Hot Springs Arkansas Getaway

Hot Springs is the Gateway to Hot Springs National Park. This is a very scenic park in Ouachita Mountains. It has a viewing tower which gives a great view of the whole area.

Oaklawn Race Track runs Thoroughbred Horse Races February through part of April plus has simulcast races and betting for other tracks.

Downtown Hot Springs has a nice shopping area with an assortment of shops and some nice eating places. A favorite of ours is a German Restaurant, Brau Haus, where we love to eat. It is one of the Best German Restaurants we've ever found.

Former President Bill Clinton was born in this town and his birthplace and childhood homes are identified so you can drive by them but they are not open to the public.

There is an Outlet Mall for those who like that kind of shopping.

We enjoy just wandering around the town by the Spas, most of which are no longer operational.

Quick Tips:

Make a day trip into Little Rock. It's about an easy hour drive from Hot Springs and has a very nice zoo and is the Capital of Arkansas so you can see the zoo in the morning and the Capital in the afternoon.

Best Way To Get Around:

Plan on a car as there is no public transportation in Hot Springs.

Best Things Nearby:
Brau Haus Restaurant. Hot Springs National Park. Oaklawn Horse Race Track.

Best Things About the Resort:
Nice, clean, quiet timeshare.

Resort Experience:
We have stayed at this timeshare on two different occassions. The staff has always been very pleasant and helpful.

The units have been clean. The kitchen is a nice size and well equipped. The furnishings in the living and bedrooms has been very comfortable.

Most buildings are two story buildings without an elevator.

There is a pool, an indoor Hot Tub which we enjoy relaxing in. An activity room with a few games for the teenager.

The resort is on Lake Hamilton and we like to walk around the resort and down to Lake Hamilton. It is a strenuous walk, particularly coming back from the lake.

The first time we stayed at this resort, we found ourselves being woke up early in the morning to a banging on the building. We thought that they must be doing some work somewhere but were sure starting early. Turned out to be a Woodpecker trying to work his way in. When we told the staff, they said it was a problem they were trying to resolve. The second time we stayed there, we mentioned this and they said they had developed some techniques for keeping the woodpeckers away and they seemed to be working as we weren't bothered that time.

• Unit Type: 2 Bedroom
• Activities: Not Available
• Amenities: Good
• Unit Satisfaction: Excellent
• Family Friendliness: Excellent
• Service: Excellent

Best Things Nearby:
Brau Haus Restaurant. Hot Springs National Park. Oaklawn Horse Racing Track.

Best Things About the Resort:


Resort Experience:
Very nice resort but small. The TimeShare itself is a one building resort included with several other buildings which are Condos owned and lived in year round.

Plenty of parking near the unit. The unit itself was well appointed and clean. The kitchen was a little small for 2 people to work on cooking together.

For a timeshare, the unit was fairly well lit. The living room was comfortable for relaxing and reading.

Nice area within and around the resort for walking. Nice workout with the walk as a lot of the walk was vertical.

• Unit Type: 2 Bedroom
• Activities: Not Available
• Amenities: Fair
• Unit Satisfaction: Very Good
• Family Friendliness: Good
• Service: Excellent

One of the best German Restaurants I found. The Sauerbraten is the best I have had at any restaurant in my life. My wife loves the Hungarian Goulash. Has a wide range of German entrees and we have found all that we have eaten to be excellently prepared.

Hot Apple Strudel for dessert really finishes off the meal nicely and if you watch, you can find a coupon good for a free dessert.

Dinners come with Red Cabbage.

Some nights, particularly weekend nights, they have musical entertainment to add to your dinner atmosphere. When we've been on nights with entertainment, it has always been quiet and subdued, adding to the dining pleasure and not being something you have to yell to converse over.

A nice day trip when staying at a Timeshare in Hot Springs is to drive up to Little Rock Arkansas and visit the zoo there. The drive is an easy 1 hour drive each way on 4 Lane Divided Hwy and Interstate.

A very nicely maintained, small zoo. Inspite of its small size, its exhibits are modern and well maintained for the comfort of the animals.

One of our favorite areas in this zoo is a cloverleaf arranged set of 4 exhibit areas which house Lowland Gorillas in 2 of the areas, Chimpanzees in 1 and Orangatangs in the fourth. These ape groups have lots of area to roam around in and yet are very easily observed by the zoo visitor.

They also have a very neat Giraffe display where you feel like the Giraffes could just walk out and leave but due to valuable study of the Giraffe's habits, the Giraffes are effectively penned in and the view is excellent.

For people who are members of their local zoo's Friends of the Zoo Organization, this zoo is recipricol with most other zoos making the admission free. Parking is also free for everyone.

In the Ouachita Mountains, it feels almost more like a National Forest than a National Park. It protects the Hot Springs from which it gets it's name.

Several hot springs exist in the park and the water from them is sterile. In the city of Hot Springs, they have a distribution point where any body can take jugs and fill them with the water from the springs.

The Hot Springs Mountain Observation Tower gives a very beautiful scenic overlook of the park and Hot Springs, the town.

Within Hot Springs, Fordyce Bathhouse offers displays of bathhouse history and also tours of the bathhouse, explaining how they came to exist and how they were used.