Visit Bentonville and Hunden Partners launch strategic planning initiative to guide smart, sustainable tourism development
Visit Bentonville, in partnership with leading tourism advisory firm Hunden Partners, has officially launched the development of a comprehensive Destination Master Plan to guide the city’s tourism growth with intention, alignment and a focus on long-term impact. As Bentonville experiences record growth and prepares for the long-term impact of transformational projects, the need for a unified tourism strategy rooted in smart growth has never been more important.
"This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to bring all stakeholders together around a shared vision for tourism in Bentonville,” said Kalene Griffith, president and CEO of Visit Bentonville. “Tourism fuels our local economy, supports small businesses, enhances our quality of life and supports our community’s growth. This plan will help us identify our city’s assets, gaps, and opportunities to grow, and how we can best tell Bentonville’s story to the world.”
Hunden Partners, which brings deep expertise in destination planning, echoed the importance of aligning strategy with long-term community goals.
“We’re thrilled to partner with Visit Bentonville to create a Destination Master Plan that will align tourism vision with actionable priorities. This plan will serve as a roadmap to guide sustainable growth, enhance visitor experience, and ensure tourism development continues to enrich quality of life for residents while strengthening the city’s position as a leading destination for visitors,” said Rob Hunden, president and CEO of Hunden Partners.
Preparing for Transformational Growth
A number of high-profile developments are now complete or underway that will significantly shape the visitor landscape and create lasting opportunities for residents and businesses. These include the opening of the new Walmart global headquarters and a reimagined Walmart Museum; the expansion of Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art; the launch of the Alice L. Walton School of Medicine and the Heartland Whole Health Institute, positioning Bentonville for growth in medical tourism; a new downtown promenade and Gateway Park; an expansion of the Scott Family Amazeum; and several new hotels opened or currently in development.
Strategic Planning for Smart Growth
The Destination Master Plan will serve as a long-term framework for making strategic decisions around transportation, accommodations, attractions, marketing and community engagement. It will identify Bentonville’s existing strengths, assess market opportunities, and deliver clear, implementable recommendations to support sustainable growth.
The planning process will include community input sessions, stakeholder engagement, market research, visitor and resident sentiment studies, an asset and event inventory, economic impact analysis and destination benchmarking. From this foundation, the plan will prioritize tourism investments and provide direction on how best to enhance Bentonville’s offerings for both residents and visitors.
Key areas of focus may include product development, placemaking opportunities, target marketing strategy, regional collaboration, accessibility assessment and workforce alignment. The plan will also explore how to strengthen the city's image, improve mobility, and elevate the overall visitor experience.
Looking Ahead
Ultimately, the Destination Master Plan aims to ensure Bentonville’s continued growth benefits the entire community. Anticipated outcomes include increased revenue for local businesses, enhanced quality of life, a stronger visitor economy and a more cohesive destination identity.
Visit Bentonville and Hunden Partners will release updates throughout the process as milestones are reached, with community input playing a central role in shaping the final vision.
About Hunden Partners
Hunden Partners is a destination real estate development advisory practice and offers a full range of project advisory and execution services to move projects from concept to funding to execution. Our work includes placemaking and destination tourism planning and strategy; market, financial feasibility, and economic impact analyses; and development implementation services for specialty destination assets such as sports facilities, mixed-use and entertainment districts, convention and expo centers, hotels, arts and entertainment venues, and other catalytic development projects. Hunden has conducted more than 1,000 studies and has had a hand in the development of over $25 billion in built or planned assets around the world. At Hunden Partners, we move destinations forward.
