Help with planning for Marathon in March '06

I%26#39;m travelling with my sister to Little Rock in March. She will be walking in the Marathon. I%26#39;m just there as her ';soccer Mom';, but will probably do the 5K. We will make reservations for the Peabody Hotel. The Doubletree is also recommended by the marathon planners but gets terrible reviews here. We will arrive early Saturday morning by air or rail. We want to visit the Clinton Center and the River market area on Saturday. The race is on Sunday. We will leave by noon on Monday. Is this Do-able without renting a car? Any tips on taxis or shuttles from the airport / train station? What are some other interesting things to do downtown?

Help with planning for Marathon in March '06

You%26#39;ve got it made. You will have a great time on foot staying at the fine Peabody Hotel. You are located next door to the Arkansas First State Capitol (where Clinton started his campaigns and gave acceptance speeches) and it is a good museum which focuses on Arkansas History. You can walk along Markham Street just about 3-4 blocks to the lively River Market and a short walk beyond to the Clinton Center. Or you can make this entire walk through the Riverfront Park behind the hotel. You can also visit the very nice Historic Arkansas Museum which is just a block off Markham near the hotel. This is a mini-Williamsburg with restored houses and a fine museum which focuses on early Territorial history. The airport is a very short distance from downtown. The cab may be shabby but it shouldn%26#39;t set you back much. You are going to have a great time.

Help with planning for Marathon in March '06

Thanks JimJade!

I downloaded a map from the hotel website but sometimes its hard to tell whether the distances are managable.

We also have a new trolley downtown. The Doubletree is only a block or so off the trolley line, and you can easily get to the rivermarket. I think that the Clinton Center is our of walking distance from the Doubletree, although you%26#39;re doing a marathon. I would guess that it%26#39;s probably a couple of milew between the hotel and the library. The trolley line is being extended to go all the way to the library, so maybe that will be in place when you get here. The hotel may offer a shuttle or some other transportation. The library will be clearly visible from this hotel, so you%26#39;ll be able to judge for yourself when you get here.

I think you%26#39;re making a wise decision by opting for the Peabody rather than the Doubletree. A few years ago during a winter power outage we stayed at the Doubletree and were NOT impressed! The room was tiny and the staff rude.