Hot Springs Rally Day is May 9!
Zoie Clift

Tourism is one of Arkansas’s largest industries. For over 30 years, National Travel and Tourism Week (NTTW), which is May 7-13, has been taking place in towns across the nation as a means to spread the news about the importance and impact of travel in the U.S.  This is done via such outlets as community rallies and events and this year’s theme is Faces of Travel.

There will be a Rally Day on May 9 in Hot Springs that will highlight this theme and the local tourism community. Cora Easterday of Visit Hot Springs has sent a preview of the schedule for the day which I am sharing below as it hits many of the prime attractions found in town. Also of note, they are planning to shoot a series of videos throughout the day from these attractions, which will be posted to Facebook LIVE throughout the day.

7:30am- Greetings from Bathhouse Row in Hot Springs National Park.

8 a.m.- A visit to Red Light Roastery with owner Adam Moore. This is the first craft coffee roastery of its kind in the city.

9:30am- Superior Bathhouse Brewery. This is the only brewery located inside a national park and the only brewery currently using thermal spring water to make craft beer.

12 p.m.- Bell of Hot Springs. This is a riverboat that takes passengers on a tour of Lake Hamilton.

1 p.m. Lunch at Next Level Kitchen.

1:30 p.m. Mid-America Science Museum, Arkansas’s largest hands-on science center and its first Smithsonian Affiliate with over 100 hands-on exhibits.

2:45 p.m. AdventureWorks Hot Springs.  This zip line park is located at Catherine’s Landing and has 12 zip lines to explore.

4 p.m.  Tour of Garvan Woodland Gardens, a 210 acre botanical garden located on the shores of Lake Hamilton.

5:30 p.m. Tour of the Malco Theater with illusionist Maxwell Blade.

6:45 p.m. Sunset view of downtown from the Hot Springs Mountain Tower.

8 p.m.- Dinner at the Ohio Club, said to be the oldest bar in Arkansas. Patrons there have included the likes of Al Capone and Mae West.