Opportunities abound for Kentucky's equestrian heritage to be incorporated into itineraries and gatherings.
Louisville is home to the Kentucky Derby Museum at Churchill Downs (502.637.1111; www.derbymuseum.org), which reopened in April 2010 following repairs resulting from flood damage in August 2009. The museum opened in time for the 2010 Kentucky Derby. The $5.5 million renovation included new exhibits and interactive displays.
The museum has 10,000 square feet of space for functions, and the entire facility can be rented. The largest space, the Great Hall, seats 250 for banquets and holds up to 400 for receptions. Up to 1,000 can be accommodated for receptions with multilevel use.
The museum also offers various tours of Churchill Downs for groups. The Barn and Backside Tour takes visitors to the track's barn area to watch the morning workouts of the thoroughbreds. The Behind the Scenes Tour of Churchill Downs spotlights places such as the jockey's room, the press room and Millionaires Row.
Meanwhile, the 15-county Bluegrass Region has about 450 horse farms—about 150 in Lexington and Fayette County alone. Several allow visitors by appointment or through arrangements with tour companies.
Planners can check out various ways to tour horse farms through the Lexington CVB (www.visitlex.com/idea/horse-farms.php).
Horse Capital Productions (www.horsecapitaltours.com) provides information on horse farms and tour companies. The Lexington-based company, which produces horse-related events, has plans to eventually offer an online ticketing system for horse farm tours.
Information on equestrian attractions is also available through the Kentucky Department of Travel (www.kentuckytourism.com/things_to_do/horses.aspx).
The Kentucky Horse Park (859.254.0253; www.kyhorsepark.com) in Lexington combines a tourist attraction with a 1,200-acre working horse farm and world-class equestrian competition facility and business park. It normally welcomes nearly 1 million visitors and 15,000 competition horses a year.
It features a visitor center, horse-drawn tours, trail rides and two museums: the International Museum of the Horse and the American Saddlebred Museum.
A variety of group programs are offered, and the park has a range of meeting and event sites—from pavilions, patios and lounges to show facilities such as the new 5,298-seat AllTech Arena, the 7,338-seat Rolex Stadium and the 1,174-seat Covered Arena.
Another Lexington attraction is the Thoroughbred Center (859.293.1853; www.thethoroughbredcenter.com), a 240-acre training facility that offers behind-the-scenes tours. Visitors experience a typical day in the life of a racehorse, viewing them trackside, in their paddocks and in a historic barn.
Spaces include a 920-seat auditorium built for horse auctions, an equestrian-themed, formal lounge seating 200, a barn-like holding area seating 600 and conference rooms.
Keeneland (859.254.3412; www.keeneland.com), a Lexington thoroughbred track celebrating its 75th anniversary this year, also has a range of meeting and event spaces. The largest is its 10,000-square-foot Entertainment Center, which holds up to 500 guests.
