Good year for local tourism expected despite gas prices

The Daily Inter Lake

Despite rising fuel prices, tourism in the valley is expected to grow this summer, although not as rapidly as last year.

Last year, 10 million people visited Montana, a 4.5 percent increase from 2004. This year, state tourism authorities predict about a 2 percent increase.

"From what we heard, people are still going to come," said Linda Anderson, executive director of the Glacier Country Regional Tourism Commission.

The difference is that visitors might not travel to as many places once they arrive, she said, and may not shop or eat out as much. But to many visitors, gas prices in Montana look much better than they do at home.

"Our gas prices are way lower than places like Los Angeles or San Francisco or Seattle," she said.

Still, Glacier Country is offering drivers some incentive.

Travelers who book vacations through the Glacier Country Web site, www.glaciermt.com, receive a $50 gas card with their lodging package.

They only get those cards when they check into their hotel, Anderson said. Other states mailed cards to customers who never showed up.

"We need heads in beds, we need people in restaurants, that kind of thing," she said.

So far, the deal has been popular, she said. One person booked 10 lodging packages immediately. Just 10 days after Glacier Country made the offer, more than 21,000 unique visitors had clicked on the ad to get the details.

Even without the gas-card incentive, people are excited about visiting Montana, said Lisa Jones, a trainer with the Montana Superhost program.

In 2005, the state's Web site, www.visitmt.com, had 4.5 million visits, she said. This year, that number is already up 63 percent. In March, the site averaged more than 18,000 hits a day.

"We're cautiously optimistic that we'll have a good summer," Anderson said, "but I don't think we're going to break any records."