Fayetteville Square ~ Photo Courtesy Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism
Visitors and residents love Fayetteville, and with good reason. Located at the edge of the Boston Mountains deep within the Ozarks, there are tons of things to do in and around the city. In fact, it can be argued that Fayetteville has it all; including jaw-dropping scenery, a vibrant and growing art and cultural scene, a thriving and expanding business community, world class culinary districts, and some of the most gorgeous country NWA has to offer. There is no shortage of things to do in this bustling city.
In addition, with a student enrollment of more than 20,000, the pride and joy of Fayetteville, NWA, and the entire state for that matter, is the University of Arkansas, or “U of A” as the locals call it. It’s the U of A’s main campus, naturally making it home to many cultural, community and sporting events.
During the fall and the spring, thousands of students come to the city to attend the university. This yearly influx of students greatly changes the complexion of this NWA city. During the school term when the University of Arkansas Razorbacks sports program is active, thousands of fans throng to the campus to support various university-supported athletic events. The Razorbacks are consistently top contenders in the SEC conference and are cheered on by many thousands of enthusiastic fans. In fact, it would be hard to find a louder or larger fan base anywhere. You show me an Arkansas native, and I’ll show you a died-in-the-wool Arkansas Razorbacks fan.
Photo Courtesy Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism.
Parade magazine listed Fayetteville as one of “America’s Most Beautiful Cities” in 2012. CBSNews.com ranked it fourth in its list of the cheapest places to live in the U.S. USA Today named the city as having one of the “Top Libraries in America.” Forbes ranked it seventh best college sports town and eighth best business and careers city. U.S News ranked it as one of the best places to retire. Perhaps most importantly, Forbes named the Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers area as the second-best area in the U.S for recovery from the current economic recession. That says a tremendous amount about this beautiful region, and it’s no surprise why this area is still going strong.
Close to Bentonville, the home of Walmart, the city plays host in the Bud Walton Arena to the thousands of Walmart shareholders at their annual meeting. J. B. Hunt makes its headquarters in nearby Lowell, AR. Springdale, AR is the headquarters for the world-renowned Tyson Foods. These three mega-corporations, Walmart, J.B. Hunt and Tyson Foods, have been, and continue to be a huge driving force in the area.
History enthusiasts come to the city to explore its past. This is the perfect place to explore some of the most important Civil War sites, including The Battle of Fayetteville, Clinton House Museum, Ridge House, Headquarters House, Arkansas Air and Military Museum, the Country Doctor Museum, and the Fayetteville National Cemetery, which is one of 14 national cemeteries instituted by President Abraham Lincoln.
Each year, the city has more than 180 festivals, including the world-famous Bikes, Blues and BBQ, the Block Street Block Party, the Le Chocolate Feast and many others. Its lively entertainment districts, found downtown and on Dickson Street, are the places to find nightlife in the NWA region. Nightspots like George’s Majestic Lounge, featuring an outdoor patio and live entertainment, has been wildly popular for years; Willy D’s, a hot piano bar, keeps the heartbeat pumping for the city.