Local traffic drives early surge while March events bring influx of out-of-town visitors

The Downtown Spokane Partnership (DSP) today announced visitor foot traffic increased in the Business Improvement District (BID) during Q1 2026, compared to the same time last year, reflecting continued strength in downtown activity to start the year.

“Downtown Spokane continues to show steady momentum,” said Emilie Cameron, DSP president and CEO. “We were excited to see the return of Spokanites to downtown in the first part of the quarter to set a strong foundation and more recently in March, continue to appreciate how events and seasonal activity bring a surge of new energy and visitors into the area.”

Key highlights from Q1 include:

• 1.9% year-over-year increase in quarterly foot traffic, driven by strong performance early in the quarter.
  • January visits increased by 4% and February visits increased by 12% year-over-year, respectively.
• Five of the last six months (October through February) set record foot traffic levels for those months since 2023.
• February 14 was the most visited day of Q1, with more than 73.5k visits to the BID, driven by Lunar New Year celebrations at the Spokane Convention Center, a Spokane Chiefs game, and Valentine’s Day dining.
• March visits increased 27% compared to February, signaling a seasonal shift into spring fueled by events, including Inlander Restaurant Week, State B Basketball, PNQ Volleyball, MLS and USL soccer matches, and St. Patrick’s Day Parade.
• March saw a notable increase in out-of-town visitors (those living 30+ miles from downtown), including on the five most visited days of Q1 when non-local visitation averaged 15% higher than typical levels
• March 28, the second Saturday of PNQ volleyball, was the second most visited day of the quarter with 63.8k+ visits, 56% of which were non-local—over 20% higher than the Q1 average day.

Q1 2026 visitor traffic underscores the importance of events, tourism, and seasonal patterns in driving downtown activity, and the DSP looks forward to carrying this momentum into the spring and summer months with a host of new activations, events and promotions. Visit DowntownSpokane.org for a full calendar of events, online business listings and save the date for June 5, when the DSP will host its annual State of Downtown & Awards Breakfast at the Spokane Convention Center with additional insights on downtown trends.