Things to Do in Custer, South Dakota: A Black Hills Travel Guide

Becs

Aug 9

8 min read

If you’re planning a trip to the Black Hills, Custer, South Dakota is one of the best places to make your home base. We were honestly surprised by just how much there was to do in and around this little mountain town.

You can spend the morning hiking through Custer State Park, drive one of the most scenic roads in the country, stop for wildlife along the way, ride a mountain coaster, explore a cave and still make it back downtown for dinner and drinks. Plus, some of South Dakota’s most famous attractions — including Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse Memorial — are an easy drive away.

One of my favorite things about this area is the variety. There are the big bucket-list attractions, of course, but there are also quirky roadside stops, chainsaw art, local breweries, unique places to stay and plenty of those random discoveries that make a road trip memorable.

Whether you’re visiting Custer for a weekend or using it as your starting point for a longer Black Hills road trip, here are some of the best things to see, do and experience while you’re there.

Explore Downtown Custer

Before heading out to explore the Black Hills, spend some time walking around downtown Custer. It’s a small, walkable area filled with local restaurants, shops, galleries and plenty of that classic Western charm you’d expect from a South Dakota mountain town.

We loved having Custer as our home base because after a full day of exploring, we could come back into town for food, drinks or just walk around and see what we stumbled across. Keep an eye out for the colorful buffalo statues scattered throughout town, too!

Explore Custer State Park

You could easily spend an entire day — or more — exploring Custer State Park. It was one of the biggest highlights of our trip and is SO much more than just somewhere you drive through on your way to another Black Hills attraction.

The park covers 71,000 acres and has everything from mountains and lakes to hiking trails and some incredible wildlife viewing. If you only have one day, I’d plan on combining a scenic drive with a hike or two and leaving yourself plenty of extra time for wildlife stops.

Tip: Don’t pack your schedule too tightly here. You’ll probably find yourself pulling over way more than you expect for views and animals!

Drive Needles Highway

If you only have time for one scenic drive around Custer, make it Needles Highway. This 14-mile stretch of road winds through Custer State Park past towering granite formations, overlooks and some VERY narrow rock tunnels.

One of the most recognizable stops is the Needles Eye, a tall granite formation with a tiny opening that resembles the eye of a sewing needle. The drive itself is part of the experience, so take your time and use the pull-offs along the way.

Good to know: Needles Highway is typically seasonal and can close during winter weather, so check road conditions if you're visiting outside the warmer months.

See the Buffalo in Custer State Park

This was easily one of those “we’re actually in South Dakota” moments. Custer State Park is home to one of the largest publicly owned bison herds in the world, with roughly 1,400 bison roaming the park.

Wildlife Loop Road is one of the best places to look for them, but remember that these are wild animals. We got some incredible views without ever needing to approach them — and you definitely want to give a bison plenty of space!

If seeing the buffalo is high on your list, I’d give yourself extra time for Wildlife Loop Road rather than treating it like a quick drive from Point A to Point B.

Meet the Famous Begging Burros

The begging burros were probably one of the funniest stops of our Custer State Park day. Unlike the bison, these guys have absolutely no problem coming over to investigate visitors — especially if they think snacks might be involved.

The burros aren't native wildlife; they descend from animals that were once used to take visitors up to the top of Black Elk Peak. Today, they roam freely around the park and have become one of its most recognizable residents.

You may spot them along Wildlife Loop Road, but sightings aren't guaranteed. And even though they're famously friendly, they're still animals roaming freely in the park, so give them respect and follow current park guidance about interacting with them.

Ride the Mountain Coaster at Rush Mountain Adventure Park

For something completely different from hiking and scenic drives, head to Rush Mountain Adventure Park. The Rushmore Mountain Coaster takes you twisting and turning down the mountainside, and you actually control your own speed as you go.

There are several other attractions here too, making it an easy place to spend a few hours. It’s especially fun if you’re traveling with a group where not everyone wants to spend the entire trip hiking.

Take a Tour of Rushmore Cave

You don’t even have to leave Rush Mountain Adventure Park for the next adventure! Rushmore Cave gives you the chance to head underground on a guided tour through rooms filled with stalactites, stalagmites and other natural cave formations.

I love adding cave tours to trips like this because it breaks up all of the outdoor sightseeing — plus, the Black Hills have a surprising amount happening underground!

Tip: The cave stays much cooler than the temperature outside, so having an extra layer with you isn't a bad idea.

Visit Crazy Horse Memorial

You really can’t take a trip through the Black Hills without stopping at Crazy Horse Memorial. The massive mountain carving has been under construction since 1948 and is still a work in progress, which makes seeing it in person especially interesting.

There’s much more here than simply viewing the mountain. Your admission also gives you the opportunity to learn more about the project and Native American history and culture through the museums and exhibits on site.

See Mount Rushmore

Of course, we had to include Mount Rushmore National Memorial. Even if you’ve seen it in photos a million times, seeing the 60-foot faces of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln carved into the Black Hills is one of those classic American road-trip experiences.

Walk the Presidential Trail for different views of the monument and a closer look at the mountain. There are also exhibits where you can learn more about how Mount Rushmore was created and the complicated history surrounding the land.

Fun fact: The carving took 14 years to complete, from 1927 to 1941.

Grab a Drink at Mount Rushmore Brewing Company

After a full day of exploring, Mount Rushmore Brewing Company is an easy spot to add to your evening in Custer. They brew their own beer and have a laid-back atmosphere that fits perfectly after a day spent hiking and sightseeing.

It’s also conveniently located right in Custer, which is another reason we liked staying in town — you can spend your day exploring the Black Hills and still have plenty of local places to check out when you get back.

Stop at the Giant Bicycle Sculpture in Pringle

If you love weird roadside attractions as much as we do, add the Bicycle Sculpture in Pringle to your Black Hills road trip. It’s a massive collection of hundreds of old bicycles that have been piled and arranged together into one giant sculpture — and people have been adding to it since the 1980s!

Check Out the Chainsaw Art

One of the more unexpected things we found around the Custer area was all of the chainsaw art! You’ll find some seriously impressive carvings throughout the Black Hills, ranging from wildlife and Western-themed pieces to massive sculptures that are hard to miss from the road.

This is one of those things I love about road trips — sometimes the random stops you weren’t originally planning become part of the experience. If you see a chainsaw carving shop or outdoor display while driving around, it’s worth pulling over to take a look!

Find the Giant Chainsaw-Carved Bigfoot

Speaking of chainsaw art, there’s a giant Bigfoot you can add to your list! This massive Sasquatch sculpture is carved from wood and makes for one of those wonderfully random South Dakota roadside stops.

It doesn’t take much time to visit, so I wouldn’t necessarily plan an entire part of your day around it. Instead, save the location and work it into your route while exploring the Black Hills. It’s a fun photo stop and definitely one of the more unusual things we came across during our trip.

Play Mini Golf in Downtown Custer

After spending the day hiking, driving and sightseeing, mini golf is a fun, low-key way to spend an evening back in Custer. We loved having little activities like this right in town that we could add on without needing to plan an entire day around them.

Pair it with dinner or drinks downtown and you have an easy way to wind down after exploring the Black Hills.

Stay Somewhere Unique

Where you stay can be part of the experience when visiting the Black Hills, too. Instead of automatically booking a traditional hotel, look around Custer and the surrounding area for cabins, glamping stays, tiny homes and other unique properties tucked into the scenery.

We stayed at a unique Airbnb during our trip, and I loved having somewhere memorable to come back to after our days exploring. Especially somewhere as scenic as the Black Hills, I think it’s worth looking for a stay that lets you enjoy the surroundings even when you aren't out sightseeing.

Take a Black Hills Road Trip

One of the best things you can do around Custer is actually one of the simplest: just drive and explore.

There are so many scenic roads, overlooks, small towns and random roadside attractions throughout the Black Hills that I wouldn’t schedule every minute of your trip. Give yourself some extra time to pull over when you see something interesting.

Some of our favorite finds weren’t necessarily the big attractions we had planned ahead of time — and that’s part of what made this area so much fun to explore.

Make Custer Your Home Base

If you’re trying to decide where to stay in the Black Hills, Custer makes a great home base because you can experience so many different things without constantly changing hotels.

You have Custer State Park practically at your doorstep, while Crazy Horse, Mount Rushmore, scenic drives, caves and other Black Hills attractions are all within reach. Then at the end of the day, you can head back into Custer for dinner, drinks and a walk around downtown.

For us, that combination made it easy to pack a lot into the trip without feeling like we were spending the entire time getting from one place to another.

Is Custer, South Dakota Worth Visiting?

Absolutely. If you love trips where you can pack a lot into a few days, Custer is such a fun place to explore. Between the wildlife, hiking, scenic drives, caves, mountain attractions and quirky stops, there was always something completely different to do next.

I especially recommend staying in or near Custer if you want to explore the Black Hills. Instead of visiting Custer State Park, Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse as separate day trips, you can make Custer your home base and build an entire getaway around them.

And don’t feel like you have to check everything off this list in one trip. Some of our favorite moments were simply driving through the Black Hills, stopping when something caught our attention and seeing what we found along the way.

Planning your own Custer trip? Save this guide for later, and follow along for more scenic stays, travel guides and places worth traveling for. 🤎