MEDORA (AP) - A new $2 million interpretive center, which houses a restored stagecoach once used by the Medora Stage and Forwarding Co., has helped increase the number of visitors to the historic Badlands site that includes the Marquis de More's chateau.

At the Medora Musical, which plays at the Burning Hills Amphitheater near the chateau, attendance is "pretty good," but lower than hoped for, said spokesman Wade Westin.

This year's Medora Musical season has been extended a week, through Sept. 6, in the hope of boosting attendance.

Tourism representatives see signs that some tourists are making accommodations for higher gasoline prices.

"We see more grandparents coming with families," Westin said. "We're seeing more couples coming together."

At campgrounds, those traveling in gas-guzzling recreational vehicles tend to park and stay longer, he said.

At tourism spots statewide, bookings at motels were up 8 percent over last year as of the end of June, the most recent figures available, said Sara Otte Coleman, the state's tourism director.

The upswing applied to all areas surveyed in the state, including the Fargo, Bismarck, Jamestown, Minot and Grand Forks areas, she said.

"It looks pretty consistent," Otte Coleman said. "All of these are up in terms of hotel occupancies."

Visitation is up 10 percent at national parks in North Dakota, but has dipped by 2 percent at state parks, according to the survey.

Crossings along the Canadian border are up 17 percent overall year to date, and up 33 percent at Pembina, Otte Coleman said.

"My sense is, I think we're going to be OK," adding, "If we can continue this trend in the third quarter, we'll be in good shape."

North Dakota's busiest tourist season falls in the third quarter, from July through September, an active hunting period.