Louisville is known for the Kentucky Derby (kentuckyderby.com), a famous equestrian event that has a race for 3-year-old thoroughbred horses, held at Churchill Downs. In addition to the horse racing, the derby has two food events, including the Taste of Derby. The Bluegrass County Estate has overnight getaway packages that offer services, such as an early morning breakfast, Thursday night cocktails and relaxing hot tubs.
Louisville has a Slugger Museum (sluggermuseum.org) for baseball fans, with the world’s largest baseball bat found in front of it. Exhibits that demonstrate how baseball has changed throughout history, with black-and-white photos and relics of the past. In addition to the world’s largest bat, the Slugger Museum has several exhibits of baseball bats and baseball-gifts, such as a mother’s day baseball bat and board games. Receive free adult passes when you ride in the gem-encrusted limo called the Pip Mobile, created by artist Monica Mahoney. The limo will then take you to the Proof of Main (proofonmain.com) for dinner.
Travel to Cherokee Park, tie your running shoes and hit the road. The Cherokee Park is a popular running spot with open meadows and woodlands. It’s also a common location for mountain biking. If you’d rather walk, consider visiting the Falls of Ohio State Park, the location of a 390-million-year-old fossil bed, one of the largest that is exposed. This location is used for hiking, walking, bird watching, picnicking and fishing. It is located across the Ohio River.
Fans of the theater will love the historic Actor’s Theatre of Louisville (actorstheatre.org), originally created by an acting troupe that took over an abandoned railroad station. The troupe has since created the Humana Festival, which has produced over 300 different plays. The new theater not only puts on performances, but also has classroom workshops, backstage tours, professional development programs for teachers and community leaders and displayed work by distinguished artists placed in the lobby. Stay at the Marriott Louisville Downtown (marriottlouisville.com) hotel for your overnight getaway, so you can be close to the art scene.
Travel through Fourth Street Live (4thstlive.com) to discover a downtown area overflowing with entertainment outlets, restaurants and some of best hotels in Louisville. Entertainment includes Howl at the Moon (howlatthemoon.com) -- with piano entertainment -- and the comedy club “Improv Louisville" (improvlouisville.com). For a unusual hotel experience, stay at the 21c Hotel Museum (21chotel.com). The establishment is simultaneously an art museum and a place to stay.
