Hot spring · 35 min west
Lolo Hot Springs
A hot springs resort up Lolo Creek with an outdoor warm pool and an indoor hot pool.
- 2-3 hrs · Easy
- Year-round
- Admission
Day Trippin' › Montana › From Missoula
Day trips from Missoula
From Missoula, Travelers' Rest and Frenchtown Pond are under 20 minutes away, Lolo Hot Springs about 35, Garnet Ghost Town, the Bison Range and Flathead Lake at Polson a little over an hour, and Philipsburg about an hour and 15. The best day trips from Missoula, by drive time.
94 places within a 3-hour drive, by real roads.
10 day trips from Missoula
- Lolo Hot Springs 35 min west
- Daly Mansion 48 min south
- Ninepipe National Wildlife Refuge 52 min north
- Garnet Ghost Town 1 hr 9 min east
- Bison Range 1 hr 11 min north
- Polson 1 hr 14 min north
- Route of the Hiawatha 1 hr 40 min northwest
- Whitefish 2 hr 21 min north
- C.M. Russell Museum 2 hr 38 min east
- First Peoples Buffalo Jump State Park 2 hr 39 min east
Within an hour from Missoula 6 spots
Wildlife refuge · 52 min north
Ninepipe National Wildlife Refuge
Wetlands below the Mission Mountains full of geese, herons, eagles and ospreys, with a short trail at the viewing site off Highway 93.
- 1-2 hrs · Easy
- Year-round (sunrise to sunset)
- Free
Historic site · 48 min south
Daly Mansion
The grand riverside estate of a copper king near Hamilton, open for tours with shady grounds.
- 1-2 hrs · Easy
- Summer tours; fall and winter by appointment (check)
- Admission
State park · 45 min northeast
Salmon Lake State Park
A lakeside park in the Blackfoot-Clearwater valley south of Seeley Lake, good for a swim, picnic or paddle.
- 2-3 hrs · Easy
- May to November (day use)
- Montana State Parks day-use fee (nonresident vehicles; free for Montana residents)
State park · 59 min northeast
Placid Lake State Park
A quiet forested lake park near Seeley Lake with swimming, boating and fishing.
- 2-3 hrs · Easy
- May to November (walk-in day use in winter)
- Montana State Parks day-use fee (nonresident vehicles; free for Montana residents)
Wildlife refuge · 31 min south
Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge
A Bitterroot River floodplain refuge near Stevensville with ponds, wetlands and a nature trail good for spotting waterfowl and eagles.
- 1-2 hrs · Easy
- Year-round (sunrise to sunset)
- Free (check)
1 to 2 hours from Missoula 34 spots
Wildlife refuge · 1 hr 11 min north
Bison Range
A tribally managed range near Moiese with bison, elk, pronghorn and bighorn sheep, seen from the Red Sleep and Prairie scenic drives.
- 2-4 hrs · Easy
- Year-round (Red Sleep Drive about May to October)
- Admission (per vehicle day pass)
Town · 1 hr 14 min north
Polson
A lake town at the south end of Flathead Lake, known for cherry orchards, a July cherry festival and lakeside parks.
- Half day · Easy
- Year-round
- Free
Ghost town · 1 hr 9 min east
Garnet Ghost Town
One of Montana's best-preserved ghost towns, a high gold camp of the 1890s with many buildings still standing, east of Missoula.
- Half day · Easy
- Late spring to fall by car; winter by snowmobile or skis only
- Admission (per person 16 and older; America the Beautiful pass accepted)
Trail · 1 hr 40 min northwest
Route of the Hiawatha
A mostly downhill bike ride of about 15 miles on an old rail line through 10 tunnels and over high trestles, including the 1.66-mile St. Paul Pass Tunnel.
- Half day · Easy
- About late May to mid-September
- Admission
Town · 1 hr 43 min northwest
Wallace
An old silver-mining town in a narrow canyon, with a brick downtown on the National Register, a mining museum and a railroad depot museum.
- Half day · Easy
- Year-round
- Free
Hot spring · 1 hr 18 min northwest
Quinn's Hot Springs Resort
A riverside resort in Paradise with several natural hot pools from 100 to 106 degrees, a cold plunge and family-friendly cooler pools.
- 2-4 hrs · Easy
- Year-round (check)
- Admission
Waterfall · 1 hr 44 min southeast
Lost Creek State Park
A narrow canyon near Anaconda with 1,200-foot cliffs and a short walk to 50-foot Lost Creek Falls.
- 2-3 hrs · Easy
- Mid to late May through November 30
- Montana State Parks day-use fee (nonresident vehicles; free for Montana residents)
Family fun · 1 hr 39 min southeast
Gem Mountain Sapphire Mine
Dig through gravel for your own sapphires at a mine on the Skalkaho Pass road west of Philipsburg.
- 2-3 hrs · Easy
- May 20 to September 5 (2026)
- Admission
2 to 3 hours from Missoula 51 spots
Town · 2 hr 21 min north
Whitefish
A lively mountain town on Whitefish Lake with a walkable downtown, close to Whitefish Mountain Resort and the west side of Glacier.
- Half day · Easy
- Year-round
- Free
Museum · 2 hr 38 min east
C.M. Russell Museum
A Great Falls museum devoted to the cowboy artist Charles M. Russell and other western and Indigenous art.
- 2-3 hrs · Easy
- Year-round (Thu to Mon in winter)
- Admission
Historic site · 2 hr 39 min east
First Peoples Buffalo Jump State Park
A mile-long sandstone cliff near Great Falls, possibly the largest bison jump in North America, with a visitor center on buffalo culture.
- 2-3 hrs · Easy to moderate
- Year-round (Wed to Sun in winter)
- Montana State Parks day-use fee (nonresident vehicles; free for Montana residents)
Ghost town · 2 hr 45 min southeast
Bannack State Park
Montana's first territorial capital and gold strike site, with more than 50 buildings you can walk into along Main Street.
- Half day · Easy
- Year-round (8 a.m. to sunset)
- Montana State Parks day-use fee (nonresident vehicles; free for Montana residents)
Museum · 2 hr 46 min southeast
Museum of the Rockies
A big natural and cultural history museum at Montana State University in Bozeman, with a dinosaur hall that includes the Big Mike T. rex and a planetarium.
- 2-4 hrs · Easy
- Year-round
- Admission
Town · 3 hr southeast
Virginia City
A gold rush town of 1863 and Montana's territorial capital, with wooden storefronts, shops and summer shows along Alder Gulch.
- Half day · Easy
- Year-round (most open Memorial Day to Labor Day)
- Free (some attractions charge)
Cave · 2 hr 14 min southeast
Lewis and Clark Caverns State Park
Guided tours wind through one of the largest limestone caves in the Northwest, full of stalactites and columns.
- Half day · Moderate
- May to September for tours (trails year-round)
- Montana State Parks day-use fee (nonresident vehicles; free for Montana residents) plus cave tour ticket
Trail · 2 hr 26 min northwest
Tubbs Hill
A wooded hill right beside downtown Coeur d'Alene, with a loop path along the shoreline past small coves and rocky lookouts over the lake.
- 2-3 hrs · Easy to moderate
- Year-round
- Free
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Drive times are by road on a typical day from ZIP 59801 (OpenStreetMap data with the OSRM route planner). Facts checked against official sites; passes and hours change, so check before you go.