“Bigger is better!”
Welcome to a premier camping resort and lodge in the heart of the Black Hills. Enjoy a relaxing and fun camping adventure at the Mount Rushmore KOA Resort at Palmer Gulch, located near national memorials, breathtaking scenery, fun hiking trails, rodeos and museums. Relax and enjoy exciting activities without even leaving the campground with KOA's amenities and activities, or let KOA show you around the area via wagon rides, horseback adventures and UTV rentals.Let Us Be Your Black Hills Destination!Explore South Dakota at KOA for a fun and relaxing experience. Mount Rushmore KOA Resort at Palmer Gulch is in the heart of the Black Hills and right the whole family can enjoy. Marvel at the Mount Rushmore National Memorial or the in-progress Crazy Horse Mountain Memorial. Learn about the history of American Democracy at the National Presidential Wax Museum or drive along the Peter Norbeck Scenic Byway. Hike and Harney Peak, or walk trails in Custer State Park and the Black Hills National Forest.Ways to Stay for All CampersWhether you enjoy traditional tent camping, popular RV travel, or cozy cabin stays, KOA has a place for every type of camper to rest their head. Tent campers can with or without electricity. To enjoy RV camping near Mount Rushmore, choose KOA's convenient . You can also enjoy the convenience and extra comfort of lodging options such as near Mount Rushmore.Convenient and Fun AmenitiesThe Mount Rushmore KOA Resort at Palmer Gulch offers to help you make the most of your stay. Have a blast at the Fun Zone, dive into one of the swimming pools or glide down the water slide between Memorial Day and Labor Day. If you are craving some relaxation, enjoy a nice dip in the hot tub or unwind in the sauna.Challenge friends or family to a game of mini-golf, visit the Palmer Gulch Mining Company, traverse the exciting Climbing Wall and enjoy some fishing. Rent a bike or pick up a bike part for your own bike at the campground bike shop. Take your kids to jump on the Bounce Pillow and let your dog roam around KampK9®, a special dog park for your four-legged camping companions. When you get hungry, enjoy breakfast at the pancake tent (Memorial Day - Labor Day), grab lunch at the snack bar and enjoy dinner or on-site catering from The Peak Grill and Tap Room (Mid May - Mid September).Mount Rushmore KOA Resort at Palmer Gulch also provides exciting ways to explore nearby attractions. Rent a car to explore the gorgeous Black Hills or roam the trails on a UTV. Embark on a horseback riding adventure from Palmer Gulch Stables or enjoy a for a unique South Dakota experience. Dinner shows include a horse-drawn wagon ride or a horseback ride and a delicious cowboy meal with entertainment. Recreation and Special EventsMount Rushmore KOA Resort at Palmer Gulch hosts activities for the whole family. Build, decorate and launch rockets toward the sky on certain dates between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Use fabric and colorful dyes to create custom designs on special tie-dye days. for these activities as well as movies, wagon rides and live entertainment. You can also attend the exciting to see some Wild West action on select dates. Book a Stay at Mount Rushmore KOA ResortExplore the best of South Dakota at KOA. Mount Rushmore KOA Resort at Palmer Gulch offers convenient amenities, fun activities, special events and opportunities to visit local area attractions near Mount Rushmore. Whether you are looking for a relaxing weekend away or a fun adventure with the family, have an incredible time at the best camping vacation spot near Mount Rushmore. Book a Stay at KOA to begin your South Dakota adventure with your hosts, Recreational Adventures Co. or call today!
Reviews of Mount Rushmore KOA at Palmer Gulch Resort
33 people have reviewed this location
Ratings Summary
Cell Coverage
Verizon 4G/5G
Confirmed by 9 users | Last reported on August 08, 2021AT&T 4G/5G
Confirmed by 7 users | Last reported on September 01, 2023T-Mobile 5G
Confirmed by 1 users | Last reported on August 16, 2018The campground is great, plenty to do. I know we are camping but the wifi sucks here. I’m on AT&T and don’t get any cell service so I’m relying on the wifi. It keeps disconnecting and it’s very slow. Please upgrade the wifi then this place would be perfect!
Great place, close to everything! My kids had a blast. Only regret, we should have stayed longer.
If you have family and want lots of activities this is a spectacular KOA. Immaculate grounds, good restaurant on site. Small set of shops including ice cream.
Downside is there is no cell coverage, at least for Verizon even with a booster. Sits in a bowl between the hills.
Our site was right near the main lodge and collection of shops. The spot was level gravel with a concrete patio with a nice fire area and swing.
Unfortunately, being that close to the main building we got to experience lots of traffic, everyone checking into the campground had to drive past our site along with all the delivery trucks (some semis parked in front of our site).
That minor annoyance was compounded by lots of additional minor annoyances to the point that our stay was less satisfactory than we had hoped from the advertising.
Some examples: water slide is across the street from the pool and splash pad, meaning parents have to sit around at the bottom of the slide while the kids go - and if multiple kids, split up the group to go to splash pad/pool. The water in the water slide is very cold, along with with the splash pad water - a worker told us at the splash pad that the water was 55 degrees. And probably the biggest annoyance was that there was absolutely no connectivity of any kind anywhere near our campsite. No cell coverage and the "three wifi hotspots" around the campground never worked for anything - if any of devices would even connect.
Certainly, there were plenty of amenities that worked and convenient food options with the breakfast tent, the cafe and the restaurant on-site. The power, water, sewer and cable tv worked fine (although the cable was fairly limited - we didn't watch much). However, for the price and the little details, we did not feel that we got our money's worth and will not be returning.
Nightly Rate: $115.00
Days Stayed: 3
Site Number: 143
Cell Coverage Rating
AT&T 4G
If you want a ton of activities for kids and family this is the place. Water park. Trail riding. Car and ATV rentals. Restaurants. Tap room and much more. Be advised if you want peace and quiet though, this is not the place.
Nightly Rate: $75.00
Days Stayed: 3
Site Number: 328
Cell Coverage Rating
AT&T 4G
We arrived the week following Labor Day eager to experience the many and unique amenities this KOA has to offer. Imagine then our horror to discover that all amenities are only available Memorial Day through Labor Day. The KOA app makes no mention of this, and their website only reveals this information if you manually click on each amenity. Even with that, less than half mention a time restriction; but in the booklet they give you at checkin, it clearly says that all amenities are only available Memorial Day through Labor Day. I'm disappointed that we had to learn this the hard way and surprised that no other reviews mention this. Oh well, I hope we can help someone else avoid disappointment.
We were within 5 spots of one of the bath houses so we had great WiFi, which was a surprise. This was the first KOA, no strike that, first RV park we've been to anywhere that the WiFi worked flawlessly at all times of day. This is important here because there is no cell service, so with WiFi calling enabled we were able to place and receive calls etc.
Other than that it's a typical KOA. Clean, sites close together, friendly staff. Oh yeah the gravel needs a refresh since most sites were just dirt aka mud puddles within 36 hours of rain falling.
Nightly Rate: $75.00
Days Stayed: 2
Site Number: 128
Cell Coverage Rating
Verizon
This is a great place if you have kids and like the RV resort lifestyle if you do not there are so many better choices in the area. The site we reserved after I got the trailer leveled out and set up I went to hook up the grey and black tank hose and the KOA pipe was literary 6 inches higher then the hook up on my trailer and sh*t does not go up hill. In this camping trip I stayed at 8 campgrounds KOA was the biggest disappointment and the most expensive.
Nightly Rate: $57.00
Days Stayed: 2
Site Number: 553
Cell Coverage Rating
Verizon 4G
I have never seen a pool that dirty in all my life! The bathrooms were terrible, smelled of dried urine and looked like they were never cleaned. The first shower I tried had dirt or rust or something coming out, the next one was better. Very little shade. The other amenities were nice though, mini golf, movie, wagon rides, etc. The breakfast was very good. The food was good too. Zero cell reception and poor wifi.
Nightly Rate: $85.00
Days Stayed: 1
Site Number: 56
Cell Coverage Rating
Verizon
Never again! it wasn't fun or relaxing, dirty, crowded, although the sites are a good size, the sheer amount of people makes it feel like everyone is on top of each other. Despite of the rules "no crates for the dogs", our neighbors, probably the loudest people ever, had three 3! bloodhounds in the cage who would start barking at 7 am and wouldn't stop until midnight. It was a nightmare. For 85$ a night and with over 500 camping spots they had only one 1! damping station that of course created a long line on the way out. Do yourself a favor and avoid this place!
Nightly Rate: $85.00
Days Stayed: 3
Site Number: 547
Cell Coverage Rating
Verizon 4G
Not your typical KOA. Packed in like sardines. Site was almost too small for our 27 ft Class C. Picnic table had rotted wood. Exhaust fans in bath house not working. No hot water. WiFi system was overloaded therefore no connections were available. Management did not care. On the plus side, the pancake breakfast was good. Would not stay here ever again.
Nightly Rate: $78.00
Days Stayed: 4
Site Number: 64
Cell Coverage Rating
Verizon
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Mount Rushmore KOA at Palmer Gulch Resort
Hours
- Sun - Sat: 8:00 am - 8:00 pm
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Parking
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Pets Allowed
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Restrooms
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Wifi
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Wheelchair Accessible
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Credit Cards Accepted
- Max Stay
- 14
- Max Length
- 62ft
- Affiliation
- Kampgrounds of America (KOA)
- Sites Count
- 463
- Last Nightly Rate
- 79.0
- Lowest Nightly Rate
- 34.0
- Back In RV Sites Count
- 25
- Standard Tent Sites Count
- 158
- Pull Through RV Sites Count
- 158
- Longest Vehicle Length Reported
- 41.0
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Sites
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Laundry
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Propane
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Showers
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Big Rigs
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Boondock
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Firewood
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RV Sites
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Fifty Amp
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Tent Sites
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Cabin Sites
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Full Hookup
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Paved Sites
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Dump Station
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Mobile Homes
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Public Water
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Pull Through
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Reservations
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Sewer Hookup
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Water Hookup
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Swimming Pool
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Age Restricted
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Rec Facilities
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Dispersed Sites
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Open Seasonally
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Permit Required
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Back In RV Sites
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Group Tent Sites
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Fulltime Residents
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Standard Tent Sites
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Pull Through RV Sites
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Vehicle Wash Permitted
- Reservations
- Takes
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Dinner
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Outdoor Seating
- Rooms Count
- 61
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Adult Only
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Childrens Area
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Business Center
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All Day Front Desk
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Onsite Entertainment
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Continental Breakfast
Campground, Amenities, Parking, Pets, Dining, Restrooms
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