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70-Minute Guided Downtown Eureka Springs Walking Tour

70-Minute Guided Downtown Eureka Springs Walking Tour

Overview

The tour offers a chance to learn about the history of Downtown Eureka Springs - starting before the founding of the town, the people who have made history downtown, and the unique geography of three underground systems - caves and cliffs, the Mud Street rebuild, and the creek that runs under it all.

Walking through the entertainment and shopping district, you get a feel for life as it was, the art district it is now, and see the hidden treasures throughout. Told in stories and vignettes along the way, the tour is a treat for all ages.

You visit an intact underground storefront covered over in the making of the Underground. This is only open to visitors to our tour. This is not an adventure tour. The underground systems are explained, but only the underground storefront is visited.

City: Eureka Springs

Mon 23 Dec

Other dates

You can choose the date already on the booking website

Starting at $17.50

Make a reservation

Mon 23 Dec

Starting at $17.50

Make a reservation

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What's Included

A researched historical tour featuring the cultural and geographic information of Downtown

Additional Info

Service animals allowed
Public transportation options are available nearby
Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
Hand sanitiser available to travellers and staff
Guides required to regularly wash hands

What To Expect

Eureka Springs Historical Downtown

Discover the Behind the Scenes Secrets of Eureka Springs! Our underground Eureka Springs Tour will deliver a unique and entertaining view into the history and folklore of the most fascinating city in Arkansas. Dig deep into the origins of the magic healing waters and the sacred Indian springs. Learn about constructing the unique civil engineering miracle and the boomtown that defined us towards the end of the 19th Century. You will learn about many of the colorful characters that passed through Eureka Springs, including the famous temperance campaigner Carrie Nation, good and bad doctors like Alva Jackson and Norman Baker, the Starr gang bank robbers, and so on much more. Wear good walking shoes as you travel up and down through history, exploring all the quirky and creative nooks that make Eureka Springs so charming. This is your chance to see Eureka Springs in a way that even local residents haven't noticed and your only opportunity to explore underground at the famous bathhouse.

Basin Spring Park

Guests will walk above the Park to see the original location of the Basin Park Spring that was used for healing during the 1880's. They will also see where the Spring is now in the basin of the Park.

Eureka Springs Historical Downtown

Guests will walk up to the Flatiron Building and learn about the history of this iconic (and most photographed) location and the trick about it. Following that they walk up to where the first bank robbery using a vehicle was committed, stories about the three fires, and the history of the Prohibition Era in Downtown Eureka Springs. Venturing further down a secret set of steps that is also a platted street they learn about Carrie Nation who gave her last temperance speech before passing away in Kansas.

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Traveler Photos

Reviews (92)

batonrougeusa

Nov 2022

The tour guide was great, the tour itself was a huge disappointment. We walked the main areas of downtown around Basin Park as the guide described the history of the area. All a while I am anxiously awaiting the part of the tour that descends below the street level of the city - to see the areas that few locals have seen. Finally, near the end of the tour, we descend down some steps in an ally next to a building and enter the basement of the building. It is below the street, you can see the storm drain above but that's it. You are in a basement of a building where a notorious gangster was caught. No tunnels, no underground views of the structures above. Most of the history given on the tour is on plaques around various landmarks of the city. Had I known this before the tour, I would not have spent the money. The title of this tour definitely needs re-wording to Guided history tour - take out the "underground".

Response from Host

Dec 2022

It's unfortunate when what we offer isn't a match for a visitor's expectations. We hope the rest of your visit to Downtown Eureka Springs was a better fit. - Main Street Eureka Springs a 501c3 nonprofit

264lisae

Oct 2022

Our tour guide was enthusiastic and had lots of information to offer about the history of Eureka Springs. The walk had a few short uphill bits but largely it is a walk most can easily do.

Response from Host

Nov 2022

We are so glad that you enjoyed the tour! Main Street Eureka Springs

803rac

Oct 2022

Seeing the "buried" portion of the city, and getting all the background as to why was very interesting. Our guide was very knowledgeable and friendly.

Response from Host

Nov 2022

We are so glad that you went on the tour! What a treat to hear the stories of Downtown Eureka Springs with our storyteller guides! Thank you from Main Street Eureka Springs