Hot Springs NP
The first thing you notice when you talk to anyone in Arkansas is the change in accent. It starts to lean towards the southern drawl, even though you aren't in the South yet. The campground is the one we've stayed at with fire pits and a small stream nearby, toilets and sinks with running water, lots of trees and shade and generally clean.
That being said, Hot Springs NP doesn't have the national parks feel. It's more like a small resort or spa. There are several bathhouses on a street known as Bathhouse Row, but only 2 of them are functional. The remaining are museums, admin offices, or a restaurant. You really get the choice of a modern bathhouse feel at the Quapaw bathhouse, or a traditional bathhouse at the Buckstaff bathhouse. The Quapaw has multiple pools for different temps, similar to the Sol Duc hot springs at Olympic NP. The Buckstaff puts you through the process used in the early days. Because the Quapaw was closed on Tuesday, we only had one choice. The town formed around the Bathhouses and just across the street as restaurants, bars, and souvenir shops.
In the Buckstaff, you start with a whirlpool bath in an old claw-foot tub. After 20 min, the attendant comes in and scrubs you down with a loofah mitt that you pre-purchase and he rubs almost every part of you. Then you get out and are put in a steam sauna (either the one where just your head sticks out, or a room with a glass ceiling) for 2 min. Afterwards, you lay on a bench where a hot towel is put on your back and you are wrapped in a thin bed sheet. 15 to 20 min later, you are woken up and told to go to the shower. The shower is pretty cool as it is a 360 shower. Finally, you dry off and go in the cooling room to lay down. The whole process takes 60 min, unless you add-on a 30 min massage.
The waters of the bathhouses are fed by the hot springs behind it. There are 47 streams that come down Hot Springs Mountain that provide the water supply. Most of the hot springs are labelled and covered up just behind the row of bathhouses. This is to protect people from falling and scalding themselves and also to prevent contamination of the waters. The spring waters are originally at 143 degrees but brought to a cooling plant which brings the water to just over 100 degrees, similar to hot tub waters.
The price at the Buckstaff is $30 and $18 at Quapaw. I will be honest, I feel that I would NOT go out of my way to go to this park. It does have some scenic drives that give you a great view of......mostly the town of Hot Springs. There are trails there too. As for the hot springs, I feel I can go to ones back home to recreate both experiences. This has been my least personal favorite national park of all the parks I have visited. Your mileage may vary.
The park does offer fountains to the public for free that offer hot and cool versions of the spring waters. Many people fill up several jugs each of the spring water, but my tip is to go to the end of Fountain St. where they have the cooler fountains. The water does taste very good as it is odorless and tasteless. The water is considered to be among the best in the country.
We joined Ranger Ticia for a tour down Bathhouse Row on the Promenade and checked out the Arlington Hotel before heading out of town that evening. We crossed the mighty Mississippi to sleep in the Memphis Walmart closest to Graceland for the night.
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