We had a one night stay in Bentonville during our recent trip to the Ozarks. The good news was Garth Brooks was in town for a concert in Fayettville. The bad news was that we could not get a room at the best hotel in Bentonville, 21C Museum Hotel.
I'd never heard of this hotel before, although my son Phil had stayed in it many times on his trips to Walmart headquarters. He always told me how great it was.
21C Museum Hotels is a Louisville-based combination of contemporary art museum and boutique hotel. It was founded by Laura Lee Brown and Steve Wilson, philanthropists from Louisville who wanted to combine the boutique hotel experience with great art. The hotel chain, all 9 of them, was sold to Accor in 2018. Accor is a French company that owns and operates hundreds of hotels around the world. However, the founders still have a 15% stake in the company, which means they have a lot of say in how things are done. Most hotels are in the midwest and south: Louisville, Cincinnati, Bentonville, Durham, Lexington, Oklahoma City and others. Chicago and Kansas City are in development.
The lobby of each hotel exhibits contemporary art of the 21st century, and it is free of charge and open to the public. I was most impressed with the quality of the art.
Each location of 21C has an onsite restaurant, many receiving recognition and awards. We ate at The Hive in Bentonville, one such recognized restaurant.
If you are in any of the cities where there is a 21C hotel, check it out, even if you don't stay there. Better yet, stay there if you can afford it. I plan to next time I'm in any city that has one.
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