Rapid City & Black Hills

Gateway city to Mount Rushmore, with Black Hills forests, the bison herds of Custer State Park and the otherworldly landscapes of Badlands National Park.

Rapid City lies in western South Dakota. It's the gateway to the Black Hills and the base for visiting Mount Rushmore and Badlands National Park. The Black Hills are a pine-forested mountain range rising from the Great Plains; called Pahá Sápa in Lakota, they are sacred to Native Americans. The region breaks down into four parts: in the center, Mount Rushmore, Keystone, Hill City and the Crazy Horse Memorial; to the south, Custer State Park (the Wildlife Loop Road, Needles Highway, Sylvan Lake and Black Elk Peak) plus Wind Cave, Jewel Cave and the Mammoth Site in Hot Springs; to the north, Deadwood, Lead and Spearfish Canyon; and about 1–1.5 hours' drive east, Badlands National Park, Wall Drug and the Minuteman Missile site. The best season is June–September, when nearly all sights and scenic byways are fully open. Late September's fall colors and the Buffalo Roundup are worth a special trip, while during the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in early August hotels sell out and prices double. Winters are cold and snowy, and Needles Highway closes. Getting around is mainly by car; Rapid City Regional Airport has flights to hubs such as Denver and Minneapolis. Allow at least 4–5 days: one for Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse and Iron Mountain Road; one for Custer State Park; one for the Badlands; and one for Deadwood and Spearfish Canyon. Most sights require a state or national park pass, and always keep your distance from bison in the wild.

Top sights

• Mount Rushmore National Memorial – Four presidents, Washington, Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Lincoln, carved into a granite mountainside. It is one of America's most ico…
• Crazy Horse Memorial – The world's largest mountain carving, still under construction, honouring the Lakota leader Crazy Horse. The site also has a Native America…
• Custer State Park – A state park of about 290 square km, where roughly 1,300 bison roam freely. It is surrounded by lakes, granite spires and famous scenic roa…
• Badlands National Park – Layers of coloured eroded landscape and grassland. At sunset the rock formations glow pink and orange. It is one of the most spectacular wi…
• Sylvan Lake – A high mountain lake ringed by granite boulders, with a 1.6 km trail around the shore. It is the most photogenic lake in the Black Hills.
• Black Elk Peak – At 2,208 m, the highest peak in South Dakota, with a stone fire lookout tower on the summit offering 360-degree views of the Black Hills.
• Cathedral Spires – A row of towering granite spires beside Needles Highway, with a short trail to the base of the spires. It is also a climbing destination.
• Wind Cave National Park – One of the longest and most complex caves in the world, famous for its rare boxwork calcite formations, with bison grassland above ground.
• Jewel Cave National Monument – The third-longest explored cave in the world. Its walls are covered with sparkling calcite crystals, which give it its name.
• Wall Drug – A large Western-style store that started in 1931 by advertising free ice water, and a must-stop in the town of Wall, the gateway to Badland…
• Minuteman Missile National Historic Site – The launch silo and underground launch control center of a Minuteman II intercontinental ballistic missile from the Cold War, showcasing th…
• Deadwood – A Western town that grew during the 1876 gold rush. The entire town is listed as a National Historic Landmark, and its old street, casinos…
• Mount Moriah Cemetery – A pioneer cemetery on the hillside above Deadwood, where Wild Bill and Calamity Jane are buried side by side, with views over the town.
• Homestake Mine & Sanford Lab Homestake Visitor Center – The massive open pit of the Homestake Mine in Lead, the deepest gold mine in North America, now converted underground into a world-class un…
• Spearfish Canyon – A scenic canyon drive flanked by limestone cliffs, with waterfalls such as Bridal Veil Falls and Devil's Bathtub, plus trails and brilliant…
• Roughlock Falls – A cascading series of falls within Spearfish Canyon, with a wooden boardwalk and picnic area. The movie Dances with Wolves was filmed nearb…
• Bear Butte State Park – An isolated volcanic-rock butte on the northern edge of the Black Hills, a sacred mountain for the Lakota, Cheyenne, and other Plains peopl…
• Hill City & 1880 Train – An old steam train running from Hill City to Keystone, about 1 hour one way, passing through Black Hills pine forests and former mining are…
• Keystone – A former mining town at the foot of Mount Rushmore, with wooden sidewalks lined with souvenir shops, restaurants, and amusements.
• Bear Country USA – A North American wildlife park you drive through, where you can see black bears, wolves, elk, and cougars up close from your car.
• Reptile Gardens – Said to be the largest reptile zoo in the world, with snakes, lizards, crocodiles, and tortoises in a glass-domed tropical jungle.
• Downtown Rapid City & City of Presidents – Life-size bronze statues of past U.S. presidents stand on downtown street corners, with Main Street Square and Art Alley forming the city's…
• Dinosaur Park – A retro park with concrete dinosaur sculptures built on a ridge in 1936, offering panoramic views over Rapid City. Admission is free.
• The Journey Museum – A comprehensive museum that tells the story of the Black Hills on a timeline, from geology and paleontology to Lakota culture and pioneer h…
• Chapel in the Hills – An all-wood chapel modeled on the Norwegian stave churches, set in a quiet forest. It is a distinctive small attraction in Rapid City.
• Pactola Reservoir – The largest reservoir in the Black Hills, with deep blue water ringed by pine forest. It is good for boating, paddleboarding, fishing, and…
• The Mammoth Site – An ancient sinkhole site in the town of Hot Springs, where more than 60 Columbian mammoth skeletons have been preserved in place and excava…
• Needles Eye Tunnel – A single-lane rock tunnel on Needles Highway only about 2.6 m wide, next to a granite spire shaped like the eye of a needle.
• Devils Tower National Monument – A columnar rock tower rising 264 m from the Wyoming grasslands, the first U.S. national monument, and a filming location for Close Encounte…

Where to eat

• Tally's Silver Spoon – A fine-dining spot in downtown Rapid City serving everything from breakfast to bison ribeye, popular with both locals a…
• Alpine Inn Restaurant – A restaurant in an 1886 historic hotel in Hill City, serving German food at lunch and almost only bacon-wrapped filet m…
• Bokujo Ramen – A downtown ramen shop that simmers South Dakota bison into its broth, known for bison bone ramen and bison buns.
• Everest Cuisine – A family-run shop open since 2013 that claims to be Rapid City's oldest Indian and Nepali restaurant, with plenty of ve…
• Powder House Restaurant – A lodge restaurant near Keystone and Mount Rushmore, known for bison, elk, and slow-roasted ribs.
• Skogen Kitchen – A chef-driven restaurant in Custer, open for dinner only, with a menu built on seasonal local ingredients. Reservations…

Itineraries

• Classic Badlands & Black Hills Loop – Depart from Rapid City to explore the Badlands, Custer State Park, Mount Rushmore, and Deadwood.
• Black Hills, Devils Tower & Theodore Roosevelt National Park – Go beyond the classic Black Hills sights to include caves, Devils Tower, and the colorful badlands of North Dakota.