Kingdom and Ireland

For overseas markets, the United Kingdom and Ireland together rank No. 1. Campaigns we’ve run or are currently running in this market include a Brand USA programmatic campaign focusing on the Visit the USA general Montana page in the fall and winter of 2025; a Brand USA online travel agent optimized audience campaign in spring 2026; and a campaign through one of the UK’s largest tour operators, Travelbag, in spring 2026.

Our research shows these basic demographics for the British or Irish visitor to Montana:

They mostly plan trips three to six months in advance.
They use social media as a resource for planning their trips, not just for inspiration.
They travel with their spouse or partner.
They are especially interested in Indigenous cultural experiences, history, small towns, camping, snow sports, watersports and wildlife.
They are generally between the ages of 25 and 44.

Germany

Germany ranks at No. 2 for Montana overseas visitation. Campaigns we’ve run or are currently running in this market include a Brand USA programmatic campaign focusing on the Visit the USA Native American Experience page in fall and winter of 2025; a Brand USA online travel agent optimized audience campaign in spring 2026; and a campaign through one of Germany’s largest tour operators, CANUSA, in fall and winter of 2025.

Our research shows these basic demographics for the German visitor to Montana:

They mostly plan trips three to six months in advance.
They mostly use travel agents or companies to help plan their trips.
They mostly travel with a partner or spouse.
They are especially interested in history, small towns and water recreation.
They are generally between the ages of 25 and 44.

Taiwan

Taiwan is one of Montana’s trade office locations. Through the help of this office, Montana has had an on-and-off presence in this market for a long time, and we are hoping to ramp up our engagement and partnerships with this office. Montana also has representation from the Taiwan Trade Office at the Taipei International Travel Fair in the fall.

Our research shows these basic demographics for the Taiwanese visitor to Montana:

They mostly plan trips three to six months in advance.
They mostly use travel agents or companies to help plan their trips.
They mostly travel with a partner or spouse.
They are especially interested in low-cost or free attractions, outdoor recreation, small towns and fishing.
They are generally between the ages of 25 and 44.

Japan

Japan is one of Montana’s trade office locations, with Kumamoto as our sister state. Through the help of this office, established by Former U.S. Ambassador Mike Mansfield over 40 years ago, Montana has had a presence in this market for a long time, and we are hoping to ramp up our engagement and partnerships with this office.

In fall 2025, International Travel Trade Coordinator Emmie Bristow represented Montana’s tourism on Gov. Greg Gianforte’s Asia Trade Mission in Tokyo. She met one-on-one with top tour operators, giving them presentations on Montana and adding them to our contact database. Since these meetings, some tour operators have been creating new Montana packages for their clients, and visitmt.com has seen a spike in Japanese visitation.

Montana also has occasional representation from the Japan Trade Office at the Japanese Association of Travel Agents’ Tourism EXPO in Tokyo in the fall.

Our research shows these basic demographics for the Japanese visitor to Montana:

They mostly plan trips three to six months in advance.
They mostly use travel agents or companies to help plan their trips.
They mostly travel with a partner or spouse.
They are especially interested in outdoor recreation, fishing and small towns.
They are generally between the ages of 35 and 54.

South Korea

South Korea is a new market for Montana’s tourism marketing. In fall 2025, International Travel Trade Coordinator Emmie Bristow represented Montana’s tourism on Gov. Greg Gianforte’s Asia Trade Mission in Seoul. She met one-on-one with top tour operators, giving them presentations on Montana and adding them to our contact database. Montana also hosted a tourism luncheon in Seoul, with 70% of South Korea’s outbound tourism represented by the organizations that attended. Since these meetings, a number of tour operators are creating new Montana packages for their clients.

Though we still need to dive deeper into researching this audience in 2026, preliminary findings show South Korea is especially interested in outdoor recreation, camping and Indigenous experiences. This market also has one of the highest passport holding rates in the world.

Australia

Our research shows these basic demographics for Australian visitors to Montana:

They mostly plan trips three to six months in advance.
They mostly use travel agents or companies to help plan their trips.
They mostly travel with a partner or spouse.
They are especially interested in fishing, Indigenous cultural experiences, wildlife and outdoor recreation.
They are generally between the ages of 25 and 44.

France

Our research shows these basic demographics for French visitors to Montana:

They mostly plan trips seven to 12 months in advance.
They mostly use travel agents or companies to help plan their trips.
They mostly travel with a partner or spouse.
They are especially interested in Indigenous cultural experiences and water recreation.
They are generally between the ages of 35 and 54.

Benelux Region (Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg)

Our research shows these basic demographics for visitors from the Benelux region:

They mostly plan trips three to six months in advance.
They mostly use social media to help plan their trips.
They mostly travel with a partner or spouse.
They are especially interested in camping, wildlife, Indigenous cultural experiences and outdoor recreation, including water recreation.
They are generally between the ages of 25 and 44.

Italy

Though we still need to dive deeper into researching this audience in 2026, preliminary findings show visitors from Italy are especially interested in Indigenous experiences.

Nordic Countries (Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Iceland)

Though we still need to dive deeper into researching this audience in 2026, preliminary findings show visitors from Nordic countries are especially interested in fishing.

India, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico and Spain

We’re looking at exploring these exciting markets in 2026 to see how they align with what Montana offers. Indian visitors come to Montana for business purposes year-round. Brazilian, Argentinian and Mexican visitors have a high interest in winter sports, while visitors from Spain are interested in history and small towns.