In North Idaho, tourism and outdoor recreation go hand-in-hand
A youth leaps from Tubbs Hill, a popular outdoor leisure spot in Coeur d'Alene, in this file photo.
Tourism and outdoor recreation often go hand-in-hand in North Idaho, and both are proving to be economic forces across the five northern counties.
Data from Visit Idaho shows that the tourism industry generated $1.25 billion in direct travel spending in the region in 2023.
Additionally, tourism-related employment in 2023 topped over 13,000 jobs, making up 8% of total employment in Kootenai, Shoshone, Bonner, Boundary, and Benewah counties.
Tourism ranks as the third largest industry in the state, behind agriculture and technology, according to the 2023 study.
Idaho Commerce has found that 11% of overnight visitors to north Idaho report visiting primarily for outdoor recreation — higher than the national average of 7% of travelers citing outdoor activities as the primary reason for a leisure trip.
Though outdoor recreation is a significant draw for tourists, Idaho Commerce has also found that Idaho residents are equally enjoying the great outdoors.
“With access to over 35 million acres of public land, including nine national forests, nearly 79% of Idaho residents participate in outdoor recreation every year,” the agency reported in 2021.
Boating, one of the most popular outdoor activities in north Idaho due to the region’s many lakes, has proved to be among the most profitable statewide.
“Spending on products and services related to power boating contributed $335.3 million to Idaho’s economy in 2015,” University of Idaho’s McClure Center for Public Policy Research found in a 2021 Climate-Economy Impacts Assessment.
Though boating is primarily profitable in the summer months, tourists and locals alike find ways to get outside — and stimulate the local economy — year-round.
In addition to visits to northern Idaho’s multiple state parks, hunting, fishing, and trapping are also highly profitable across different seasons.
“Hunting, fishing, and trapping generate more than $1.4 billion per year (statewide) and support 14,000 jobs,” the 2021 assessment from U of I reported.
During the winter months, the money is in the mountains — north Idaho is home to three of the state’s 18 ski resorts, which bring in about $242 million in revenue statewide, the same assessment found.
