Bus Tour vs. SmartAlec GPS?

Hello -

Wife and I will be around Rushmore for 3 days in August 09 (2 days for Rushmore/surroundings and Badlands, 1 day in Deadwood). The inital 2 days we plan to see the favorites - Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Fort Hays, Iron Mountain Road, and the Badlands Loop Road 240. This might be a lot for 2 days but we do not have kids yet so we have the ability to move at a more rapid pace to see most everything. Would appreciate any/all recommendations, opinions %26amp; suggestions on a bus tour vs. car rental w/GPS. We generally like to go off on our own rather than on a bus tour, but never have been there and would like to hear from y%26#39;all.

Also would appreciate lodging suggestions in/around Keystone, as well as in Deadwood (Celebrity Hotel seems very neat and priced well for what it offers.)

Thank you in advance for your help!

Bryan

Bus Tour vs. SmartAlec GPS?

Hello and welcome to the forums!

First of all, I%26#39;d skip the bus tour. The Black Hills region really isn%26#39;t that large, and you can easily do it on your own at your pace. I really don%26#39;t like planned tours much either. With a GPS, you will be in fine shape. We have done the area with just maps, as we just got our GPS this past Christmas. It%26#39;s easily navigated, and the roads are good quality.

In Keystone, I%26#39;d recommend the Roosevelt Inn, which I have personal experience with, or K Bar S Lodge, which looks wonderful and gets excellent reviews on this site. Here%26#39;s the websites:

rosyinn.com

kbarslodge.com

K Bar S doesn%26#39;t have a pool, but since you aren%26#39;t travelling with kids, I figured this might not be that important to you. I think I%26#39;d pick K Bar S in your situation. It%26#39;s a bit away from the touristy area of Keystone and has views of Mt. Rushmore.

I have not stayed in Deadwood, but Celebrity Hotel is ranked #1 in Deadwood on this site. I have really found the hotel rankings on here to be very accurate, and anything in the top 5 of a larger area like Deadwood would be a home run, IMO. I%26#39;d give it a shot. We have stayed in Lead, the ';twin city'; of Deadwood to save $, but we were there for only a couple of nights and stayed in this area to see Devil%26#39;s Tower. We stayed at the Palace Express, it was fine for a night or 2.

Let us know if we can help in any other way. Have a great trip!