South Dakota · best-of list
15 Top Things to Do in South Dakota
All 15 things to do our route editors picked in South Dakota, across 2 destinations, gathered in one list. Each one is a stop on a route you can open and copy into a trip.
Our curated picks
15 things to do in South Dakota, grouped by destination. Destinations with the most picks come first; this is not a ranking.
Badlands National Park 8 picks
Badlands Loop Road
Badlands National Park · On our Dakotas Badlands & Black Hills route
SD Highway 240 through the park, with overlooks every few miles.
Tip: Drive west in the afternoon to end at Pinnacles for sunset.
Photo: Ashley Stanley · Google
Ben Reifel Visitor Center
Badlands National Park · On our Dakotas Badlands & Black Hills route
Main park visitor center with a fossil prep lab and orientation film.
Tip: Watch paleontologists work in the lab in summer.
Photo: Andrea Meintel · Google
Door Trail
Badlands National Park · On our Dakotas Badlands & Black Hills route
Easy 0.75-mile trail through a break in the Badlands Wall into eroded terrain.
Tip: Follow the numbered posts beyond the boardwalk.
Photo: CHB Wien · Google
Fossil Exhibit Trail
Badlands National Park · On our Dakotas Badlands & Black Hills route
Short accessible boardwalk with fossil replicas of ancient mammals.
Tip: Good midday stop; little shade.
Photo: Mark Mandelstamm · Google
Minuteman Missile National Historic Site
Badlands National Park · On our Dakotas Badlands & Black Hills route
Cold War missile site with a visitor center and the Delta-09 silo viewing window.
Tip: Delta-01 control center tours need reservations on Recreation.gov.
Photo: Jud McCranie · CC BY-SA 4.0
Notch Trail
Badlands National Park · On our Dakotas Badlands & Black Hills route
1.5-mile trail with a log ladder climb to a ledge over the White River Valley.
Tip: Skip in rain; the clay becomes slick.
Photo: Jake Seboly · Google
Pinnacles Overlook
Badlands National Park · On our Dakotas Badlands & Black Hills route
Wide view across spires and layered buttes at the park's west end.
Tip: Arrive 30 minutes before sunset for color shifts.
Photo: Charlie Bain · Google
Sage Creek Rim Road
Badlands National Park · On our Dakotas Badlands & Black Hills route
Gravel road past Roberts Prairie Dog Town and frequent bison herds.
Tip: Passable for cars in dry weather; check after rain.
Photo: RedPill Samurai · Google
Black Hills 7 picks
Black Elk Peak Trail
Black Hills · On our Dakotas Badlands & Black Hills route
7-mile round trip from Sylvan Lake to a stone fire tower on South Dakota's highest point.
Tip: Start early in summer to avoid afternoon storms.
Photo: Skye Marthaler · CC BY-SA 4.0
Crazy Horse Memorial
Black Hills · On our Dakotas Badlands & Black Hills route
Ongoing mountain carving honoring the Lakota leader, with the Indian Museum of North America.
Tip: Bus to the base adds a closer view of the face.
Photo: Adam Blaisse · Google
Iron Mountain Road
Black Hills · On our Dakotas Badlands & Black Hills route
Winding road with pigtail bridges and tunnels that frame Mount Rushmore.
Tip: Drive north toward Rushmore for the tunnel views.
Photo: Jim Barbale · Google
Mount Rushmore National Memorial
Black Hills · On our Dakotas Badlands & Black Hills route
Four presidents carved in granite, with the Presidential Trail at the base.
Tip: Parking fee, no entrance fee; walk the 0.6-mile Presidential Trail.
Photo: Jeremy Lamantia · Google
Needles Highway
Black Hills · On our Dakotas Badlands & Black Hills route
14-mile road through granite spires and one-lane tunnels, including the Needles Eye.
Tip: Tunnels are narrow (8 ft 4 in at Needles Eye); RVs check clearances.
Photo: Bradie Paschall · Google
Sylvan Lake
Black Hills · On our Dakotas Badlands & Black Hills route
Granite-ringed lake with an easy 1-mile shoreline loop and boulder scrambles.
Tip: Park entry pass for Custer State Park required.
Photo: Jennifer L. Sovanski from United States of America. Cropped and color-corrected · CC BY 2.0
Wildlife Loop Road
Black Hills · On our Dakotas Badlands & Black Hills route
18-mile road through Custer State Park prairie with bison herds and begging burros.
Tip: Drive it at dawn or dusk; stay in the car near bison.
Photo: Ashley Chmielewski · Google
How we picked these
Every entry is a stop on at least one of TripsCircle's hand-curated routes, chosen by our route editors, who wrote the reason to go shown with each place. These are our curated picks, not a scored ranking: we haven't rated or reviewed them against each other. The list is grouped by destination, and within each destination places that appear on more routes come first.
Prices ($ to $$$$) and visit lengths are rough guides from our route notes, not quotes. Check opening hours before you go.
About this list
How did you choose the things to do in South Dakota?
Each one is a stop on a TripsCircle route that our editors built by hand, and each comes with a written reason to go. This page shows all 15 of them. They are curated picks, not a ranked score.
Which part of South Dakota has the most things to do on this list?
Badlands National Park has the most (8 of 15), followed by Black Hills (7).
Are any of these free?
8 picks on this list are marked free in our route notes: Black Elk Peak Trail, Ben Reifel Visitor Center, Door Trail, Fossil Exhibit Trail, Minuteman Missile National Historic Site, and more. Check ahead, since parking or special exhibits can cost extra.
More lists for South Dakota
Top things to do nearby
Destinations on this list
- Badlands National Park 8 on this list
- Black Hills 7 on this list
Turn this list into a plan
Open a curated route in TripsCircle, add the spots your crew wants, vote with polls and keep everyone on one shared itinerary.