What to do and see in Arkansas, United States: The Best Scenic Drives

March 15, 2022 Claudia Navarrete

Living up to its billing as “The Natural State”, the state is a nature wonderland with three national forests, nearly 9,000 miles of pristine streams and rivers, awe-inspiring settings in the Ozark and Quachita mountains and sparkling lakes.

The menu of vacation experiences is an exciting one. For great golf, spas, horse racing and the Hot Springs National Park, Hot Springs is the place to go. Outdoor enthusiasts love the Ozark Mountains where activities like canoeing, rafting, kayaking, fishing, hiking and rock climbing are popular. The mountain village of Eureka Springs, with its streets lined with Victorian homes, is brimming with boutiques, antique shops and art galleries. Wine enthusiasts love the Arkansas Wine Country, encompassing the towns of Paris, Ozark and Altus, where German style wines are produced. From its ancient mountains to the Delta flatlands leveled by the Mississippi River, the state has a diverse topography with numerous scenic drives. Try the Pig Trail, Ozark Highlands and Sylamore scenic byways in the Ozark National Forest designated by the U.S. Forest Service. Golfers love the state because greens fees are extremely affordable for great courses. A few excellent public access courses are Sage Meadows in Jonesboro, Stonebridge Meadows in Fayetteville and the Mountain Ranch Course in Fairfield Bay.


Restaurants in Arkansas

1. Pig Trail National Scenic Byway

Ark. 23 & Ark. 16, Ozark, AR 72947 http://www.arkansas.com/motorcycling/route/?Name=Pig-Trail-Scenic-Byway/-Side-Trip-to-Oark&id=1
Excellent
94%
Good
6%
Satisfactory
0%
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0%
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Overall Ratings

5.0 based on 16 reviews

Pig Trail National Scenic Byway

Reviewed By 687rogerj - Independence, United States

Great scenery road had just been repaved nice sweeping curves had a blast can't wait to do it again.

2. Queen Wilhelmina State Park

3877 Highway 88 W, Mena, AR 71953-8317 +1 800-264-2477 [email protected] http://www.queenwilhelmina.com
Excellent
62%
Good
30%
Satisfactory
6%
Poor
2%
Terrible
0%
Overall Ratings

4.5 based on 255 reviews

Queen Wilhelmina State Park

Come experience a spectacular mountaintop setting with breathtaking panoramic scenery atop 2,681-foot Rich Mountain, Arkansas's second highest peak. Queen Wilhelmina State Park is one of the 52 state parks administered by the State Parks Division of the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism. Queen Wilhelmina is one of the state park system's eight mountain state parks. Queen Wilhelmina State Park's Lodge is one of the four hotel-like lodges in the Arkansas state park system. The others are historic Mather Lodge at Petit Jean State Park near Morrilton, DeGray Lake Resort State Park Lodge near Arkadelphia, and The Lodge at Mount Magazine in Mount Magazine State Park near Paris. In addition to the lodge, the 460-acre park includes a campground with 41 campsites and a bathhouse; picnic areas; trails; and a seasonal miniature train and mini-golf course. Park interpretive programs highlight Rich Mountain’s fauna and unique flora. The park is on Ark. 88 (Talimena National Scenic Byway) 13 miles west of Mena. [For an alternate route from Mena or during inclement weather, go six miles north on U.S. 71, then travel nine miles west on U.S. 270, then go two miles south up Ark. 272.]

Reviewed By lizh857 - Austin, United States

We just spent 3 nights at Queen Wilhelmina State Park, part of our Arkansas Spring Break Trip from Austin, Texas. Disappointingly we only caught sight once of the amazing vistas from the State Park as we were constantly enveloped in the thickest fog I've ever seen (and I'm British). You could hardly see from one camp site to the next. The camping area itself was quite unusual. We were in site #27 and this was a reasonably good site. It was at least fairly parallel with our neighbors but some of the other sites almost overlap. Our fire pit was less than 3 feet away from the fire pit of site #28 (luckily these were our friends). Every site was pretty quirky. Google maps is great for really getting an idea of each site. The Lodge was nice but not as impressive as Mount Magazine Lodge which was grander. We did the Spring Trail and the Lovers Leap Loop Trail in the park and both were more interesting than you would think for short walks. We also did 2 hikes outside the park. The first day we hiked the Earthquake Ridge Trail. We did the 2.7 mile Northern Loop and then the Southern Loop, crossing the 88 and then back to the visitor center, about a 4 mile hike. This was a really nice hike in the woods with flowers and small waterfalls and ups and downs but nothing difficult. The second day we hiked the Black Fork Mountain trail, a more remote and adventurous trail. The first spur is on the Ouachita National Trail, you cross a bridge and the railroad and then you take the Black Fork Mountain trail, following the white paint markings. It was an interesting walk though rock boulder gardens and pretty forests with small waterfalls. We didn't make it to any particular milestone but we enjoyed the hike and saw some nice vistas and hiked just over 5 miles in total. The path did become sketchier and more overgrown the further we hiked. We'd like to come back, but perhaps not in the fog in March!

3. Scenic 7 Byway

AR http://www.arkansas.com/scenic-byways/scenic-seven.aspx
Excellent
53%
Good
34%
Satisfactory
6%
Poor
3%
Terrible
4%
Overall Ratings

4.5 based on 32 reviews

Scenic 7 Byway

4. Boston Mountains Scenic Loop

Highway 71 Interstate 540, AR
Excellent
82%
Good
9%
Satisfactory
9%
Poor
0%
Terrible
0%
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4.5 based on 11 reviews

Boston Mountains Scenic Loop

5. Crowley's Ridge National Scenic Byway

Excellent
0%
Good
50%
Satisfactory
0%
Poor
0%
Terrible
50%
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2.5 based on 2 reviews

6. Great River Road

AR

7. Highway 49

Piggott, AR

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