Fordyce Bathhouse is the granddaddy of all Hot Springs' bathhouses.  Built in 1915, it was said to be "the most practical, complete, and luxurious bathhouse in the world."   Today, it houses the Park's visitors' center and a free museum.  Only one of the eight original bathhouses still offers baths and massages, but newer bathhouses are located throughout this historic downtown district and provide a wonderful, rejuvenating way to spend an afternoon.  This is, after all, what has been bringing people to Hot Springs for the last two centuries.

Along Central Avenue, just across the street from Bathhouse Row, are nearly two dozen art galleries and museums.  The Art Gallery Walk on the first Friday of each month is fun, as is the Magic Springs Amusement Park summer concert series.  The Downtown Farmers Market is open Saturday mornings, and the Old Time Jazz Quartet in the Arlington Hotel Big Lobby is a great way to spend  a weekend evening.    The town also presents the Hot Springs Music Festival, the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival and the free Hot Springs Jazz Festival each year.  Oak Lawn is the local thoroughbred horseracing track.

Hot Springs has a transit system that services the downtown area and major destinations, including the hospitals, but the suburbs are not serviced.  The buses will take residents to many of the 90 churches found throughout town.

This area does have some drawbacks, the main one probably being the crime rate, which is higher than the national average (20% of the population lives below the poverty line).  Most crimes appear to be thefts and burglaries.  Hot Springs does have some unattractive and less than desirable neighborhoods where crime spikes, and this tends to skew the crime statistics.  The further out from these neighborhoods one travels, the less crime takes place.   The Lake Hamilton neighborhood and those neighborhoods on the west side of town seem safe.  Attention to personal safety, no matter where one lives, is always a good idea.   

The weather, while generally mild and providing four seasons, may also be a drawback for some.  It rains a lot (60 inches a year on average), and winters are chilly, with temperatures reaching into the low 30s at night.  It occasionally snows.   Summers are hot and humid (mid-80s are average), and the sun is seen about 60% of the time.  

And while Hot Springs is generally a quiet place, it does attract tourists, particularly during the summer, and the downtown area can get quite congested.

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