How many nights are too many in Rapid City?

I have four nights reserved in Rapid City. Would that be one-two nights too many? I would like some input from those that have stayed more than two nights there and/or advice from the locals.

From our home (northeast OK), Rapid City is almost 1,000 miles one way! Any suggestions on what to stop and see along the way, besides the Corn Palace and Wall Drug?

Thank you!

How many nights are too many in Rapid City?

What do you plan to do while visiting the Black Hills? If you are planning on Rushmore, the caves, Custer SP, and more usual attractions, I would not recommend Rapid City as a base. You are about 20 miles from Rushmore (futher from Custer), and if you are going to the evening lighting ceremony, you are talking a bit of a drive back to your hotel in Rapid.

When people visit the Black Hills, most make their base in Keystone, Hill City, or Custer. These 3 towns are all pretty central to the area%26#39;s major attractions.

Rapid City is a nice area and offers more chain restaurants (many locals recommend specific restaurants that are not chains... and Rapid seems to have more dining variety than in other smaller towns), dept. stores, large groceries, etc. I think you might enjoy one of the smaller towns better, depending on your attraction to do list. However, you can still be fairly close to Rapid by staying in these other small towns. For example, if you stayed in Keystone, you could still make the drive into Rapid for a meal if you wanted.

The Badlands would make a great stop on the way to Rapid, if it%26#39;s not already on your list.

Hope this helps. Please ask if you have any additional questions.

How many nights are too many in Rapid City?

For a summer family visit to the Black Hills where you%26#39;re going to the usual attractions (Mt. Rushmore, etc.) I%26#39;d recommend no more than one night in Rapid City. While basing yourself in Rapid City is a good idea sometimes (like in the off-season or for those looking for a wider range of dining), it sounds like you%26#39;d enjoy staying in one of the towns closer to what you%26#39;re going to see.

If you%26#39;re driving in the from the east, staying the first night in Rapid City isn%26#39;t a bad idea. After a long day%26#39;s drive (which should include the Badlands), staying in Rapid City before you head up into the Black Hills the next morning gives you a good rest.

I live in rapid City and i dont think that, that is to many nights whatso-ever. We have lots of great shops in town not to forget the great restaraunts. I would also check out Main Street with our one of a kind past president statues and many unique stores that are fun to browse in.

I would also recommend Beautiful Rushmore cave wich I adore it is a great place, also check out Reptile Gardens, and Bear Country wich are great places to discover different animals for people of any age. If you have younger kids then Storeybook Island and Watiki are also great destanations. (though I will be the first to admit Watiki is rather pricey but it has hours of fun). These are a few of my favorites and I really hope you enjoy your trip to Rapid City!

Thank you, livestockgirl, for your suggestions to make our trip to Rapid City more enjoyable. We will definitely go to Bear Country and Reptile Gardens. We visited back in 1996, but too many years have passed since then. I am sure our daughter (06-25-99) will love all the beautiful sights to see! I even have my new Eskimo Joe ';Mount Rushmore'; shirt to wear. (EJ is in Stillwater, OK--home of OSU). I don%26#39;t recall visiting Main Street/downtown area, but we will this visit.

Your certainly welcome. Im glad you liked my ideas and im postitive you will have a great trip. So have a great time and enjoy Rapid City!

I just got back from a 4 night stay in Piedmont which is north of Rapid City. I think 4 nights is perfect because that gives you time to relax plus see all the sites. The first night you stay you are going to be tired from the long drive. The second or third night you can take in a night show at Mt. Rushmore or Crazy Horse and the 4th night you can relax before your trip home. 4 nights gives you 3 whole days to see the sights and take your time.

In Murdo there is a museum that has a lot of classic cars and Elvis%26#39;s motorcycle that is on 90. It%26#39;s nothing special but its a fun stop. They have a 50%26#39;s theme dinner there as well.

Thank you, Duchessmellie, for your comments and suggestions. I will make sure we stop in Murdo. That sounds really cool! Kel

I%26#39;ve been to the black hills probably 30 times. I never stay in Rapid City. WE did a couple weeks ago though for two nights only because the people we went with wanted to stay there. It was okay but a lot of the attractions are miles out of town so you might as well stay in Keystone.

Wall Drug is a nice town, with a few good hotels. I love going there. Murdo is okay but not much to see except the Pioneer Auto place which was okay but I was bored with it immediately. My husband loved it though.

Custer is a nice city to stay in. I%26#39;d stay there at least one or two nights if you do the custer loop and Jewel Cave. Stop at Flintstone Village and have a brontosaurus burger. That place is neat!

Personally we stay in Deadwood and make the drive to see other things if we want to. But our main time we spend in Deadwood as we like to gamble but during the day we venture off. It%26#39;s kind of out of the way but such a scenic town with a cool history. It%26#39;s about 45 miles from Hill City. Keystone is just a few miles from Hill City. Take that 1880 train. It%26#39;s so cool!

If you have a kid in tow, make your life better and limit the driving time once you arrive at your destination. To that end I would suggest spending most of your time based (as previously suggested) in the more central area of Custer/Hill City/Keystone.

As you drive into the Black Hills area, staying one night in Keystone would let you see the sights on the east side of the Black Hills. But really, most of the ';best'; stuff for kids is centered around the above small towns.