Badlands National Park is located in South Dakota.
When visiting the Badlands area there are 3 possible campground options in the immediate vicinity.
- Cedar Pass campground- within the boundaries of Badlands National Park itself.
- The Badlands KOA
- Badlands Interior Campground and Motel
We chose the Badlands Interior Campground and Motel. I visited the other 2 campgrounds for comparison purposes.
Site Review:
Badlands Interior Campground and Motel
All the sites at Badlands Interior Campground and Motel are pull-thru.
The sites are full service and you are allowed campfires.
Wood is available for sale at the camp office. The sites are very tightly spaced.
We visited mid-week in the summer. We did not have any immediate neighbours, so site spacing was not an issue.
Amenities:
There is a small, well-maintained swimming pool as
well as a playground. There is a camp store and snack bar. A cowboy breakfast is featured for $6.95.
Interior:
The town of Interior, South Dakota is located about 1 mile from the entrance to Badlands National Park. It is located in the south-east section at the junction of 377 and 44. 
Interior has a population of 67 people. You can walk into town from the campground.
There is a small grocery store for any items you may need, and there is a gas station.
The entire campground, albeit small and dated, is functional. The bathrooms were immaculately clean. You are so close to Badlands National Park that you can see it from your site.
The cost for a fully serviced site is $27USD per night.
Activities:
Badlands Interior Campground and Motel was a “lodging only” stop for us, as we were primarily interested in visiting the surrounding area.
Badlands National Park:
The park features a scenic drive:
where you can appreciate the formations and the wildlife.
There are also numerous hiking options that you can enjoy at various points of interest along the way.
Cedar Pass Campground (Badlands National Park)
I rode my bicycle from our campsite to the Cedar Pass campground within Badlands National Park- it was less than 3 km from campsite to campsite.
The first thing you notice when you arrive at the campground is that the sites are not set up in the traditional sense, but rather they are parallel parking spaces along the side of the road. The sites do not afford much privacy and big rigs would be cramped for space. Each site does come equipped with a picnic table and a shelter. Some sites offer electrical service, but there are no sites with water or sewer hook-up. The campground does not allow campfires.
The cost is approximately $37USD per night for 2 people. It is an extra $4USD for each additional person over the age of 15. On top of that, there is a cost to use the showers-none are included with the campground fee. Plus it also costs $1 to use the nearby dump station.
Amenities include an amphitheatre, guided hikes, and close proximity to the Ben Reifel Visitor Centre. There is no pool.
Wall, South Dakota:
Over the course of miles and miles of driving, you will see countless billboards advertising the “Famous Wall Drug” in Wall South Dakota. There will be so many signs in fact, that you may consider actually making an unscheduled stop to check it out.
They advertise everything from “free ice water”, to “5-cent coffee”, to “homemade donuts”. The signs will lure you with promises of a splash pad, a roaring T-Rex, and a miniature Mount Rushmore. There might even be an actual drugstore.
This place is a tourist trap of epic proportions! The amount of junk and crap and sheer uselessness assembled in one place is mind-boggling- and SO MANY people!
The parking lots were packed. There were numerous tour buses. People seemed to be in every crevice- and for what? I DO NOT KNOW!
You could get free water as advertised. It was dispensed from a fountain-type contraption into a dentist-size paper cup (Isn’t water from a fountain usually free anyway?) You could probably find some unique South Dakota souvenirs, but otherwise, it was cluttered, and every angle of money grab imaginable.
Honestly, I feel rather stupid for buying into the advertising and expecting perhaps something special. It WAS NOT special. It was cheesy and tacky and a big fat waste of time.
Minuteman Missile National Historic Site:
Having grown up, and having lived with the threat of World War 3, I personally found it relevant to visit the Minuteman Missile National Historic Site.
The site consists of a visitor centre, as well as tours of the Delta-01 Launch Control Facility. The tours include a walk through the grounds of the topside support building, and underground to the Launch Control Centre. There are some physical restrictions. You need to make a reservation ahead of time for the tour. The space is quite limited and additionally, there is a small fee. Information about the tours can be obtained at the Minuteman Missile National Historic Site website.
We did not go on the tour, but rather just went through the visitor centre. As a citizen of the world, whose fate hung in the balance as America and the Soviet Union figured out a path to peace, the information presented in the displays left me with more questions than answers. I won’t get more into it than that. If you should decide to visit, you will no doubt form your own opinion. It was worth the visit.
Biking:
I rode my bike on the flat, lightly travelled road outside of Badlands National Park (the roads within the park are hilly as they navigate around the formations). Going early in the morning I avoided the heat.
I rode to:
Badlands KOA:
Badlands KOA is about 5 miles from the entrance to Badlands National Park. It borders the White River.
There are fully shaded sites with full hook-ups and many are pull-thru. There is a pool and a playground. Campfires are permitted. The price, however, is approximately $50USD per night, and there is no view of the Badlands.
Things to Know:
- Interior, South Dakota is the closest town to Badlands National Park. It is small and only has a basic grocery store and a gas station. If you require any more than that you would probably have to travel to Wall, South Dakota about 10 miles away.
- Pets are allowed within the park, though they are restricted in certain areas such as near the prairie dog towns and on hiking trails. They can not be left unattended.
- There is a $20USD entrance fee valid for 7 days to enter Badlands National Park. (This would be in addition to any camp fees should you camp there)
IMO:
Don’t judge a book by its cover as they say. Badlands Interior Campground and Motel was excellent value:
- only a mile from the entrance to Badlands National Park.
- affords a view of the park while enjoying a full-service site
- campfires are permitted
- swimming is available
The sites were tightly spaced at Badlands Interior Campground and Motel, but so were the sites at Cedar Pass campground. The difference being that Cedar Pass campground was busier so you were guaranteed a close neighbour. At Badlands Interior Campground and Motel, where it was more lightly occupied, the chances were good that you would not actually be that close to the next camper.
The quality of the sites at The Badlands KOA are superior to both Cedar Pass campground AND Badlands Interior Campground and Motel. However, while the sites are full service and the campground offers some amenities- you are further away from Badlands National Park and thus do not have a view and the cost is significantly more expensive.
Quite honestly I would recommend Badlands Interior Campground and Motel over the other 2 options. The staff were friendly, the facilities were immaculately clean. I enjoyed my visit to the area.
