Reptile Gardens

Reptile Gardens For hours and rates, check our website or give us a call. www.reptilegardens.com
(8947)

Founded in 1937, and still under ownership of the same family, the Black Hills’ Reptile Gardens has steadily grown to one of the leading tourist attractions in the Midwest. Since its beginning, Reptile Gardens has been a source of entertainment and family fun as well as an unforgettable learning experience for millions of visitors by providing them the rare opportunity to observe these exotic animals up close.

If you’ve been to Reptile Gardens this Season, you might have noticed a bit of construction going on in our Tortoise Yar...
05/03/2025

If you’ve been to Reptile Gardens this Season, you might have noticed a bit of construction going on in our Tortoise Yard. 🐢 That’s right, new pools, concrete paths, and more!

It’s wonderful to see how far this space has come over the years, and all the hard work that has been put into it for the enjoyment of our tortoises and our guests.

05/02/2025

Welcome to the Safari Room 🌸🦎🌺

This looks to be a fantastic weekend to catch our exciting Bird and Snake Shows! Come enjoy the great weather at Reptile...
05/01/2025

This looks to be a fantastic weekend to catch our exciting Bird and Snake Shows! Come enjoy the great weather at Reptile Gardens!

It's that time of year! The temperatures are warming, the flowers emerging, birds are singing, and the snakes are coming...
04/30/2025

It's that time of year! The temperatures are warming, the flowers emerging, birds are singing, and the snakes are coming out of hibernation. Those pesky rodents have had the winter to relax, and now it's time for them to be on alert again.

Of the 16 species of snakes found in South Dakota, the Prairie Rattlesnake is our only venomous snake. Like all our beautiful snake species, the best way to admire them is from afar (whether that’s a few feet or few miles depending on your comfort).

To learn more about our amazing Prairie Rattlesnakes and other snake species from around the world, visit our daily Snake Shows!

"April showers spring May flowers" indeed!! 🌷🌸
04/28/2025

"April showers spring May flowers" indeed!! 🌷🌸

One of our most characteristic residents of the Safari Room, our Bougainvillea is often immediately noticed by our guest...
04/27/2025

One of our most characteristic residents of the Safari Room, our Bougainvillea is often immediately noticed by our guests due to its striking pink and green coloration. Contrary to what many people think, these pink clusters are not the flowers, but instead modified leaves. Just like Poinsettias! The true flowers are white, trumpet shaped blooms within the pink clusters.

Found in Brazil, this beauty reaches full bloom during Spring and early Summer, but you can enjoy the Bougainvillea’s stunning colors throughout the 2025 Season.

Fun Fact: Our Bougainvillea is one of our oldest plants in the Sky Dome! It was planted after the fire of 1976.

Prom is here, and our Safari Room makes the perfect backdrop for Prom photos! Today, Reptile Gardens is offering group r...
04/26/2025

Prom is here, and our Safari Room makes the perfect backdrop for Prom photos! Today, Reptile Gardens is offering group rates to all prom-goers and their families so you can get those beautiful shots. Make sure to also take your picture with Shelly, so you can get your Season Pass to come back for the rest of the 2025 Season!

Our Spring hours are from 9am-4pm.

Our gift shop is an amazing place full of a wide range of items, but one of our main pride and joys is our collection of...
04/24/2025

Our gift shop is an amazing place full of a wide range of items, but one of our main pride and joys is our collection of artwork from Papua New Guinea.

A passion project that started in the ‘60s when our founder, Earl Brockelsby, went to New Guinea, it was expanded immensely in the ‘80s by Earl’s nephew and Reptile Gardens CEO, Joe Maierhauser. Reptile Gardens has the largest collection of New Guinea art for sale in North America. From storyboards to masks to figures to woven bags, this collection showcases the incredible culture of Papua New Guinea, and we are very honored to share it with others. Reptile Gardens buys directly in the villages and from the artists themselves to make sure the proceeds go back to them.

“Jungle Outpost Lynda” Mitchell helped create what we have today by sharing her love for New Guinea’s artwork. It has been a hard past year without her for the Reptile Gardens family, but her passion and memory live on through this amazing collection of art.

Explore the stunning beauty of our Papua New Guinea artwork in our Jungle Outpost section of the Gift Shop, or online at JungleOutpost.com or NewGuineaArt.com .

Prom is almost here, and our Safari Room makes the perfect backdrop for Prom photos! Reptile Gardens is offering group r...
04/23/2025

Prom is almost here, and our Safari Room makes the perfect backdrop for Prom photos! Reptile Gardens is offering group rates to all prom-goers and their families on April 26th so you can get those beautiful shots. Make sure to also take your picture with Shelly, so you can get your Season Pass to come back for the rest of the 2025 Season!

Our Spring hours are from 9am-4pm.

Happy Earth Day! 🌳🌎Reptile Gardens strives to not only keep our grounds clean and healthy, but also the Black Hills and ...
04/22/2025

Happy Earth Day! 🌳🌎

Reptile Gardens strives to not only keep our grounds clean and healthy, but also the Black Hills and the Earth we all share.

Thank you to for helping provide gear for today's clean-up!

Address

8955 South Highway 16
Rapid City, SD
57702

Telephone

+16053425873

Website

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Our Story

Founded in 1937, and still under ownership of the same family, the Black Hills’ Reptile Gardens has steadily grown into one of the leading tourist attractions in the Midwest. Since its beginning, Reptile Gardens has been a source of entertainment and family fun as well as an unforgettable learning experience for millions of visitors by providing them the rare opportunity to observe these exotic animals up close.