Montana state parks welcomed 3.38 million visitors in 2025, a nearly 5% increase from the year before, according to new data.
Over the past 10 years, parks have seen a quarter of a million more visitors — an increase of just over 27%.
WATCH: Montana state parks are more popular than ever — 3.38 million visitors in 2025
Morgan Jacobsen of the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks said the variety of experiences available across the state's parks is a key driver of the growth.
"Ghost towns or guided tours or float-in access, fishing, hiking, camping, all these things are provided by our state parks in Montana, you know, it's just something that Montanans and visitors really, really enjoy about our state," Jacobsen said.
Convenience is also a factor. Many park locations are reservable, and Montanans have taken advantage of that.
"Some of what people are looking for is predictability, especially when they're planning a trip, you know, from outside of town, they like to know they're going to have a place to stay, and that reservation system provides that," Jacobsen said.
Jacobsen encourages visitors to check the FWP website to find new parks to explore this summer.
"Every state park has a web page on the website of Fish, Wildlife and Parks and so you can check out and see what amenities are offered, what are the site rules you know what's the season look like there and you know what a cool activity to go as a family and check off all these different state parks that are right here in your back yard. I can't think of anything more fun than that," Jacobsen said.
As for where people are going, Region 4 in north-central Montana saw the largest increase, at almost 22%. Region 7 in southeast Montana saw a 6.8% increase. Region 3 saw more than 255,000 visitors, a 5.9% increase over last year.
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