If there weren’t already plenty of fun things to do in Hot Springs, add to your list the five concerts coming to town presented by The Finish Line Concert Series at Oaklawn.

So, plan your Hot Springs vacation around one of the great concerts and, of course, make your reservations to stay our Hot Springs B&B!

The outstanding series includes a concert a month for five months:

• June 7 The Oak Ridge Boys. OK, maybe they should be called the Oak Ridge Old Dudes.
  

  Boys? Really??

  But their four-part harmonies and upbeat songs have spawned dozens of Country hits and awards.

• July 19 Diamond Rio performs their show-stopping country hits. They’ve sold more than 10 million albums, receiving Grammy and Country Music awards.

• Aug. 23 Paul Revere and The Raiders
  

  Fashion style?

  come to Oaklawn with a style (do they still dress colonial?) and sixth sense for pleasing an audience.

• Sept. 27 Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers take the stage representing a four-decade career from dusty Texas stages to the White House to Broadway.

• Oct. 25 The Texas-bred band Lonestar finishes the concert series marking their 20^th anniversary. The band is well known for merging their country roots with rich melodies and vocals.

Tickets for all the performances go on sale 10 days before each concert at 9 a.m. Call 501-623-4411 ext. 340 for reservations. Ticket prices start at only $19.95, and the theatre seats only 700–very intimate.

In a stroll through the gardens on this fine day, the blooms are truly eye candy. Besides the magnolias, hydrangeas, gardenias, Brazilian verbena, lilies, and butterfly bush, our feathered friends provided amusement.

Cardinals, ducks “Ricky & Lucy”, finches, mourning doves, robins, and scores of other birds were feasting, playing, and bathing in the gardens. The nest of baby robins will soon be empty.

We invite you to come enjoy a splendid space for relaxation and beauty at our Hot Springs B&B!

As innkeepers, we see a great variety of people from all over the world.  Meeting interesting, kind, funny, and curious persons is a great perk of this job! Guests who return to Lookout Point over and over again weave their way deep into our hearts.

Bill & Cheryl are two of those people woven onto the fabric of the inn, with their gentle spirit and zest for life! Married in Hot Springs years ago, they soon found our inn. Lookout Point became their spot to stay, and they even renewed their marriage vows in our gardens. Often coming with family, the inn rang with laughter and joy with every visit.

Three years ago in March, Bill died suddenly while on vacation with Cheryl and their teenage son. The shock and grief gripped their community in Missouri, and rippled to other states. Bill was a community leader, Boy Scout volunteer, physician, and so much more. In the midst of grief, even “his” innkeepers needed to do something, while feeling so helpless.

Bill's Tree

So we planted a tree. A dogwood.

The first summer, the tree struggled, telling us it was not happy where planted. Our gardener relocated the tree.

The second spring, the tree did not bloom but seemed content.

This month,  in the 3rd spring, profuse blooms are covering this small tree. Bill’s tree is happy and thriving. I am grateful to have known Bill, and to be reminded of life’s beauty through Bill’s tree!

Yesterday Ray & I went to the Garvan Gardens,

Awesome Beauty

expecting to see the last of the daffodils. Instead, we were treated to a feast for the eyes: seas of tulips in early bloom. The sight is breathtakingly beautiful.

The riotous colors tickle the senses, and invite us to stop, pause, and just take in the wonder.

As an added bonus, the handsome peacocks were strutting their colors at the entrance to the gardens. Doesn’t get much better than this on a lovely spring day!

If you can getaway on March 7 or 8 to see the tulips, Lookout Point has a special offer. We also have a very few rooms remaining available for Friday, March 9 (one night stay).

Greeter at Garvan Gardens

Seas of tulips

TripAdvisor, the granddaddy of travel review sites, named Lookout Point to the TOP TEN B&B/Inns in the country!

We learned of this honor from various Arkansas guests, offering congratulations after seeing it on the TV news.

Thanks to everyone that took the time to write a lovely review on TripAdvisor! We are honored, and always look forward to your stay at our Hot Springs B&B.

At Lookout Point, we are committed to taking care of the environment in every way possible. We recycle,  we built the inn with green products, our cleaning products are eco-friendly, we use CFB’s, and the list goes on.

Last year, we partnered with Clean The World, shipping the unused portions of guest soaps to Clean The World. Instead of throwing unused soaps away, we now pay to ship them to Clean The World. These soaps are collected, sterilized, recycled and distributed to 48 countries to stop the spread of preventable diseases.

Every day 9,000 children around the world die from acute respiratory illnesses and diarrheal diseases that could be prevented

Recycled Soaps Clean the World

with simple handwashing. In 2011,  97 bars of soap were made from the little bars of unused soap from Lookout Point guests!

It’s an honor to do small tasks that can make a big difference in people’s lives.

As a member of the 8 Broads in the Kitchen, I was delighted to see our food blog covered in the Boston Examiner this past week. You’ll find some great holiday recipes on the site, including Evil Toffee (so named because it cannot be resisted, it’s so darn good).

The 8 Broads formed to create a fun food website, where we could offer tips and recipes to share with other foodies. In the process, we’ve become fast friends. In addition to the blog, we write for magazines, teach food demos, lead webinars, and have done radio shows.

I just posted to the blog my mother-in-law’s fabulous Christmas butterscotch marshmallow bars.

Butterscotch Bars

Only made at Christmas, these treats remind us of long-ago times in Winnipeg, filled with laughter and bitter cold weather.

What holiday foods bring back memories for you?

New Year’s weekend is a great time to celebrate life and love at our Hot Springs B&B! At midnight, we’ll have a glass of bubbly sparkling wine

New Year's Toast

(our guests love the Toad Hollow Risque that we serve) for your toast, and even a pot of black eyed peas for extra good measure.

Create a memorable start to the New Year with your loved one. Here’s our suggestions for a perfect weekend:

Friday: arrive at Lookout Point & begin relaxing. Dine at Luna Bella (reservations recommended)

Saturday:  After your gourmet breakfast, visit the downtown Hot Springs National Park, and take a soak in the thermal waters at the Quapaw bath house. Explore art galleries and museums downtown

Return to the inn for the afternoon Innkeeper’s Reception (refreshments plus wine/tea). Take a little nap.

Visit the final evening of the Lights on the Landscape at Garvan Woodland Gardens with a lovely stroll through the gardens.

Enjoy a late dinner at Bohemia (continental cuisine). The New Year’s Eve special is 4 courses for only $24! Great food, and friendly service. Reservations required, and we’ll take of all concierge for you.

Midnight: celebrate at the inn with a complimentary toast and some black-eyed peas.  The night is still young! What a great way to welcome 2012.

Our silken microfiber sheets

Lookout Point Sheets

make great gifts for Christmas or wedding presents, especially for those folks that seemingly  have everything.  Who cannot use a great night’s sleep on luxurious sheets?

We use these sheets at our Hot Springs B&B, and at our home. They get softer and softer as they age, the sheets wick moisture, and look like new for years to come. (Guaranteed by the company–if ever there is a problem, just let us know and we’ll take care of it!)

The sheets are available in white, ivory, tea green and chocolate colors. The Queen sets are $165,  King $179 and shipping to your home is free!  The set includes a deep-pocket fitted sheet, flat sheet and 2 pillowcases.

If you would like to order these sheets, just give us a call at 866.525.6155.  Happy Holidays!

Ahh, sitting outside on a warm evening, enjoying a great scoop or two or three homemade ice cream.

Triple Ice Cream scoops

Here’s our favorite ice cream spots in Hot Springs:

1.  Nom Noms, Mexican Grill-N- Chill. Who would have thought a Mexican grill rates with fantastic homemade ice cream? In a non-descript former fast food building, this place rocks. I tried the strawberry sorbet with cake batter, and Ray had nutella heath icecream.  Smooth as silk.

2. Scoops Ice Cream. Scoops is probably the better known, and is a very popular ice cream spot.  Great flavors and friendly service.

When you stay at our Hot Springs bed & breakfast, we promise to send you to ALL of the best spots in the area.