Tourists Vote Montana as One of the Least-Friendly States

National Travel and Tourism Week is coming up later this month, and already we've celebrated National Tourist Appreciation Day by talking about where we Montanans like to be tourists in our own state, or where we feel like tourists, even if we're from here.

We've also talked about Montana stereotypes this week and so many people said that it's true that Montanans aren't welcoming to out-of-staters. Well, unfortunately, that goes for people who move here, and people who are just visiting.

When Did Montana Get So Unfriendly?

Growing up, I never thought of Montana as being an unfriendly state. If anything, we were a little too friendly. Have you ever tried the two-finger wave outside of Montana? You get ignored at best. Or you might get a dirty look. Or at worst, you get a one-finger salute in return.

Montana is getting a reputation for being unfriendly.

World Population Review ranked tourists' view of each state, and we first looked at this in October of 2023. But now in May of 2024 Montana is still ranked in the second half for friendliest, coming in at 36th according to their site. Montana is closer in ranking to New York, which was ranked dead last, than it was to Idaho, which you would think is similar to Montana just because of geography.

When you think about things like the TouronsofYellowstone Instagram Account, it's not hard to see why tourists might think Montana isn't very friendly.

But here's the kicker: Montana needs tourism dollars. Many local businesses depend on the revenue that comes in from tourists. Recent data suggests that tourists don't really understand Montana. In fact, they don't see a difference between Missoula and Bozeman. Wouldn't it be to Montanans' benefit to be a little nicer to tourists?