Thunder over Louisville hotel

Which downtown hotel offers the best view for thunder?

Thanks.

Thunder over Louisville hotel

Any of the downtown hotels (Hyatt, Marriott, Seelbach, Brown) should have nice views but the official headquarters for thunder is at the Galt House. The control station is set up there. We stayed on the Jeffersonville Indiana side (which is right over the bridge to downtown Louisville) at the Fairfield Inn one year and had a great time. Things are a little quieter on the Indiana side because much of the land is privately owned by hotels and restaurants. At the Fairfield they gave us wristbands so no one other than hotel guests are allowed on their property. We would come and go to our room throughout the day without having to fight with crowds at all and at night we brought a blanket down to their lawn and watched the fireworks.

Thunder over Louisville hotel

Thanks. That%26#39;s a good idea. I%26#39;m not that crazy about big crowds, so will definitely consider this. How far in advance do you think I need to reserve a room? Do they provide free breakfast??

When I stayed there they had a free continental breakfast and they also had an indoor pool which the kids liked. I would book as soon as they open up rooms because the waterfront hotels usually sell out before thunder and the prices usually go up not down. I heard on the news that about 800,000 people attended this years thunder! BTW, I believe the date for next year is Saturday April 21st. Good luck!

Yeah, 800,000 was what I heard attended also. I guess I will call them to see if I can go ahead and reserve a room. I had the date already but thanks anyway.

I have seen you on the NYC forum. Are you planning on returning to NYC soon?

My husband just told me his next job is in NYC in May....I am so happy, I gonna go up there for a few days. NYC is awesome!

I%26#39;m addicted to that forum! I have the Courtyard by Marriott Times Square booked for this Christmas for super cheap and can%26#39;t wait! We stayed at the Marquis last Christmas so I guess we%26#39;re trying to make it a yearly tradition. Nothing beats New York at Christmas, it%26#39;s breathtaking.

We went in March 2005. It rained the whole time. It was cold too. But, we still enjoyed the city. I bet it is BEAUTIFUL at Christmas time. I would love to go then but it seems I%26#39;m more enthusiastic then my travel mates.

I would love to go with someone that loved the city as much as I do. My husband likes it, but we had planned on going maybe Sept or Oct this year and he was like, ';Why don%26#39;t we go to Florida instead?'; I was like, ';NO WAY!!';

I mean don%26#39;t get me wrong, I like Florida but NYC is by far my favorite, I%26#39;ve only been once, but that%26#39;s all it took for me to fall in love.

I%26#39;m addicted to the NYC forum also, I go on there several times a day :)

By the way, we drove to NYC and stayed at the Travel Inn....FREE parking! That was a huge savings. Plus our hotel was a double, double for $105 a night. What rate did you get at the Marriot for Xmas?

The Courtyard is $159 Dec23rd then it drops to $99 for the 24th and 25th! Surrounding dates go for way over $200 so I guess it%26#39;s a slower weekend in Dec being Christmas day and all. It is right near Bryant Park which has a great ice skating rink and Christmas market in the winter. The Travel Inn is awesome if you are driving, you save a fortune just on parking. Although I%26#39;ve never stayed there, I%26#39;ve recommended it to friends who drove and they liked it as well. Luckily for me, my whole family loved NY, the kids actually preferred it to Disney, maybe it will grow on your hubby : )

You got a great deal, that%26#39;s for sure.

Ms Alicia,

Is the Fairfield Inn called something else now that you stayed in on the Indiana side? I can%26#39;t seem to find it.

Thanks.

poison ivy spread

Bourbon Trail

We are coming to Kentucky in April for a bachelor%26#39;s party. We want to do some/all of the bourbon trail, but also experience some night life. Would it be best to stay in Louisville or Lexington? Also which distilleries would be best to go to?

Thanks

Bourbon Trail

I%26#39;m just going to make a very uneducated reply here because I don%26#39;t drink bourbon, but here%26#39;s what I%26#39;d do:

Prior to the trip, have a bourbon tasting party. Then pick your top 3 bourbons and plan your trip based around them. If two of your top three are closer to Louisville, stay there. If closer to Lexington...

I have only been to Maker%26#39;s Mark, and it is a neat tour. I%26#39;m sure they%26#39;re all pretty much the same, though.

An interesting point is that the county in which Maker%26#39;s is located is a dry county, so no sampling. However, it%26#39;s really cool to watch them dip the bottles by hand. You used to be able to do one yourself if I remember correctly.

If you stay in Louisville, there is plenty of nightlife downtown and around Bardstown Road in the Highlands area of town. I don%26#39;t know about Lexington.

Good luck and drive safely!

Bourbon Trail

My pick would be Bardstown for the bourbon trail - but I don%26#39;t think you%26#39;ll find much night life there! It%26#39;s closer to Louisville than it is to Lexington, but if you want to learn about bourbon, that is the place! (Lynchburg TN is even better, but DEFINITELY no night life there! LOL!)

You%26#39;ll have a great time. Personally, I%26#39;d start with a day at Keeneland (Lexington) and go out that night in downtown Lex. It is BY FAR the best thing happening in KY in April. Then, I%26#39;d work my way west, starting at Labrot %26amp; Graham Distillery, makers of Woodford Reserve, then heading to Frankfort for the Buffalo Trace Distillery tour (generous tastings). Then, Wild Turkey is nearby in Lawrenceburg or you could make the about an hour trip to Bardstown for the Maker%26#39;s Mark tour.

You might be interested in this article:

…nytimes.com/2007/…

I would vote to start with the distilleries in Bardstown and make your way east to Lexington. It is a college town with a pretty nicely placed cluster of bars in the down town area. Also, you might check but if Keenland is running it will be worth the effort to make it out on a bright sunny spring day.

I haven%26#39;t been to all of the distilleries but Buffalo Trace is my favorite so far. You don%26#39;t have to be a bourbon drinker to have a fun time on their tour. IMO for April Lexington is the place to be. I can%26#39;t wait for The races in April. Counting down the days! :)

Kentucky Horse Park

I%26#39;ve been to the website, but does anyone have a review of Kentucky Horse Park? What is there to do with 5 and 7 year olds? Will they be able to ride their own horse, or with a parent? Where would anyone recommend we stay? What are some other neat areas to visit? Thank you. WE are going in June.

Kentucky Horse Park

You will find several reviews right here on Tripadvisor. Just do a quick search for Kentucky Horse Park.

I took my daughter for her 9th birthday and she enjoyed it but she takes riding lessons and is a real horse enthusiast. We did the trail ride where there were many chilren on their own horses, but I don%26#39;t know what the minimum age is. It is a very slow walk with the horses lined up head to tail and they just follow each other, which is good news for first time riders but can be quite boring for experienced riders. The park admission includes the shows, a short ';tour'; of the park by horse drawn carriage and the museum but the trail ride is additional.

Kentucky Horse Park

We really like the new Hilton Homewood suites. A little further than some of the other hotels but much nicer IMO and very close to restaurants and shopping.

An off night?: Heirloom disappoints

After enjoying quite a few wonderful lunches and dinners at Heirloom in Midway----I hit a bump in the road one night last week.

Right from the beginning, something was %26#39;off%26#39; about it.

The server brought a bowl of cold bread with a frozen solid cube of butter to the table......with an iced tea that was so dark and cloudy it was undrinkable.

This was followed by the prosciutto-wrapped mozarella appetizer that was cold in the center. The dining room was not busy---why would they be rushing cold food out of the kitchen like that?

The pork tenderloin entree was very good. The Valrhona chocolate cake was good---but looked different somehow.

I commented on the cold appetizer and it was removed from my bill with an apology.

So what%26#39;s going on there? Did someone in the kitchen take the night off---or have things changed at Heirloom?

An off night?: Heirloom disappoints

That is a shame. I have yet to make it there, but hopefully I will fare better when I do.

An off night?: Heirloom disappoints

Not sure how to answer your question, but we went again for lunch last month and the service was definitely a notch down from normal. They were filled to the max (no room at the bar either). A couple walked in and stood in the doorway for a few minutes before flagging down a waiter. When told there was no room, they asked to be placed on a waiting list. The server/waiter responded that they don%26#39;t have a waiting list and kept walking. The couple just sort of stood there for a second, not really knowing what to say/do and then just walked out. It was very odd, as it seemed they were turning away business.

Service was slow, the table behind us had to ask about their food three separate times before it finally came (with apologies) from the kitchen. They were already seated and nibbling on something when we arrived, and we were finished eating our lunch before they finally got theirs. Of course refills and ';how is your food?'; were absent, but I did hear a server tell a table that they were a bit overwhelmed with the crowd, as they are not normally this busy on Saturdays for lunch; he mentioned the Black Tulip was closed (that day) which increased traffic at Heirlom.

I didn%26#39;t notice any difference with the food. However, had that visit been my first, I do not know that I would be a fan. It was extremely chaotic and slow.

Please post if you have another visit or find out about any changes!

My enthusiasm for Heirloom has waned a bit. I don%26#39;t expect to be back in there until after the first of the year......

I had lunch at Heirloom last weekend---my first visit since the disappointing experience of last October.

Happy to report that everything was great. I enjoyed my lunch.

Their sidewalk sign said they had been selected as the best new restaurant in Ky by the Lane Report...

WANTED: ideas for 1 night out W/ 2 KIDS

We will be spending three nights in Louisville next Spring.

The tentative itinerary has us spending 1 day in Cincinnati, 1 day in Lexington (Kentucky Horse Park), and 1 day at Churchill Downs.

My wife, and I, are looking for ideas that will get us out of our hotel room after dark. Kids are ages 3 %26amp; 7. We are looking for ideas on any of the following: themed restaurants, dinner shows, evening walks, or any other unique ';Louisville'; kid-friendly experiences.

Thanks in advance for all your help. We can%26#39;t wait to visit your city.

WANTED: ideas for 1 night out W/ 2 KIDS

Greetings! I do hope that you are visiting those places before coming to Louisville and not taking day trips, right? This is very confusing. A day trip to Lexington would be fine, but a day in Cinci/Newport....you should spend the night there! The kids will like the Newport Levee and the Aquarium.

What time in Spring? The week before Derby is chock full of festival events (and higher prices) Where will you stay in Louisville? Three year olds have limited attention span, but we do have trolleys running around downtown, plus a nice river front. I hope you aren%26#39;t planning on taking kids to the Downs . Themed restaurants downtown for kids.....The Old Spaghetti Factory and Joe%26#39;s Crab Shack are very popular.

WANTED: ideas for 1 night out W/ 2 KIDS

I%26#39;d be more than happy to try and clarify my original post.

We will be in Louisville Father%26#39;s Day weekend (mid June).

We have booked our room at the Hilton Garden Inn - Airport.

We will be spending a day in Cincinnati (en route) to Louisville.

We were planning to spend Father%26#39;s Day (Sunday) at Churchill Downs WITH the kids. Never been to Churchill Downs, however we%26#39;ve been to horse tracks in Minnesota and Wisconsin and found both to be extremely family friendly. Is Churchill Downs not family friendly? No playgrounds? No kids around the paddock? No kids watching the finish line? Please let me know if the crowds and staff at Churchill Downs frown upon children, so we can reroute our trip.

The trip into Lexington would be a day trip, yes, we are willing to drive an hour, or two, each way.

I can%26#39;t seem to find any ';family friendly'; attractions that are open past 5 o%26#39;clock or so. I%26#39;m worried we may be stranded in our hotel room the three evenings that we are in Louisville.

Louisville Waterfront park downtown is a good place for familys. There are playgrounds, walking trails, fountains, sprinklers, and more. (there is a website w/more info and a map). You can rent bikes or take a carrage ride. Six Flags Ky Kingdom is a family amusement park that is fun. You could eat at King Fish on River Road ( playground and putt-putt), sit outside on a picnic table by the river. You could ride the trolly around downtown. The kids will like that. The Belle of Louisville may have some evening cruises also. Just a few suggestions. Hope this helps.

Thanks for clarifying! I didn%26#39;t mean the Downs was not family friendly, sorry. There is a wonderful Derby museum and a Derby Cafe for lunch. The paddock area is open to everyone so the kids can see the horses and jockeys. Beyond that, the races are spaced about 20 minutes apart so there%26#39;s not a lot to see and do. No playgrounds or such. Still, you could pack in a good few hours and make it fun for all

The Hilton Garden Inn is a nice enough hotel, but it%26#39;s not near anything but the airport. I wish you would reconsider and book downtown at the Marriott or Galt House. The Galt House has river view rooms and the trolley will pick you up at the door.Kingfish has pretty grounds and river view, basic fried fish so-so food. Tumbleweed on the river, much the same. Close to the enormous playground. Further down River Road are several parks and Captain%26#39;s Quarter%26#39;s restaurant with lots of outdoor seating, live music and lots of river scene for families. By the wharf is Joe%26#39;s Crab Shack- kids love it there. Waiters do crazy dances, loads of fun. The Belle%26#39; of Louisville Steamboat%26#39;s Friday night cruises are public, but they are geared to an older crowd. (music and dancing and drinks) However, it does daily lunch cruises on Saturday at 11:30 and Sunday at 1. I should be playing the loud calliope that Sunday, so if you board early I%26#39;ll treat you to a special song ;-). There are also family friendly places across the river on the Indiana bank. If you%26#39;re willing to drive a little, my young kids used to love Gattiland with the pizza/pasta buffet and loads of games. A popular place to eat downtown is the Spaghetti Factory. The pasta tastes like Ragu, but the place is cool. For authentic Italian at a good price and very family friendly, you can%26#39;t beat Melillo%26#39;s on Market Street. They have a bocce ball court and a nice fountain area which the kids love.

With your busy days, I%26#39;ll bet that 3 year old will be ready to turn in early! Have a wonderful trip and good luck with the weather.

If the Bats are in town, how about taking in a game at Slugger Field? The seats are cheap and it%26#39;s a beautiful intimate stadium. You can even bring blankets and sit in the grass on a hill overlooking centerfield. There%26#39;s a playground and a merry-go-round. Even if you don%26#39;t make it too long, it%26#39;s not that expensive.

I think a whole day at Churchill would send your family over the edge. I%26#39;d plan on a half day, preferrably the early part and then do something else later in the afternoon/evening. Don%26#39;t get me wrong, I love Churchill Downs, but even I get bored there sometimes.

My kids like the Old Spaghetti Factory, but another idea would be to eat at Rocky%26#39;s Italian Grill in Jeffersonville, IN, right across the river, and then come back over to play on the playgrounds at the Great Lawn. Tumbleweed is on our side of the river right next to one of the playgrounds, but it is usually HUGELY crowded in the evenings.

I also second a ride on the Belle if you can.

2 40 yr old guys looking for nightlife weds

2 40 yr old professional guys staying in louisville wednesday night..any suggestions for nightlife?

2 40 yr old guys looking for nightlife weds

I am not sure exactly where you are staying at in Louisville but I would check out 4th Street Live.

There are 5 or 6 different bars/lounges and quite a few restaurants including Hard Rock Cafe. There are a few retail stores and bowling alley and I b elieve an Imax theatre but could be wrong. Anyway, i provided the link for the official website if you are interested.

The official website is: http://www.4thstlive.com/index.cfm

2 40 yr old guys looking for nightlife weds

Dayton

This is probably too late, but steer clear of 4th St. Live. It%26#39;s a collection of corporate theme restaurants and bars. Not a taste of Louisville by any means.

Try Bardstown Rd./Baxter Ave. area. I would suggest you park on the street if front of Molly Malone%26#39;s and start walking around. There are several bars in that 2 block area alone.

Here is a nice list of places in that area. I copied this from a post by Seagrover (thanks Seagrover).

begin

The area that we locals refer to as ';Bardstown Road'; actually begins on Baxter Ave. if you are coming from the north (which you would be if you are coming from the Marriott). Baxter Ave will eventually run into Bardstown Rd.

The whole thing is about a 3 mile strip starting with the Phoenix Hill Tavern and pretty much ends with the Bambi Bar. Be advised, the list below is from memory and although many of these places serve food, but I only listed the places that feel more bar, than restaurant. There are still a ton of restaurants that I didn%26#39;t include.

Phoenix Hill Tavern - Cavernous. Multiple live bands on most nights. Draws a young, college crowd. Can be cheesy.

Outlook Inn - Divey. Great Bloodies. Hipster local crowd of mixed ages. Pool tables. Juke box in back.

Flanagan%26#39;s - Irish. Nice back patio. Lots of beers on tap.

Mixed/college crowd. Younger on weekends.

Molly Malones - Irish. Great outside space. College/prepster crowd.

Wet Willies - Those swirling daiquiri machines. The crowd seems cheesy to me, but I don%26#39;t spend a lot of time in there.

O%26#39;Shea%26#39;s - Irish. Great outside patio. Live music on some nights. Good all around bar.

Akiko%26#39;s - Karaoke.

Wick%26#39;s Pizza - Pizza pub meets bar. Live music on some nights.

Cahoot%26#39;s - Divey. Locals mostly. Mixed crowd. Pool tables.

BW3%26#39;s - Wings. College crowd. Sports. Sports. Sports.

Back Door - Behind ValuMarket. Hard to find. Locals only. Very mixed crowd. Divey. Lots of pool tables.

Highland%26#39;s Tap Room - Small. Live music. Good outdoor area.

Cumberland Brews - Brew pub. Small. Comfy.

Za%26#39;s Pizza - Good selection on tap. Good pizza. TV%26#39;s. Comfy.

Hideaway Saloon - Divey. A bit hard to find. Locals. Deadheads. Live music on many nights. Pool tables upstairs.

Cafe 360 - Open really late for food. Fully stocked bar. Hookah lounge. Hipster/mixed/Highlands crowd.

Asiatique - Upscale asian restaurant until around 11pm. Clubby/DJ thing in the basement late night.

Big Dave%26#39;s Outpost - Neighborhood bar. Pub grub %26amp; beers.

Dundee Tavern - Neighborhood bar. Good sports watching set-up.

Left Field Lounge - Divey/hole in the wall. Strange, but in a good way.

Bambi Bar - Neighborhood bar. Mixed crowd.

My best suggestion would be for you guys to begin your evening on the corner closest to Molly Malones %26amp; Flanagans (Baxter Ave. and Morton Ave.) From there, you are within easy walking distance of several bars. Most places will only have a small cover (if they have one at all)

end.

The area around Za%26#39;s and Cumberland Brews is a cool little area. You can walk around and see some of the locals in action. Always interesting. There is an awesome sushi place right there called Sapporo.

Hope you have/had fun.

Wednesday night is Ladies Night at Jim Porter%26#39;s!!!!

clarins

client time

Fat man misery

Can a 5%26#39;8%26#39;%26#39; 320lb person fit through this portion of the tour? We went on this tour on our honeymoon and was much smaller then, and can%26#39;t remember how tight the passage way was. Any help will be appreciated.

Thanks.

Fat man misery

I would contact the park directly and pose this question. You can find their number on nps.gov. I had to call the park for another question, and I felt the person on the other end was extremely helpful! I can assure you of one thing: if there%26#39;s any doubt of your being able to fit, the rangers won%26#39;t let you take the tour. I read on one web article that in sections, the walls in Fat Man%26#39;s Misery are only 18 inches apart. If you angle yourself just the right way, it certainly could work, but I would want to be sure. We just did this last year, and to me, the Tall Man%26#39;s Misery section was more challenging because of the stooping. I%26#39;m only 5%26#39;3'; and could really empathize with a person well over 6 feet tall going through. All in all, both sections of the Historic Tour were quite fun.