Arlington Resort Hotel & Spa — Hotel in Hot Springs

We checked out 45 minutes after check in- we couldn’t take it.

TLDR: I’m not one to write reviews, but I wish someone had warned me. Please double check ALL reviews before booking, on social media too. It was filthy and probably not up to health codes. We absolutely do not recommend staying unless you like water damage, rust, and mysterious stains on your carpet. Do yourself a favor, have a cocktail at the bar and sleep at a different hotel.

My fiancé and I went to Hot Springs and were very excited to stay in the Arlington because of its history and all the good recommendations we had gotten. We expected it to be a bit dated since it is historic, but we were beyond disappointed and disgusted with what we found. Our experience started by talking to a front desk agent who let us know we would be charged $15 per day for a “resort fee” and $30 per day for overnight parking. We thought this was a little much considering the hefty price we already paid on the suite, but agreed that it was probably due to the name and reputation of the hotel. The lobby and dining room area were absolutely beautiful, and did not prepare us at all for what we would see on the seventh floor where we were staying. The hallways were dark with flickering lights, paint crumbling, furniture dusty to the point that people left messages on it, water damage everywhere, open construction (that was not mentioned to us at all, and that a child could easily stumble into), ripped off ceilings, “staff areas” (where the ice machine is, which generally is open to the public) had the door wide open and was disgusting. All this we saw getting off of the elevator, and naively thought that maybe it was theming for the “haunted” reputation of the hotel and that our room would be better. It was not. We entered our room and we were greeted by mysterious stains on the carpet, rust all over the bathroom, scratches and stains on the walls, cables and cords just on the floor, mildew, water damage all over the ceiling, and a view of tires and an overall dirty feeling to the room. Needless to say, it was absolutely not what we were shown in the pictures. I’m not a germaphobe, but I didn’t even feel that I could take a shower in that bathroom nor take off my shoes without contracting something. For tall people, the shower head barely hung above my head and I am 5’2. There was no hope for my fiance to be able to shower there. We took pictures of the room and the hallway, and decided to explore some other floors to see if maybe the issue was that our floor in particular was being restored. They all looked the same. After about half an hour of deciding whether or not we felt safe in that hotel, we decided that it was a better idea to just find a simple but clean hotel nearby. We went to the front desk to explain our situation and the gentleman there, although very kind, did not seem surprised at all. Almost like he’s heard it all before. We were offered a “better” room, but frankly, we did not see it getting any better, at least not to the point where we would feel safe and comfortable sleeping there. Although we were only there for about 40 minutes and did not even touch our bed, we were only given a 75% refund, and have been trying for the past five days to get all our money back. Apparently they will not do a charge back and we are responsible for calling our credit card company and booking platform independently, explain our situation, and be stuck in a whole bunch of back and forth. So far, not looking good. We booked this hotel for the experience, and I can confidently say I would not recommend staying here to anyone. The lobby, dining, etc is absolutely beautiful, but no one should even be allowed up to the rooms if not on...

I do not like leaving negative reviews, but I believe everyone considering this hotel needs to know about the condition of this place. When we got there, Valet brought us 2 carts and stood there waiting for a tip. We unload our SUV on our own and pushed both carts into the lobby where there were 9 people waiting to check in at around 7:30pm. It took almost 40 minutes to get the keys to our room, after driving 10 hours..... There was only one person working at the front desk. No bellman at this resort and spa. Once we got to our room, we were in shock. The room smelled horrible and the carpets looked like somebody had recently had a party and everyone had spilled their drinks and food.... stains were everywhere... nasty stains. I called down to the front desk to change rooms, no answer. Called 3 more times over the next 15 minutes, no answer. I then called every single extension on the phone to get a hold of anyone working at the hotel.... nobody answered, including an operator. by now it is almost 9pm. I walked down to the front desk and this poor guy was overwhelmed.... did not know why nobody was answering the phone... he didnt know where any other employees were and asked if I could come back in 30 minutes. I said know, I would reach out to the manager in the morning. Went upstairs and figured we would suck it up for the night, order some room service and address everything in the morning. We sprayed my cologne around the room to try to kill the smell..... No luck with room service.....Closed during the week at this "resort and spa". The shower head was about 5 feet 8 inches high, so if you are over 6 feet tall like I am, its a challenge.

You can see by the pics what we were greeted to when we walked to and into our room..... it was incredible to me that this was actually considered a "resort" people stayed in... it was atrocious. I mean, $29 a night motel gross..... actually, the $29 motel was probably cleaner and in better shape. The bathroom was dirty, hair in the sink.... etc etc.... the mattress felt like it was as old as the hotel. We woke up the next morning and checked out. We stayed one of our three nights. They could care less when we shared out experience at the front desk and said they would do us a favor and not charge us for the other 2 nights. LOL....

We looked online and drive right over to OAKMONT resort hotel. IT WAS AMAZING. Brand new, huge rooms, modern with great technology, IMPECCABLE service, amazing pool, gym, restaurants and room service and it was LESS expensive than The Arlington..... I was in shock. The place was spectacular.

I am sure the Arlington was the place back in the day.... you could feel the history in the bar lobby area (where we waited in line to check in)..... but the owners of this place, Sky Capital Group, should be ashamed of themselves. Promoting this place as a resort and spa is like calling McDonals a Michelin star restaurant.

It may not sound like it by the tone of this review.... but I am not a complainer.... I am not a Karen and I know that every business can have an off day, but this place needs to shut down and be completely updated. I was excited to stay here for the history and wrote off most of the negative reviews and "sour grapes" customers.... I was wrong.....

Do yourself a favor and do not stay here.....

Do better...

Firstly, I’m going to speak of service! Was beyond impressed with the front desk clerk, ROMEO. Initially our visit to Hot Springs was intended to be a day trip to a medical appt at Chi St. Vincent Diagnostic Clinic., however, having not been to Hotvsprings since I was a pre-teen, tgat fact and it being my friend’s birthday, and that we gave in to our curiosity regarding seeing some of the sites, all melded together and suddenly we find ourselves at the Arlington’s front desk.

I pride myself in being savvy, as well as being fair (I say that in regards to what we saw of hotel’s condition.) The element of savvy - meant I could rely on my past experience in having worked for Sheraton ITT, years back. So my friend aka birthday girl and I find ourselves at the front desk and when I explained that our overnight stay was wholly unexpected, abd that my friend especially was tired and her energy depleted, plus the fact that it was her bday (Age 73) he booked into a room on the 5th floor, which had spring water flowing to its bathroom. I’d always wanted to do the baths in Hot Springs yet never had the time or finances,, so this opportunity afforded to us by Romeo, was a delightful experience and I counted my and our blessings as I soaked in the deep antique tub in our bathroom.

Regarding conditions of/at the Arlington, keep in mind that the hotel opened December 31st, 1924. Just think as of this month abd that date , the Arlington will be celebrating its 100 birthday. No small feat, that. Just contemplate the stories!!! And no I’m not talking hotel height, lol. Contemplate if you will, the foot traffic, and countless guests both infamous & famous. who opted to book overnight accommodations at the Arlington. Yes, the hotel as I witnessed it is indeed a work in progress but isn’t that true of most humans, not to mention structures elsewhere such as San Fran’s Golden Gate Bridge? Structures, buildings Archirictapbcreations all age abd require updating and improvement be made, both safety wise and cosmetically. I can only speak for our 5th floorbspring water room. I did not see any stains anywhere. I did not see any mold anywhere. I can be nit picky and am very analytical and yes to the chagrin of my friends, an overthinker. Both my bday close friend and I loved our full size (queen???) beds abd slept without interruption or discomfort.

Now…..in mentioning condition history needs to be considered as well. I’m a vintage goods & antiques picker and love backstories, abd how world events affect historu, architecture, and culture plus I adore stories.

I’m truly glad we did up and decide to stay overnight at the Arlington. It was a very quiet, low key stay abd I was glad of that. At the time of our stay no events were occurring but a film convention was scheduled to be held there that forthcoming week.

I don’t have any investments with owners of the hotel. I don’t have any fiscal association either. I just hoped to try to give a review that shines on things not mentioned.

If you have plans to stay, count your good fortune if your front desk clerk happens to be none other than Romeo. Both my friend fruehd and I each were impressed with his courteousness, thoughtfulness, empathy, and helpfulness, as well as his concern and efficiency in taking care of us the moment we arrived at his desk....