Trip During the Kentucky Derby

[Cibsie]

So the other day, I realized my planned weekend in Kentucky just happens to start on what is probably the busiest day of the year in Louisville.  Has anyone been in the area during the Kentucky Derby and have advice on how to navigate this?  We're getting in to Louisville late Saturday afternoon and the plan was to check out Old Forester, Evan Williams, and try out a few local liquor stores.  I'm starting to question if we'll be able to get in anywhere now.  At least the Sunday/Monday tours at HH and BT are locked in.

[geclbxf]

On 4/30/2023 at 10:47 AM, Cibsie said:

So the other day, I realized my planned weekend in Kentucky just happens to start on what is probably the busiest day of the year in Louisville.  Has anyone been in the area during the Kentucky Derby and have advice on how to navigate this?  We're getting in to Louisville late Saturday afternoon and the plan was to check out Old Forester, Evan Williams, and try out a few local liquor stores.  I'm starting to question if we'll be able to get in anywhere now.  At least the Sunday/Monday tours at HH and BT are locked in.

It will be slow during the day I think - most folks will head to the track which is not close to whiskey row.   Now good luck finding a dinner reservation that night after the race!

[flahute]

When you booked your hotel in Louisville you must have been wondering why it was so expensive!

 

Lot's of places are closed or limited in the lead up to the race so downtown shouldn't be too bad at first.

[Cibsie]

On 5/1/2023 at 6:57 PM, flahute said:

When you booked your hotel in Louisville you must have been wondering why it was so expensive!

 

Lot's of places are closed or limited in the lead up to the race so downtown shouldn't be too bad at first.

I just realized I never followed up on this thread, but you sure weren't kidding about places being closed!  The streets were completely dead, and Michter's was the only place to get in for a pour.  The following days were great, but it's definitely tough to hit everything when all distilleries close at 5pm and are 45 minutes apart.