Badlands Wildlife and Stargazing: Sunset to Milky Way

Experience the Badlands’ wildlife at sunset, then stargaze in secret spots. Capture unforgettable moments with expert photography.

Duration: 7 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Sage Creek Wilderness Area - Discover the best way to experience the park at sunset. We’ll guide you through the Sage Creek Wilderness area, showcasing various formations with the sunset behind us. This creates stunning opportunities for wildlife, shape, and shadow photography. It’s our favorite tour spot, and you’ll soon see why.
  • **Hay Butte…
What's Included
  • Private transportation
  • Zero-Gravity Folding Chairs for Star Viewing
  • Binoculars
  • Blankets
  • Bottled water
  • Snacks
  • Constellation Locator Software
What's Not Included
  • Gratuities
Additional Information

This is our favorite tour! We care about you, your experience, and your time in South Dakota.
You’ll be taken to special locations where animals congregate during the setting sun. As you enjoy the wildlife of the Badlands, we’ll take care of any photos you wish. The “Blue Hour” begins after sunset and continues for an hour, highlighting the wild…

Location
Sage Creek Wilderness Area
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.8
(27 Ratings)
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Brian
Aug 4, 2024
Great tour of The Badlands!!! - We had an excellent tour with Daniel! His passion for The Badlands is evident in the tour that he guided. Our tour was filled with great detail & explanations. Daniel has a wealth of knowledge to share and willingly does so. Thank you for a wonderful tour! I would highly recommend it to anyone visiting the area.
Review provided by Viator
Jasonhi3012sg
Aug 2, 2024
Amazing tour! - Daniel gave us a tour of Wal Drug and the Badlands. He was able to show us a back way that gave us a special view of the park that was breathtaking. The timing of the tour was so we wound up in the park at sunset where the colors just popped. At the end he was able to find a unique spot for star gazing and brought folding reclining chairs so we could see the stars in comfort. Shooting stars and a northern lights appearance capped off a perfect day. He is extremely knowledgeable and made us feel like it was a family member showing us around. Since we were in the area for the week he also provided us with tips on what and when to go to other places in the area. Really wish we could have done all the tours but this trip for us was so much better with Daniel’s knowledge. Before the tour we were also contacted by Aimee who asks questions and shows that this company really cares about the customer experience. One of the most service oriented companies I have ever dealt with, thanks Daniel!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Elmonique1964
Jul 29, 2024
Fabulous tour! - This tour was awesome! It was personalized for our interests and our guide, Retired Dan, provided us with history and scientific information about the area. He also knew where the animals hung out! 😊
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Tn864
Nov 11, 2023
Badlands Sunset and Stars Tour - This was a great tour. Kelli our tour guide was well prepared and knew right where to find the best viewing spots and wildlife. It was a gorgeous night the sunset and stars were spectacular! I highly recommend My XO Adventures!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Passenger284190
Oct 12, 2023
Amazing Badlands night sky tour - This tour is an absolute must! Our experience with My XO Adventures was excellent from start to finish. We were staying in Keystone, so Aimee reached out to us as soon as we booked to make arrangements to meet in Rapid City. Pickup went smooth. Our driver, Kelli, was right on time and greeted us warmly. She was very friendly, easy to chat with, and knowledgeable about the area. We hoped to see wildlife and weren't disappointed. Kelli knew exactly where to go and it was almost as if she had arranged for the bison, coyote, and mountain sheep to appear on cue. The beautiful sunset and the amazing night sky views are beyond description. You just have to experience it to know. I highly recommend this tour and My XO Adventures.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Scottsdalezonie
Sep 28, 2023
Spectacular Stargazing in Badlands - We had an incredible time touring Badlands National Park with Daniel Milks, the owner of My XO Adventures. He was unbelievably knowledgeable about the area and the history behind it - stating facts off the top of his head that were very interesting. At first I was a bit skeptical about the accuracy, but after furtively fact-checking on my phone a number of times, found he was spot-on. He took us into the park through a little-used entry in order to give us the spectacular first views initially envisioned as the "main" entry to the park. From there we went to a beautiful overlook to watch the sun set and the shadows & colors of the formations slowly change. The highlight for us was the next stop. After driving further into the park, we stopped in an area where there weren't any other vehicles and got out to walk about 3 minutes to a spot Daniel had discovered that was ideal for star-gazing. He laid out foam pads, pillows and sleeping bags for us to lie down and be amazed by how many stars we could see, as well as the Milky Way - it was breathtaking! There was no moon that night and the sky blazed. He used a green laser to point things out, like constellations and passing satellites. We had been star-gazing in Death Valley & Great Basin National Parks and thought those were amazing, but Badlands was the best we have experienced. He even downloaded to us all the fantastic pictures he had been taking throughout our tour on his camera! We can't imagine a better guide for our journey through Badlands. Daniel was informative, kind, considerate and entertaining the whole time. Needless to say, we highly recommend both Daniel and this tour!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Timsh4347hf
Sep 21, 2023
Ultimately Cool & Wonderful ~ Badlands Sunset and Night Sky Adventure Tour - We had the most remarkable private tour with My XO Adventures on their Badlands Sunset and Night Sky Adventure Tour. Not only was everything perfect, but we felt, in every instance, that our expert guide cared about us, and did his best to make this trip memorable. Our sunset-to-star-gazing tour has become one of the most eye-opening, adventurous, and stunning journeys of our lives - something we will remember, draw upon, and cherish for many years to come. We were also pleasantly surprised by the diversity of our trip: from agate hunting to a visit to an almost ghost town, to excellent wildlife viewing, spectacular viewing locations throughout the park, a gorgeous sunset view, topped off by an absolutely stunning star-filled night sky. We even had a special bonus of the northern lights which wowed us skywatchers with a dazzling display of colorful lights. My XO Adventures thinks of everything, Daniel had everything we needed including binoculars, folding chairs, flashlights, laser-pointers, blankets, sleeping pads, pillows, and snacks. We felt like kings! Throughout the tour every new activity offered new experiences and Daniel’s knowledge of the Badlands was at expert level. He knew all the best spots to take us to and kept our pace and the knowledge-share flowing at the perfect cadence. We will definitely be back to book more tours with My XO Adventures.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Esqette
Sep 5, 2023
EXCEPTIONAL COMPANY! - I booked this as a private tour. XOXOADVENTURES is an AMAZING company. Daniel, the owner, and his staff engaged with me immediately when I booked, offering helpful information and so many great suggestions for area things to do, places to dine, accommodations - they were just wonderful! We couldn’t wait for our Badlands adventure with such welcoming and knowledgeable people! But fate intervened and we had to cancel our entire trip, including this tour. So PLEASE, take this tour for me, and enjoy all this outstanding company has to offer! (I hope to reschedule our whole trip and this tour is at the top of my must-do list!)
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Onair44669233985
Sep 4, 2023
Amazing weekend in South Dakota thanks to XO Adventures - My wife and I had the pleasure of using XO Adventures on 2 tours, the first one took us out to Badlands National Park and the second took us to Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse, and the Black Hills. Both tours were lead by Daniel who was an amazing guide. He's full of information about many aspects of the area and he got us to so many great spots throughout the day. The number of unique opportunities we got made for great photos and memories. Daniel was prepared for anything and offered water and snacks throughout the day. The evening sunset and star gazing out at the Badlands was a major highlight. We were able to fit a lot of sights into 2 days in South Dakota. Using XO Adventures made the trip so much more relaxing and worry free, but also fun and meaningful.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
W6491uikarenb
Aug 23, 2023
Best Tour/Adventure of Our Trip - This was the best adventure of our trip! Daniel was very friendly and interested in getting to know us to enhance our experience. His knowledge of the Badlands made this an amazing experience. We experienced sunset at one of the overlooks, then on to star gazing. We saw shooting stars, fireballs, satellites and the Milky Way. He assisted us with getting beautiful iPhone pics of the Milky Way; best photos ever, we'll enjoy them and this memory forever! Would book this adventure again!
Review provided by Tripadvisor