Game Lodge Campground — Custer State Park

Stayed a night in early November. Didn’t see any notice that the bathroom we picked a spot near was closed for the season… that meant a really long cold walk to the pit toilet. Quite a few shady sites, a babbling brook nearby, a flock of turkeys wandering through most of the morning. While the campground was mostly empty, we had neighbors directly adjacent with at least two dead deer in the back of their pickup for more than 24 hours, with crows coming by for snacks… kinda gross.

Clean restrooms and shower buildings. Coin laundry on site. Several sites were shaded. Garbage, recycling and dump station on site. Playground for kids, fishing pond and walking path right from campground. Campground is within walking distance to the actual Game Lodge and the park visitor center. Sites are adequately spaced. Cell signal is good. Minimal road noise, depending on your site. There are cabins on site. A couple of vault toilets too. Deer roam the campground. Fence around the campground to keep the buffalo out. Convenient to Mt Rushmore, Needles Eye Tunnel and other Black Hills sites. Wildlife Loop road delivered on a giant herd of buffalo and other animals. Trout stream near the campground.

Many of the sites, like ours, are located just feet from a babbling creek. The site itself had lots of shade, elevated tent pads, and aluminum picnic tables. Add showers, flush toilets and laundry and what else could you ask for?

It’s ideally located at the beginning of the Wildlife Loop and Needles Highway. There is also a nice paved bike path that runs along Coolidge Creek that passes right near by. We didn’t bring our bikes but it looked like a perfect place for a flat relaxing and shady ride with the kids.

We camped in April - in our teardrop trailer - and almost had the campground to ourselves!  Very few people and those that were there were very spread out.  Our site was right on the creek and it was a lovely sound for nighttime!  We had easy access to laundry if needed (at the next lodge down the road inside the park) and firewood was available there too for $6/bundle if you wanted it. Generally there is a restaurant during tourist season, but wasn't open yet. This campground - Game Lodge - was the only one in the park open at this time of year.  We went in early April. 

For those concerned about the animals - yes the deer can jump the fence into the campground, but notice I said "fence"...the bison can not get in.  Even with the gate open, there is a large "cattle grate" in the pavement to keep them from coming it.  They love to graze in the grass outside the fence, but can't get in.

All sites had a fire ring (we didn't use ours since it was VERY windy and VERY dry) but it's good size.  There are picnic tables at each site as well. Vault toilets as well as full bathrooms (heated) with showers for free (hot showers). The showers are not on all year long, but only when the frost is out of the ground for the water lines . Water spigots for drinking water are here and there, but again, only on when there is no danger of freeze.

Spaces were clearly marked, tent pads were raised on pea type gravel, cabins looked lovely (appeared to have A/C).

Central location! Great place for base in Custer State Park. Lodge, RV sites, cabins, and tent sites. Close to Coolidge Game Lodge, visitor center, and start of the wildlife drive. Reservations can be made through Custer State Park website.

Spent a night here on our trip to the black hills. View is awesome from the campsite. A small playground for our kids to play at. There is a pond to swim in, but we decided not to swim. We didn’t see Buffalo, but neighbors said they were right next to the campground the morning before. Nice bathrooms and showers

This popular state campground felt like a cross between an RV park and a state park. Large well kept spaces, but shared space behind each where people walk past to the restroom. More like a community, the way they are laid out. Host was great to warn us of coming storm to get the awning in. Dump station. Electric only site , made it tricky. Short stay okay

Beautiful stat park with several campgrounds.  Game Lodge is conveniently located near the visitor center.  Nice campground with lots of space to wander (swimming pond, river, state park).  Bathrooms were clean, have showers, tho they were a little hot.  Recommend getting a site near the river if possible.

We stayed at site #47 the end of March that was right along a creek. It was a slow moving creek so a very nice sound without being loud. There were small fish in it. The bathrooms with showers were open. They were very clean and had warm water. The site was nice and clean. While we were there they put down new rock around the fire pit. There weren’t a lot of people there since it was March but we had several sites filled around us and we still felt that we had some privacy. The location is across from the visitor center. Close to the wildlife loop and Iron Mountain Road. There was a male bison that was roaming near the other side of the fence which was neat. There is a small playground for kiddos. We would definitely stay there again.

Camped: March 6-8, 2021

When I saw the forecast of almost 70 in March I knew I had to go camping! I picked Game Lodge because it had electric and I wanted to run my heater at night.

It is right off the road, very open and would give no privacy if full but we were pretty much by ourselves. I was a little put off that it was 30 a night for off season but was pleasantly surprised when showers and bathrooms were open even when it was advertised that they were closed.

Did have road noise but because we were right on road we woke up to elk, Buffalo, deer and sheep right in our “backyard”. My kids loved it. Fun area even off season. Loved wildlife loop.

Firewood was almost impossible to find this time of year. Paid $40 for a small amount and had to drive into Custer.

Normally, I like camping far away from people and roads but the views and animals made up for it.

Bathrooms and water was warm and clean.

Found a couple of girls in the bathroom that were completely unprepared for winter camping. They didn’t even have a hat. So if you do go winter camping bring the right gear and you will have a blast.

This campground is right across from the visitor center, convenient to all the trails and Mount Rushmore, has great amenities, and a beautiful stream running by the campground. Dump station, drinking water, laundry, bathhouses, paved level sites, electric only, wildlife is everywhere! The game lodge is a short walk away. Thoroughly enjoyed my time here! Sunday Gulch Trail is a must!! Wish I would’ve stayed more than 1 night.

Very nice and quiet camp ground. Though we did not get the site we wanted it was ok since we were only there for a night. The fire rings were very nice the bathrooms were very clean and the ground was nice and level for a tent! There are also some sites that do have tent pads and back up to the creek and mountain, unfortunately that is not one we got. Added bonus was the shower room/bathrooms were very warm and the showers were free!

August 25-30, 2019   LOVE this park! Campground VERY clean. Site GL25E has electric and water is available at the park. Restrooms have showers, flush toilets and are heated. Purchased yearly pass to save money. Verizon 4G. Elevation 4,177. Pictures will tell the rest. Food at the Lodge Restaurant is very good and best to make a reservation.

This campground is very difficult to get into during the summer, so book in advance or keep trying every day. We lucked out and got 3 nights midweek in July. The second morning we woke up to bison all along the fence next to the campground! It has a great bike trail that connects the campground to the visitors center, the State Game Lodge, the general store, and Grace Coolidge campground. You can also walk or bike to the Lover’s Leap trailhead, which is an absolute must-do while staying here. You are also right next to the entrance of Wildlife Loop Road if you want to take a scenic drive. Within the campground itself are beautiful tent sites next to a river, a small swimming pond, and modern & clean bathrooms. This is an amazing place to stay that gives you easy access to everything Custer State Park has to offer.

Custer State Park was our favorite attraction and this campground offers you the ability to be right in the middle of it all! We tent camped and this was a nice site. You can park in front or site and there is a pad so be careful how large your tent is. Along a nice creek. Clean. Nice pond and little beach area. Right between Needles Highway and Scenic Byway! You can drive a couple or miles and see buffalo every day during your stay!

Opened the door to my cabin to see a bison one hundred yards away.

Impressed with the cleanliness of the cabins and bathhouses at this campground. Easy driving access to Custer State Park offerings. The creek next to the cabins made for a relaxing background and respite from the sun.

We have stayed here several times. Sites and grounds are always clean. Large sited with ample green space in both tent and camper sites. Clean restroom and shower houses.

The campground is very nice. It has restrooms that are kept extremely clean. The camp sites are not very private, however there are some trees that make the sites feel separated. Next to the stream are a few campsites. While we were here, the campground was pretty quiet. We were mostly only at our site at night to sleep so I cannot speak for during the day. Expect to see/hear wildlife coming and going through the campground throughout the night. Our dog grumbled at a few animals that might have gotten too close to the tent for her liking (we are pretty sure just deer). If I had one complaint about this campground it is that people do not seem to follow the keep dogs on leashes rule while they are at their campsite. I saw a lot of dogs wandering around. Our dog does not go after dogs and generally can care less about other dogs, until they get near her face so this concerned us a little. We let the owners near us know and they were very understanding and had no problem making sure their dogs stayed on leashes while we were there. Also, our campsite did not have a parking spot for our car. We had to just pull off onto the side of the road. This was not a huge issue as there was plenty of room for other vehicles to pass. The actual Game Lodge is right down the road. We got coffees and breakfast to go one morning and it was very good! There is an entrance to the park not far from the campground which made going to Mount Rushmore, Needles Highway, and Iron Mountain Highway convenient. Custer State Park is so nice! One drive around the park allows for amazing views and wildlife spotting! We loved our time here!

Lovely campground. Creek runs right in front of tent sites which all have a large pad for tents. Nice sized sites. RV/electric sites are all grassy & good size. During tourist season there are evening programs located at barn right in campground. Small playground & small pond. Clean showers & bathrooms. Across from visitor center & next to start of Wildloop Rd. Paved bike path right there which runs for few miles. Great location!

This may be one of our favorite all time sites! We were at Game Lodge campground site 36, which was right next to a little creek. At night, we could hear the water running and it was so calming. Tent pads were elevated, so our REI Kingdom 8 garage had to run off the edge. Even so, it was the perfect spot for us as we explored the Black Hills. I have heard all the campgrounds in Custer are very nice, however.

Camped with two boys, age 4 and 2.5. Loved that the bison were just outside our campground on the way in and the visitor center just across the road was beautiful!

Activities included:

Wind Cave Tour, Wildlife Loop drive, Needles Highway, Chuckwagon Dinner, Mt Rushmore, and more.

Playground at site was a bit further for us, but the kids walked there anyway.

We loved our time at this campground!! The sites are well spaced with lots of grass and some have lots of trees. Some of the sites are along a beautiful creek. The front of the campground has a great area for fishing, well stocked with trout. There was wildlife in sight quite often, You could access the wildlife loop road just outside the entrance to the campground. The bath houses were great! They were very clean and well appointed. We would go back again!!

One of my favorite places to camp. Hands down.

Accessible to the State park itself. Hiking. Animal watching. History. Lots of updates have been done to the park as a whole too.

Plus Wind cave, jewel cave and Mt Rushmore are all right there.

Lakes. Kayaking. Hiking. Pigtail bridges/tunnels. Great views. Buffalo. Would love to go see the round up. Wild mules, elk prairie dogs too.

Waldrug. The Badlands are both a 90 min drive away but make a day out of it.

My family and I first camped in Custer State Park at Game Lodge almost 10 years ago. I have been back several times, and even though Sylvan Lake is cool, Game Lodge is still my favorite.

The showers and toilets are very clean. You never have to wait in line. The campsites are spaced perfectly so you don't feel like you are on top of your neighbors. during the day you can be eating lunch and watch the buffalo grazing on the hill. It is a little further South than Sylvan Lake, but it is worth the drive on Iron Mountain Road.

Unfortunately I can only find two pictures from Game Lodge that I took outside of the campground on Iron Mountain Road of some wildlife. Pre-dates my iphone.

Absolutely adore the black hills region. Custer is a great place to make base camp while you check out everything the region has to offer. Popular campground we stayed at the cabins at the game lodge. Very well maintained. Be sure not to miss the walk around Sylvan lake or a stroll down main street in Custer. There's also an amazingly cool fish hatchery in Spearfish that is definetly worth the drive. Happy Adventuring! And say hi to the bison for me.

This campground is open year round and is located in Custer State Park, in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Features cabin, camper, and tent sites. Also has very nice bathroom facilities that includes showers. A nice little creek runs along the back of the campground and the wildlife are abundant, especially Buffalo and deer that roam directly next to the campsite.