Hot Springs National Park – Bathhouse Row
/My daughter and I headed to Hot Springs, Arkansas after visiting my dad in Dallas. It was a 2-day vacation in celebration of Mother’s Day. There are lots of things to do in the area; we chose to focus on two: the national park and Garvan Woodland Gardens. This is the first blog post about our trip.
There are eight bathhouses that are the historic core of Hot Springs National Park. Only one (the Buckstaff) still functions as a traditional bathhouse. The Fordyce functions as the park’s visitor center. It has many restored features – stained glass skylights, tile floors, a gym, elaborate baths. The changing cubicles seemed very small; there must have been fewer obese people when they were designed!
The Quapaw has been renovated as a modern spa.
My daughter and I spent the most time at the Buckstaff – enjoyed the Traditional Bathing Package: whirlpool tub, sitz bath, vapor cabinet, hot packs, and full body massage. The bathtubs and equipment are original to when the bathhouse opened in 1912! It’s a great way to experience history. One of the learning experiences: how to wear a sheet to be securely and completely covered.
There are magnolias that line the street in front of the bathhouses. They were beginning to bloom.
There were mushrooms coming up near one of them and I couldn’t resist some macro pictures of the magnolia bark and the view into the top of one of the trees.
Tomorrow’s post will be about our hike from bathhouse row to the Hot Springs Mountain Tower.