Top 9 Budget-friendly Things to do in Keystone, South Dakota (SD)

Black Hills Helicopters, Inc. offers helicopter tours of the unique geological outcropping that is the Black Hills of South Dakota. This geological anomaly made for the perfect location to create some of the world's largest rock sculptures; Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse. Take a few minutes to see a different perspective and experience the unforgettable sensation of helicopter flight and the vertical world. Veteran Owned and Operated. Black Hills Helicopters has the best maintained helicopters and the most experienced pilots at the controls, giving full narratives of the area's rich history and geology. (Summer Extra-Credits Available upon request)

Hiking trail at Mount Rushmore.

Big Thunder Gold Mine has an original tour which lasts 45-55 minutes and was founded in 1892. You see the largest display of mining equipment in the Black Hills and learn the history of the gold rush in 1876. We have two forms of panning: one is our commercial panning right on site. Guides will demonstrate theskill of panning, no time limit and we guarentee you will find gold. We also have claim panning where you will pan directly our of the creek 4 miles down the road on Forest Service property. Those exist in 4 hour trips.

Sculptor Gutzon Borglum created this famous mountainside carving of the visages of four great American presidents: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt.

The museum is located in the old Keystone School. The school was built in 1899. Keystone is home to Carrie Ingalls Swazney. Carrie is Laura Ingalls Wilder's little sister. The museum has many artifacts from the Ingalls family. The museum also has local, mining, and Mount Rushmore history. Upstairs there are two classrooms for the children as well as adults to experience what school was like many, many years ago. The museum is free, but we do take "milk money" donations.

Located only minutes from Mount Rushmore in the town of Keystone in the beautiful Black Hills of South Dakota, the National Presidential Wax Museum is an exciting patriotic experience for the whole family. Meet over 100 lifelike wax figures, including all 45 U.S. presidents, all depicted in stunning visual recreations of iconic moments in U.S. presidential history. Explore the stories behind the faces with a self-guided audio tour narrating the context and history of each scene. Witness the intricacies of the wax sculpture process with a seven-minute theater video showcasing the museum’s ten artists as they create America’s leaders out of wax and bring a vision to reality. Play the part of the White House press secretary and give a speech from a teleprompter podium in a spot-on recreation of the White House press briefing room! The National Presidential Wax Museum also boasts a huge gift shop filled with unique and quirky gifts that can’t be found anywhere else in the Black Hills.