discovery tours

We had the best tour guide ever! Karen was so knowledgeable about the history and attractions in the area. She loves her job and it shows. The tour was chock-full of attractions and she timed each stop perfectly. It was well worth it and we'd do it again in a heartbeat.

On Sept. 11, 2014, we had one of the best tours we have ever taken. Karen was our guide and we were fortunate enough to have just four in our group. It was like having a private tour of Custer State park. Karen has a wealth of knowledge of the area, and is a woman who loves her job. The needles highway, the wildlife loop with a huge herd of buffalo, begging burros, antelope, prairie dogs, etc. Mount Rushmore topped with an icing of snow, Crazy Horse, and super great tips for the remainder of our journey. I took many notes and we went with her suggestions. Certainly enhanced our vacation. Thank you Discovery Tours and a shout out for Karen - we loved you.

On Sep 9, 2014, we had a wonderful tour experience with Karen (Kare Bear) as our guide. My husband and I have never had a tour guide with so much knowledge of an area. Karen made our tour extremely enjoyable. The lunch at Custer State Park was very good. We had nine tourists in our group with plenty of room in our van. Karen made sure to stop often for picture opportunities and just to give us a break. She provided water and soda free of charge. Our trip covered all the major attractions. We saw buffalo and wild burros which was great fun. I would recommend this tour to everyone who visits South Dakota. Thanks Karen, Wayne and Pat

Karen("Kare Bear") made our tour very enjoyable. We saw lots of things that we never would have on our own, like a big tour bus going through the 8' 4" wide tunnel! Because of Karen's extensive knowledge of the area and the native Americans, we learned a lot about the area and its inhabitants. The tour covered a lot of ground and is an excellent way to get an idea of places that you'd like to go back to see.

Having arrived in the area in an RV we did not want to drive all over the place to view Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse (and we would not have been able to see some of the area because the RV is too big to get through the coolest tunnels)!We took the tour to the two mountain carvings, and to Custer State Park (saw hundreds of buffalo), and the wine tasting.We never felt herded like some tour groups do. Your personal tastes will determine if you get to spend enough time at Mt. Rushmore and/or Crazy Horse. I could have used more time at Rushmore and less at Crazy Horse while someone we were with felt just the opposite. The lunch at the lodge at the state park was good - plenty of options at the buffet. And the wine tasting was an interesting place (wine snobs may look down on it).Our particular tour had 9 tourists in the van (with room for 2 more) and lasted from about 8am to 4pm. Water and soda was provided free in the van. Stops were frequent enough for stretching and bathroom breaks.

Here's the deal: Karen was fantastic. Great energy. We did see a lot. However, we were on the road in van for 11 1/2 hours which is really to long in a van. My biggest complaint: I wanted more time at Crazy Horse so we could see the video AND take the bus tour that gets you closer to the monument. We spent too much time feeding chipmunks, etc. in the mountains to see all I wanted at Crazy Horse. It was towards the end of the tour. Disappointing.The last stop is a wine tasting in Hill City. A complete waste of time. They should give you more time at Crazy Horse which is why we go to the black Hills area, and then just let you walk a bit in Hill City before the long drive back to deadwood. I would not so this again.

My wife and I chose to use the Black Hills Discovery Tour to see Mount Rushmore and The Crazy Horse Monument and Museum. We got a lot more, including buffalo, Rocky Mountain goats, Rocky Mountain sheep, pronghorn antelope and deer. We were able to view all the scenery of the spires on the needles road and not have to navigate the roads. We ended with free wine tasting before we were delivered back to our hotel. What a great day. Our driver (Karen) was extremely knowledgeable and helpful.

We booked the Southern Black Hills and Mount Rushmore Monument tour by Discovery Tours that covered Mt. Rushmore, Custer State Park, Iron Mountain Road, Needles Highway, Sylvan Lake, Crazy Horse, and a wine tasting at Prairie Berry Winery. We decided to book a tour rather than drive, and we're so glad that we did. Our driver and tour guide, Wes, handled the switchbacks and hairpin curves of the hills much better than we could have and provided a bounty of information along the way. We were able to sit back, relax, and enjoy the day.We were the first to be picked up and the last to be dropped off, so we were on the tour about 10 hours. Wes allowed us about an hour and 15 minutes each for Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse, which was the right amount of time to see the orientation films and to go exploring. When we left Rushmore, his drive along Iron Mountain Road took us several places that offered unique views of the monument that we wouldn't have found on our own. In Custer State Park, we weren't having much luck finding buffalo, so he made an extra effort to take us down roads less traveled until we came on a small herd and were able to get amazingly close to them. While we were in Custer State Park, we had lunch at the State Game Lodge, which is on the National Register of Historic Places. The buffet, which was included in the tour price, was fantastic. We were even allowed to go check out the unoccupied rooms at the lodge for a time travel back to 1920s privilege in the wilderness.It would have been nice to spend longer at pretty Sylvan Lake than we did, but it was raining by that time, which prevented us from getting the full experience anyway. But the only real disappointment of the day was the wine tasting at Prairie Berry. The winery specializes in making wines that blend grapes and berries that are native to South Dakota, which produces unique but not necessarily good wines.A couple of things to note: While the van is large, it has four bench type seats, and it may be hard for some people to make it in and out of the last seat. Also, there was a slight discount if you pay cash. You might want to ask about these things when you book your tour. We had no issues, though, and highly recommend this tour as being well worth the price. Kudos to Wes for being such a great guide.

What a great tour! Being in a 9 person van instead of a bus was a major PLUS for us. The driver (nick-named Care Bear) grew up in the area and was very knowledgeable about the history of the the Black Hills, the best places to stop for the best views and photo ops, full of groaner jokes, etc. For us, not having to drive was a big thing. With the crazy roads and pig tail bridges, we could all enjoy the views instead of one person having to pay attention to the roads and not see the sights. All admissions to monuments and parks are included in the price, as well as a lovely buffet lunch at the State Game Lodge. Our 8 year old grandson even got to feed chipmunks out of his hand at one stop. The van had cold beverages available and all rest stops were clean.We (all 6 of us) would highly recommend this tour!

The whole-day trip with this tour guide from Discovery Tours was marvelous. Mt Rushmore, 3 pigtail bridges, 6 tunnels, wildlife, excellent buffet lunch in the nice restaurant, the Needles Highway, Crazy Horse monument, wine testing in Hill City - we covered all of that in about 8 hours. Thanks for being so nice to us. Family of 3.

We recently took the Southern Black Hills and Mount Rushmore Monument Tour and would highly recommend this company. The tour lasted around 12 hours (including pick-up time) and you definitely get value for money - we covered around 300 miles. Our guide, Karen, was very friendly, informative and knew a lot about the area and showed us some hidden gems i.e. Mount Rushmore 'framed' by the tunnel - anyone driving by on their own would not have seen this. Lunch at the lodge was very high quality, plentiful and varied and included drinks. We had plenty of time at each stop, even making impromptu stops to see animals that were roaming around the roadside. The day was ended perfectly with wine tasting. The owner of the company, Bill, was very accommodating and all bookings were confirmed by email. He also runs a taxi company, Dakota Taxi, who we used to get to and from Rapid City Airport. Our driver when we got there, Ray, was also very friendly and gave us some great information. Would recommend all their services highly.