Mr. Wonderland and I are going to be joining my parents on a road trip to South Dakota in their brand spankin’ new motor home.
We’re going to go see Mt. Rushmore.
Anything else we should check out while we’re there? The last time any of us were there was my mom, in 1954 and that’s it. My little doggie will be comming along too.
(This sound sort of horrible when it’s written out like this, but I actually think it will be kind of fun.)
Four adults and a dog. Hmmm…cosy.
Be absolutely positive you see the Badlands; if possible, spend a couple of days there. Don’t focus too much on Mt. Rushmore, although it is worth a day; see as much of the Black Hills as you can manage; they are beautiful and it is easy to see why the Sioux revered them. Be sure to see Wall’s Drugs, it’s almost a crime to visit South Dakota without a visit there. Visit Deadwood while you are in the western part of the state; you can see and have a drink in the actual saloon where Wild Bill met his end. I’ve forgotten the name of the hotel in Deadwood that was built by Seth Bullock, but any local can tell you; if you spend a night in that hotel, you might even see Seth himself. Just remember he’s been dead for a long time. If you happen to pass through Yankton, you will be passing through where I used to live. If that isn’t enough, remember that Yankton was the Dakota Territory’s capital back when the Dakota Territory included both Dakotas, Montana, and a chunk of Wyoming. It was also a major river boat city, being located on the Missouri. Lewis and Clark passed through that area and there is a large lake named for them to the west of Yankton. Custer also passed either by or through Yankton; a spot where his troop camped has been identified, although that’s about it. I think there may be a marker there, IIRC. If you talk to the residents of South Dakota and check out the prices for real estate, you might be tempted to move there. I believe South Dakota is the best kept secret in the USA; if my ex-wife weren’t there, I’d retire there in a heart beat. As it is, I don’t want to be in the same state as that woman.
I can’t believe I didn’t mention The Corn Palace in Mitchel; it’s basically a gymnasium whose outer walls contain murals that are made with different colors of corn. The murals change from time to time so there is no predicting what they will be when you arrive. Google The Corn Palace for a lot of pictures; no one should pass through South Dakota without seeing it. If that isn’t a big enough attraction, there is, or used to be, a sort of Doll Museum right across the street. AND, if you are into antiques, South Dakota has a ton of antique shops.
Sounds a lot like that Frasier episode wherein Frasier, Niles and Daphne reluctantly accompany Martin in his new Winnebago on his dream trip to Mt. Rushmore.
Seconding Wall Drug (you can’t miss it, there are signs for hundreds of miles in all directions) and the Badlands (best part of that area, IMHO) and a vote for the Crazy Horse monument, which I kind of liked better than Mt. Rushmore.
I find myself emulating Sharon Stone, meditating on the laws of karma.
In addition to the wonderful sights already mentioned, there’s a preserved (and furnished) sod house close to the Badlands – don’t pass it up. I think it’s close to a prairie dog town too, and those are so cute!
When we did SD, we also went through the Bear Country attraction. Wild animals, not caged (except for the bears, which were fenced in). The bears did this weird thing where they made a conga line and sucked on each others ears. It was bizarre.
I also prefer Crazy Horse to Rushmore, but if you’re going out there you should see both. The Black Hills are beautiful.
Not sure when you’re going, but August 4-10 is the Black Hills Motorcycle Rally in Sturgis. If you were not aware, it is a HEE-YUUGE rally. So if you’re into big crowds (and I mean ENORMOUS), motorcycles, and drinking, you might check it out if you’re around then. If that’s not your cup of tea and you’re around then, I wouldn’t go within 50 miles of Sturgis. I would also book your RV spots now, if you haven’t already done so, because you will be hard-pressed to find lodging or RV spots anywhere in western SD, and that includes the Bad Lands and the Black Hills. So, basically, don’t go then, is my advice.
Sturgis is worth a drive-through just to see all the motorcycle-oriented businesses and stuff, but there really isn’t a lot to do there.
How long are you staying? Where are you coming from? I’m not denigrating South Dakota to say that there may be more fun things to see and do on your way there and home than there actually are in South Dakota. I could kill, say, three days there tops; then I’d think I’d run out of stuff to do.
IMO the Corn Palace is neat in a “been there, snapped the picture” sort of way. IMO Wall Drug is really overrated, which shouldn’t discourage you from going anyway.
IMO South Dakota is really underrated for natural beauty. I would definitely concentrate on the Bad Lands and Black Hills (and the monuments) and spend less time at the Intentional Tourist Destinations, but that’s just me.
Depending on when you’re going and where you’re coming from, you might also have the opportunity to catch a county fair. South Dakota does great fairs.
See Crazy Horse, skip Mt. Rushmore entirely. The former is awesome, the latter a total let down on every level imaginable. Hit the Reptile Farm in Rapid City.
Badlands is near the top of places I must take my son. It’s amazing to think it’s even on the same planet, let alone in the same country as where I live. I love it there.
My experience with Mt. Rushmore was that while it was kind of anticlimatic, but driving away from the park we rounded a curve and got a spectacular view of the monument in the setting sun that made AMerica the Beautiful play in my head and I was suddenly glad we’d gone there afterall.
Am I really the first to recommend Bedrock City in Custer? It’s not a must see, but a cheesily entertaining way to break up a long drive.
I can’t believe people are actually promoting a stop at Wall Drug. It’s just a huge tourist trap. You can skip it.
Definitely see Crazy Horse. You can easily spend the whole day there and stay to see the laser show at night. Reptile Gardens in Rapid City are awesome. The hotel LouisB is thinking of is the Bullock Hotel. It’s really neat; we stayed there when my husband and I went to Deadwood. They also do a re-enactment at the bar where Wild Bill was shot.
When I was a kid I went to one of those wacky gravity defying mystery areas located on the side of a hill. The place was called the Cosmos.
At the time I thought it wonderful and wierd. Three years ago I forced some friends to go when we were up in Deadwood for a gambling weekend. I thought it weird and wonderful for different reasons. My friends thought it bizarre that anyone would pay money for the pleasure of seeing what amounts to your mind playing tricks on you.
The point is, Cosmos mystery spot is my recommendation if you like silly, mindless tourist traps and are able to laugh at yourself and the rest of humanity for paying for such traps.
Also, I second gwendee in that the view of Rushmore from the road is better than the view at the vistors center.
I dunno, I really liked Wall Drug for the cheeze factor, though the superhero wasn’t enamored of the really cheap coffee (it’s really cheap for a reason, apparently).
Also, I forgot to mention that a really cool part of seeing the badlands was stopping at the little restaurant on the reservation partway through the drive, and eating the best Indian tacos (basically a taco made with frybread instead of a taco shell) and homemade pie ever.
My favorite place in the world.
Crazy Horse, not just a mountain monument, but a great museum too.
Mt. Rushmore
From Rushmore, drive back toward Keystone, then go south on Hwy 16A, Iron Mountain Road. My favorite road in the whole world. DO NOT do this in your motor home, although people do, so it is possible. Do you have a smaller vehicle along? Two “pig tail” bridges. Two “drive straight at a cliff then take a 90 degree turn into a one lane tunnel” tunnels. When you get through them, stop and take pictures of Rushmore framed in the tunnel. Stop at the scenic overlook.
Take the Wildlife loop in Custer State Park. See Antelope, Buffalo, Deer, Prairie Dogs, Begging Burros.
Wind Cave.
Hill City and Keystone are great for little shops. Hill City has an art gallery and a fossil museum.
Eat dinner at the State Game Lodge in Custer State Park.
Deadwood has grown a lot in the last 10+ years. Even if you, like me, don’t gamble, it’s definitely worth it to wander the place for half a day.
Which is how many hundreds of miles away from South Dakota? Dude, if someone asked about visiting Virginia, would you give them suggestions for places in Vermont?
Heh - no kidding. The Mr. and I are bringing a very large tent to sleep in with the dog - we’ll be driving in the motor home though. I think it should be ok for meals and relaxing and whatnot - it’s fairly large (29 feet) and apparently totally pimped out with satellite TV, AC, washroom with tub and shower, etc.
We’re going to be heading down from Manitoba (where my parents live) in the middle of June and staying for 5 or 6 days. The reason for the trip is that my father is quite sick so decided since he’d never seen Mt. Rushmore and always wanted to, he was going to buy rediculous motor home and go and do it while he still could, and we’re tagging along.
So, to the agenda - Mt. Rushmore is a must as it’s kind of the point.
What is Wall Drug? Is it a town or city? A store? An amusement park? I suppose I could google it, but I’ll ask you guys instead - particularly those of you who are promoting it.
I think the badlands are a given - we’ll probably camp in that region (assuming it’s somewhere near to Mr. Rushmore). I’ll mention the Black Hills as well.
I think I’ll suggest the Crazy Horse monument - my parents would probably dig that - we won’t be there in August so the motorcycle rally is out (although my dad used to have a bike so he probably would have liked it).
I’m going to be insisting on Bedrock City. Wilma is my hero. 
The Reptile Gardens sound fun to me, but my mother would object strenuously so that’s probably a no.
Finally:
Do you often find yourself emulating people universally considered to be morons? You should probably see someone about that.
I am NOT going to mention this to my dad. We’re not taking a second vehicle and my did WILL try this with the motor home. Flaming death isn’t huge on my holiday priority list. 
Ooo - I just saw mention of the Hill City shops - my mom is most certainly going to want to go there so I’ll add it too - I’m gonna have to start google mapping some of this stuff - I think South Dakota is kinda big and we’ll probably have to be choosy.
I also recommend either Wind or Jewel cave. Both wonders, if you like caves.
It’s also worth it to slip over to Wyoming and see Devil’s Tower.
Also, two other overlooked local cool things:
In Spearfish, there is the D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery right downtown. It sounds boring, but you can feed huge trophy game fish and look at them through the underground glass for free.
Just over the border in Wyoming is the Vore Buffalo Jump Site, where a number of native tribes drove buffalo into pits for years. More information here:http://waterplan.state.wy.us/BAG/newy/briefbook/200404_vbj.pdf. (warning pdf). It is hard to find, but really neat if you like archeology.