Hot Springs, ArkansasA spa town with a difference

their doctor's advice.

As medical science evolved, the popularityof the baths waned. Today there’s no scien-tific evidence of health benefits from thesprings. But I can vouch that lazily soakingin a pool of hot water (where phones arenot allowed) is an excellent treatment forour hurried modern way of life.

The spring water is also delicious to drink.Filling stations line the edges of the nation-al park welcoming you to fill a jug with HotSprings’ perfectly neutral pH7 water, all forfree. Unlike most water from thermalsprings, there is no iron or sulphur. Thewater comes out of the ground at about

The earliest bathers soaked up the soothingwaters under the sky. By the mid 1800s,bathhouses became the preferred location.Soon Hot Springs’ bathhouses were grandedifices rivaling those of European spas.Today you can visit many of these restoredbuildings along Bathhouse Row, and even“take the waters” in two of them.

Many claim the water from the 47 differenthot springs is healing. Until just a fewdecades ago, physicians would recom-mend their patients come to treat ailmentsfrom rheumatism to syphilis. It became sopopular that the government eventuallyprovided a clinic with a free bathhouse, sothat people of any income could follow

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Iwas so looking forward to this trip. Whowouldn’t want to go to a town so famedfor its relaxing thermal mineral waters

that it is named Hot Springs? But I was sur-prised by how much more Hot Springs hasto offer.

The springs

Both the town and the national park arenamed Hot Springs. One side of the town’smain street is in fact inside the park. Like inmost national parks, you can hike, moun-tain bike and enjoy forested trails and won-derful views. Unusually, you can tour his-toric buildings and get a massage too.

A r t i c l e & P h o t o g r a p h y B y J o h a n n a R e a d , T r av e l E at e r . n e t

listening to The Hump Day Blues Band. Ifpast bands were as good, it is no wonderthat the Ohio Club was frequented bycelebrities like Tony Bennett, Sammy DavisJr, Babe Ruth, Al Jolson and Mae West.

Where to stay

History-buffs favour The Arlington, a“grand old hotel”. The hotel has views ofthe national park and Bathhouse Row, andfamous guests like Al Capone (who had hisown suite, complete with secret escaperoute) and home-town son Bill Clinton inthe presidential suite. The restaurants serveclassic dishes and the lobby bar innovativecocktails.

If you prefer more modern decor, chooseThe Hotel Hot Springs & Spa. Attached tothe convention centre, this 14-story hotelwas completely renovated in 2016. Itsrooms are spacious and come with extraslike a microwave and large mini-fridge.Breakfast with delicious biscuits and honeyis included in rates.

Lookout Point Lakeside Inn is a boutiqueoption just outside of town, on LakeHamilton. With views of the lake, theOuachita Mountains, and garden water-falls, you’ll be sure to relax at this B&B.

www.hotsprings.org

Johanna Read is a Vancouver-based free-lance writer and photographer specializingin travel and food. Follow Johanna onInstagram @TravelEaterJohanna and onTwitter @TravelEater. All her travel writing isat www.TravelEater.net.

5962°C and doesn’t need treatment to makeit safe to drink. Many believe that drinkingthe water is good for you too.

The Quapaw Baths & Spa feature four min-eral pools at varying temperatures. AtQuapaw, you can add on massages, bodytreatments and facials, plus visit the steamcave. The cave feels like a combination ofsauna and steambath. I sat on a cedarbench in the man-made cave, designed togather the heat coming off the under-ground springs below. While I didn’t seeclouds of steam, I very quickly felt the moisttherapeutic heat. I ended my 20-minutesession relaxed and well-glistened (a ladyglistens, not sweats, in the South).

Lots to do

After soaking up the waters, drive just out oftown to the Garvan Woodland Gardens. Istrolled through ever-changing gardensfeaturing waterfalls and hundreds of thou-sands of tulips and daffodils. Kids (andkids-at-heart) delight in the explorationcave, crawdad hole and maze. Architecturefans marvel at the glass walls and angles ofthe 6-story Anthony Chapel, designed byMaurice Jennings and Fay Jones. I wasenchanted by Garvan’s resident peacock.He loves to show off his full plumage when-ever anyone points a camera at him. You’llneed a keener eye to spot Garvan’s other70 bird species.

The Hot Springs area is full of attractions fora week of family fun. Watch thoroughbredracing at Oaklawn Park, ride a riverboat,go mini golfing and regular golfing, playlaser tag, zipline, kayak, spend a day at thewaterslides and the immense roller coastersat Magic Springs amusement park, visit thewax museum, and even an alligator farm.Tour the Gangster Museum to learn allabout infamous mobsters like Al Caponeand Lucky Luciano who used Hot Springs asa retreat.

Shoppers love the independent shops onCentral Avenue selling art, antiques, vin-tage candy, uniquely flavoured popcornand housewares. Pop into The Savory

Pantry for artisanal chocolates, bitters,sauces and jams, and (my favourite)Lambrecht’s southern pecan toffee.

Food and drink

If you want to stay in a town for any lengthof time, you want there to be great food.Hot Springs does not disappoint.

More than a month after my visit, I’m stillcraving the pizza from DeLuca’s Pizzeria.Chef/owner Anthony Valinoti brought toppizza techniques from his native Brooklyn.He uses the best ingredients from HotSprings, including the mineral water, for hisclassic and creative pies. His pizzas aloneare enough of a reason to visit Hot Springs!

Craft-beer fans love Superior BathhouseBrewery and Distillery. In one of the oldbuildings on Bathhouse Row, they makebeer on site using the national park’sspring water. They serve fantastic non-alco-holic root beer too, as well as lunch anddinner highlighting seasonal locally-grownproducts.

Famous for being Bill Clinton’s favouritebarbeque joint, McClard’s Bar-B-Q serves7000 pounds of hickory-smoked beef, porkand chicken weekly, all smothered in theirsecret sauce. This place is so popular theywon’t even reserve a table for the Clintons(though they do get invited into the kitchento eat there).

I learned the secret to eating southern pan-cakes at The Pancake Shop. The pancakesfill an entire dinner plate. To ensure my lapwasn’t covered in syrup, I followed the serv-er’s instructions to cut a hole in the centreof the stack before filling it with butter andwarm syrup. Delicious!

There’s live music every night at the OhioClub, right on Central Avenue. This historicclub dates to 1905 and is the only originalclub still open. During Prohibition, it wascalled the Ohio Cigar Store; if you knew theright password, you were allowed into thedrinking and gambling area hidden behindthe false wall. I spent a Wednesday night

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