Good Place for Camping/vacation in Arkansas

It is a little out of your way, but my dad and I stopped in Blanchard Springs about 8 years ago and had a really nice time. There was a ton of camping, nice creeks, caverns to tour. Mountain View isn't so far away and it offers all sorts of accomodations, shopping, and there was some sort of little historical park there with all sorts of handicrafts made the old-fashioned way--soap, pottery, quilts, etc. I've always thought about going back when my daughter gets a little older.

My absolute favorite place is Devil's Den. http://www.arkansasstateparks.com/devilsden/
I have lots of family in the area, so I don't often camp there anymore, but it is SO beautiful there.

We just made a trip through the Ozark Mountains, NW corner..don't know how far away this is from where your planning..IT is absolutely stunning! My husband and I would even like to retire there. Look into it. Have fun!

The historical park mentioned in the previous comment is called "Ozark Folk Center" and is definitely a good place to visit. About an hour north of Mountain View is the Buffalo National River with great canoeing, swimming and hiking and lots of places to camp since it is a National Park. Arkansas is FULL of wonderful adventures! Blanchard Springs mentioned in the other response is where you'll find cavern tours that are not commercialized and are actually "living" caverns. They are operated by the USDA and there are two tours for a reasonable price plus video presentations on cave life while you wait. When my kids were home we got year passes to give you an idea how awesome the caverns are. Very much worth the stop!