Montana’s International Tourism Marketing

With more than 1.5 million visitors and over $364 million in spending in 2024 according to data from the Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research at the University of Montana, Montana’s international travelers represent around 10% of the visitors we receive. Of these visitors, around 8% came from Canada, with only 2% coming from overseas. Those coming from overseas account for over half the spending, with $193.4 million from overseas travelers versus $170.6 million from Canadians. We expect numbers to shift in 2025, with Canadian visitation dropping compared to domestic and in-state travel.

In 2025, Montana began charting a new course for the International Tourism Marketing Program. Though some goals remain the same, like expanding visitation and spending at local businesses, this program is also focused on collaborating with other international efforts at the Montana Department of Commerce. It does this through business attraction and import/export, as well as aligning with the consumer brand to show what Montana has to offer beyond its national parks: state parks, Indigenous cultural experiences, local events, history, Western traditions, dinosaur discoveries and more.

As this program explores new approaches and markets, we are still leveraging existing relationships. We are members of the American Bus Association, National Tour Association, International Inbound Travel Association and Discover America Canada. We also work to maintain connections with the top tour operators in each target market, and we still use Brand USA connections and campaigns to branch out into new and existing markets in fresh ways.

Between the trade offices, tourism regions, destination marketing organizations and Commerce, international travelers and tour operators or agents can catch Montana’s presence at the following conferences or trade shows in 2026:

• January: American Bus Association Marketplace in Reno, Nevada
• February: International Indigenous Tourism Conference in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
• April: Go West Summit in Las Vegas
• May: U.S. Travel Association’s IPW in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
• November: International Travel Fair in Taipei

Montana also has occasional presence at the Japan Association of Travel Agents’ Tourism EXPO in Tokyo in the fall, the National Tour Association Travel Exchange in the fall, the International Inbound Travel Association Summit in the winter and country-specific, governor-led or business attraction trade missions.

Though working through business-to-business channels like tour operators or agents is still the best way to market to most overseas countries, a growing percentage of international travelers rely on social media — especially for inspiration — which Montana will explore in 2026.