Summer is right around the corner, which means many people are looking ahead to at least one substantial vacation.

For many Minnesotans it involves going up north. People look forward to the major lake areas and the North Woods. Some go back to the same place year after year.

A much smaller number of people focus on southwestern Minnesota. We’re farm country. There’s tourism in locales like Lake Shetek, Lake Benton, Hendricks and Granite Falls; but it happens on a smaller scale than in other parts of the state.

Steps could be taken in 2026 to increase local tourism. Inflation and other economic trends are driving up prices. Everything costs more.

Gas costs with the chaos in the Middle East are considerable. It costs more for lodging, more for restaurant meals and often more to enjoy popular attractions.

All of it could mean that northern Minnesota is beyond the reach of families with a limited budget. Resorts usually expect people to stay for an entire week. That costs money. It’s a week’s worth of groceries in addition to lodging.

Even people who can afford the expense might not want to absorb it. They might want to do more than spend all of their time at a resort.

The major lakes are busy during tourist season, at both resorts and public access points. A family might spend a lot of time waiting in line at a boat launch and just get part of the day on the water. There’s often a wait for a table in restaurants.

A possible solution is to choose a place like the Marshall area that’s off the beaten path, a place that’s not a household word when it comes to tourism.

There’s the opportunity to camp out or rent a motel room by the night. The attractions are often free or low cost. Promoters of the resort beltway can claim that people don’t get as much for their money in an out of the way place, but that’s mostly in the eye of the beholder.

We definitely have places that are first rate. Marshall is 30 miles away from the Laura Ingalls Wilder sites in Walnut Grove and the Fagen Fighters aviation and World War II museum next to the Granite Falls airport. We’re 45 miles away from Pipestone National Monument.

That could lend itself to family vacations involving lodging in Marshall and short day trips to the surrounding area. It could also make a great agenda for a bus tour, something that could be advertised as Southwest Minnesota Prairie Country.

We have a very good convention and visitors bureau in Marshall, along with the nine county Southwest Regional Development Commission based in Slayton that promotes all kinds of regional development.

Now would be a very good time to invest in tourism promotion, the kind of thing that would help tourism officials reach out to potential visitors.

I can think of several things that might pay off. A self guided brochure for country churches and cemeteries might be popular. It could be a good thing to have an expansion of brochures, appearances at travel trade shows and networking with bus tour providers.

I know for a fact that those kinds of things could work. I base it on something I remember from several years ago, something that was a nice surprise.

I attended a weekly Wednesday night Marshall City Band concert at Liberty Park that had more than just the usual good crowd.

A tour bus was parked on the street. I found out that it was from the Twin Cities. People went to a matinee at the Chanhassen Dinner Theater, then ventured out onto the prairie for a traditional small town city band concert.

The announcer gave them special recognition. From what I could tell, all of the visitors thought the concert was worth the time and mileage.

I heard a day or two later that the tour happened because someone in Marshall had a connection to a Twin Cities tour provider. We could build more of those connections. It would be great to have tour buses in town on a regular basis.

There’s been talk of a need for more lodging in Marshall because it can get limited with sports tournaments, class reunions, weddings and summer celebrations. More tourism might be the extra boost that’s needed to expand lodging. It would benefit many businesses throughout the local area.

— Jim Muchlinski is a longtime reporter and contributor to the Marshall Independent