It turns out that Louisville has more to offer than just whiskey. Weird, we know. It is home to the Kentucky Derby, wonderful neighborhoods, museums, restaurants, horses, and more. Drive through the beautiful bluegrass hills and dales, breathe in the fresh country air and relax. You’re on bourbon time now.
Walk or run the Waterfront Park and Big Four Bridge. You can walk from Louisville – across the Ohio River to Indiana. You don't need to stay there. There was a fun community event supporting cancer research there on the day we visited. Local artists created chalk drawings on the sidewalks throughout the park. It was fun to wander through the drawings and chat with some of the artists.
Take a Stroll through old Louisville to see beautifully restored Victorian homes, cute little courtyards, wrought iron fencing, and loads of historical landmarks. OR, if you like Cemeteries, head over to Cave Hill Cemetery. The grounds are beautiful and some of Louisville's famous citizens are buried here. You can look for the gravesites of Meriwether Lewis Clark, Jr., Colonel Sanders, Muhammad Ali, and many others, including 5,000 soldiers killed in the Civil War.
Walk around downtown and check out the many museums on Museum Row.
The informative center and museum was co-founded by Ali and is dedicated to his life and legacy. There are interesting exhibits that combine aspects and history of his boxing career, the civil rights movement his religious devotion, and philanthropic activities. You know one of Ali's nicknames was "The Louisville Lip", right?
21C Museum This is both a museum and a hotel. Book a room, and take in the art. There is a large, gold, double-sized replica of Michaelangelo’s David out front. The exhibits change frequently, are free to visit and open to the public every day.
Frazier Museum This museum is dedicated to Kentucky History, features a permanent collection, and a variety of changing exhibits. You can see weapons owned and used by George Washington, Teddy Roosevelt, Geronimo, and Daniel Boone’s bible.
This art museum is newly renovated and includes art collections from ancient cultures, African Art, Native American Art, European, and American Art, Kentucky, and Contemporary Art.
If you like baseball, this is not to be missed. There is a wonderful exhibit showing many of baseball’s greatest players and their preferred bats. Just looking at the photographs and reading about their careers is fascinating. Take the tour to find out how the bats are made, take your turn in the batting cages, and walk away with a souvenir mini Louisville Slugger bat.
Churchill Downs and the Kentucky Derby Museum
Discover the history and heritage of the Kentucky Derby with admission to the Kentucky Derby Museum at Churchill Downs Racetrack. Explore two levels of exhibits on a self-guided tour, then take a 30-minute, guided walking tour of the Churchill Down Racetrack.
Reserve your ticket ahead of time and skip the line.
Take a distillery tour. You can venture out on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail (see our post about how to do that) or simply visit one of the six distilleries located downtown. The tours at Evan Williams and Old Forester are informative and well done.
See some theatre. Louisville has a strong art and theatre scene. Did you know that Jennifer Lawrence, Diane Sawyer, and Tom Cruise are from Kentucky? So were Hunter S.Thompson, Victor Mature, and ballerina Wendy Whelan, There are many others too.
Check out your options with the following links:
Louisville has a thriving food scene. Eat Something! You can find any number of high-quality restaurants, café's, burger joints all over town with a quick scan of Thrillist, Trip Advisor, or loads of other lists with a quick Google search. Listed below are a few things you should probably do, with no questions asked.
Eat a Hot Brown – Louisville’s signature “sandwich” – an open-faced turkey and bacon concoction loaded with mornay sauce, tomatoes, and cheese. Lots of places serve them. Most folks recommend the one at the Brown Hotel. We had ours at Wagner's. Eat some Derby Pie: Derby Pie is trademarked and you can buy them at grocers all over town. They are essentially a chocolate pecan pie. Eat some Bourbon Balls: You’ll get one as part of your bourbon tasting at Buffalo Trace – but you can always head to Muth’s Candy if you have a hankering for some more. Eat at Royal’s Hot Chicken – Do you like a Nashville hot? Perhaps some Buffalo Wings? Whatever your chicken fetish, forget it. You will have a new one. Forget KFC too. Royals Hot Chicken is much better. You can get your chicken served up straight, as a sandwich, in a basket, with a side of donuts, in a taco, or a salad at a heat level you will enjoy. They also have milkshakes. And, YES, you can get bourbon in those. Sometimes, there is a god.
Butchertown Grocery, The Mayan Café, Buck's, or Harvest are good options too.
Drink the Tap Water: It's limestone-filtered spring water. They use it to make bourbon, so...
Drink Some Bourbon: With a multitude of bars, six distilleries downtown, and at least 24 within an hour's drive of Louisville it won't be difficult to find. The Mint Julep is the official cocktail of the Kentucky Derby. The Old Fashioned was invented in Louisville.
See these other posts to learn more about Louisville and The Kentucky Bourbon Trail
Travel with Friends
Comments