More than one million people chose to spend at least one night in Great Falls last year, according to a new report from the area's tourism group. They filled hotel rooms, packed restaurants, and pumped gas — and together they spent nearly $200 million in this community.
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For Hometana owner Shirstie Gaylord, those out-of-state visitors are more than just customers. They are a window into how the world sees Great Falls.
"We love our adventurers and tourists and travelers. We learn so much from them and in turn they learn a lot about Montana from us. They come from everywhere. Last year, we had somebody invite us to their house in Amsterdam," Gaylord said.
She says many are surprised by what they find here.
"Great Falls is actually like the spoke in between the two national parks. They love stopping here, grabbing a beer, staying at the historic Arvon next door. One of the biggest misconceptions about Great Falls is that people don't automatically think of it as tourism — but we actually get tons of tourists," Gaylord said.
According to Visit Great Falls' 2025 annual report, the city welcomed more than one million visitors last year — generating $191 million in visitor spending across hotels, restaurants, fuel stations, and retailers. The top activities included day hiking, scenic drives, wildlife watching, shopping, and — for the first time in the top five — visiting breweries.
That milestone was on full display recently when Great Falls hosted the 2026 Montana Governor's Conference on Tourism. The conference brought nearly 200 tourism professionals to the city and generated approximately $100,000 in local economic impact in just a few days.
Rebecca Engum, executive director of Great Falls Montana Tourism, says that money touched nearly every corner of the local economy.
"That's going to our local businesses within our community. It goes to the venue for the rent and the hotel for the lodging night stay — but it's also going to the companies putting together the audiovisual services, the stage, putting up the pipe and drape, organizing the tables," Engum said.
The numbers reflect something deeper, Engum says — a community that people keep coming back to. According to the annual report, more than 75% of Great Falls visitors are repeat visitors.
"It's the greatest job on Planet Earth to be able to get people who aren't from here to come visit, experience what we have, go, 'that was amazing', go home and plan their next trip," Engum said.
Looking ahead, Visit Great Falls is working to grow sports tourism and smaller conferences to spread economic activity across the shoulder seasons. The BMW Motorcycle Owners of America National Rally is also returning to Great Falls in June 2027.
The full 2025 Annual Report from Visit Great Falls is available at VisitGreatFallsMontana.org.
