What's there to do in the Louisville, KY area?

[Space Coast Laurie]

My brother is graduating from boot camp at Ft Knox, KY on Friday, March 17th. Several family members are going in for the event. One of my sisters and I are going to stay over until Sunday afternoon and spend some time with my brother. Any suggestions on what there is to do in the area for adults? Even my brother's not a kid... he's the old man of the camp, having gotten in just within the cutoff of 35 years old. I would guess we'll be done with the ceremony by about noon on Friday. That gives us Friday afternoon/evening, all day Saturday, and Sunday morning to get in trouble. We will have a rental car.

 

[3kids4me]

I would be very interested in the answer to this question as well! My grandmother grew up in Louisville and I still have lots of family there. Everytime I've been, I find there is absolutely nothing to do (except to go on the Belle of Louisville if it's nice weather). I remember going as a teenager and being absolutely beside myself with boredom!!

It would be fun to discover that there are some real tourist attractions nearby that I (and obviously my relatives) never knew about!

Sharon

 

[wackymother]

I went to Churchill Downs once on a business trip, long ago--like in the early 1980s. It was the morning and there was a museum and you can watch the horses...work out? Train? Practice? I'm pretty sure there were horses there, even in the morning.

Also there's a factory that makes Louisville Sluggers.

Here's a link to the attractions, from TripAdvisor.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g39604-Activities-Louisville_Kentucky.html

 

[3kids4me]

Here's a link to the attractions, from TripAdvisor.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g39604-Activities-Louisville_Kentucky.html

I rest my case.

 

[debraxh]

I lived in the Louisville area for about 8 years and aside from Churchill Downs & the Belle there are really no "tourist attractions". This is why horse racing and basketball are so popular there

There are a lot of nice state parks, campgrounds, etc. in the general area, but I don't think the weather will be great in March. I always thought Mammoth Cave was pretty cool, but it's a couple hours from Louisville IIRC.

 

[PatShaver]

Louisville is a Perfect Place to Live!!

We moved to the Louisville area about 10 years ago from Atlanta and never have had a problem finding things to do! Give me a day or 2 and then I'll write back.

Won't you be in for St. Patrick's Day? There's several hot spots. I'll check with my single friends and get back with you!

 

[Lee B]

The Louisville Slugger (Hilerich and Bradsby or something like that) factory on Main Street is pretty good. You start by seeing a short film about baseball and the bats, then you go to a simulated baseball diamond and wander around. You can stand just behind a manequin batter and catcher and watch a real fastball go toward them. Not much decision time whether to swing.

You see one of Babe Ruth's bats, and you watch them actually make bats for the major leagues.

I grew up in Louisville and used to think it was dinky and backward. Now I think it's just the right size and has amazing culture for its size. Still, you do have to reduce expectations. Oh, across the river in southern Indiana, there's a museum about the Falls of the Ohio, which was the first reason for Louisville to exist. Good if you like natural history.

I think the Makers Mark distillery in a nearby town has a good tour.

 

[EAM]

Cross the river

I was going to suggest Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom but it won't open until April.

However, the suggestion to cross the Ohio into Indiana is a good one, in my (not so humble) Hoosier opinion.

In addition to the Falls of the Ohio park, there are several nice caves west of New Albany (Marengo, Wyandotte, Squire Boone), and there are some lovely historic buildings in Madison up the river from New Albany. There are several historic sites in that area of Indiana, including the site of the first state capital of Indiana at Corydon. I would suggest getting a copy of the book Indiana: A New Historical Guide and reading the sections on New Albany and Madison. There are a lot of little known sites of interest in SE IN, some quirky, some intriguing, some tragic, some inspiring, some just plain strange...

One interesting site that's not in the book is the Eleutherian College http://www.eleutherian.us/ a National Historic Landmark near Madison, IN. This was the first college in the USA to admit students without regard to race or gender (1848). Later the College was a stop on the Underground Railroad. The building has been vacant since 1937 and have fallen into disrepair, but there is a movement afoot to restore it via funds from contributions, donations, and grants.

 

[Space Coast Laurie]

We moved to the Louisville area about 10 years ago from Atlanta and never have had a problem finding things to do! Give me a day or 2 and then I'll write back.

Won't you be in for St. Patrick's Day? There's several hot spots. I'll check with my single friends and get back with you!

Boy, I sure hope you can come up with some stuff... it's sounding pretty bleak, based on what others have posted. Although I'm a huge fan of football, I find baseball about as interesting as watching paint dry (sorry, baseball fans!) so I won't be taking you folks up on any of the baseball-centric suggestions. I do appreciate you all trying, though!

So far, I've found the following for Friday... a St. Patrick's Day riverboat dinner cruise, a St. Patrick's Day church fair, and an Irish Pub that's having an Irish band for St. Patrick's Day... see a theme here? I have nothing for Saturday yet. BTW, I don't mind driving a couple of hours for something interesting.

 

[Lee B]

Speaking of Caves...

Mammoth Cave National Park used to be called "one of the seven wonders of the world." For a time, Carlsbad Caverns in NM was thought to be bigger, but now I believe Mammoth, after discoveries of new passages, has the "biggest" honor.

If in CA, go to Yosemite; if in KY, go to Mammoth Cave! Thanks, EAM, for mentioning caves.

 

[debraxh]

Mammoth Cave National Park used to be called "one of the seven wonders of the world." For a time, Carlsbad Caverns in NM was thought to be bigger, but now I believe Mammoth, after discoveries of new passages, has the "biggest" honor.

If in CA, go to Yosemite; if in KY, go to Mammoth Cave! Thanks, EAM, for mentioning caves.

Hey, I suggested Mammoth Cave first -- don't I get any credit?

 

[PatShaver]

Louisville Suggestions

OK, here's the word from my single friends....

Since St. Patty's Day is Friday night, they suggest the Irish Rover, Molly Malone's or O'Sha's. One or all of these might be a good idea to go to even after the dinner cruise.

For Saturday during the day, I'd suggest the Derby Museum and/or the Louisville Bat Museum. If I had to pick one, I'd go with the Derby Museum. Take the tour of the museum and Churchill Downs.

For Saturday night, there is a new night life area called "4th Street Live". It has several chain-type restaurants like TGI Fridays, Hard Rock Cafe, and many bars and saloons.
4th Street Live
http://www.4thstlive.com/

If you are more interested in a play, there is Actor's Theatre and Derby Dinner Playhouse and others. If you are more interested in a regional restaurant, let me know.

For Sunday, I'd suggest a nice buffet breakfast at one of the major hotels in Downtown Louisville.

We usually take visiting friends to Six Flags, Churchill Downs, Kentucky Horse Park (Lexington), Mammoth Cave, local Saddlebred horse shows (our daughter shows), Louisville Riverbats games, concerts, Freedom Hall shows, UofL games, UK games, Thunder Over Louisville etc.. but most of these items are seasonal. The busiest time of course is the Derby weekend or the previous weekend with Thunder Over Louisville. I also like to take visiting guests for a brunch at Churchill Downs and then stay for races (seasonal - spring and fall).

If you get really desperate, Lexington and Cincinnati are close. Let me know what other things you might be looking for and I'll try to help out.

 

[ldodd]

Even though I'm not much of a sports fan, I really enjoyed the Louisville Slugger Museum and look forward to visiting the new Muhammad Ali Museum.

 

[Lee B]

Hey, I suggested Mammoth Cave first -- don't I get any credit?

YES! Debra was the first one to mention Mammoth Cave, so full credit!

It just goes to show what different moods can do. Mine really swing.

 

[riverdees05]

Doesn't Fort Knox have a museum or something. Or don't they give out free samples from the gold stockpile.

If you are a baseball fan, I would second the Louisville Slugger suggestion. And if you are a horse race fan, I would also second the Churchill Downs, that way when you watch the Kentucky Derby the first Saturday in May, you can say - I have been there! You probably need to get on the web and see if they are open when you will be in Louisville, not sure of their Friday afternoon or weekend schedules.

 

[Lee B]

Doesn't Fort Knox have a museum or something. Or don't they give out free samples from the gold stockpile.

Is that where the George Patton Museum is?

Yes, they give out gold samples. When I visited as a small child, I could barely hold my large ingot. Last time, though, it was a little plastic bag with a pinch of dust. Not worth the $85 admission fee.

Kidding.

 

[Space Coast Laurie]

Oh, thank you all very much. You folks really came through! And I am so geographically challenged that I had no idea I'd be so far north as to consider going to Cincinnati....mmmm.... Skyline Chili. I love visiting caverns/caves, so that's definitely something to consider, and my Irish side insists that we must celebrate St. Patrick's Day at one of the pubs. I went from not having enough choices to having too many choices. Brunch on Sunday morning at a nice hotel sounds nice, too. Years ago when I was in Louisville for a meeting, we were at the Brown... very classic, very nice.

 

[Lee B]

Nowadays there are a couple of Cincinnati chili places around Louisville. I forget which, but Skyline might be one.

 

[riverdees05]

Cncinnati is only about a 2 hour drive from Louisville - all Interstate.

 

[EAM]

Other ideas for places close to Louisville

The Kentucky Historical Society is opening a new exhibit, "History Unfurled: Flying Kentucky's Flags" at 110 West Broadway, Frankfort, KY. Frankfort is about 50 miles east of Louisville on I-64.

Lexington is just a little east of Frankfort. I don't know if the horse farm tours would be going on in March or not, but Kentucky Horse Park opens on March 15. http://www.kyhorsepark.com/

There are a couple of interesting historical sites south of Louisville. Stephen Foster's "Old Kentucky Home" is in a State Park at Bardstown, KY. I don't think they give tours except during the summer and at Christmas, though. There's a whiskey museum near Bardstown, too.

Abraham Lincoln was born near Hodgenville, Kentucky. This is a National Historic Site with a building resembling a Greek temple that houses as reconstructed log cabin (not the original cabin, though). http://www.nps.gov/abli/

And it isn't much more than 2 hours to Indianapolis, which has an excellent Children's Museum (not just for children!), the auto racing museum at the Speedway, two art museums (one for western and native american art, the other general), etc.

And I agree that Cincinnati is a good place to visit. There's a very nice zoo and a great museum complex.

Mammoth Cave is a good suggestion, too.

 

[PatShaver]

Skyline Chili

There are several Skyline Chili's in Louisville so don't go to Cincinnati just for that! LOL!!

Cincinnati is supposed to have a good aquarium that is on the south side of Cincinnati. It's about an hour and a half away.

Other ideas - Louisville has a nice zoo. How about Caeser's Casino just shortly over on the Indiana side?

 

[3kids4me]

Okay, isn't there some amazing famous rib place in Cincinnati? (I seem to remember that from a business trip I was on a really long time ago....)

 

[Lee B]

How about Caeser's Casino just shortly over on the Indiana side?

As a matter of fact, it is or was the largest such facility (floating) in the country. I want to visit it myself.

 

[davesdog]

http://www.machinegunshoot.com/

This is something a little different. The show is 4/7 thru 9th. I went once. If your gun happy, it's for you !!! It located near Fort Knox, KY

 

[Space Coast Laurie]

Mmmm.... Skyline 4-way!

There are several Skyline Chili's in Louisville so don't go to Cincinnati just for that!

Woo-hoooo.... I know where I'm doing one meal that weekend!