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Hot Springs is not only a great traditional National Park setting with lots of natural scenic beauty, but the city of Hot Springs itself has been a well-known resort town for well over a century.

Hot Springs also has a fascinating history, thanks to its having been a favorite hangout of notorious individuals like Al Capone and legendary baseball players like Babe Ruth.

If you live relatively near this National Park like we do, I definitely recommend you go see it!

Scenery:

While Arkansas is known as the Natural State and definitely has its fair share of beautiful places, by comparison, it simply can’t compete with the more majestic scenery out west, nor with the beauty of the Appalachians to the east.

That said, Hot Springs is located in the Ouachita (pronounced Washitaw) Mountains and is beautiful in its own way. The city is surrounded by three mountains, and there are several beautiful lakes in the vicinity as well. There are a few small waterfalls to be found and hidden gems like Garvan Woodland Gardens and the Hot Springs Mountain Tower. 3.0 stars out of 5!

Image of Downtown Hot Springs, AR (Image provided in the public domain by the National Park Service)

Variety:

The main features of the National Park itself include:

Historic Bathhouse Row (Where you can tour early 1900s bathhouses where visitors historically flocked to bathe in the areas healing hot water springs)
A Trail Leading to a Nice Overlook of Downtown Hot Springs (Including fountains you can view of the hot springs)
26 miles of Various Other Scenic Trails
Several Fountains of Which You Can Fill Your Own Jug with Delicious Spring Water

Free Image Provided in the Public Domain, taken from National Park Service Website

For variety, Hot Springs N.P. gets 3.5 stars.

Wildlife:

I have been to this park approaching ten times in my life, and this particular park doesn’t stand out in my mind regarding wildlife interactions. According to the National Park Service, the most common mammals in the park are white tailed deer, groundhogs, chipmunks, and squirrels. There are also about 100 species of birds, 50 species of fish, and 70 species of reptiles and amphibians.

Historically, this area used to be home to gray wolves, red wolves, and bison, but sadly these animals were eradicated in the area by the early 1900s.

Hot Springs N.P. gets 3.0 stars in this category!

Camping/Lodging:

There are some great campgrounds to choose from, like the Gulpha Gorge Campground within the park itself, arguably the quaintest and prettiest part of the park itself.

There are hotels and condominiums too numerous to count in the area, especially along the areas several lakes.

My family and I have enjoyed camping at nearby Lake Catherine State Park (there’s a great waterfall there, by the way!)

And for historical flare, try staying at the really neat Arlington Hotel in downtown Hot Springs! (We’ve stayed there before — Beware, it’s a little spooky!)

For Camping/Lodging opportunities, this park gets a solid 4.0 stars!

Other Amenities/Recreation Opportunities:

There is a lot to do in Hot Springs, Arkansas! It is a vacation destination, and arguably a little bit of a “tourist trap.” I don’t mind that at all, but just be mindful that this city of around 40,000 people can swell to a lot more people than that during peak season! (I recommend going during the off season for best results).

There are a ton of things to do in this town, from several different mini golf and go-kart places, to various interesting museums, to boating and tubing on the area’s lakes, to zip lining, and touring the lake in duck boats, and everything in between.

There is a decent amusement park called Magic Springs that is an old favorite in our family as well.

There are lots of good restaurants in the area as well. Rocky’s Corner is our favorite if you’re in the mood for Chicago Style pizza, and there are a couple of great breakfast places downtown that you don’t want to miss: The Pancake Shop and Colonial Pancake and Waffle House are both great!

4.0 stars in this category!

Busyness:

As I alluded to earlier, during the busy season, this town packs a lot of people into a small area. Traffic can be a nightmare on certain weeks. I would avoid going during summer holidays if possible. 2.5 stars.

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Accessibility:

This National Park is located fairly close to the following cities with major airports:

Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX - 4 hours southwest
Shreveport, LA - 3 hours south
Little Rock, AR - 1 hour northeast (closest)

For accessibility, how about 4.0 stars?

Personal Experience:

Don’t get me wrong on this: My family LOVES Hot Springs National Park. As I’ve said, we’ve been there many times. In fact, some of my earliest memories reside in recollection of family vacations there when I was a child.

I’m giving this park 5.0 stars in this category (so no bonus points out of a possible 5.0).

It pains me to do that, because we really do love this park. That said, though, Hot Springs simply isn’t in the same league as some of the big and beautiful National Parks we’ve been to out west. As stated earlier, the city of Hot Springs itself has sort of a “tourist trap” feel to it that I simply haven’t gotten at other National Parks.

But hey, a perfect 5.0 stars is still great, and we really have had some great experiences in Hot Springs time and again. But when you factor in things like the scenery being nice but not spectacular, the lack of big time wildlife viewing, and especially the business factor, Hot Springs National Park just didn’t quite deserve to make our top 10 list.

So that brings me to our …

Overall Rating:

Hot Springs National Park comes in with a final overall rating of … 3.625 stars! Not bad. Not bad at all!

Hot Springs National Park — Our No. 11 Favorite National Park!

Until next time,

Keep exploring, friends!

— Chase