21c Museum Hotel Bentonville

A gallery you can sleep in, steps from Crystal Bridges

★★★★★📍 Downtown Bentonville, Arkansas$$$

Bentonville's transformation from a small Ozark town into an art and cycling destination began with Crystal Bridges, and 21c arrived soon after its opening, giving visitors a hotel that matched the museum's ambitions. The hotel's galleries are curated like a museum, with exhibitions changing on a regular cycle and public tours offered, so even guests staying elsewhere drop in. The hotel opened in early 2013 in a building designed by New York architect Deborah Berke, and the art lives in the lobby, corridors and meeting rooms rather than in a separate wing.

The stay craft: book a room facing the square or the courtyard, walk to Crystal Bridges along the trail in the morning, return for lunch at The Hive, and spend the evening on the square. Rent a bike — Bentonville's mountain-bike and paved trail network starts at the door — and plan a visit to the Momentary for contemporary performances and exhibitions. On the square, the Walmart Museum occupies Sam Walton's original five-and-dime, and the Momentary, opened in 2020 in a former cheese factory, adds festivals, performances and contemporary exhibitions a few minutes away.

Practicals: 200 Northeast A Street, downtown Bentonville, valet parking, about half an hour from Northwest Arkansas National Airport. Fit: art lovers, couples and cyclists pairing trails with galleries. Compared with the newer chain hotels around Bentonville, 21c costs more but is the rare hotel that is itself an art destination, and its spot by the square means you can leave the car parked all weekend. It is part of Accor's MGallery collection, so Accor loyalty points apply.