1 active Hot Springs alert
- InfoBurn ban in parkA burn ban is in effect because of high fire danger. - In the campground and picnic areas, only gas and charcoal grills are currently allowed; the ban was enacted August 15, 2026.Official details
Parkwolf’s Hot Springs ranking
Top sights in Hot Springs
1SightFordyce Bathhouse Visitor Center and MuseumA free tour from marble lobby to the basement spring.
2SightBuckstaff BathhouseTake a guided thermal bath inside a 1912 Bathhouse Row landmark.
3SightQuapaw Baths & SpaThermal pools under stained glass in a 1922 bathhouse.
4SightHot Springs Mountain TowerA 216-foot elevator ride to wide views and park history.
5SightHot Water CascadeThermal water tumbles through two pools along Bathhouse Row.
6SightDisplay SpringWatch thermal water spill into a shaded shallow pool.
7SightHot Springs Mountain Pagoda and Picnic AreaA 1911 pagoda frames Hot Springs and the Ouachitas.
8SightWest Mountain Loop OverlookA summit vista beside stone once shaped into tools.
9SightGoat Rock ViewpointA short climb to a rock perch above the Zigzag Mountains.Hiking
Top trails in Hot Springs
- 5 easy
- 13 moderate
- 1 challenging
EasyGrand Promenade0.5 mi · 45 minBenches, spring views, and bathhouses on an easy half-mile walk.
ModerateGoat Rock Trail2.2 mi · 1.8 hrA rocky overlook and broad Ouachita views above Gulpha Gorge.
EasyHot Springs Mountain Trail1.7 mi · 1 hrAn easy loop above Hot Springs, with a view between the trees.
EasyTufa Terrace Trail0.3 mi · 24 minA short paved climb to pale tufa beside the thermal cascade
ModerateBalanced Rock Trail2 mi · 1.3 hrA modest outcrop with wide views across the Ouachita ridges.
ModeratePeak Trail1.2 mi · 40 minA 400-foot climb rewards you with summit overlooks and a tower.
ChallengingSunset Trail9.2 mi · 6 hrA rugged traverse from West Mountain to Gulpha Gorge.
EasyWhittington Trail1.2 mi · 30 minA flat gravel loop past Whittington Creek's old bridges.
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Hot Springs Tour Guide
Hot Springs, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Hot Springs National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this place
Fordyce Bathhouse: Beyond the Baths0:00 / 0:29
“You're approaching Fordyce Bathhouse, now the visitor center and a free museum. I'd start here to see what a bathhouse visit used to involve.”
Plays as you drive up to Fordyce Bathhouse Visitor Center and Museum in the Parkwolf Hot Springs Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Superior Bathhouse Brewery: A Meal by the Springs
- Buckstaff and Quapaw: Choose Your Soak
- West Mountain: Town Views and a Stone Shelter
- Arlington Lawn and Hot Water Cascade
- 18 audio storiesacross Hot Springs’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor White-tailed Deer, Groundhog, Mexican Long-nosed Armadillo, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 19 trails, 33 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Map
The whole park, on one map
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Before you go
Facilities
Wildlife
Wildlife in Hot Springs
71 sightingsWhite-tailed DeerMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
11 sightingsGroundhogMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
12 sightingsMexican Long-nosed ArmadilloMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
16 sightingsTurkey VultureMost seen around noonSighting map
41 sightingsCardinalMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
27 sightingsSummer TanagerMost seen around 7 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Hot Springs. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.