9 Day Western States Road Trip with Kids

This summer we decided to hit the road again for another family road trip. This time we were exploring the western states of South Dakota, Wyoming, and a small part of Montana. From quirky Western towns to beautiful national parks, museums and historic landmarks to all the wildlife you can see, you'll have your pick of family-friendly things to do. If you’re planning a road trip from Mount Rushmore to Yellowstone to Grand Teton with the kids, here's a list of some of the top spots to visit along the way.

On this trip, you'll visit several national parks, which makes it hiking- and walking-intensive. For similar trips that include US national parks with varying degrees of hiking, make sure to check out itineraries for 8-Day California Road Trip with Kids and 8-Day Southwest Road Trip with Kids.

Western States Attractions Map

An interactive map of all the best things to do in South Dakota, Wyoming & Montana with kids!

Click for the interactive map here.

General Notes about Altitude Sickness

• You will be traveling across several different altitudes over the course of this trip.
• If you’re not accustomed to high altitudes, beware of the possibility of getting altitude sickness.
• Headache, fatigue, and shortness of breath are common signs. 
• Take rest breaks and be sure to stay hydrated.

Day 1 - Travel to Rapid City, SD & Mount Rushmore

Arrive in Rapid City Regional Airport and rent a car. (To make the most of travel day one, plan to arrive early in Rapid City, so that you still have at least a half day left to explore.)

Head to Mount Rushmore where you'll spend your time today. Walk up the presidential trail boardwalk for some special views of the monument. Make sure to stop by both the Lincoln Borglum Visitor Center to see the museum exhibits and the Sculptor's Studio to see the 1/12th scale model of Mount Rushmore. When we were there, they had a presentation at the Sculptor's Studio.

Day 2 - Badlands National Park (SD)

Wake up early this day and head out to explore Badlands National Park. Drive along Badlands Loop Road (Highway 240) and choose which overlooks, boardwalk trails, or hikes you'd like to explore on your adventure in the park.

The biggest highlight for me was Roberts Prairie Dog Town off Sage Creek Rim Road. To see the prairie dogs at Roberts Prairie Dog Town, you park your car and walk down one of the designated trails out into the town. The prairie dogs will pop up out of their holes fairly close to you. If they see you, they'll pop right back down into their holes. (Note: Sage Creek Rim Road is an unpaved road, but it was worth it to see all those prairie dogs!)

After your visit, stop for lunch at Wall Drug, which was founded in 1931. It's a definite must-see when you're in the area. There's lots of what our family calls geegaw -  giant Jackalope? Yes. 6-Foot Rabbit? Indeed! Stuffed Buffalo? Why, Sure! Zoltar? Can't miss him! Will this be the absolute best lunch that you have on this trip? Probably not, but you get to have it in a kitschy roadside attraction, which is pretty special. (Note: they do serve veggie burgers, which was a plus for our family!)

After lunch, head out to Crazy Horse Memorial. This mountain memorial is still under construction, but is worth a visit. The Visitor Center and Museums on site have a wonderful art and exhibits featuring Native American history and culture from over 300 Native Nations. There is also a theater where you can watch a movie about the history of the memorial, Crazy Horse, and the original sculptor. 

(Note: The Crazy Horse Memorial is actually fairly close in proximity to Mount Rushmore. If you have time to visit both on Day 1, I would recommend that. That was our original plan, but we ran out of steam and out of time on Day 1, so we shifted our plans for this to Day 2. Since this is not a time-intensive stop, this still worked out well for us.)

Make sure to stop by Purple Pie Place to treat yourself to pie and ice cream on your way back to your hotel! It seems like the whole internet is buzzing about this place - and they weren't wrong. If you like pie or ice cream (or pie AND ice cream), THIS is the place to stop for it. And it's purple, so you can't miss it.

Day 3 - Downtown Rapid City, SD & Belle Fourche, SD

Start the morning off with a self-guided tour of downtown Rapid City. On the City of Presidents walking tour, you'll find life-sized bronze statues of past American Presidents standing along the streets and sidewalks, which makes for some fun photo ops! If you have a history lover in your group, this is a must-do activity.

 
Another place history lovers will love to visit is Memorial Park in downtown Rapid City, where there's a Berlin Wall Memorial. You'll get to see a piece of the Berlin Wall as well as plaques explaining its significance.

Next visit the South Dakota Air and Space Museum. This museum offers free tours of 30 vintage military aircrafts, some dating back to World War II. It's a fun and educational stop for anyone who's interested in airplanes or military history.

And the last stop of the day will be in Belle Fourche to see the Geographic Center of the US Monument. In addition to the a monument (that you'll want a photo of), there's also a small museum. (Note: this is a great place to stretch your legs and use the restroom before hitting the road again.)

Head out to your hotel near Devils Tower.

Day 4 - Devils Tower National Monument (WY)

Today's main activity is Devils Tower National Monument. While you might not recognize it by name, many people may recognize it by sight. You can't miss this mammoth rock formation –  it rises up higher than anything else for miles. Its claim to fame was being featured in the movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind. (We only found one alien at Devils Tower. His name is Lloyd and he works in the gift shop.)

When you arrive, stop in the Visitor Center to learn about the tower's formation (it's still a bit of a mystery!) and about the Native American legends that surround it. Then hike the Tower Trail that loops around the base of the tower and offers unique views along the way.

Drive to your hotel near Hardin, MT.

Day 5 - Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument, MT

Start your day with a visit to Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument. This national monument is a memorial to one of the last of the major battles between Native Americans and the U.S. military. Also known as Custer's Last Stand, the Battle of the Little Bighorn site is preserved as a tribute to those killed on both sides of the battle. Make sure to stop by the Visitors Center to watch a short educational film about the battle. History lovers in your group will enjoy this activity.

Head out for your next destination of Yellowstone National Park.

We purposefully planned our route to drive through Montana for two reasons. 1) It would provide an activity between Devils Tower and Yellowstone National Park and break up a very long trip between them. 2) By routing our drive through Montana, we were able to enter Yellowstone through the north entrance, which boasts the iconic Roosevelt Arch. Make sure to stop and get a photo when you arrive!

General Tips for Your Yellowstone Visit

• If you want to stay inside the park (at least for a summer visit), plan to book your accommodations about a year in advance.
• Leave plenty of time for driving - the speed limit in the park is 45mph, and you'll want to make sure that you go slow enough to enjoy the scenery, wildlife (that's right by your car and sometimes wandering across the road!), and twisting roads.
• There are pull offs to let people pass - if you feel like people behind you want to go faster than you're going, pull off momentarily and let them pass so that you can continue enjoying the scenery.
• Start your day early - this is the best way to both avoid crowds and spot wildlife.
• Know when to see wildlife - even though the best times of day to spot wildlife are around sunrise and sunset, you don't have to stick to just those times to see them! If you're driving along and see A LOT of cars pulled off to the side of the road with folks staring in the same direction, pull off too. Chances are, they've spotted something in the distance and have already done the legwork for you.
• Do not walk closer to wildlife to get photos - stay a safe distance and use the zoom lens to photograph them.
• Pack a picnic for lunch - if you bring lunch with you, you won't need to be any place special when lunchtime rolls around. We use this backpack and pack it with a gallon-size Ziploc bag of ice from the ice machine at the hotel to keep everything cool for the day.
• Check the weather before you pack and plan to dress in layers - we visited in mid to late June, which meant bitterly cold mornings and fairly warm afternoons. We braved it out with shorts on some days when the early morning hours were in the 50s. But other days, our cute Yellowstone T-shirts were nothing more than a base layer under warmer clothes for most of the day.
• Stop at the Visitor Centers - each one has a different set of educational exhibits, some offering films about the park. If you've been walking and hiking all day, they offer a nice place to come inside and relax a bit while also learning about the park.

Day 6 - Yellowstone National Park, WY

You can truly enjoy Yellowstone National Park at your own pace, and how many things you get to do and see will depend on how many days you're visiting and where you're staying while you're there. We opted to stay in the park in Canyon Lodge because it was centrally located, which considerably cut down on travel time between destinations within the park. 

If you look at the roads in Yellowstone, you'll see that they form a figure 8. We traveled the bottom loop in its entirety our first full day in the park. Some highlights for us on this day were:

• Wildlife
• Dragon's Mouth Spring
• Old Faithful Geyser - Make sure you leave plenty of time for this attraction because it is a timed event. When you arrive, check what time the next eruption will occur in the Visitor Center. For a unique view of the eruption (and much lower crowds), hike up to Observation Point. 
• Biscuit Basin
• Artist's Point (for a view of Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone with the perspective of canyon’s most famous feature, the 308-foot Lower Falls)

Day 7 - Yellowstone National Park, WY

Wake up early and explore Yellowstone National Park for another full day. This day we traveled the top loop in its entirety. Some highlights on this day were:

• Wildlife
• Mammoth Hot Springs
• Sheepeater Cliff

Day 8 - Jackson Hole, WY and Grand Teton National Park

Depart Yellowstone National Park. On the way out, take the south exit, stopping to see any last things that you may have missed on the previous two days. These were some of the highlights on our last few stops on the way out of the park:

• Wildlife
• Fishing Bridge (for views of Yellowstone River, Yellowstone Lake, and Mount Washburn)
• West Thumb Geyser Basin
• Continental Divide

Drive through Grand Teton National Park on the way to Jackson Hole. Stop at a Visitor Center to speak with a park ranger about must-see areas in the park in preparation of your full day tomorrow. This was the only rainy day on our trip, but we did stop to visit the Chapel of Transfiguration on our way through Grand Teton. 

When you arrive in Jackson Hole, tour the downtown area, which is not to be missed! Make sure to stop at the antler arches in the town square and the bronze statues for some quick photo ops. If you'd like any souvenirs from Jackson, you've got plenty of shops to choose from in the downtown area, which is all walkable. 

Stop at Moo's Gourmet Ice Cream for a sweet treat (and make sure to try their huckleberry flavor - it was the flavor that Food Network's 50 States/50 Desserts Challenge for Wyoming!) Take your ice cream outside and enjoy the Jackson Square Town Shootout show (it's free)! (We missed this show because of the rain, but it was on our list of things to do and would recommend if you're in the area with kids.)

Day 9 - Grand Teton National Park, WY

Wake up early and drive to Grand Teton National Park. Grand Teton is a much smaller park than Yellowstone and you can easily see all of its highlights in one day. If you look at the map, you can see that the main road through the park is in one big 42-mile loop. 

Some of the highlights we enjoyed include:

• Jenny Lake
• Signal Mountain Summit Road (for panoramic views of the Teton Range, Jackson Hole, and Jackson Lake. There are two overlooks on this narrow, winding road that provide valley views.)
• Chapel of the Sacred Heart
• Mormon Row
• Schwabacher Landing Trail (We did not make it all the way up the trail because we encountered a moose that we wanted to stay a respectful distance away from, which included not continuing on the trail. We were advised by a park ranger that this was actually the best place to see a moose if we wanted to see one and we did! So even though we didn't make it to the coveted scenic spot, we would still recommend.)
• More Wildlife!

Day 10 - Travel Home

Fly out of Jackson Hole Airport. 

Note: If you truly want to do this Western States itinerary in 9 days, you could easily fly out on the evening of Day 9. We just opted to fly out the morning of Day 10 because we live all the way across the country (so it takes quite a bit of flying to get back home).

Planning Your Own Western States Road Trip with Kids

And that marks the end of our 9 Day Itinerary through the Western states of Wyoming, South Dakota, and Montana! If you’re putting together your own itinerary for a road trip from Mount Rushmore to Yellowstone and Grand Teton with your kids, I hope our experience helps you with your planning.

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