Arkansas

Hot Springs and Healing Waters

Hot Springs National Park sits at the heart of the spa city that shares its name, protecting 47 thermal springs that have drawn visitors for centuries. Bathhouse Row presents a grand parade of restored Gilded Age bathhouses along Central Avenue, now home to galleries, a brewery and the elegant Buckstaff Bathhouse, still offering traditional thermal soaks. Beyond the bathhouses, the city radiates a charming arts scene, lakeside restaurants and the famed Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort, making Hot Springs one of the most surprising and delightful small cities in the American South.

Crystal Caverns and Diamond Fields

Arkansas sits atop extraordinary geological riches, from the crystal-studded mines around Mount Ida to Crater of Diamonds State Park near Murfreesboro, the only diamond-bearing site in the world open to the public on a finders-keepers basis. Visitors routinely walk away with genuine diamonds, quartz crystals and other gemstones they have unearthed themselves. Underground, Blanchard Springs Caverns in the Ozark National Forest reveal cathedral chambers of stalactites and flowstone formations that genuinely rival anything in the continent.

Delta Blues, Southern Tables and Small Town Warmth

The Arkansas Delta is sacred ground for American music history, where the Delta Blues was born along Highway 61 and towns like Helena still host the legendary King Biscuit Blues Festival each October. The state capital, Little Rock, punches well above its weight with a vibrant River Market district, nationally recognised Clinton Presidential Center and a food scene stretching from smoked whole hog barbecue joints to creative farm-to-table kitchens. From the college-town energy of Fayetteville in the northwest to the peach orchards and rice paddies of the lowlands, Arkansas rewards every traveller willing to slow down and look closer.