The towns, parks, and natural landscapes of the Southern state are wonderful.
Facebook: Visit Hot SpringsPart 8 of my column will cover Arkansas, the second Southern state on this list so far. I remember visiting Arkansas in the distant past, back in 2012 as part of a family trip. We stayed the night in Little Rock, the major metropolitan center in Arkansas. The state has a convenient location, being situated close to Texas, Tennessee, and Missouri. However, the proximity to these well-known states should not take away from what Arkansas has to offer. For my adventures and drives through the state, here’s what I liked:
No Big City Feel
Hear me out, visiting big cities means dealing with the factors that often plague them, such as overpopulation, too much traffic, pollution, and high prices. Little Rock was a small, charming town that was easy to navigate, and devoid of honking, extra loud noises, and bumper to bumper traffic. In fact, the most shocking thing to me was walking into an Olive Garden at 7 PM, peak time for dinner, and being seated right away. For anyone who has visited Olive Garden during peak time, or in general, a wait is most certainly expected. This was one of the perks I experienced here. In this case, not having a big city atmosphere was positive.
Hot Springs National Park
Though Arkansas is likely not the first place that comes to mind when hearing about Hot Springs, there is Hot Springs National Park, an hour’s drive from Little Rock. It is the only national park in the state (though there are plenty of other parks) and is smaller than its counterparts, but contains natural beauty, hence the state’s nickname being the Natural State. Not coincidentally, the park was in the town of Hot Springs, and seeing the hot springs up close was a terrific natural scene. The fact that Arkansas has some natural beauty in a national park setting makes it unique.
The town of Hot Springs, Arkansas, was a small, quaint town with a nice downtown district to walk in and shop/dine after visiting the park. A national park being in a town or so close to a town is often rare in the USA, which is evident by the gargantuan national parks found in the West that are quite far from towns. Visiting the charming town of Hot Springs and its park was a wonderful way to spend time and enjoy the purity of Arkansas.
