338 S Main St
Kalispell, MT

The heartbeat of the valley, Kalispell’s downtown corridor is walkable and is home to abundant shops, boutiques, restaurants, galleries, coffee shops and watering holes. Be sure to spend time perusing made-in-Montana offerings, taste Montana at a local brewery, dig into grub at a Kalispell food truck, enjoy farm-to-fork dining (as well as fresh sushi, delectable BBQ, tasty burgers and family-style Italian), get your cowboy on at Western Outdoors and create custom fragrances and oils at Sage & Cedar.

From Kalispell, it’s easy to get to Flathead Lake for a day trip or an afternoon adventure. A 10-mile drive south will take you to the northern end of Flathead Lake and the start of a round-the-lake day trip. Begin by traveling south along the west side of the lake on Highway 93 and once you get to Polson, return north along the east side of the lake on Highway 35 for a full loop tour. A drive around the lake will take you to breathtaking views, charming towns and colorful culture in small towns that sit along the lake. When planning your day trip, be sure to give yourself plenty of time to check out restaurants, museums, galleries, breweries, a distillery and a winery, as well as several Montana state parks that provide access to water recreation, camping, boating and more. As you make your way around the lake, be sure to keep an eye out for fruit orchards—including Flathead cherries. In May, the cherry trees are in full bloom while July and August bring roadside stands to roads around the lake where you can pick up locally grown cherries and fruit.

610 Patrick Creek Rd
Kalispell, MT

A short 6-mile drive from Kalispell will take you to Artemis Acres Paint Horse Ranch, where you can choose from a one-hour ride, two-hour ride or half-day horseback ride on the ranch’s 1,080 acres (with the option to combine your ride with a BBQ dinner).

300 Lone Pine Rd
Kalispell, MT

Montana’s State Park system provides easy access to get outside, learn and play. Six state parks dot the shoreline around Flathead Lake including Wild Horse Island, a 160 acres park accessible by boat that is still home to a band of wild horses along with other wildlife. All Flathead Lake state parks provide beaches for swimming, rock skipping, stories around a campfire, hiking trails and ranger-led talks and explorations. Just outside downtown Kalispell, spend a day at Lone Pine State Park for picture-perfect scenic vistas overlooking the Flathead Valley into Glacier National Park, interactive displays at the visitor center, and year-round trails and programs.