The Basics
Queen Wilhelmina State Park
3877 Highway 88 West
Mena, AR 71953
Phone: (479) 394-2863
Email: queenwilhelmina@arkansas.com
Directions: Located 13 miles west of Mena, AR on the Talimena Scenic Byway (Ark. Hwy 88)
About Queen Wilhelmina
**Special Notice**
Closed since March 2012, the Lodge at Queen Wilhelmina State Park is undergoing major renovations at this time, and is expected to reopen sometime late in 2013. This closure includes the enitre lodge, lobby, restaurant, meeting rooms and restrooms. All other facilities in the park, including the campground and hiking trails, remain open. For more information, click here.
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Located along the Talimena Scenic Byway, Queen Wilhelmina State Park sits atop Rich Mountain, Arkansas' second highest point. Located in the scenic Ouachita mountains, this "Castle in the Sky" offers breathtaking mountain scenery with "royal" hospitality.
After the completion of three major railroads through the Ouachitas in the late 1800s, railroad officials were looking to increase passanger traffic by opening a thirty-five room lodge atop Rich Mountain. The lodge was opened on June 22, 1898. Because Dutch investors had provided financial assistance for the railroad, the lodge was named Wilhelmina Inn, after Holland's Queen Wilhelmina.
The venture proved to be unsuccessful, and changed hands many times over the years. It permanetely closed in 1910, and soon fell into disrepair. At times, it was even used to house livestock. A group from Mena purchased the site in the 1950s, and persuaded the senate to designate the site Queen Wilhelmina State Park, which became official in 1957. Land for the park was soon aquired thereafter.
Using the ruins of the first lodge as a foundation, a second lodge was constructed in 1959. As funds became available, additions were made to the site. Although it had previously had some rooms already opened, the lodge was dedicated and officially opened on June 22, 1963, the sixty-fifth anniversary of the first lodge. Unfortunately, in November 1973, the lodge was destroyed by fire. A new lodge was constructed in 1975, and modeled closely after the original building. This is the park's current lodge, and was dedicated on Nov. 23, 1975.
The Queen Wilhelmina Lodge features 38 quest rooms, a restaurant, a gift shop, and a meeting room. The parks also features hiking trails, a native plant and wildlife center, and a campground, supporting both tents and RVs.
Features & Facilities
Gift Shop | Meeting Room | Amphitheater | Minature Golf | Minature Train | Restaurant | Lodging | Campground | Restrooms | Showers | Dump Station
Activities Available
What's Nearby
Parks & Nature
Heavener Runestone State Park
Ouachita National Forest
Trails
Heavener Runestone State Park
Ouachita National Forest
Camping
Ouachita National Forest
Lodging
Local Eateries
Gear & Supplies
Other Attractions
Towns & Cities