Corn Palace- Mitchell, SD

South Dakota is full of great road side attractions!  Some are legendary.

Sure, while in South Dakota you have to see Mt. Rushmore and the Crazy Horse Monument....  and I think the Corn Palace is also a must see.

I was thinking, if the Corn Palace was in any other state, it would be a top attraction.  Even competing with some of the great National Parks and other monuments it is still among the top.

We visited one morning after one of the Corn Palace Festival events had occurred the night before.

The road in front of the Palace was closed off.  The area was a little busy, but not too bad.  Mitchell seemed to me to be a nice little city that is easy to get around in.

Driving to the Corn Palace was easy (there are a lot of signs) and parking was readily available.

We walked around some with our jaws dragging the sidewalks.  The place is over-the-top unbelievable.  A lot obviously goes in to decorating the place.

We walked inside.  We were greeted by a couple of staff who told us about the Palace.

Inside, it is very much like a school gym it is, but it is kept up a little better.  Oh, and it is much more ornate.

There are displays, videos and photos of the Palaces and information on their history, as you would expect.

It was fun walking around the inside of the place.  I was a bit surprised that they have it so open.  No one seemed to mind our walking in to the gym onto the basketball court.

The gift shop was very well stocked, and had great prices.  In fact, if you are doing a South Dakota trip, pick up your postcards here.  They were cheaper than at some of the other site near Mt. Rushmore.

Oh, and buy a cornball.  I am not kidding.  You can thank me later.  Pick up an extra for me!

For a couple bucks, we had one of the most amazing treats ever.  It took 2 of us about 3 days to take it out.

I am not kidding about their popcorn balls.  I am thinking about starting a facebook fan page, or a fan club, or a religion devoted to them.

This is another stop where we loved the staff.  Everyone was friendly and relaxed (maybe there is something in the water...  or maybe its just that corn makes people friendly).

As I settled up on my postcard and popcorn ball purchases, the friendly cashier took a moment to search for a small sticker to put in my sticker book!

The area and the locals reminded me of my family and friends in rural Kentucky.


"Corn" is the theme outside of the Palace too.  Check out the Corny statue and the light post!

https://cornpalace.com/