I traveled to South Dakota in 2024 with a friend to road trip to Badlands National Park, Wind Cave National Parks and Mt. Rushmore. Below is an in-depth breakdown of the adventure as well as some things I learned along the way. One note: We already had an annual park pass from a trip in February 2024 so that cost is not reflected here.

Trip Details

Trip Dates: May 4-7, 2024

Main Places Visited:

• Badlands National Park
• Mt. Rushmore
• Custer State Park
• Wind Cave National Park
• Horsetooth Resevoir

Total Cost: approx. $710 (if you subtract the flight cost I only paid $410 out of my own pocket for this trip! See note below)

Cost Breakdown:

• Flight: approx. $250-$300 roundtrip to Denver, nonstop from my hometown. I was flying there for work and flew out early to do this trip, so I didn’t have to pay for the flight.
• Three nights of camping (I have a light backpacking tent that works great): $55/person (there were two of us).
• Rental car: $92/person.
• Fuel: $70/person.
• Custer State Park pass: $10/person.
• Groceries: $34/person.
• Miscellaneous/restaurants/souvenirs: $150.

Itinerary

May 4

• Arrive at 10 a.m. in Denver
• Pick up rental car at 11 a.m.
• Drive 6.5 hours to Badlands National Park/Cedar Pass Campground
  • Tip: Don’t follow GPS as it took us on a dirt back road that was VERY questionable. Use the campground’s directions.
  • Book it? Yes! The campgrounds were RIGHT at the edge of the Badlands in this wild and beautiful landscape. We got there in time for the sunset and it was magical.

May 5

• Get on the road by 7 a.m. to explore Badlands National Park.
  • Tip: We did a lot that is in this blog. The prairie dogs were a definite highlight, as was Notch Trail. We skipped out on the longer hikes as we only had one day in the park. I like to have a rough plan going into the parks of “must sees” but also like to allow for the day to take us where it will.
• Depart 11:30 a.m.
• Drive 1-1.5 hours to Custer State Park.
  • Tip: This was a surprise add based on a recommendation from a friend and I’d do it again. It has a wildlife loop where you can see buffalo, a great hike to Cathedral Spires and a walk around Sylvan Lake.
• Drive 25 minutes to Mount Rushmore KOA.

May 6

• Depart 7 a.m. as the bridge was out for repair, making our 10-15 minute drive over an hour to Mount Rushmore.
• 8 a.m. vist Mount Rushmore.
  • Tip: See the monument of course but there are some great exhibits to visit, a walk that gets you closer to Mount Rushmore and even a chance to eat Thomas Jefferson’s ice cream.
  • Tip: When we got there it was super foggy; we could barely see Mount Rushmore. However, after a wild hail storm, it turned into a beautiful sunny day with an incredible view. Give yourself some time; the weather may clear!
• Depart 10 a.m. and drive one hour to Wind Cave National Park.
  • Tip: We cooked a camping meal at the picnic tables at Wind Cave to save money.
  • Tip: Unfortunately the cave tours were suspended due to elevator replacement, but there was still sights to see. We got to see the natural entrance to the cave and enjoyed the 6-mile Centennial hike that had a ton of wildlife, plus different terrain.
• Depart 2:30 p.m. and drive 5 hours to Horsetooth Reservoir.
  • Tip: Blue Agave Grill in Ft. Collins is delicious. Get the margarita flight.

May 7

• Depart 9 a.m. and drive 1.5 hours to Denver to drop off the car by 11 a.m.