Northwest Area Inns and Sites

My husband and I will be traveling to Garfield for a wedding in Sept. and will have 2 full days for sightseeing. We%26#39;ll stay at Whitney Mtn. Lodge for the wedding, but the nite we get into XNA we want to stay at a small hotel or inn around the Gentry area. Something quiet and historical would be great, but it needs to be within 10 mi. or less of XNA since we%26#39;ll be arriving around 8pm after a long flight from Calif. I was thinking of possibly staying at the Apple Crest Inn, but don%26#39;t know much about it. Also, any suggestions as to where to have a late dinner not far from the airport? We%26#39;re pretty low-key, non-urban folks, so a relaxing ambience is better for us than a lot of action and energy. We%26#39;re planning to visit Ozark Nat%26#39;l Forest, Beaver Lake, Pea Ridge Park, and Eureka Springs, but prob. don%26#39;t have time to go to the Buffalo River area, as it looks like it%26#39;d be at least a 3 hr. round-trip. Any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated! This%26#39;ll be our first trip to Arkansas and we%26#39;re really looking forward to it.

Northwest Area Inns and Sites

What is XNA?

Northwest Area Inns and Sites

Let me rephrase that. I am assuming XNA is an airport - where is it? I%26#39;m not sure why you are wanting to stay near Gentry. It is a very little town, and it isn%26#39;t far from Springdale or Bentonville, which have much more variety in lodging and dining. From Siloam Springs, just south of Gentry, it is a very easy drive on a nice, divided road to Springdale.

If you decide on driving to Springdale, there is a new Comfort Suites just east of I-540 (less than a year old). I stayed there last fall on business, and it was a very clean, well-kept and comfortable facility.

Beckers, thanks for your reply. Yes, we%26#39;d consider staying around Springdale altho%26#39; the smaller the town the better and that%26#39;s why Gentry sounded attractive. We%26#39;re not very keen on the larger chain hotels and would prefer to find an inn or small-scale hotel--something quaint and charming, if that%26#39;s possible.

Oh--XNA is the designation for Arkansas Northwest Regional Airport n/w of Fayetteville, altho%26#39; I think it may be closer to Bentonville. Apparently, it%26#39;s new enuf that a lot of maps don%26#39;t even show it. American Airlines has quite a few flights in and out of XNA. Since we have such a limited time in AR, it would be nice to stay and eat places that have more of a ';hometown'; flavor rather than chains that we could go to in other places. Thanks for any additional ideas you or others might have!

Although things may have changed since the last time I flew into XNA (two or three years ago), you may have to temper your expectations a bit. There%26#39;s almost literally nothing within ten miles of XNA except pastures and chicken houses. Springdale, Rogers, and Bentonville are the nearest towns of any size, and about the only places you%26#39;ll find any sort of restaurant or lodging. The first Bentonville exit on I-540 has seen a major influx of chain hotels and restaurants and stores over the last several years, and there are comparable options in Rogers and Springdale.

The official XNA web site (http://www.nwara.com) has a visitor%26#39;s guide section with information on area hotels and restaurants. As for restaurants, you%26#39;re likely to have some trouble finding anyplace with what I%26#39;d call ';relaxing ambiance'; open that late. It%26#39;s likely to be chain places or nothing.

Given that you%26#39;re going to arriving late after at least two flights that day (assume you%26#39;re changing at either ORD or DFW), the last thing you%26#39;re going to need is a disappointing or completely unacceptable place to stay, and if you end up in Gentry, you%26#39;re pretty much stuck with what you find at the Apple Crest Inn (about which I know nothing, good or bad), or continue on to Siloam Springs, which means Holiday Inn Express-level or lower lodging options and not much more than McDonalds for dining options. Even if the Apple Crest is the platonic ideal of a quaint B%26amp;B, you%26#39;re still a long way from any viable dining options. From the airport, Gentry%26#39;s the opposite direction from most of the other options (Bentonville, Rogers, Springdale), so you%26#39;d be seriously inconvenienced if you had to turn around and drive a half hour back the other way to find someplace to stay or eat. If it were me, I%26#39;d bag the idea of getting ';quiet and historical'; and go for a known quantity like the Hilton Garden Inn, SpringHill Suites, Embassy Suites, or Candlewood Suites in the Bentonville/Rogers area, at least for that first night. Eurkea Springs does quaint much better than the Washington/Benton county area -- they%26#39;ve been at it since the 1880s. So find a B%26amp;B in Eureka Springs (can%26#39;t swing a cat there without hitting one) for one of the nights of your sightseeing time to satisfy your quaint jones.

Thanks for the very helpful info., Rackensack! We%26#39;ll make our plans with an open mind and be more practical/flexible about dining and accommodations.