Visiting Mount Rushmore is on the top of many peoples “must-do” list when they are in the Rapid City, South Dakota area. Honestly though, while beautiful to look at, it’s not an attraction that can captivate your attention for an entire day. The good news is that there are lots of lovely sites to visit in the Black Hills area of South Dakota. We’ve put together this Road Trip Planner to show you our itinerary that took us through Mount Rushmore, Custer State Park, the Black Hills, and the Badlands!
Rapid City is the largest city in South Dakota, and an excellent choice for a place to stay for a tour through the area. It’s centrally located, has a lot of hotels (including some dog-friendly ones), and is relatively affordable. On top of all the large tourist attractions, there are many smaller, locally owned, businesses in the area to keep you and your family entertained. This planner only covers one of several great drives in the area, but for us it was the best way to see the key points we were interested in.
Road Trip Planner – The Route
This Road Trip Planner assumes that you will already be in the Rapid City, SD area and begins from there. When you leave Rapid City (H and A on the map below) you’ll want to head South on Highway 16 towards Mount Rushmore. There will be a LOT of signs for this :-). You’ll continue on that route for a total of about 18 miles and then go south on Route 16A until you connect with SD 244 West. If you look up at this point you’ll see Mount Rushmore in the distance :-) (point B) Follow the signs into the park if you’d like or do a drive by and stop in the designated pull outs.
Once done with Rushmore, continue west on 244 and be on the look out for the intersection of 244 and 87 South. You have two choices here. Go South on 87 and follow my route OR continue on HWY16 towards Crazy Horse. If you go towards Crazy Horse you can loop back to 87. If you skip Crazy Horse (like we did) continue South on 87 for about 50 Miles. It’s a lovely drive through the Black Hills. You’ll pass the Blue Bell Lodge which is a good landmark to look out for. After that you’ll want to make a Left on Wildlife Loop Road which is just a bit further. You’ll pay the park entrance fee for Custer State Park, but its totally worth it. Take the 18 mile loop through the park and it will take you back to Highway 16. Go East to HWY 36 and then it will connect you to Highway 79 North back towards Rapid City.
To hit the Badlands next, take 79N to 44E about 32 miles and into the scenic route running through the southern portion of the Badlands. It’s a scenic drive through scrubland and you’ll pass a neat little abandoned town on the way. While on 44E you’re looking for Highway 240N. This will take you through the Badlands National Park and an amazingly beautiful drive that will last about 30 miles. We spent a couple hours here, with lots of stops and lookouts. If you stay on 240 it will take you to Interstate-90 at Wall, SD. Stop for refreshments and fun at Wall Drug and the surrounding area. Then hop onto Interstate 90 and go West until you hit Rapid City again. This whole route took us about 8-9 hours to complete so you should plan on getting started pretty early. As you can see in our pics below, the sun started setting towards the end of our trip through the Badlands.
Road Trip Planner – The Photo Tour through South Dakota
The trip down to Mount Rushmore was the shortest part of our day. It was a quick jaunt down the road and then BAM! Faces in the mountain!
We then continued on our scenic drive through the Black Hills. The mountain, forest and views were beautiful.
There were also some great opportunities for wildlife spotting as we headed towards the Wildlife Loop Road of Custer State Park.
One of the coolest parts of the drive for me were the tunnels you had to drive through. Being from Florida, any time I get to road trip through the mountains and their tunnels it’s pretty cool since they are so exotic to me.
It was right after this tunnel that we ran into Lauren’s favorite critters on the whole trip. We pulled into the parking area right after the tunnel and met these little guys.
We loved the chipmunks so much we even made a video about them!
After our run in with the chipmunks, we arrived at the main entrance to Custer State Park. We were hoping to catch a glimpse of some of the 1,300 hundred or so bison that freely roam the area.
After a short drive we found exactly what we were looking for! BISON!
And apparently Bison have no sense of privacy at all :-)
As we continued driving through the Custer Park wildlife loop, we were surprised to find some other critters. They’re not as rare or majestic as the Bison we saw, but they WERE rather friendly. Beware of eating in the car with the windows down… they WILL steal your food!
After we finished our loop through Custer, we made our way back on the highway. Following the planner we had to head back towards Rapid City and then take the road through the Buffalo Gap Grasslands. This would eventually lead us to the back entrance of the Badlands National Park. Along the way we found two unexpected things. The first was that there is this quaint miniature town called Longhorn, which is all but deserted, along the route.
The second is the fact that apparently, prairie dogs have: THE PLAGUE!!!
Thankfully we managed to avoid contracting THE PLAGUE!!! and made it to the Badlands safely :-)
Badlands National Park has a little bit of everything for everyone. There are lots of gorgeous panoramas to be seen along the winding road trip through the park.
The rock formations, formed through years of erosion, are absolutely stunning.
Unlike many parks, the roads are great to drive on.
We couldn’t get over just how beautiful the area was, and how starkly different the terrain was from the Black Hills that are only an hour’s drive away.
We were also surprised with how tall and deep some of the canyons were throughout the area.
The Badlands also has some great opportunities to spot wildlife if you arrive when the animals are active. We were lucky to catch this coyote as he went along his business.
We also came across some big horn sheep, which were a pleasant surprise.
The lay of the land changes often as you drive through the Badlands as well. In between all the rock formations and canyons, there are lovely grasslands to enjoy.
My favorite feature of the park though, is definitely all the colors and textures that can be seen through the layers of sand, rock, and dirt.
Sadly though, like all good days they eventually have to come to an end.
After all the natural beauty we experienced that day there was only one thing left to do. Enjoy some good ole Americana! We had one last stop on our road trip planner and it would not be missed. Make sure you take some time to stop in Wall, SD before getting on the Interstate. You’ll find a great collection of classic road trip attractions, and tons of neat souvenirs.
Road Trip Resources
For more information on your visit to South Dakota take a look at these helpful sites.
You can also check out our recently updated Ramblin’ Guide to Rapid City with even more things to do and road trips to take!
It’s also worth noting that Badlands National Park IS pet friendly. Please check here for all their guidelines.
Where to Stay in Rapid City
Luxury
Hotel Alex Johnson
523 6th Street
Rapid City, SD 57701
- Located right in the heart of downtown Rapid City, SD this historic hotel is fantastic for a romantic weekend getaway or just a bit of pampering while on vacation.
Mid Range
Holiday-Inn Express
645 East Disk Drive
Rapid City, SD 57701
- Easy Interstate access from I-90, Free Breakfast, Wi-Fi, Free Indoor Pool with Slide & Hot Tub, Business Center.
Budget
La Quinta Inn & Suites
1416 North Elk Vale Road
Rapid City, SD 57701
- Right off the interstate the property is Pet Friendly, Free Breakfast/Wi-Fi, and is attached to an indoor water park
If you enjoyed this Road Trip Planner for Mount Rushmore and the Rapid City area, you may also enjoy these posts.
The Essential Road Trip Packing List
How to plan a Road Trip Rambler Style
Road Trip Planner for the Grand Canyon South Rim
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This is a great resource for exploring Mount Rushmore, The Badlands and Custer State Park. I’ve bookmarked it for future use. Great job.
Thanks Donna! It was a lot of fun. Hope it comes in handy for you.
Thanks for sharing! The Badlands and Mount Rushmore remains one of our family’s most favorite trips to date. So much to do, and a great destination for families on a budget. Hoping to get back there again soon.
Forgot to mention – there’s so many different things to do too! Our trip, though to the same area, was the same, yet quite different! Did you see the Bedrock City just outside the park? We also panned for gold, took a horseback ride and a hayride, and got trapped in our car by a wandering bison! Thankfully he lost interest and moved on. lol
We didn’t hit Bedrock City in SD we visited the other on e in AZ instead. There was a whole lot of fun to be had in the area, we were there for a very short time though. We will definitely be going back!
Carol,
I am so exited, we are driving to mount Rushmore and Yellowstone this December. thank you for your post I can’t wait to be there.
This post gave me chills and butterflies in my stomach. I visited all these places as a child, on a marathon family road trip with my family. I will never forget it as long as I live. LOVE LOVE that all the wildlife (bison, mules, adorable burrowing mammals) is still as I remember it. :)
Glad I could bring back the Warm and Fuzzies for you. :-) It’s such a great area, and we left so much unexplored.
Don’t forget that there are TONS of great hiking opportunities in all those places. Cathedral Spires trail and Mt. Harney in Custer, the Badlands has some gorgeous hiking opportunities. You’ll miss out on so much if you just stay in your car.
There are tone of hikes in the area. we only had one day which is why we put together this route. You could easily spend a whole day in the Badlands or Custer.
It’s been 15 years since I did a portion of that trip. Totally worth doing, and look at all the things in your roadtrip planner I missed!
We really had a great time there. It should be on everyones list of they are anywhere near the area.
I haven’t been to South Dakota and honestly it’s been low on my list of experiences in the American West to consider. But this really shows what’s available. Thanks for the post.
Lance, we were in the same boat until a friend changed my mind. We were planning our Florida to Alaska road trip with a friend and mentioned that we were going to do a drive by of Mount Rushmore on our way to Glacier National Park in Montana. He showed us some pictures and we quickly changed our minds. Needless to say we are very happy that we did.
Thanks, this is so helpful. I’m bookmarking this so that I can refer to it when I do this road trip! Really want to see Mt. Rushmore sooon :)
Awesome! Let us know when you do. I would love to see it from someone else’s perspective.
My husband and I love to hike and so we are looking forward to our summer road trip to the Badlands and Mount Rushmore. I also love deserted old towns, so thanks for the info. on Longhorn.
We just got back from a road trip to Florida and I have a lot of good info on my site http://www.myhearttravels.com
There isa lot of great hiking in the Rushmore/custer/blackhills area. You’ll absolutely love it. The Badlands had some short trails along the scenic loop that we walked, but we didn’t have time to explore too deeply. If you are going to hike the badlands in the Summer, you want to be really careful with dehydration. It gets very hot and arid there. What part of Florida did you visit?
Great photos – I have always thought that it would be cool to see Mt. Rushmore but didn’t realize that there were other things to do nearby! We visited Grand Canyon National Park during spring break and there were signs there warning that squirrels carried the plague – who knew?!?
I didn’t either! Our original plan was to cut through the Dakota’s on the way to Canada, then a friend told us to check out the badlands. A little research later… viola!
Just came back from South Dakota. Visited Mt. Rushmore, Custer, Windcave and Badlands. It was an awesome experience. I feel like an American!
What are your thoughts on doing this trip March 29-April 3rd with young teens?
The trip would be great with teens, I think they would enjoy it quite a bit. it may be busy as it may be spring break for your area, but no where near as busy as the summer.
THANKS!!! I have 1 day free on a business trip next week to Rapid City. I’m going to skip Mt Rushmore and visit Crazy Horse then quickly get to those gorgeous bandlands. This is an excellent travel planning post. I’m printing and packing it with me. Cheers!!
Kenin, Wish you would include the Mammouth Museum in Hot Springs., SD. If you have’t been, it is amazing. It is an actual excavation site hidden by a museum. They also have time in summer that you can volunteer to find mammouth bones. Love you site. Getting lots of ideas.
I couldn’t find any mention of how many days does it take to make this RT? We are flying into Minneapolis, MN and get a rental car and head west. We will start on Friday and have two weeks to bum around. Any ideas on what we could take in during that time limit? No hurry, please, we’re 70! Thanks for any suggestions (other than backpacking or climbing! :)
Hi Mary Sue,
We have a second post about the Rapid City area that has a lot more “things to do” here: https://www.theconstantrambler.com/ramblin-guide-to-rapid-city-sd-from-the-badlands-rushmore-sturgis-custer/
While you’re in Minneapolis make sure to check out the Weisman Art Museum (just the building is incredible) as well as Hell’s Kitchen for some fun & tasty food.
What a thoughtful and insightful article! We are flying out to Denver next week and driving up to Cheyenne, then heading over to the Badlands and the Black Hills for a one-week vacation. We’re spending four nights in a cabin in Custer State Park and I am so excited about doing lots of hiking and relaxing. You have inspired me to create a trip blog. Thanks so much and hope you continue to have wonderful travels!
Thank you. We are planning a trip to Mt. Rushmore and surrounding area in September. This is perfect for us.We will be coming from Kansas City so we might do the route in reverse.
Have a great time Rusty! Let us know if you have any other questions :-)
Thank you, thank you!!! This was awesome!! We followed everything you said plus we even added a stop at Bear USA. It was a fabulous day!!
So glad to hear that you enjoyed it!
This is a really helpful post! The black hills are such a cool area to explore.
We are planning our family camping road trip this June! Can’t wait to see these places! Thanks for the great information and pics!
My husband and I are planning a trip the end of August of this year. We have always wanted to go out west for years. I have a terminal illness, so we bought a new van so I can lay down and rest when I need to on our trip. We are coming from WV,so I am trying to find things to do in each state for here to SD, that doesn’t require a lot of walking or climbing. I can’t wait to see buffalo in the wild and someone mentioned something about panning for gold I would love that. It can’t get here quick enough. Thanks for the pictures and information!
do you recommend a guided tour of the area ? Coming from Florida and staying 1 night in Sioux Falls .What would you recommend to Rapid City ? I90 or Backroads
Quite frankly that all depends on which you prefer. Personally I normally favor backroads, but you’ll make the trip faster on the interstate.
Thanks so much for your import on South Dakota, I am planning to do this, this summer for our 50th wedding anniversary. We are from West Michigan and these are going to be our first stops. Then we want to venture to Bryce, Zion and sequoia. Then doing route 66. What are your thoughts on all of this?
I am planning to fly in on 5th march and have a whole day 6 march and plan to rent a car. Is it easy and safe to drive in early march. How would you plan the drive to cover Mt Rushmore and Crazy Horse and Sylvan Lake Custer State Park , Mt Coolidge, Needles Highway and Iron Mtn Road .
Hi Andre,
It’s really hard to answer that question, as the weather can be quite unpredictable that time of year. I’d say you’d want to plan for the worst and then be pleasantly surprised if the weather holds up.
Great post! My husband and I are heading out there next week. Quite different views than Wisconsin where we live. Great blog too. We write a blog too called, “Adventures in Travel”.
We are planing our Wedding Honeymoon through South Dakota on the Harley. Can not wait to see this amazing state. What is the average weather during late July early August?
Stephanie