South Dakota Travel Guide

Fodor's Black Hills of South Dakota: With Mount Rushmore and Badlands National Park
For over 80 years, Fodor's Travel has been a trusted resource offering expert travel...

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Marked by windswept prairies, rugged badlands, and an emerald oasis known as the Black Hills, South Dakota is a state of rugged beauty. The chiseled spires, ragged ridges, and steep-sided canyons of Badlands National Park are awe-inspiring, while the Black Hills, with its imposing peaks and the famed Mount Rushmore monument, attracts sizable crowds in summer.

Fodor's Black Hills of South Dakota: With Mount Rushmore and Badlands National Park
For over 80 years, Fodor's Travel has been a trusted resource offering expert travel...

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Rapid City and the Central Black Hills

"An emerald isle in a sea of prairie," as they are sometimes called, the Black Hills rise up from the western South Dakota plains just...

Badlands National Park

So stark and forbidding are the chiseled spires, ragged ridgelines, and deep ravines of South Dakota's badlands that Lieutenant Colonel George Custer once described them...

Wind Cave National Park

If you don't get out of your car at Wind Cave, you haven't scratched the surface—literally. The park has more than 145 miles of underground...

Deadwood

...

Spearfish

...

Hot Springs

Noted for its striking sandstone structures, the small and historic community of Hot Springs is the gateway to Wind Cave National Park...

Custer

...

Lead

...

Keystone

...

Hill City

...

Deadwood and Around

In one of America's longest ongoing historic preservation projects, you'll discover brick streets fronted by Victorian architecture, with Main Street shops, restaurants, and gaming halls...

Outside Badlands National Park

Badlands National Park is off Interstate 90 with two separate entrances. Badlands can be a one- or two-day stop for visitors who are traveling through...

Crazy Horse Memorial

...

Belle Fourche

...

Custer and Crazy Horse Memorial

About 30 miles north of Hot Springs is the town of Custer, the Mother City of the Black Hills. Near here, George Armstrong Custer and...

Outside Wind Cave National Park

...

Keystone and Hill City

The small town of Keystone, 2 miles from Mount Rushmore, has an abundance of restaurants, shops, and attractions, from wax museums to miniature-golf courses to...

Rapid City and the Central Black Hills

"An emerald isle in a sea of prairie," as they are sometimes called, the Black Hills rise up from the western South Dakota plains just...

Badlands National Park

So stark and forbidding are the chiseled spires, ragged ridgelines, and deep ravines of South Dakota's badlands that Lieutenant Colonel George Custer once described them...

Wind Cave National Park

If you don't get out of your car at Wind Cave, you haven't scratched the surface—literally. The park has more than 145 miles of underground...

Deadwood

...

Spearfish

...

Hot Springs

Noted for its striking sandstone structures, the small and historic community of Hot Springs is the gateway to Wind Cave National Park...

Custer

...

Lead

...

Keystone

...

Hill City

...

Deadwood and Around

In one of America's longest ongoing historic preservation projects, you'll discover brick streets fronted by Victorian architecture, with Main Street shops, restaurants, and gaming halls...

Outside Badlands National Park

Badlands National Park is off Interstate 90 with two separate entrances. Badlands can be a one- or two-day stop for visitors who are traveling through...

Crazy Horse Memorial

...

Belle Fourche

...

Custer and Crazy Horse Memorial

About 30 miles north of Hot Springs is the town of Custer, the Mother City of the Black Hills. Near here, George Armstrong Custer and...

Outside Wind Cave National Park

...

Keystone and Hill City

The small town of Keystone, 2 miles from Mount Rushmore, has an abundance of restaurants, shops, and attractions, from wax museums to miniature-golf courses to...

Rapid City and the Central Black Hills

"An emerald isle in a sea of prairie," as they are sometimes called, the Black Hills rise up from the western South Dakota plains just...

The Northern Black Hills

...

The Southern Black Hills

...

The Badlands

Driving across South Dakota on Interstate 90, travelers see tidy farms in the state’s eastern half, sprawling grasslands after crossing the Missouri River into the...

Deadwood and Around

In one of America's longest ongoing historic preservation projects, you'll discover brick streets fronted by Victorian architecture, with Main Street shops, restaurants, and gaming halls...

Outside Badlands National Park

Badlands National Park is off Interstate 90 with two separate entrances. Badlands can be a one- or two-day stop for visitors who are traveling through...

Outside Wind Cave National Park

...

Keystone and Hill City

The small town of Keystone, 2 miles from Mount Rushmore, has an abundance of restaurants, shops, and attractions, from wax museums to miniature-golf courses to...

Custer and Crazy Horse Memorial

About 30 miles north of Hot Springs is the town of Custer, the Mother City of the Black Hills. Near here, George Armstrong Custer and...

Rapid City and the Central Black Hills

"An emerald isle in a sea of prairie," as they are sometimes called, the Black Hills rise up from the western South Dakota plains just...

The Northern Black Hills

...

The Southern Black Hills

...

The Badlands

Driving across South Dakota on Interstate 90, travelers see tidy farms in the state’s eastern half, sprawling grasslands after crossing the Missouri River into the...

Deadwood and Around

In one of America's longest ongoing historic preservation projects, you'll discover brick streets fronted by Victorian architecture, with Main Street shops, restaurants, and gaming halls...

Outside Badlands National Park

Badlands National Park is off Interstate 90 with two separate entrances. Badlands can be a one- or two-day stop for visitors who are traveling through...

Outside Wind Cave National Park

...

Keystone and Hill City

The small town of Keystone, 2 miles from Mount Rushmore, has an abundance of restaurants, shops, and attractions, from wax museums to miniature-golf courses to...

Custer and Crazy Horse Memorial

About 30 miles north of Hot Springs is the town of Custer, the Mother City of the Black Hills. Near here, George Armstrong Custer and...

Badlands National Park

So stark and forbidding are the chiseled spires, ragged ridgelines, and deep ravines of South Dakota's badlands that Lieutenant Colonel George Custer once described them...

Wind Cave National Park

If you don't get out of your car at Wind Cave, you haven't scratched the surface—literally. The park has more than 145 miles of underground...

Custer State Park

...

Badlands National Park

So stark and forbidding are the chiseled spires, ragged ridgelines, and deep ravines of South Dakota's badlands that Lieutenant Colonel George Custer once described them...

Wind Cave National Park

If you don't get out of your car at Wind Cave, you haven't scratched the surface—literally. The park has more than 145 miles of underground...

Custer State Park

...

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Fodor's Black Hills of South Dakota: With Mount Rushmore and Badlands National Park
For over 80 years, Fodor's Travel has been a trusted resource offering expert travel...

View Details

Fodor's The Complete Guide to the National Parks of the USA: All 63 parks from Maine to American Samoa
Whether you want to hike through the jaw-dropping scenery of Acadia, see rare wildlife and...

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Fodor's The Complete Guide to the National Parks of the West: with the Best Scenic Road Trips
Whether you want to hike through jaw-dropping landscapes of Yosemite, see rare wildlife...

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South Dakota

Find a Hotel

Find a Hotel

Top Destinations

Top Destinations

Rapid City and the Central Black Hills

Badlands National Park

Wind Cave National Park

Deadwood

Spearfish

Hot Springs

Custer

Lead

Keystone

Hill City

Deadwood and Around

Outside Badlands National Park

Crazy Horse Memorial

Belle Fourche

Custer and Crazy Horse Memorial

Outside Wind Cave National Park

Keystone and Hill City

Rapid City and the Central Black Hills

Badlands National Park

Wind Cave National Park

Deadwood

Spearfish

Hot Springs

Custer

Lead

Keystone

Hill City

Deadwood and Around

Outside Badlands National Park

Crazy Horse Memorial

Belle Fourche

Custer and Crazy Horse Memorial

Outside Wind Cave National Park

Keystone and Hill City

Deadwood

Spearfish

Hot Springs

Custer

Lead

Sturgis

Keystone

Hill City

Crazy Horse Memorial

Edgemont

Belle Fourche

Deadwood

Spearfish

Hot Springs

Custer

Lead

Sturgis

Keystone

Hill City

Crazy Horse Memorial

Edgemont

Belle Fourche

Rapid City and the Central Black Hills

The Northern Black Hills

The Southern Black Hills

The Badlands

Deadwood and Around

Outside Badlands National Park

Outside Wind Cave National Park

Keystone and Hill City

Custer and Crazy Horse Memorial

Rapid City and the Central Black Hills

The Northern Black Hills

The Southern Black Hills

The Badlands

Deadwood and Around

Outside Badlands National Park

Outside Wind Cave National Park

Keystone and Hill City

Custer and Crazy Horse Memorial

South Dakota

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