Seasonal Story Ideas

The Dot Experience, a $22 million museum opening at APH next Fall, aims to be the “most accessible museum in the world” and will house the largest repository of Helen Keller archives, provide factory tours to see how braille books are made, and have hands-on opportunities to learn the history of education for people who are blind. Connected to The Portland Museum, the AHOY Children’s Museum is set to open in late 2026 and will transform a Victorian house into an immersive and experiential two-story adventure including indoor and outdoor play areas. The $4 million project will be considered the city’s first children’s museum.

BOURBON: Louisville’s distilling heritage dates back to the 1780s, but it wasn’t until 2013 when Evan Williams Bourbon Experience opened that the city had a ticketed bourbon attraction. Since then, Louisville has undergone a spirited renaissance that shows no sign of slowing down. Seven new Bourbon tasting rooms are currently planned to open in Louisville by 2026. Bourbon brands like Green River Distilling Co., featuring a full bar and speakeasy, as well as Pursuit Spirits, offering tastings, a prohibition-style bar, and a live podcast studio, have both recently opened on Louisville’s Whiskey Row. WhistlePig plans to open the The Vault by the end of the fall inside a former 1912 bank building and allow guests to order a drink that will travel through a bank deposit tube to the bar. Brands like Binder’s Stash, Chicken Cock Whiskey, and Nashville Barrel Whiskey Co. plan to open in NuLu by early 2026, while Uncle Boojie’s Distilling Company recently opened in Paristown.

ATTRACTIONS: Kentucky Kingdom, the state’s largest amusement park, will unveil a $25 million upgrade featuring new lands, rides, and dining experiences with a Kentucky twist by Spring 2026. The Speed Art Museum, the oldest and largest art museum in Kentucky, is opening a $22 million, 3-acre park and sculpture garden in October 2025. Free and open 24/7, Speed Outdoors will feature 13 new world-class sculptures and 150 new trees. The Kentucky Science Center teamed up with Waterfront Park to open the $50 million PlayPort this past Spring, continuing the park’s expansion along the Ohio River, bridging the divide between the Downtown and Portland neighborhoods.

ACCOMMODATIONS: The 6-story Curio by Hilton Hotel Bourré Bonne opened this April, just one block south of Whiskey Row. The 168-room property features a rooftop pool & bar, and a first-floor eatery, Bourré Bonne Steakhouse. The Brown Hotel will celebrate the city’s official dish, The Hot Brown, as it turns 100 years old in 2026. Louisville celebrates the iconic open-faced sandwich every October during Hot Brown Week, coinciding with the hotel’s birthday. America’s first art hotel chain will turn 20 years old in 2026, with the 21c Louisville marking two decades since the opening of the brand’s flagship property. The historic Seelbach Hotel celebrates 100 years of The Great Gatsby in 2025 with historic tours and a new Great Gatsby suite. And, the Louisville Bourbon Inn was named ‘The Best Bed & Breakfast in America’ in 2025 by Tripadvisor, marking a significant accolade for the 1887-built Old Louisville staple.

It’s also where you’ll find the graves of KFC’s Colonel Sanders and Muhammad Ali. Visit the Muhammad Ali Center to learn about America’s Civil Rights history and the Champ’s boxing career. 2026 will mark the 10-year anniversary of Ali’s passing and be celebrated during the annual Ali Fest. Across the street, cruise on the world’s oldest operating Mississippi River-style steamboat aboard the Belle of Louisville. A one-hour road trip south will lead you to the birthplace of America’s most popular president, the Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park.

The new Kentucky African American Heritage Trail brings greater visibility to African American heritage sites and stories across Kentucky and includes sixteen Louisville locations, many with no entrance fee. Learn more history at the Filson Historical Society, offering free tours twice a week, or on a free historic Seelbach Hotel tour, taking place every weekend. Plug into one of the city’s free LouGrass sessions, highlighting the state’s Bluegrass musical roots every weekend, April - October, or one of the dozens of neighborhood festivals happening year-round.

Husband and wife duo Alvio and Elaisy Lapinet bring extra flavor to the city’s exploding Cuban community with the addition of Cured. Israeli-born Noam Bilitzer was recently nominated for a James Beard award for “Best Chef: Southeast” after celebrating the one-year anniversary of Meesh Meesh, a Levantine-inspired restaurant lauded as one of the best new eateries in the country. Wash it all down at Rabbit Hole Distillery, which houses the ultra-modern Bourbon brand created by Kaveh Zamanian, originally from Iran, but made his way to Kentucky after falling in love with his Louisville-born wife.

Initially opened in 1910 as a tuberculosis hospital, the gothic-style facility was nearly condemned when the hospital closed in 1981 after seeing the death of thousands of former patients. Today, tours are offered throughout the sanatorium, including the morgue and body chute. The Seelbach Hotel, built in 1920, has seen the likes of celebrities, mobsters, and even ghosts during its time. Ask about the Lady in Blue on a free historic hotel tour. Annual Halloween events include Pumpkins at Kentucky Kingdom, the Jack O’ Lantern Spectacular, and Louisville’s own Halloween street, Hillcrest Avenue.