If you want a relaxing vacation filled with hot springs, bathhouses and horse racing, a trip to Arkansas should be in your near future.
Hot Springs, Arkansas, is a hotspot tourist destination, and coming spring of 2024, it’ll be on the solar eclipse path. According to Travel & Leisure, Arkansas’ last solar eclipse was in 1918, and another won’t happen in the area until 2045.
A visit to Central Avenue takes spa seekers on a journey of bathhouses from the 1800s. According to the History of Hot Springs Guest Guide, the water flow through Hot Springs dates back more than 10,000 years.
“Experts believe Native Americans—including the Tunica, Caddo, Quapaw, Choctaw, Cherokee and other groups—were using the springs as a peaceful gathering spot as many as 10,000 years ago,” according to the outlet. “In the 1930s, mobsters from Chicago, New York and Los Angeles came to fraternize together and get away from it all.”
While the city is known for its hot springs, spas and bathhouses, it’s home to the only national park with a brewery. The Hot Springs National Park has 26 miles of hiking trails and an overlook where visitors can see more than 140 square miles of the park and its surroundings.
“Hot Springs National Park combines urban and natural landscapes. Its 5,550 acres straddle a horseshoe-shaped ridge in the Ouachita Mountains,” the National Parks Conservation Association states. “The park includes a vibrant downtown historical district, which developed in the early 1800s because of people’s attraction to thermal waters. The city’s population is now 33,000.”
Throughout the year, Hot Springs has many activities, including Halloween adventures, culinary excursions, history walks and family dream vacations. The city’s website makes it easy to plan your perfect vacation with a customized itinerary.
“Choose up to three categories below that best describe your travel style. Then let us suggest restaurants, accommodations and attractions for you to add to your very own customized itinerary,” the website states.
