Glacier, the economic engine

A recent study shows that Glacier National Park is more than just scenery and beautiful hikes. It’s an economic engine.

A new National Park Service report shows that approximately 2.9 million visitors to Glacier National Park in 2022 spent an estimated $368 million in communities near the park. That spending supported 5,690 jobs in the local area and had a cumulative benefit to the local economy of $548 million. 

The greatest spending comes from lodging at 41% or $152 million.

Restaurants are No. 2 at about 16% or $60.9 million.

That’s actually down a bit from 2021, when it was estimated at $384 million. The figures for Glacier have steadily risen over the past decade. In 2012, it was $172 million. It only dropped in 2020, during the pandemic, when it was $204 million. Half of Glacier was closed that year as a way to avoid further infecting the Blackfeet Tribe with coronavirus.

 “Glacier National Park inspires people from all over the world to visit and experience the wonder of these stunning landscapes,” said Superintendent Dave Roemer. “Tourism to Glacier is a beneficial and sustainable component of our community and local economy, supporting more than 5,000 jobs and $548 million in revenue to communities within 60 miles of the park.”  

The peer-reviewed visitor spending analysis was conducted by economists at the National Park Service. The report shows $23.9 billion of direct spending by nearly 312 million park visitors in communities within 60 miles of a national park. This spending supported 378,400 jobs nationally; 314,600 of those jobs are found in these gateway communities. The cumulative benefit to the U.S. economy was $50.3 billion.

Nationwide figures have risen over the past decade as well.

In 2012, it was estimated that parks contributed about $14.7 billion to the economy. By 2022 it was $23.9 billion, which is up from $20.5 billion in 2021.

The only year it dropped was the pandemic, when it was just $14.5 billion.

 - Report authors also produce an interactive tool that enables users to explore visitor spending, jobs, labor income, value added, and output effects by sector for national, state and local economies. Users can also view year-by-year trend data. The interactive tool and report are available at the NPS Social Science Program webpage at: https://www.nps.gov/subjects/socialscience/vse.htm.  

• To learn more about national parks in Montana and how the National Park Service works with Montana communities to help preserve local history, conserve the environment, and provide outdoor recreation, go to www.nps.gov/montana.

Great Smoky National park led the way, with an estimated $2.1 billion impact. In the West, Golden Gate was tops, with $1.1 billion.