Take a scenic ride through the heart of Hot Springs as we follow a lively 12-mile stretch of Arkansas Highway 7, winding from the south side of town through the iconic spa city and into the forested northern foothills. This segment is both scenic and historic, blending modern development with the enduring charm of Hot Springs National Park—a place where the Ozark Highlands first start to rise and where the road becomes more than just pavement; it becomes part of the experience.
Our journey begins just north of Lake Hamilton at the busy interchange with Higdon Ferry Road. Here, Arkansas 7 threads through a growing commercial corridor, buzzing with restaurants, shopping centers, and hotels that serve as a modern counterpoint to the historic core ahead. It doesn’t take long before we cross under the broad overpasses of US Highways 70 and 270, a convergence of regional arteries that mark a sort of gateway to Hot Springs proper. Just beyond, we pass the grandstands and stable gates of Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort, one of the oldest thoroughbred racetracks in the country. It happened to be race day when we filmed, and the ripple effect of excitement was visible in the steady stream of traffic and visitors threading their way into town.
Continuing north, the road begins to feel narrower and more intimate as the trees close in and the terrain tilts upward. We enter Hot Springs National Park, where Central Avenue becomes a showcase of historic architecture, geothermal wonder, and timeless Americana. Bathhouse Row—anchored by century-old spas like the Fordyce Bathhouse Museum and Buckstaff Bathhouse—unfolds to our right, each building standing as a testament to the town’s role as a 20th-century wellness destination. Arkansas Highway 7 overlaps this route, making it one of the rare state highways to pass directly through a unit of the National Park Service. The unique mix of urban parkland, steaming thermal vents, and historic brick facades is like nowhere else in the country.
At the northern end of downtown, we reach the foot of the stately Arlington Resort Hotel, a landmark since the 1920s. Here, the highway makes a sweeping left turn—more a shift in character than just in direction—as we climb out of the basin. Leaving the park behind, the road hugs the slopes of West Mountain and begins to weave through neighborhoods perched along ridgelines. The city begins to thin, replaced gradually by wooded terrain and rural homesteads as we head toward the outskirts.
Eventually, we reach the intersection with Arkansas Highway 5, a junction that marks the end of our drive through Hot Springs and the beginning of the more remote, mountainous segments to the north. Here, the city gives way completely to the Ouachita foothills, and Highway 7 continues onward as one of Arkansas’s most revered scenic byways. But even before that, this short segment—buzzing with history, geography, and culture—stands tall as one of the most captivating urban drives in the state.
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