Tell me about Louisville, KY
June 8, 2022 2:19 PM Subscribe
Just found out I'll be in Louisville arriving 7/1 and departing 7/4. What should I do there? Not interested in shopping or horses. We like food and drinks and bourbon. Local history is cool too.
Two adults, no kids. We'll be getting a hotel somewhere downtown.
Saturday we are going to go to Dinosaur World near Mammoth Cave. Is stuff in Louisville open on Sundays, or should we plan dino fun times on Sunday instead and do Louisville on Saturday?
Is there a good uber/lyft presence? Some walking is okay, but disability prevents anything over about 1/2 mile.
Two adults, no kids. We'll be getting a hotel somewhere downtown.
Saturday we are going to go to Dinosaur World near Mammoth Cave. Is stuff in Louisville open on Sundays, or should we plan dino fun times on Sunday instead and do Louisville on Saturday?
Is there a good uber/lyft presence? Some walking is okay, but disability prevents anything over about 1/2 mile.
There's a bourbon trail. Thrillist. Visitor site. Let's Go. personally, I love museums.
The Ohio River separates Ohio from Kentucky and is impressive, so a walk (drive) along the river is recommended. Your hotel may know best about local transportation. The Ohio River Valley is very humid, so pack accordingly.
posted by theora55 at 3:02 PM on June 8, 2022
The Ohio River separates Ohio from Kentucky and is impressive, so a walk (drive) along the river is recommended. Your hotel may know best about local transportation. The Ohio River Valley is very humid, so pack accordingly.
posted by theora55 at 3:02 PM on June 8, 2022
If you like baseball or factories or retired dad museum guides living their best life, The Louisville Slugger Museum/Factory tour is a fun way to spend a couple hours.
There's a Kentucky Bourbon Trail with various distilleries and bourbon adjacent sites in Louisville - you can book a tour but you can also just peruse their itinerary for ideas.
posted by the primroses were over at 3:09 PM on June 8, 2022 [3 favorites]
There's a Kentucky Bourbon Trail with various distilleries and bourbon adjacent sites in Louisville - you can book a tour but you can also just peruse their itinerary for ideas.
posted by the primroses were over at 3:09 PM on June 8, 2022 [3 favorites]
OMG if you have ANY love for thrifting, antiquing, weird stuff, etc., you have to go to Joe Ley. Incredible.
posted by nosila at 3:34 PM on June 8, 2022
posted by nosila at 3:34 PM on June 8, 2022
OMG if you have ANY love for thrifting, antiquing, weird stuff, etc., you have to go to Joe Ley. Incredible.
Alas, it closed in 2019 and will become a boutique hotel. Sic transit gloria mundi.
posted by jedicus at 4:01 PM on June 8, 2022
Alas, it closed in 2019 and will become a boutique hotel. Sic transit gloria mundi.
posted by jedicus at 4:01 PM on June 8, 2022
It's been a long time but consider staying at the Seelbach. It's lovely, the restaurant in it is really good, and it's mentioned (pseudonymously) in The Great Gatsby. There is also a cocktail named after it. Louiville is nice. I hope you like it.
posted by less-of-course at 4:11 PM on June 8, 2022
posted by less-of-course at 4:11 PM on June 8, 2022
I currently live in Louisville. Memail me with your interests and I can give recs. Downtown businesses kinda closed down during the pandemic and after the 2020 riots but it was kinda boring before then anyway. Louisville is very much about neighborhoods and a variety of awesome places spread way out.
Is stuff in Louisville open on Sundays, or should we plan dino fun times on Sunday instead and do Louisville on Saturday?
Yes, for the most part, since this is a service industry town most places are open on the weekends. It just varies by shop and location.
Is there a good uber/lyft presence? Some walking is okay, but disability prevents anything over about 1/2 mile.
Yes, but like most cities during the pandemic, it’s still high demand versus low driver supply. Still, I can generally get one without much of a wait time unless it’s during peak hours (usually Friday and Saturday night).
posted by Cyber666 at 5:02 PM on June 8, 2022
Is stuff in Louisville open on Sundays, or should we plan dino fun times on Sunday instead and do Louisville on Saturday?
Yes, for the most part, since this is a service industry town most places are open on the weekends. It just varies by shop and location.
Is there a good uber/lyft presence? Some walking is okay, but disability prevents anything over about 1/2 mile.
Yes, but like most cities during the pandemic, it’s still high demand versus low driver supply. Still, I can generally get one without much of a wait time unless it’s during peak hours (usually Friday and Saturday night).
posted by Cyber666 at 5:02 PM on June 8, 2022
I really loved Louisville, and look forward to returning. I went to Sunergos Coffee and got yummy vegan food at a place I sadly can't remember. I drove everywhere so sadly I can't speak for Uber.
Mammonth Cave is a decent drive away but totally worth it, as it's an underrated but really WOW national park. I was kinda bored by caverns at that point "if you've been to one, you've been to them all" but even I was impressed. They do a notable job discussing Black history of the cave, too, fwiw. I went to Lincoln's Birthplace, which was still being developed; it's a small detour and not worth if it you have limited time but not bad if you do.
Berea, Kentucky, is quite far away but an absolute delight so maybe next time!
posted by smorgasbord at 7:32 PM on June 8, 2022
Mammonth Cave is a decent drive away but totally worth it, as it's an underrated but really WOW national park. I was kinda bored by caverns at that point "if you've been to one, you've been to them all" but even I was impressed. They do a notable job discussing Black history of the cave, too, fwiw. I went to Lincoln's Birthplace, which was still being developed; it's a small detour and not worth if it you have limited time but not bad if you do.
Berea, Kentucky, is quite far away but an absolute delight so maybe next time!
posted by smorgasbord at 7:32 PM on June 8, 2022
Enjoying Mammoth Cave requires more walking than it sounds like you’re up for.
I went to the Muhammad Ali museum in 2019, and it was way better than I expected and I learned a lot, particularly about Vietnam (and boxing, of course). It’s downtown near the strip of distillery storefronts. We went into Old Forester, which has a beautiful still, but didn’t take their tour. It might be nice to hit the downtown distilleries before your day trip to decide if you want to try to take a tour in bourbon country.
Falls of the Ohio is a park where you can walk around and see loads of fossils and generally enjoy being on the riverside and city views. It’s a bit of a drive, though, and there’s not much else nearby. The associated museum is okay.
posted by momus_window at 6:20 AM on June 9, 2022
I went to the Muhammad Ali museum in 2019, and it was way better than I expected and I learned a lot, particularly about Vietnam (and boxing, of course). It’s downtown near the strip of distillery storefronts. We went into Old Forester, which has a beautiful still, but didn’t take their tour. It might be nice to hit the downtown distilleries before your day trip to decide if you want to try to take a tour in bourbon country.
Falls of the Ohio is a park where you can walk around and see loads of fossils and generally enjoy being on the riverside and city views. It’s a bit of a drive, though, and there’s not much else nearby. The associated museum is okay.
posted by momus_window at 6:20 AM on June 9, 2022
If you are making the drive to Dino World I highly recommend checking KY Down Under Adventure Zoo. You can rent a golf cart and drive around the zoo.
posted by tman99 at 7:22 AM on June 9, 2022
posted by tman99 at 7:22 AM on June 9, 2022
If you want a good local place that has fantastic bar food and drinks, check out Saints in St. Matthews, especially if smoked wings sound appealing.
What types of food do you like? I'll make suggestions of my favorites.
posted by deezil at 11:53 AM on June 9, 2022
What types of food do you like? I'll make suggestions of my favorites.
posted by deezil at 11:53 AM on June 9, 2022
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posted by coffeecat at 2:36 PM on June 8, 2022