If a tradition is born in Kentucky, the entire world will want a taste. Items created in the Bluegrass State have become cherished icons throughout the ages, from bourbon to baseball bats. Some legends are too big to be contained, like Muhammad Ali or Mammoth Cave, and others, such as Corvettes or quilting, fire the creative imagination.
Louisville
Known best for the famous equine racing and cultural event of the Kentucky Derby, Louisville has also produced three other household names known for hitting hard: Louisville Slugger baseball bats, great bourbon and the incomparable Muhammad Ali.
If a group can’t attend the actual derby in the spring, Louisville has the next best thing with the Kentucky Derby Museum. Located next to the famed Churchill Downs, the museum offers a fascinating collection of racing memorabilia dating from the 1870s. Planners can rent the Great Hall for events or the entire museum. Tours of Churchill Downs can also be arranged.
The rest of Louisville’s great traditions can be easily found in the city’s Museum Row. The Louisville Slugger Factory and Museum is hard to miss due to the 120-foot-tall steel baseball bat sculpture leaning against the facility as if a giant nonchalantly propped it up and headed off to dinner. The bat is modeled after Babe Ruth’s, and it’s just one of the many wonders of the attraction, including a 17-ton limestone glove sculpture, hands-on galleries with bats used by Mickey Mantle, Cal Ripken Jr. and others, a batting cage, and a tour of the factory itself.
Nearby are two event-ready offerings: the Muhammad Ali Center, with exhibits on this hometown hero’s life, philosophy and how he inspired and changed society, and the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience, featuring a tour of a distillery and whiskey tastings.
Lexington
Fast horses and fine bourbon are tried and true traditions in Lexington, and both can be excellent adventures for groups.
“The No. 1 attraction is our beautiful Kentucky Horse Park,” says Marci Krueger-Sidebottom, vice president of sales and service for the Lexington CVB. “It’s a 1,200-acre working horse farm, a wonderful tourist attraction that hosts almost 1 million visitors a year.”
The park includes attractions like the Smithsonian-affiliated International Museum of the Horse. Visitors can also explore the American Saddlebred Museum, meet award-winning horses in the Hall of Champions show, take a tour of the horse farm, or enjoy a horseback ride. Outdoor events are a natural at the park, considering this region is the home of the famed ground cover known as Kentucky Bluegrass. The park also offers several indoor spaces.
Another popular site is Keeneland Race Course, home of the 2015 Breeder’s Cup. Planners can select spaces overlooking the racetrack or rent an entire building.
Distilleries are a must-see as well, according to Krueger-Sidebottom.
“There are more aging barrels of bourbon in Kentucky than the number of aging people in Kentucky,” she says.
The Town Branch Distillery is just a few minutes from the Lexington Convention Center Hyatt & Hilton. The recently finished $92 million facility is the first new distillery in Lexington in nearly 100 years, and group tours are available. Meanwhile, Woodford Reserve, located east of town, is one of the country’s oldest distilleries and a National Historic Landmark. The facility offers three different tours.
Bowling Green
Like other areas of Kentucky, Bowling Green is famous for horses; they just happen to be under the hood. The city is home to the National Corvette Museum and the GM Bowling Green Assembly Plant, the only site where those Corvettes are manufactured.
Visitors can tour the Corvette assembly plant, but for anyone who’s thinking of buying a new ride, there’s an extra incentive, according to Telia Butler, public relations manager for the Bowling Green Area CVB.
“Since all Corvettes are custom ordered, anyone purchasing a Corvette can now visit the High Performance Build Center in the GM Plant and, for a bit extra cost, help build their own Corvette’s engine on the assembly line,” she says.
Planners can arrange tours of the National Corvette Museum or include them in a group event. For the ultimate experience, combine that event with group activities at the NCM Motorsports Park across the street, and attendees can navigate obstacle courses with rental cars or jump in a Corvette with a professional driver.
Another Bowling Green tradition means going underground. The area is home to Mammoth Cave, the world’s longest explored cave system. More than 400 miles have been explored so far. The cave is a World Heritage Site.
Northern Kentucky
As part of the Ohio Valley and greater Cincinnati area, northern Kentucky has a rich river tradition. Riverboats are a popular way for groups to experience the beauty and history of the Ohio River. BB Riverboats in Newport and Queen City Riverboats in Dayton offer private charters as well as catered event cruises.
Paducah
The Ohio River and Tennessee River are part of western Kentucky’s heritage as well, especially in the city of Paducah. The city’s River Discovery Center features interactive exhibits, live music and a chance to pilot a riverboat in a simulator.
The heart of Paducah is stitched up with the arts. Recognized as a UNESCO Creative City, Paducah boasts behind-the-scenes tours at the National Quilt Museum and a painting workshop built around the concepts of community and art seen in the Wall-to-Wall Floodwall Murals.
