Eureka Springs hotels, motels and bed & breakfasts were being allowed to open again for out-of-state recreational travelers starting May 5. Arkansas residents could already be accepted as guests, but those make up a small portion of the visitors to Eureka Springs.
Many people in high-risk categories are likely to still shelter at home. For visitors willing to venture out, careful steps are being made to keep them safe.
Bill Ott, director of Marketing & Communications, Crescent and Basin Park Hotels, said they chose to not reopen giving staff time to spruce up the property. Ott said the Crescent and Basin Park will be carefully reopening following strict protocols of the Arkansas Department of Health, the National Restaurant Association, and the American Hotel & Lodging Association.
These protocols include:
- Guests will be welcomed beginning at 3 p.m. on Friday, May 15 for weekend accommodations only, with all guests checking out no later than 11 a.m. on Monday, May 18. This Friday through Monday weekend lodging pattern will remain in place for the time being.
- All arriving guests will be given a mask and asked to review and agree to travel protocols. In addition, hotel protocols will be made available to guests to review, both online and hard copy.
- The hotel will only allow 50 percent occupancy to ensure separation protocols. This represents 36 hotel rooms and four cottages.
- Only three people maximum per room occupancy will be allowed, including adults and children.
- Guests from “hot spots” defined by the Arkansas Department of Health will be unable to overnight in Eureka Springs
- The hotel will remain closed to all day trippers, and trolley and tram riders.
Ott said SkyBar Gourmet Pizza at the Crescent will be open all three days from noon to 8 p.m. where Arkansas Department of Health guidelines regarding masks and spacing requirements will be followed. Delivery and pick-up orders are available during these same hours.
Participants in the Ghost Tours and certain other activities will need to agree to non-invasive temperature testing. If any patron tests above 100.4 °, that person will be given a no-charge cancellation, i.e. full refund or credit. Any and all patrons participating in any of these activities will be required to wear a nose and mouth covering mask during the full activity period. If a guest patron does not have a mask, an adequate mask will be provided by the hotel at no cost.
Jack Moyer, general manager and executive vice-president of the Historic Hotels, said they are also asking visitors to adhere to proper social distancing and avoid crowds of greater than ten.
“We would further encourage you if you have been or are feeling sick to please reschedule your trip,” Moyer said. “Also, if you or anyone in your party has recently been around someone who has been feeling sick, please reschedule your trip. Our staff and property are ready to welcome back travelers from surrounding states. We all love and need this opportunity to travel and improve our morale and optimism during these challenging times.”
Another of the larger hotels in town, the Inn of the Ozarks, never completely closed down choosing to remain open to serve essential services travelers.
“We adopted protocols to make sure we are safe,” General Manager Randy Wolfinbarger said. “Once someone checks out, we shut the room down for 72 hours and properly sanitize it before we re-rent to anyone else. We are sanitizing all touch points at the hotel.”
Wolfinbarger said they aren’t yet seeing much demand from recreational travelers. He thinks Memorial Day will be the first time they see a lot of overnight lodging. Many people are likely to largely continue sheltering at home.
“I think it is going to be gradual until people feel comfortable traveling again,” Wolfinbarger said. “It is easier to shut business down than to restart. Once we get Myrtie Mae’s restaurant open Friday, we may see an uptake in visits. But it has yet to be seen how people react to being required to wear masks in restaurants.
“There is going to be a certain mindset it is too early yet to dine in, and they will still do takeout. Our restaurant is a local hangout and people won’t be able to hug and things like that. It is going to be difficult for people. They have been cooped up and are ready to get out, but it is a whole new mindset. No one is immune to this. The only thing we can hope people learn through this is everyone learns to wash their hands well.”
Wolfinbarger said no one has been immune to the impacts of the health intrusion. He saw the first big challenge was people learning to quarantine and practice social distancing. The second one, he predicts, will be testing the tolerance of people when they see “a pandemic of stupidity when people get too relaxed and are not treating it as seriously as they should be. As hoteliers and restaurateurs, we will just keep reminding people to do the right things.”
At the New Orleans Hotel, a no-contact check-in system is in place. Sue Goldberg, general manager, said keys are being left in the door of the room.
“We are following the governor’s guidelines for reopening,” Goldberg said. “We are disinfecting everything. We have to leave the room blocked off so no one can rent it for three days before we can go in and clean it. I have a mask and gloves. I am not allowed to park cars, so I can’t offer valet service like I used to. We are not serving breakfast at this time.”
Patrick Burnett, owner of Sherwood Cottages, said they are opening all cottages on May 15 and two motel rooms (spaces a motel room apart). While they weren’t seeing many reservations for the coming weekend, they have rented a lot of cottages for Memorial Day and the entire place booked for a wedding the last weekend in May. And their first weekend in June is fully booked, as well.
Burnett said Sherwood Court is naturally socially distanced. Cottages are all up to 20 feet apart, separate buildings that make a stay as safe as possible.
“We have also increased our already stringent, cleaning protocols to make sure every cottage and room is completely sanitized between visits,” he said. “There are no back-to-back stays with a cleaning day blocked after every departure. We have discontinued our weekend breakfasts during this time.”