Arkansas Travel Guide
Bathhouse Row, Hot Springs National Park. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.
Arkansas's surprise is how much wilderness it holds. The Buffalo National River, America's first national river (1972), runs 217 km of free-flowing bluffs and elk country. The Ozarks' trails and the Ouachita's ridges cover the north and west.
Hot Springs National Park protects the 47 thermal springs in a historic bathhouse row. Bentonville's Crystal Bridges museum is a world-class art surprise; Little Rock's Central High tells the desegregation story.
Destinations in Arkansas
Crystal Bridges, BentonvilleAlice Walton's free museum of American art in the woods.
Buffalo National RiverCanoe the bluffs; elk at Boxley Valley; the Goat Trail.- Little Rock Central HighThe 1957 desegregation site and visitor centre.
Hot Springs National ParkBathhouse Row soaks and the Mountain Tower view.- Ozark trailsThe Ozark Highlands Trail and Whitaker Point's 'hawksbill crag'.
- Eureka SpringsThe Victorian mountain town of winding streets.
Hover a state to explore it. Click a city pin to open its guide.
Top Cities & towns in Arkansas
Regional food
- Cheese dip (Arkansas claims its invention; the state food debate)
- Fried pickles (the Delta-born bar snack)
- Possum pie (the layered chocolate-pecan dessert, despite the name)
Getting there
Little Rock (LIT) and Northwest Arkansas (XNA) are the gateways. The Buffalo River and Ozarks need a car; Hot Springs is an hour from Little Rock.