Hot Springs
Park, Spa

© Sean Pavone / Alamy Stock Photo
Hot Springs is a city in the Ouachita Mountains with a unique history and superb architecture. Settlers in the 1830s found that the waters of the springs had medicinal properties. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Hot Springs developed as a spa town favored by celebrities and even mobsters such as Al Capone and Lucky Luciano, who came to gamble at Oaklawn Park Races and enjoy the waters. Many of the buildings from this period survive in different styles – Neoclassical, Neo-Renaissance, Italianate and Spanish – especially on Bathhouse Row on Central Avenue. Major League Baseball teams who head to Hot Springs for their spring training programs can also be seen about the town.