Kentucky Derby
Take a fun trip down to Kentucky! Enjoy some bourbon activities at a distillery, visit the Claudia Sanders Dinner House, enjoy your VIP Access Pass to the Kentucky Derby, and much more!
Duration
4 Days /3 Nights
Group size
Customizable
Customization
Available!
Tour Pricing Estimated Inclusions: 3 nights' hotel accommodation; 3 breakfasts; 1 lunch; 2 dinners; admissions, entrance, and guide fees as stated in the itinerary, including taxes & gratuity. Except gratuity for guide fees is not included on adult tours unless otherwise requested.
Highlights Include:
- The Kentucky Derby – Reserved Seats
- Derby Day Riverboat Race – Belle of Louisville & The Mary M. Miller
- Bourbon, BBQ, & Live Music
- Louisville Slugger Museum
- Lunch at Claudia Sanders Dinner House
- Horse Farm Tour
- Derby Hat Boutique
- Bourbon & Chocolate Gift Box
- “Off to the Races Dinner Party”
- Churchill Downs VIP Fast Access Pass
Day 1 - Arrive in Louisville
- Arrive to Louisville and check-in to your local area hotel.
- Enjoy an evening on the patio of this local favorite distillery with a BBQ dinner and live country music. There will be dancing & tours – plus a bourbon tasting opportunity! This is one of the most modern bourbon distilleries in Kentucky and we have a festive evening planned here for the kick-off event to the Derby.
- This morning enjoy breakfast included at the hotel then depart for the Louisville Slugger Museum. You don’t have to be a baseball fan to love Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory. It’s iconic, it’s linked to legends, and it is one of Louisville’s best known tourist attractions. Baseball is such a big part of American history and culture that even your customers who don’t think they’re fans will find a connection here.
- Today enjoy an included lunch.
- Our next stop is a Derby Hat Boutique. Here you can buy hats and accessories for both men & women.
- Return to your hotel to rest up before tonight’s “Off to the Races Dinner Party,” you will find that gift boxes with a miniature bottle of Evan Williams Bourbon & Chocolate Bourbon Candy are waiting for you. It’s another Bourbon Experience and a Spirit to Lift before your included dinner.
- This evening’s “Off to the Races” dinner is a feature event as we partner with the Kentucky Derby Museum at a local banquet hall. The meal is a special “Taste of Kentucky” menu. A plated meal of renowned Kentucky favorites complimented with Derby Pie for dessert. The Derby Museum’s Master of Ceremonies takes over during dinner with Derby Racing fun.
- We have three pre-recorded horse races that will be projected on the big screen. Each of your group members will have a race program and a stack of play money with which to wager at the row of Betting Windows in the back of the room. Consider this a warm up to the big race tomorrow, a practice session. It’s a chance to make few bets, cheer for a favorite, and share a few laughs. Your group will be rolling in the aisles with fun. When each race is over, there’s time to cash in winnings & make fresh bets before the next race.
- Enjoy breakfast at the hotel this morning.
- Today’s first event is the Derby Day Riverboat Race. We have chartered both the Mary M. Miller and the Belle of Louisville. Once onboard, enjoy coffee & tea or start the festivities with a Bloody Mary or Champagne Mimosa from the cash bar. Once underway we have experts providing a few insider tips on the Derby Race. They will talk about the Horses, how they run in different conditions, who has the post and what does that mean, plus information on the trainers, their Derby History, and more.
- You also enjoy a seminar on how to place a real bet at Churchill Downs. At the end of the “How to Bet” lesson, our two private Sternwheelers will turn downstream and with those big red paddlewheels kicking up a feather trail of whitewater they race each other back to Louisville. We encourage you to place a creative bet or two with your travel partners.
- Next, depart for Churchill Downs, enjoy your VIP Fast Access Pass & 2nd Floor Grandstand Seats near the Finish Line of the Kentucky Derby. You will be at The Derby all day, enjoy crowd watching, sample a mint julep, and place a few bets. This is one of the world’s greatest and most celebrated sporting events, “The Fastest Two Minutes in Sports,” and you are on hand to experience it all. The Kentucky Derby is America’s most extravagant springtime sports party, and one of our most celebrated events. While there is a horse race at the heart of this spectacle, there are many other intriguing aspects within this Louisville tradition. It is a festival and fashion show, it’s a Parade and a Race, it’s Mint Juleps and Riverboats; it’s about Horses and it’s about time you see it!
- Enjoy breakfast at the hotel this morning before checking out.
- Depart with hat boxes and suitcases loaded, your group departs for home with another event checked off the Bucket List.
*Base rate does not include motor coach transportation, airfare, airport transfers, driver gratuity, guide gratuity, (student groups exempt) or any upgrades or add-ons unlisted from itinerary as stated. Personalized itineraries with custom pricing and/or additional transportation can be created and added based on client needs and upon client’s request. Estimated prices may vary based on day of arrival, time of year, and other conditions. MARS will customize quotes or personalize itineraries for FREE.
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