Planning a Trip

Getting There

Whitefish is easier to get to than virtually any other Montana vacation town. It's a quick drive up U.S. 93 from Kalispell. For the local weather forecast, call tel. 406/755-4829.

Glacier Park International Airport (tel. 406/257-5994; www.flyglacier.com) is 10 minutes away between Columbia Falls and Kalispell at 4170 U.S. 2. Delta (tel. 800/221-1212), Alaska/Horizon (tel. 800/547-9308), Northwest (tel. 800/225-2525), and United (tel. 800/864-8331) have daily flights. US Airways (tel. 800/428-4322) offers seasonal summer service.

The Amtrak (tel. 800/USA-RAIL; www.amtrak.com) station on N. Central Avenue, with two trains daily -- one eastbound and one westbound -- is shared with Burlington Northern at the edge of downtown in a renovated and charmingly attractive depot. The bus terminal is also located at the train depot, with daily service to and from Missoula from Rimrock Stages (tel. 406/755-4011).

Visitor Information

The Whitefish Visitor Bureau (tel. 877/862-3548 or 406/862-3501; www.whitefishvisit.com) is located downtown at 520 E. 2nd St. Here you'll find just about everything you need in the way of brochures, area maps, and travel information.

Getting Around

Avis (tel. 800/331-1212), Budget (tel. 800/248-7604), Hertz (tel. 800/654-3131), and National/Alamo (tel. 800/227-7368) maintain counters at Glacier Park International Airport. Other companies renting cars in Whitefish include Dollar (tel. 800/892-4343), Enterprise (tel. 800/261-7331), and Thrifty (tel. 800/847-4389). Whitefish Taxi can be reached at tel. 406/862-0587.

Special Events

Whitefish is home to the Winter Carnival (tel. 406/862-3501), a wild and woolly event held annually since 1960. The early February includes a parade, children's events, a dance party, a snow-sculpting competition, and a battle of the bands at local bars. Of special note is the Penguin Plunge, where a group of brave locals take a dip in frigid Whitefish Lake in the name of charity.