Things to Do

The center offers displays and a video presentation about monastery life as well as a gift shop with Gethsemani Farms†products. The Abbey, founded in 1848 by the Order of the Trappist Cistercians, is home today to Trappist monks who open doors to spiritual seekers from all over the world. The monastery is located south of Bardstown.

The church is the first Catholic cathedral built west of the Allegheny Mountains. This historic edifice, built from 1816-1819, contains fine paintings and gifts of Francis (King of the two Sicilies) and Pope Leo XII.

Federal Hill was the inspiration for Stephen Foster’s ballad, “My Old Kentucky Home”, which honors the state song. Built in 1812, it is as endearing to visitors today as when Foster wrote the song.

This spectacular musical, with a cast of more than 50 performers, is based on the life of America’s first great composer, Stephen Foster. Many of Foster’s most popular songs are featured.

The tour of the original 1819 jail, furnished with antiques and heirlooms, provides a chilling look at the conditions in the jail that was in operation until 1987.

Built in 1779, this restaurant is the oldest Western stagecoach stop in America. The historic building has been a silent witness to an amazing panorama of events and an unending parade of visitors from kings to pioneers and presidents to renegades.

The museum contains Kentucky’s largest collection of Civil War artifacts. Authentic uniforms, actual battle flags, weapons, maps, and documents are on display.

Located in Spalding Hall, this extensive collection includes an original porcupine-quill-decorated Indian coat and one of the first Kentucky long rifles made in Bardstown by the renowned gunsmith, Jacob Rizer.

Bells, lights, and steam whistles abound at Kentucky’s official railway museum.

The Village is a recreation of a 1790’s frontier village, representative of the first westward movement of the nation. The cabins are 150 to 200 years old.

300+ acres of sacred grounds with paved walking paths, historic buildings, comfortable benches, holy statues, and beautiful bodies of water.

The museum contains an extensive collection of the liquor memorabilia of Oscar Getz and other distillers from the 1700s to today. On display are George Washington’s millstone, prohibition prescriptions, Abraham Lincoln’s liquor license and Carrie Nation’s hatchet.

This Memorial covers all of America’s wars, from the Revolutionary War to Desert Storm, with outstanding graphics and artifacts.

This museum features an extensive collection of North American animals in their natural habitat. Fossils and minerals from around the world are also featured.

This museum portrays women as nurses, spies, soldiers in disguise and plantation and factory workers. Clothing and artifacts from the era help to tell their story.

See bottling done by hand, smell sweet aging bourbon in white oak barrels, and visit the gift shop at this distillery.

This state-of-the-art visitor center is designed to provide the ultimate educational and entertainment experience. Tour a working rickhouse, see a movie, and receive a tutored tasting in the ‘Taste of Heaven’ barrel-shaped tasting room.

Tour history in style aboard a trolley while enjoying an introductory tour of Bardstown’s many attractions including Heaven Hill’s Bourbon Heritage Center.

Learn the rich heritage and modern-day production method of this 200-year-old distillery. Enjoy sampling the bourbons while viewing the Beam family home, a National Historic Site.

Enjoy a guided tour through the distillery and see how bourbon is made. Purchase a souvenir bottle and hand-dip it in the Maker’s Mark signature red wax.

You can tour the winery cellar, experience the making of the finely crafted wines, enjoy a historic display of Kentucky’s wine heritage, and browse the gift shop. Taste your wine selections in the tasting room or on the patio overlooking the Easter vineyards.

Go back in time with a narrated, horse-drawn carriage tour through historic Bardstown.

This renowned arboretum is located on a 14,000-acre forest with nature center, picnic areas, hiking trails and lakes. No camping or hunting is allowed.