A Local’s Tour of Missoula: What First-Time Visitors Really Loved

Every once in a while we get friends or family who come and visit. Usually the people who visit, have been here before or they are from here. It's not often that we get people who visit us that have never set foot in Montana before.

It was an opportunity to show off Missoula to people who had no idea what to expect. Don't worry–they have no intention of ever moving here. For just two days, I got to play "tour guide" in my hometown.

So we had to figure out where to go and what to do. There were also a few issues. They had young children and my wife was confined to a wheelchair due to a recent surgery. So hiking to the "M" wasn't an option.

Family-Friendly Missoula

It was interesting to show them around. It also gave me a chance to experience Missoula from a different perspective and even go to a place or two where I hadn't been before.

Here is where we went over a day and a half.

Missoula's Butterfly House & Insectarium: Missoula's Butterfly House was one of our first stops. This was the first time I had ever been there and I have to say, it was amazing. The exhibits, the people working there, the animals, they were all great. It was warm and humid for the butterflies, and one of the first thoughts I had was, this would be awesome on a cold winter day. We also went next door to the Rocky Mountain Gardens and checked out all the plants.

Rockin' Rudy's: There was a request to pick up some Montana souvenirs, so we went to Rockin' Rudy's, and yes we were able to find something for everyone on their list. One of the best things about "Rudy's" is that it also gave me the opportunity to show off Missoula's infamous "Slant Street" neighborhood.

READ MORE: Missoula Named One of the Most Confusing Cities to Drive In

Brennan's Wave: We got to show them the river and the wave. At the time, there weren't any surfers, but we did get to watch a lot of floaters go by. We got to go down to the river with the new access and dip our toes in the water.

Missoula's Carousel: The kids wanted to do something "fun" so we gave them rides on the carousel. The youngest couldn't get enough and didn't want to stop. We convinced her to go right next door to "Dragon's Hollow". They played until we were all tired.

Missoula's People's Market: Saturday morning we went to the People's Market downtown. We didn't go to all three markets downtown because of the wheelchair.

Charlie B's: We had to show off where me and my wife met. So we popped into "Charlie's" for a second to show them all the splendor and romance of where we met.

Southgate Mall: After the heat and all the walking the kids wanted some video games, so instead of giving them a handheld device we hit the mall and the arcade. We were able to get a snack, use a massage chair, and play some video games.

By the time they left for the airport, we were all exhausted.

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There is so much more to show them. Maybe next time we can add in a hike or float down a river and really show off our home. For now they got a good idea of where we live and just how lucky we are to call this place home.