10 Best Things to Do in Kentucky

Cumberland Falls State Resort Park is an activity-packed park in the Daniel Boone National Forest. The park spans over 1,600 acres and earned its name from the towering Cumberland Falls. Along with beautiful views, the falls are known for their frequent moonbows. These moonbows, or rainbows produced by light from a full moon, make photography a favored activity for visitors. 

The park is popular for all types of recreation, including mountain biking, horseback riding, hiking, fishing, canoeing, picnicking, and white water rafting. You could also stop in the visitor’s center and interpretive center to learn more about the park.

Located near Cave City, Dinosaur World is an outdoor museum of life-sized dinosaurs dotted along wilderness trails in the forest. Over 100 dinosaurs can be found in the museum, all with fun facts and information for visitors. You could also find treasures like dinosaur eggs, bones, and claws among the trees. 

The park offers many other activities, such as a fossil dig for children, a picnic area, and a playground. Before you leave, you can take home mementos like eggs and fossils from the gift shop.

The Kentucky State Capitol is the home to the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the state government of Kentucky. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Capitol building is over 100 years old and was designed by Frank Mills Andrews, a decorated architect. 

Done in a Beaux-Arts style with interior accents inspired by French locations, the Capitol building is one of the most beautiful places to tour in the state. Inside, you’ll find statues of historical figures from Kentucky and exhibits on Kentucky history, including Kentucky Women Remembered.

Funtown Mountain is a deserted amusement park that was once a popular attraction for visitors to Mammoth Cave. Boasting a Wild West theme, Funtown Mountain was originally known as Guntown Mountain when it opened over half a century ago. 

After closing in 2013, it was purchased with the intent to restore it and turn it into Funtown Mountain. Unfortunately, the owner was unable to successfully reopen the park, and it currently rests at its original location. You can tour the ruins of the rides and attractions or see gunfight and stunt shows in the park.

A popular spot for families and adventurers, Red River Gorge is a canyon system on the Red River that lies within Daniel Boone National Forest. The gorge offers plenty of beautiful geological formations, including waterfalls, natural bridges, rock shelters, and dramatic sandstone cliffs and arches. 

Adventurers flock to the gorge for its many recreational opportunities, such as rock climbing, hiking, camping, and horseback riding. The Gladie Visitor Center offers interpretive exhibits about the gorge and surrounding forest, cultural and natural history exhibits, and information about trails and activities.

Ashland is the plantation of the 19th-century Kentucky statesman Henry Clay. Located in the heart of the bluegrass region, the plantation is a registered historic landmark and house museum. The mansion features impressive Federal architecture, Italianate features, and Greek Revival features. The interior is ornate and lavishly decorated as well. 

The plantation’s tumultuous history is on display at the estate, so you can see records of livestock breeding and crop growing. Plus, you can learn about how the plantation grew hemp, the primary cash crop for the time period.

Breaks Interstate Park is a bi-state park that’s split between Virginia and Kentucky in the Jefferson National Forest. The park is known for its natural wonder, the “Grand Canyon of the South,” which has a national reputation for its stunning scenery. Both the Russell Fork River and Clinchfield Railroad run within the canyon. 

Plenty of outdoor activities are popular in the park, including fishing, hydro biking, canoeing, paddle boating, horseback riding, mountain biking, hiking, and rock climbing. There’s also a water park with multiple waterslides, a splash pad, and other water rides.

The Natural Bridge State Resort Park is a vast parkland on the Middle Fork of the Red River near the Red River Gorge Geologic Area and the Daniel Boone National Forest. The focal point of the park is the natural bridge, a sandstone arch formation that was created millions of years ago and spans 65 feet high and 78 feet long. 

Along with hiking, biking, and other outdoor fun in the park, Natural Bridge State Park hosts events such as backpacking trips, natural history education, wildflower weekends, reptile weekends, and more.

The Newport Aquarium is a fun family attraction to experience marine life during your trip. The aquarium features both native and exotic marine and aquatic creatures, including penguins, sharks, stingrays, and the rare white alligator. Some of the unique exhibits that the aquarium offers include the shark bridge, which is a rope walkway suspended over a live shark tank. 

Many visitors also enjoy the Shipwreck: Realm of the Eels exhibit, which showcases reef creatures that thrive in sunken ships at the bottom of the sea.