South Dakota Destination Guide

This South Dakota destination guide is where you can find available luxury five star South Dakota resorts, comfortable four star South Dakota hotels, clean three star South Dakota lodges, convenient two star South Dakota inns, budget one star South Dakota motels and the best vacations rentals in South Dakota. This where you book a room and make hotel reservations at a place to stay and find information and tips on travel to South Dakota. This getaway guide will help our readers find the perfect lodging accommodations in South Dakota. Whether you are traveling with your family on a leisure holiday vacation or visiting for corporate business, our South Dakota lodging guide will help you find a hotel room that suits your specific needs. Find travel books, travel gear, and event tickets, in SD.

South Dakota is a state in the high plains of the northern Middle West. The capital is Pierre. South Dakota was admitted to the Union on November 2, 1889. South Dakota is bordered to the north by North Dakota, to the south by Nebraska, to the east by Iowa and Minnesota, and to the west by Wyoming and Montana. It is one of the six states of the Frontier Strip.

Harney Peak, in the Black Hills, is the highest point between the Rocky Mountains and the French Alps. More than 70,000 people hike to its 7,242 foot summit each year. The deepest mine in the United States, the Homestake gold mine (now defunct), is in the Black Hills of South Dakota, near the town of Lead. Its shaft plunges more than 8,000 feet beneath the surface. From 1969 until 1993, it was home to the Homestake Chlorine Solar Neutrino Experiment, famous for detecting the solar neutrino problem. Currently there is pending legislation that would give the mine to the National Science Foundation for use as an underground research laboratory.

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South Dakota's borders encompass the great rolling plains that extend through the interior of the continent. The southwestern region of the state contains several nationally administered properties protecting the unique landforms and habitats within the badlands. Badlands National Park encompasses nearly 250,000 acres of fossilized remains and prairie grasslands. Black Hills National Forest, Custer National Forest, Buffalo Gap National Grasslands, Wind Cave National Park, Grand River National Grasslands and Jewel Cave National Monument lie in this region and provide access to public lands. The largest State Park in South Dakota lies within this region as does the town of Deadwood of mining era fame. Central South Dakota consists of the Missouri River Corridor. The northeastern region of South Dakota is designated by the state tourism board as the Glacial Lake and Prairies Region.

Cities with Lodging Hotels in South Dakota
Aberdeen Belle Fourche Beresford Black Hawk Brookings Custer Deadwood	De Smet Faulkton Hill City Hot Springs Huron Kadoka	Kimball Madison Mission Mitchell Murdo North Sioux City	Oacoma Pierre Plankinton Rapid City Redfield Sioux Falls	Spearfish Sturgis Vermillion Wall Watertown Winner Yankton

Tucked into the heart of the USA, the ‘Mount Rushmore State’ offers untouched nature in abundance, vast stretches of fertile prairies and early pioneer towns. Near the eastern border, Sioux Falls is the largest city in the region, and boasts its namesake waterfall, as well as the Center for Western Studies, the Old Courthouse Museum, St Joseph’s Cathedral and the Washington Pavilion of Arts and Science. On the opposite side of the State, Rapid City is the gateway to the Black Hills, with mountains, caves, forests and lakes; Wind Cave National Park; and Custer State Park, with its herd of over 1500 bison. Jewel Cave National Monument, the third-longest cave in the world, is also located at Custer.

Also in South Dakota’s southwest corner is its biggest tourist attraction by far, the Mount Rushmore National Memorial, where the 18m- (60ft-) high heads of four US presidents (George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln) have been blasted and carved out of the mountain. Work began on this massive ‘Shrine of Democracy’ in 1927 and took 14 years to complete. In the Black Hills, the Crazy Horse Memorial, a privately funded monument, is the world’s largest mountain sculpture in progress. The upper half of the 22-storey high horses head is a memorial honouring the North American Indian, standing 171m- (563ft-) high and 195m- (641ft-) long. The excellent Indian Museum of North America is located at Crazy Horse Memorial and is well worth a visit.

Recreation opportunities in South Dakota range from fishing in the many glacial and man-made lakes to backpacking in the national parks. Spelunking is poplar in eight Black Hills caves of southwestern South Dakota.