Mount Rushmore KOA at Palmer Gulch

We were there on the last days it was open and so most of the camp amenities were closed. I’m sure it’s a great place when in full swing. Staff we talked with were super friendly. There was quite a bit of dog waist around our site and so we had to watch where we were walking and there were a lot of flies. The laundry was not as clean as we are used to and one of the washers stopped mid load. It is really close to Mount Rushmore, our primary reason for being there and that was great.

Me and the family stayed here during our time in the black hills I absolutely love this campground however it’s very busy! Tons to do with kids of all ages, they have something going on pretty much every night durning the peak season in the fun zone for the kids, all you can eat pancakes for $3.50. The only down side is the price per night. It’s a bit much but understanding since you are in the heart of the black hills and 8-10 min from Mt Rushmore. 10 min from hill city and 15 min from keystone. Absolutely zero cell service ( kinda nice but frustrating if your trying to look something up) the park has WiFi but it’s public and an open network works best at the entrance.

Just a side note if your tow rig or drivable RV is a diesel fill up before coming down because there is NO diesel in keystone! There is diesel in hill city and outside of hill city to the north, also in Custer.

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.

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!

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.

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.

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.

Just look at the map and you can see what you're getting into. Unless you get a spot off in the back, this place is busy all day, every day, in the summer. Why? Because the weather is beautiful, it's proximity to Mt Rushmore is unmatched, and it's full of amenities. We've stayed here twice now and luckily both times were in the high 500's area, which is quiet-er than a lot of the spots. If you plan on staying a while and have kids, it's great. If you don't have kids, then this place will be way too busy and loud to relax. All you can eat pancakes? I'd like to see anyone stuff down a 2nd stack. lol. Mini golf could stand an upgrade. Shop is well stocked, on-site restaurants are good, if a little expensive. Do yourself a favor if you're towing a large rig like I was, enter from the west. DO NOT take your camper down that HUGE grade that ends at a stoplight in the town of Keystone. 55mph, then warnings about the grade, more warnings about the grade, and it keeps going and going, then the warning of 25mph ahead near the bottom that's actually a stoplight with 4 pedestrian crossings in the first block, all at the bottom of the hill. After all that, the descent from Mt Rushmore down to the KOA ends with a hard right(like 120 degree) turn back into the park at the bottom of a hill. Cell service is crap because you're in a valley, WiFi didn't seem to work for us either.

We spent $130 for a premium site with patio on a Wednesday night the second week of June. After taking us past ample empty, quiet locations, our premium patio site (nicest the park has) was directly across from the “fun zone”. A massive area for kids to enjoy their adventure.

We checked in as a couple with no kids. I would have thought some attention to this gap in placement would have been recognized. Additionally, the most expensive sites in a park should be directly across from the loudest spot in the entire park.

WiFi in the park is lousy at best.