Bentonville, Arkansas at a Glance
Location: Northwest Arkansas
Access: On Interstate 49 and served by Northwest Arkansas National Airport
Major Meeting Spaces: 21c Museum Hotel, DoubleTree Suites, Four Points by Sheraton
Hotel Rooms: 2,100
Off-Site Venues: Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art,the Momentary, the Record, the Museum of Native American Art, the Amazeum
Contact Info:
Visit Bentonville
479-271-9153
Bentonville, Arkansas, is not your average small town. It’s also not your average small town meeting destination.
Unlike average small towns, even ones with some hefty corporate headquarters, Bentonville is home of the heftiest of all corporate headquarters: Walmart.
And unlike many small towns that attract meetings because of one standout meeting facility, Bentonville doesn’t have a dominant meeting facility as its magnet. Instead, it offers a menu of choices that lets meeting planners surprise attendees.
That’s why Visit Bentonville enjoys marketing what it calls the “Unconventional Convention.”
“Our sweet spot is meetings of about 350 people,” said Amanda Khanga, director of sales at Visit Bentonville, while quickly noting that larger gatherings are possible and frequent.
The Unconventional Convention concept is rooted in multiple hotels and a variety of downtown venues that are convenient to each other.
Planners can have an opening session or keynote speaker in one venue and breakout sessions nearby, letting attendees stretch their legs in the Ozark outdoors. They can stroll around the charming town square and maybe visit a local coffee shop or get a milkshake at the Walmart Museum’s Spark Café Soda Fountain. The museum once was Walton’s 5&10, and that morphed into Walmart.
An extra diversion downtown is admiring a collection of murals that expand Bentonville’s solid reputation for art of many types. A favorite is Big Blue, a sprawling octopus putting the squeeze on a red and white pickup truck. Ask a local about the truck’s significance.
“Bentonville is a city built with intention, not by happenstance,” Khanga said. “It goes back to [Walmart scion] Sam Walton. The extended Walton family takes pride in a community that is a great place to live and to visit.”
Lodging and Event Spaces
Three Bentonville hotels are meeting planners’ primary targets. The artcentric 21c Museum Hotel emphasizes contemporary modern art. It has 104 guest rooms and 12,000 square feet of meeting and exhibit space. The DoubleTree Suites has 140 guest rooms and 14,000 square feet of meeting space, and the Four Points by Sheraton has 105 guest rooms and 15,000 square feet of meeting space.
Bentonville’s list of meeting spaces is extensive and varied. One with an interesting backstory is the Record, an adaptation of a 1950s automobile dealership. Beneath its original wooden barrel ceilings is space for events for up to 850 people. A relaxed and relaxing meeting site is the Compton Gardens and Conference Center, a six-acre sanctuary that celebrates Ozark horticulture and Neil Compton, leader of the fight to save the now-protected Buffalo National River.
Distinctive Venues
By far, Bentonville’s most famous attraction and most appealing facility for meetings is the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, which has been rocking the American art world for a decade. Alice Walton, daughter of Sam Walton, endowed Crystal Bridges, which features works by Thomas Hart Benton, Gilbert Stuart, Georgia O’Keeffe, Andy Warhol and many others. Beyond the galleries are meeting and classroom spaces and a glass-enclosed gathering hall. Sculpture and walking trails link it with downtown.
The Momentary, which champions contemporary art in everyday life, is a satellite of Crystal Bridges. It, too, has a great backstory, since it was originally a cheese factory. The 63,000-square-foot facility has abundant spaces indoors and outdoors for meeting uses.
Art of a completely different kind is the focus of the Museum of Native American History, which has more than 10,000 artifacts from many cultures dating back 14,000 years. The artistry of the makers of hunting implements, decorative pottery and intricate beadwork is obvious.
Fun science is the Amazeum’s calling card. You can stage a corporate retreat or a team-building event amid 50,000 square feet of hands-on science exhibits. Among them are a cave; a cloud theater, wonderful for a few minutes of relaxation; a “touchable tornado”; and the Hershey’s Lab, where you can conduct chocolate experiments.
Consumers know Sam Walton, but aviation fans know Louise Thaden, the Bentonville native and pioneering aviator and the first woman to win a National Air Race. The active general aviation airport, called Thaden Field, is a visually appealing location for a meeting event. Watch the airplanes come and go, and enjoy food from the all-day cafe named — what else — Louise.
By far, Bentonville’s most famous attraction and most appealing facility for meetings is the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, which has been rocking the American art world for a decade. Alice Walton, daughter of Sam Walton, endowed Crystal Bridges, which features works by Thomas Hart Benton, Gilbert Stuart, Georgia O’Keeffe, Andy Warhol and many others. Beyond the galleries are meeting and classroom spaces and a glass-enclosed gathering hall. Sculpture and walking trails link it with downtown.
The Momentary, which champions contemporary art in everyday life, is a satellite of Crystal Bridges. It, too, has a great backstory, since it was originally a cheese factory. The 63,000-square-foot facility has abundant spaces indoors and outdoors for meeting uses.
Art of a completely different kind is the focus of the Museum of Native American History, which has more than 10,000 artifacts from many cultures dating back 14,000 years. The artistry of the makers of hunting implements, decorative pottery and intricate beadwork is obvious.
Fun science is the Amazeum’s calling card. You can stage a corporate retreat or a team-building event amid 50,000 square feet of hands-on science exhibits. Among them are a cave; a cloud theater, wonderful for a few minutes of relaxation; a “touchable tornado”; and the Hershey’s Lab, where you can conduct chocolate experiments.
Consumers know Sam Walton, but aviation fans know Louise Thaden, the Bentonville native and pioneering aviator and the first woman to win a National Air Race. The active general aviation airport, called Thaden Field, is a visua
After-Meeting Destinations
It would be a shame not to explore the outdoor beauty of northwest Arkansas after a Bentonville meeting. The Razorback Greenway offers 37 miles of trails for hikers and bicyclists. Rental bikes are in many towns, including Bentonville. Meeting attendees also can enjoy the Victorian architecture of Eureka Springs or escape underground in commercial caverns such as Mystic Cavern and Crystal Dome Cavern at Harrison.
lly appealing location for a meeting event. Watch the airplanes come and go, and enjoy food from the all-day cafe named — what else — Louise.
