Things to do / Travel Guide
On tours in Central Kentucky and Tennessee you'll get the lowdown on everything from bourbon to country music stars' most intimate gossip. Take a leisurely ride on an historic steamboat or railroad and see the homes of the rich and famous - horse or human.
Distillery Tours in Central Kentucky and Tennessee
There is nothing like the smooth, silky taste of bona fide bluegrass bourbon. See how it's made, learn its history, and taste the tradition - a number of central Kentucky bourbon distilleries offer tours (the majority of which are free) on weekdays year-round, including Wild Turkey Distillery and Four Roses, in Lawrenceburg, Heaven Hill Distilleries in Bardstown, Maker's Mark Distillery in Loretto, Labrot and Graham Distillery in Versailles, and Buffalo Trace Distillery near Frankfort.
If you find yourself in central Tennessee, Jack Daniels, in Lynchburg, and George Dickel, between Nashville and Chattanooga, also offer tours.
Cruises and Boat Tours in Central Kentucky and Tennessee
Part of what makes the south so … well … Southern are those old classic riverboat and showboat cruises. Cruise Lake Cumberland on the classy Cumberland Star River Boat near Whitey, Kentucky, which operates from May-September. The Belle of Louisville, a registered National Historic Landmark, is a snazzy steamboat with a colossal calliope. She has traveled the Ohio River for nearly a century and continues to do so year-round.
In Nashville you will feel like a wealthy Southerner from long ago on the historic General Jackson Showboat (with its two-story Victorian theater) as you cruise up and down the Cumberland River, anytime from May-September. Chattanooga has its own Southern Belle Chattanooga Riverboat, which offers a 90-minute sightseeing trip along the Tennessee River (operating year-round). All riverboat and showboat tours offer dining tours and night music cruises, and tour and cruise lengths vary.
For a unique underground excursion, take central Kentucky's only underground boat tour at Lost River Cave, near Bowling Green. The tour operates year-round, seven days a week, and tours are about 25 minutes long.
Horse Tours in Central Kentucky
If you're a horse lover, you've come to the right place. Near Lexington, Calumet Farms, breeder of nine Kentucky Derby champions and three Triple Crown winners, is open for tours. Horse Farm Tours, in Lexington, offers several-hour, daily tours and visits two horse farms and drives by Calumet Farms. Free tours are available from March-November at Three Chimneys Farm near Versailles, once home to beloved Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew.
Nashville Tours
For a different, more serious kind of Music City tour, try one of Nashville's tour companies for excursions on topics related to Nashville's history, historical sites, and music history. The most popular three-hour tours allow you to ride past the current and former estates of Dolly Parton, Kix Brooks, Martina McBride, and countless others. Tours range in length and price.
If, on the other hand, you are looking for a funny and funky excursion, try the Nash Trash Tour. A kind of poke-fun-at-Music-City comedy (that gives the nitty-gritty on country stars), you'll ride around in a gaudy pink bus with the outrageous Jugg Sisters whose clothing is as loud as their cackles. Because alcohol is allowed on the bus (and booze stops are scheduled) and the comedy content is for older crowds, note that this tour is not for kids.
Railroad Tours in Central Kentucky and Tennessee
Who said time travel is impossible? On the Big South Fork Scenic Railway, in central Kentucky, you will enjoy a narrated, historic open-car train ride along steep bluffs, through deep gorges, and abandoned mining towns such as Blue Heron. Big South Fork Railway is open from spring-fall. On the historic Tennessee Valley Railroad, in Chattanooga, you will ride in a steam-powered train from the 1930s amidst crew dressed in authentic costumes. A wide variety of excursions is available, and trip length and prices vary.
Walking Tours in Central Kentucky and Tennessee
Walk off all those barbecue ribs and that corn bread. You can take yourself on a leisurely, well-mapped, self-guided walk around Old Louisville, a historic neighborhood with the nation's largest collection of Victorian constructions.
Guided, organized walking tours of historic sites and important landmarks (like the pre-Civil War Carter House and Lookout Mountain Battlefield) are also available in Chattanooga and Nashville and are easily scheduled.
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