Hot Springs AR

This was my 4th trip to Hot Springs with the kids, since it’s just a 3-hour drive.

• 1st time: me + A and AB (March 2019)

• 2nd time: the whole fam (July 2021, when Charlie was 3 months)

• 3rd time: me, the kids, my mom and dad (November 2022)

• 4th time: the whole fam (May 2024, I’m 8 months pregnant)

Needless to say, I have a little experience in the area and want to share the food, treats, kid stuff, and everything else I’ve discovered about this charming little town. And I am positive there are many things we have still not tried.

I think it makes for a nice weekend getaway (2-3 nights) but could also be a good week-long trip. There’s enough to do with little kids, big kids, grownups only, a girls’ trip, etc. It is suitable for a range of visitors: those who like the outdoors; those who want to just shop, drink, and eat; those who like the arts and history; and more.

Here’s what you’ll find in this breakdown:

• Food and drink

• Kids

• Outdoors & The Strip (shopping, history, etc)

• Lodging (where we’ve stayed)

FOOD AND DRINK

We try to find a new place to eat whenever we visit, and we like trying different cuisines and price ranges. We tend to pick up food and eat it where we’re staying rather than eating at restaurants, so I won’t have TOO much feedback about actual dining experiences.

And when I say drink, I’m basically talking about coffee or fun drinks (like boba tea or milkshakes, not so much alcohol).

Pizza

• Grateful Head. There is just 1 location in Hot Springs, with a second location in Broken Bow OK. The pizza’s good, chewy. The Hot Springs location has a ton of outdoor seating. There is a small parking lot right by it, but it fills up fairly quickly. There is some street parking and, nearby, you can find a parking garage as well as another parking lot (for pay). Honestly, we usually stay close enough to just walk!

• SQZBX. This is “Squeeze Box”, minus the vowels. It’s a slang term for an accordion, the musical instrument, which you’ll see featured in their decor. There’s ample indoor and outdoor seating. The pizza is delicious; you can get big or small pepperonis (the small ones that turn into little cups, you know?). It’s a 5-minute walk from “The Strip”, so if you’re staying there, you can just walk to it.

• Rocky’s Corner. Their thing is that they sell Chicago style pizza. Think thick crust, super saucy. We ordered this to be delivered, and we all really liked it. We didn’t dine there, so I don’t know anything about the area or seating situation.

Mexican and Tex-Mex

• Taco Mama. This place, we picked up food when I visited with my parents, in 2022, so I don’t remember what we ordered. I do remember thinking, “Dang this is actually really good.”

• La Bodeguita. We got a chicken quesadilla, 3 tacos, sopes, and the fried plantains with sweet cream. Everything was delicious!

• Diablos. This place is on “The Strip”, so it is convenient. We’ve eaten here a few times over the years, and it’s always good, not always great. This time, we got chips and queso and the quesabirrias, which were both delicious.

Breakfast/Coffee

• Kollective. Nice spot, excellent coffee. I am a bit of a coffee snob - if the coffee isn’t good with minimal milk/sugar, then it isn’t good coffee. So, many of the places have decent coffee, but it’s really only yummy if you add a bunch of syrups to it. Kollective has genuinely good coffee. Additionally, all the food we’ve gotten here over the years has been really good as well. This trip, I got the huevos rancheros (yum), and we also picked up a bagel with cream cheese (fine, but you may want to ask for extra cream cheese!).

• Cafe Kahlo. This place has VERY good ratings. But I got a vanilla latte with huevos rancheros and did not enjoy either (I finished them both, don’t get me wrong… they just did not live up to the ratings). Annabelle got plain pancakes though and loved them.

• Destiny’s Bakeshop. We got two danishes (apple and strawberry), a big cinnamon roll, and a bacon, egg, cheese biscuit. Everything was delicious. I didn’t get a coffee here; Cam went up to Kollective instead!

• Cafe Mi Amor. Cinnamon rolls but not just cinnamon. We got a bacon, egg, and cheese roll (I thought it was great, but I think a little sweetness to the dough would have been even better) and a strawberries and cream roll (SO GOOD). I also got a cinnamon roll latte, which I didn’t like (I don’t like cinnamon in my coffee, which Cam didn’t know - it was probably good, just not for me).

• Best Cafe and Bar. We didn’t eat here on this trip, but when we visited with my parents, we did. The eggs Benedict was fantastic. I can’t remember what else we got, but I remember being pleasantly surprised by how good it all was.

• The Pancake Shop. We have NOT eaten here, but it was highly recommended to me, so I’ll pass it along to you!

Everything else

• Steinhaus Keller. This is a German restaurant. I got the beef Sauerbraten with mashed potatoes and pork gravy, and it was SO good. The beef was crazy tender.

• Wok Express. We got chicken fried rice, chicken and vegetables, and some egg rolls, and it was all very good.

• Chipmunk Cafe. This is a restaurant inside of Garvan Woodland Gardens. It’s overpriced for what it is, but if you are inside the gardens and want to grab lunch, you have just the one option. That said, we got a Polish hot dog, pulled pork BBQ sandwich, plus 2 kids’ meals. The hot dog was good, the BBQ was dry but tasty, and the kids’ meals were mediocre. It’s nice, though, that they have a full-service eatery (lots of dessert options too) within the park rather than just snacks.

• Kilwins Ice Cream & Fudge. We got ice cream here twice. The s’mores ice cream was my favorite; the cappuccino with chocolate chips was also good. The kids loved the salted caramel, mint chocolate chip, and plain vanilla. I got several messages on IG about other amazing flavors, so my takeaway is that EVERY flavor is going to be great!

• Fat Bottomed Girls Cupcake Shoppe. This little bakery was on Cupcake Wars back in 2014. We didn’t eat there this trip because it’s just standard, good-enough cupcakes, nothing terribly exciting.

• Pour Some Sugar on Me. This spot is right next to Fat Bottomed Girls. When we visited years ago, we got ice cream, and it was fine. This trip, we did not even order. The two workers did not speak to us when we came in (no one else was in there), and when we tried to order, we were told they were out of cups, so we’d have to get the bowl (which is more expensive). Also, there was a case of macarons, and they were nearly all cracked or crushed. So we said, no thanks, and we left.

• Zen Tea. This is a boba tea place that also has some other treats. It’s an odd shop - when you walk in, it feels like it is a cover for another type of business, like, you shouldn’t be in there. We got 2 boba teas (one traditional sweetened black tea, one Thai tea); the teas were fine, but the boba was … old, I guess? I’ve had boba many many times, and the texture was just not right for either tea. The reviews are great, though, so maybe it was just a bad day, bad batch.

KIDS

• Garvan Woodland Gardens. They’ve increased the prices over the years, by the way (no surprise, really) - the kids and I have been 3 times, I’m pretty sure. The place is massive, and I’m sure we have not seen all of it. The map isn’t the most reliable, but it works well enough. There are lots of beautiful bridges, little waterfalls, a tree house, a fairy village, a giant model train set, a few peacocks, and more. It’s very well-maintained. There are many paths you can take around the park; not all of them are wheelchair-friendly (which means it’s tough using a stroller there, too). The accessible paths are marked on the map, though!

• Mid America Science Museum. This is a great museum; I love when a museum has a variety of goodies inside as well as some cool outside stuff. Inside, there are optical illusions, a fake cave you can crawl through (literally, crawl in some places!), a massive water feature, and countless hands-on exhibits. When you go outside, you can take a walk on the dinosaur trails, where they have giant dinosaurs, organized by period of time, with information about them as well as sound effects. In addition, there are some fun, whole-body activities to enjoy, like narrow rope bridges to navigate.

• Pirate’s Cove Mini Golf. Just your classic mini-golf course - Pirate’s Cove is one of those you’ve probably visited in another city, if your family is into mini golf like mine.

• A Narrow Escape Escape Rooms. Our family has done MANY escape rooms over the years; the big kids have done a half dozen or more, in various places, and Charlie has 2-3 under his tiny belt now. The Narrow Escape rooms are quite different from the other rooms we’ve completed. Typically, you solve puzzles to get codes, which unlock locks (of all types). In the room we did (called Home Alone), the puzzles were much more interactive, and you never touched a physical lock. It was really fun!

• Maxwell Blade. We had heard great things about this show. Maxwell Blade’s show has been running for 27 years. It’s called the #1 Magic Show in Arkansas. Back in 2021, Cameron went with A and AB. Turns out, it is large-scale magic, close-up magic, plus singing and piano, plus comedy. My two kiddos were just 5 and 7 at the time, and since the show didn’t start until 8:00pm, they came back to the AirBnB (basically across the street!) at intermission but didn’t go back. It has great reviews, though! So I think if your kids are older (or no kids are in your group), you’d enjoy it more!

OUTDOORS/THE STRIP

• Hot Springs National Park. You can visit the park for free, and there are many many trails to choose from. If you start at “The Strip” you can simply walk around and take it easy. But if you want a more challenging hike, there are some options! Find a map online or in the Visitors’ Center.

  • Gulpha Gorge. This is a mildly challenging trail that we walked in 2022. I was babywearing Charlie and went with my parents (early 60s and 70s), and we made it just fine. The very start of this trail goes across a creek, using giant stepping stones.

  • The Mountain Tower. You can walk from “The Strip” up to the tower if you are so inclined, but you can also drive up to it. Once there, you enter a gift shop, and you can buy tickets to the tower itself. You’ve got the choice of taking the elevator or the stairs up, and once at the top, you get a magnificent view of all of Hot Springs. It really is gorgeous! I’d recommend doing this if you aren’t afraid of heights.

  • The Grand Promenade. If you want a lighter walk, this paved trail runs parallel to Central Avenue (what I’ve been calling “The Strip”). It goes behind the bathhouses, and it’s lovely and well-maintained.

• Bathhouse Row. There are several bathhouses on Central Ave, one right after another. You can’t freely enter most of them, but you can see the beautiful architecture.

  • Fordyce Bathhouse. This is also the Visitors’ Center. You can chat with some park rangers, who can give you the scoop on all the trails within Hot Springs National Park. You can get a few small paper cups to drink water from a spring. And you can take a tour of this 4-story (3 levels plus a basement) bathhouse. It’s well-marked with lots of interesting signage about the original uses of the bathhouse. It’s a beautiful building, and the self-guided tour is free.

• Evilo. The name is pronounced Evil-Oh, and it’s OLIVE spelled backward. They sell a huge variety of oils, vinegars, spices, and local-made goods like pasta, sauces, and salsas. There are free samples available (lemon honey, mmmm), and the variety is fantastic.

• Bathhouse Soapery. Right next to Evilo is this soapery. It is like the chain store Lush, except it doesn’t smell overwhelming when you walk in. There are tons of products, all made in the Hot Springs area. You can sample many of the items as well.

• Rocket Fizz. On the far end of “The Strip” is a candy and soda shop called Rocket Fizz. This is not unique to Hot Springs, but it is always a fun place to pop in. You can find a huge array of candies (new and old) plus hundreds of sodas (any flavor you can imagine). It’s mostly fun to explore and maybe pick up a goodie or two.

• All the murals! If you walk along Central Ave, you’ll notice a lot of murals painted on the walls. There is a Butterfly Wings painting down by Grateful Head pizza, on a side street - it’s one where you take a photo and it looks like you have butterfly wings. There’s some gorgeous street art all over that area if you keep your eyes open!

• Get some water. There’s a water filling station with free spring water on one end of “The Strip.” You can bring your own jugs and just fill ‘em up with this fresh water!

LODGING

• Eliot’s Ness’t (AirBnB / VRBO). There’s a second option that’s upstairs, in the same building, called Capone’s Loft. Eliot’s is where we’ve stayed twice. The location is right at the start of “The Strip” so you can walk to do most things. It’s 2 bedrooms, plus a Murphy bed in the living room, plus 2.5 bathrooms. There’s a giant kitchen, with a long bar and ample seating, but there’s no dining table. There are 3 exits: one in the back that exits to a parking spot, one in the middle that leads to a staircase that heads down to the street, and one in a bedroom. There is a back patio with some seating that overlooks Central Ave. There’s a nice pool table, 3 big smart TVs throughout, and plenty of comfy seating in the living room. A few notes:

  • As of recently, there’s a cigar lounge on the street level, so when you enter, you can smell a bit of that. You can’t smell it in the bedrooms or living room, just near the two main doors. I’m quite sensitive to smells at the moment (pregnant), and I didn’t smell it once I got settled in.

  • The street-level entrance has keypad lock with a code. Once you come in and lock the deadbolt, you walk up a good number of stairs (20?). The second door has a separate lock with a different code. Once in, there’s a deadbolt, but that is all. There’s no other way to secure the door. I guess technically there are 2 deadbolts (one down, one up), but someone may want to know that!

  • One of the bedrooms also has a door that leads to this stairwell, but there is no keypad for this door. You need an actual key. And on the inside, you have a deadbolt plus a turn lock on the handle. We never used this door, but it’s worth mentioning!

  • There is a second apartment that can be rented that is situated above Eliot’s, called Capone’s Loft. If anyone has stayed there in our two trips, we didn’t know about it. You can not hear anything. And, while the street has a lot of racket (sirens, chatter, etc), we couldn’t hear any of it from the bedrooms. (We always pack fans for noise, though, so I’m sure that helps!)

• Best Court. In 2022, we stayed at one of the little houses at Best Court. It has 2 beds when you first walk in, and there’s a bedroom with a door that has another bed. The kitchen/dining is TINY. One small round table is all we had, despite having 3 beds; I’m guessing they assume people will be out and about a lot and not eating in? The location is alright. You can’t really walk easily to anything, though, which is a big drawback for me, although it is less than a mile (not a pretty walk) to “The Strip”.

• One tip: If you aren’t taking your trip on a busy weekend, or during a school holiday, then I’d suggest booking lodging last minute - nearly every trip we take, we book the lodging last minute and end up finding a great deal on a great place.

CONCLUSION

We like Hot Springs. It’s a short drive, and there’s plenty to do - indoors and out. I hope this recap is helpful! If you have any questions about anything, leave a comment or shoot me a message (IG @bethanygking or bgking8611@gmail).

~Bethany