BentonvilleArkansas

Enjoying craft coffee while overlooking scenic cycling trails at Airship Coffee at Coler Mountain Bike Preserve

Visit Bentonville

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Admiring a towering woolly mammoth skeleton at the Museum of Native American History

Drager Creative/Visit Bentonville

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Posing with a sculpture entitled LOVE by artist Robert Indiana at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art

Drager Creative/Visit Bentonville

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A demonstration of traditional dance at the Museum of Native American History’s Native American Cultural Celebration

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Mountain biker tackling an obstacle on the Slaughter Pen trails

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Major Airports:
Northwest Arkansas/Bentonville (XNA)
Tulsa (TUL)
States:
Arkansas

Year-round mountain biking and world-class museums in northwest Arkansas

Lush green spaces meet rich cultural centers in this friendly Southern community. Mountain biking is Bentonville’s main claim to fame, with a vast network of cycling trails for all abilities winding from its walkable downtown to the bluffs and hollers of the Arkansas countryside. Mild weather makes biking a blast all year, while a full slate of museums and public art installations invite you to indulge your inner culture lover. Once you’ve worked up an appetite from cycling, hiking and exploring expansive museum galleries, dig into an eclectic and farm-fresh dining scene powered by James Beard Foundation honorees and global flavors. Lodging options abound, from a combination art museum and boutique hotel to cozy cottages in the heart of downtown.

Fresh Air Pursuits

It’s not hard to find exciting ways to get outside in Bentonville. Explore Bentonville Square and the rest of downtown on foot, enjoying boutique shopping and cozy cafés along the way. Downtown is connected to nearbyArkansas cities via a network of scenic greenways, allowing hikers and bikers an easy transition from city charms to the majesty of nature. Cyclists flock to Bentonville to take advantage of its impressive mountain biking scene. You’ll find over 100 kilometers of single-track trails across town and the surrounding area. This includes options for all experience and ability levels, including several stretches that can accommodate adaptive three-wheel bikes for riders with mobility needs. Trails are abundant all across town, but Coler Mountain Bike Preserve is a great one-stop-spot for cyclists, hikers and nature lovers alike. Savor freshly roasted coffee with panoramic views at local gem Airship Coffee’s Coler location: The unique open-air cafe is only accessible via biking and hiking trails.

World-Class Museums

Celebrate the USA’s artistic and cultural heritages at a wealth of incredible museums in the Bentonville area. With artwork representing the colonial era to the present, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art houses a permanent collection with works by Norman Rockwell, John Singer Sargent, Georgia O’Keeffe and Andy Warhol, among others. The dramatic Moshe Safdie-designed museum shares its sprawling grounds with the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Bachman-Wilson House, as well as a network of forest trails, sculpture gardens and waterside pavilions. The museum’s satellite facility, the Momentary, focuses on visual and performing arts, culinary experiences, festivals and hosting artists-in-residence. Best of all, both experiences offer free admission year-round.

Another free museum, The Museum of Native American History (nicknamed MONAH) invites visitors to take a 14,000-year journey through the past, from the early paleo period through the pre-Columbian period, weaving the past and present together to educate future generations about the diversity of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas. The museum houses over 10,000 Native American artifacts and regularly hosts Indigenous artists, storytellers and musicians for live presentations.

More thrills await at the Scott Family Amazeum, a hands-on hub of creative exploration and learning geared toward young (and young at heart) travelers. Nearby, the Walmart Museum provides an immersive experience detailing the history of the global corporation, which got its start right on Bentonville’s Main Street. The Peel Museum & Botanical Gardens combines the historical intrigue of an Italianate mansion with the beauty of nature. In addition to these collections, Bentonville is home to more than 100 pieces of public art scattered across the city.