Mt Rushmore KOA Review: Tons of Family Fun
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Recently, my family joined 15 other bloggers and their families on a cross country RV trip. We started our journey in Middlebury, Indiana, and ended seven days later in Salt Lake City, Utah. On the way to Salt Lake City, we stopped for two days in South Dakota at the Mt Rushmore KOA, also known as Palmer Gulch. This was my family’s very first RV trip. I don’t think I had stepped foot on a campground in 20 years since I was in Girl Scouts. I didn’t know what to expect and was pleasantly surprised at the amenities that the Mt Rushmore KOA offered. The bathrooms were very clean, the restaurant was delicious, and it was very family-friendly. In addition to RV sites, there were exclusive cabin accommodations as well as tent sites. A couple of my blogger friends won a night/nights in the exclusive cabins and said they were amazing!
My kids had an absolute blast on these “banana bikes” as they called them. In the afternoon and evenings, many of the kids would ride around together.
When the kids weren’t riding bikes, they were enjoying this amazing playground.
On-site mini golf made a great afternoon adventure for my husband and my kiddos while this mama caught up on some much-needed sleep.
The Splash Park wasn’t open yet, but it looked super fun!
Who doesn’t love water slides? Water activities are always fun and family-friendly. We were just a couple of weeks too early to take advantage of any water fun.
There was even a Palmer Gulch Mining Company. I would really like to come back when all the activities are available.
Unique Amenities
- Catering
- Children’s Activities
- Chuck Wagon Dinner Show
- Climbing Wall
- Fishing
- Foam Family Fun
- Military Clubs
- Motorcycle Clubs
- Palmer Gulch Stables
- RV Clubs & Rallies
- Splash Park
- Tours
- Water Slide
- Free horse-drawn hayrides twice a week
- Two different free movies each evening
- Free musical entertainment three nights a week
- Shuttles for a nominal fee to the Lighting Ceremony at Mount Rushmore
- Sunday Worship Service – non-denominational
- Breakfast trail rides
- All-day rides to Harney Peak
- Pancake breakfasts
Just a note from experience, DO NOT follow GPS directions to Mt Rushmore KOA. We found out the hard way late at night when we were directed to a dirt road with no outlet. Thankfully, the KOA is aware of the problem and has the correct directions posted on their website.