No nature elves here. What travelers can expect at Hot Springs National Park.

Most travelers have never visited a place like Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas. 

“People, I think a lot of times, they're like, ‘Oh, hot springs! I've been to hot springs in Colorado’ or ‘I've been to hot springs in Washington,’ and you soak outside, right in the forest, and it's glorious, and you feel like a nature elf,” smiled Ashley N. Waymouth, Interpretation program manager for the park. “It's a very different experience.”

For one thing, visitors can just hop into the thermal springs, where the water comes out at over 140 degrees. 

“It’s way too hot for our skin,” said Waymouth, who noted the park has the hottest naturally occurring water east of the Rockies. “And because we also use the water for drinking, we want to keep it safe for public health.”

Here’s what travelers should know about Hot Springs, the latest national park in USA TODAY’s yearlong series.

What is so special about Hot Springs National Park?

“Before the advent of modern medicine - and penicillin - Hot Springs National Park was a premier destination for ‘medical bathing,’" Waymouth said. “Doctors would write prescriptions for their patients to come to Hot Springs to take a certain number of baths, drink a certain amount of thermal water, perform different therapies, and hike certain trails to help them regain their health.”

The water is pretty special. Unlike many other hot springs around the country, Waymouth says the park’s 47 thermal springs aren’t heated by volcanic activity but by the heat of the Earth.

“The water travels underground for 4,000 years before it hits a fault line at the base of Hot Springs Mountain, right along Bathhouse Row, and then it ‘shoots up’ for the next 400 years until it emerges as a spring,” she said. That means the water visitors see in the springs today started as rain around the time the Great Pyramids of Egypt were being built, she added for reference.

Can you swim in the hot springs at Hot Springs National Park?

No. 

There is no outdoor swimming in the park’s thermal springs. Visitors can, however, touch the water at a handful of outdoor places, where it’s had a chance to cool off a bit. 

There are also two independently operated bathhouses on park property, where the water cooled down to temperatures safe enough for soaking.

The Quapaw Bathhouse has a public thermal pool, which costs $25 per person to enter, and a minimum age of 14. Private baths and spa services are also available. 

The Buckstaff Bathhouse offers private whirlpool mineral baths for $40 and other spa services. The minimum age there is 10.

“The Buckstaff Bathhouse is actually the longest-running concessionaire in the National Park Service,” Waymouth said. “They opened in 1912, and they have never stopped operating baths since that time.” 

Is the water from the hot springs good to drink?

Yes. 

“We have free, clean, delicious water for people in the park,” Waymouth said. 

Separate jug fountains dispense water from the park’s thermal springs and cold springs. Visitors will notice that depending on the source and pH levels, the water tastes differently.

“The water is picking up the different minerals from the earth,” she explained. “It's traveling through different levels of rock structure and soil over different amounts of time, so it carries all of that essence with it where it comes out of the tap. 

She said the thermal spring water is often described as tasting soft or mineral-rich. 

“When you drink it, it doesn't taste too much in any one direction. It tastes pretty neutral, like ‘Oh, this is water,” she said. “Whereas Happy Hollow Spring is a bit more acidic, and interestingly, that seems to be the spring that most people prefer. And Whittington Spring tastes a little bit sweeter and a little bit more almost metallic.”

What are three things to do at Hot Springs National Park?

Visitors can hike along the park’s 26 miles of hiking trails.

“Many of the trails are interconnected, so visitors can choose to hike as little as one mile or as many as 13 in a day,” Waymouth said. “In the spring, some of the best hikes are the Lower Dogwood and Upper Dogwood Trails. In the summer, West Mountain Loop offers a wonderful, shaded hike. In the fall and winter, Goat Rock and Hot Springs Mountain Loop can't be beat.”

She noted Sunset Trail,the park’s biggest loop hike, is 10 to 14 miles long, depending on routes chosen.

Visitors who prefer to see sights by car can take scenic drives up West Mountain and Hot Springs Mountain. 

“At the top of Hot Springs Mountain is the Hot Springs Mountain Tower, where visitors can ride an elevator 216 feet up to an observation deck with sweeping views of the mountains,” she said. “ The top of West Mountain is an ideal place to catch the sunset or watch the annual fireworks shows that take place in the City of Hot Springs.”

No first trip to the park would be complete without seeing the iconic bathhouses along the park’s Bathhouse Row. 

Only the Buckstaff Bathhouse and the Quapaw Bathhouse still operate as bathhouses. Others have been historically restored and adapted to new uses, according to Waymouth.

“The Superior Bathhouse is a restaurant and brewery that brews beer and root beer with the thermal springs water,” she said.

The Hale Bathhouse now houses the Hotel Hale, the oldest structure on Bathhouse Row, according to the hotel’s website. 

“It's more a boutique-style hotel,” Waymouth said. “Each room has its own soaking tub with access to thermal water, so you could also just choose (to stay there) and then you don't have to go to any other bathhouse.”

The Fordyce Bathhouse is the park’s visitor center and a bathhouse museum. The Ozark Bathhouse is now the park's cultural center, featuring from its Artist-in-Residence program, and the Lamar Bathhouse houses the park’s official store, she added. 

The Maurice Bathhouse is presently vacant, according to the park.

How long should I spend in Hot Springs National Park?

“I think a day is probably sufficient. One to two days, depending on what it is you want to do,” Waymouth said of the 5,500-acre park.

She said three to five days would be better to explore surrounding areas, as well.

“The national park is nestled within the city of Hot Springs, which is nestled within the Ouachita National Forest, and we're just surrounded by so many public lands,” she said. “We have three lakes within 30 minutes of us. We have, I think, something like over 40 different campgrounds that are managed by different land agencies also within 40 minutes of us. There's just so much to do.”

How much does it cost to get into Hot Springs National Park?

Nothing.

“We don't have an entrance fee and then coming to the museum is free,” Waymouth said. “I really think we're a very affordable and accessible park for people, as long as you can get here. There’s a lot to do for very little money.”

The closest airport is Hot Springs Memorial Field, which has flights to and from Dallas/Ft. Worth and Memphis, Tennessee on Southern Airways Express. Alternately, Little Rock National Airport is just under an hour away by car.

Can you stay inside Hot Springs National Park?

Yes.

In addition to the Hale Hotel, where rates start at $300 per night, visitors can stay at Gulpha Gorge Campground, which is open to both tents and RVs.

Reservations are required for camping and available through Recreation.gov. Campsites cost $34 nightly.

What’s the best time of year to visit Hot Springs National Park?

“I'm pretty partial to the fall,” Waymouth said. “The weather's a lot cooler. The leaves start to change. It feels like a good time to take a bath. It feels like a good time go outside and hike, but honestly, we see people in our park all year long.”

What groups of people lived in Hot Springs?

Native Americans have been tied to the land for thousands of years. 

The Quapaw, Caddo, Osage, and Absentee Shawnee are the four associated tribes.