*** The Peabody is no longer in Little Rock, but Memphis still has one. ***
What is it?
It’s just plain fun. Every day, the hotel loads ducks into an elevator, leaves a red carpet, and lets the ducks wander into the lobby to swim around the fountain and be examined. You can stay at the hotel or just visit for the duck march.
For whatever reason, kids love watching ducks march down the red carpet. Adults do too. It really is cute and the ducks are incredibly trained. They can tell when it’s time to show off. You can see that they know they are stars.
The Peabody Duck tradition actually started in Arkansas:
“It all started in the 1930s when Frank Schutt, General Manager of the Peabody Hotel – Memphis, and a good friend, Chip Barwick, Sr., both avid outdoorsmen, returned from a weekend hunting trip in Arkansas. It looks like they’d drank a little Tennessee whiskey and thought, with schoolboy jokes, that it would be fun to place some of their live duck decoys (it was legal for hunters to use live decoys) in the beautiful but barren Peabody Fountain. -Peabody Hotel Group
Apparently people liked it and still do!
Where is?
Peabody Little Rock is located in the former Excelsior Hotel in downtown Little Rock (next to the Old Statehouse) at 3 Statehouse Plaza.
Google map
Peabody Little Rock Versus Peabody Memphis
I may be a bit biased, but I think Peabody Little Rock is even better than Peabody Memphis. The duck pond is larger, which means more people can huddle together for a better view. The red carpet march seems to be a bit more spread out, so there isn’t as much crowding. Also, and this is my favorite thing, you can see through the elevators. You can actually see the ducks ascend (or descend) after (or before) their march.
The Duckmaster is kid and adult friendly and even asked the ducks to stop for pictures during the march when I visited.
Sounds fun, when can I go?
Ducks march every day at 11:00 and march at 5:00. Between that time they are at the fountain playing, squawking and being ducks.
Rooms at Peabody Little Rock are $ 189 and up. You don’t need a room to watch the ducks. You can call Peabody at (501)906-4000 for more information or to reserve a room.
