Hot Springs National Park

About Hot Springs National Park

The thermal reserve itself was created by Congress to protect the hot springs that flow down the southwest slope of Mount Hot Springs in the southern part of the park.

The reserve became a well-known spa with the nickname American Spa, which attracted not only the rich but also the poor from all over the world. People have been using the hot spring water of the bath for more than two hundred years to treat rheumatism and other ailments. The park protects eight historic bathhouses, with the former luxurious Fordyce Bath House being the park's visitor center, and the entire Bathhouse Row area is a National Historic Landmark District that houses a variety of historic buildings, including historic Bath House, Bath and Spa House, as well as a number of hotels and restaurants.

The Hot Springs Reservation has become Hot Springs National Park, and to protect the water, the National Park Service continues to provide visitors with access to the park's historic bathhouses as well as a variety of other attractions, including historic Fordyce Bath House. Cars to Hot Springs National Park are located in downtown Hot Spring; Bathhouse Row is on Central Avenue, flanked by mountains and the park, just south of the hotel.

Visitors traveling north or south on I-30 take the US 270 East exit and when you enter town, you will see the National Park sign. Visitors traveling from Oklahoma on US 70 to Hot Springs take this route; visitors traveling south of Ark-7 take US-270 East and leave the Arkansas-Texas border road to turn left into the Hot Spring parking lot. From there, visitors drive south along Ark. 7 to the thermal springs in the city center, where the visitor center is located.

Amtrak's Texas Eagle Route connects Little Rock and Malvern, Arkansas, with a shuttle service to and from the hot springs. Greyhound Bus Lines also operates daily bus service between Hot Springs and Fort Worth, Texas. The visitor center is located in downtown Hot Spring, south of US-270 East and north of Ark-7.