Private Jet to Kentucky

Pair up your Bluegrass State visit on one of Paramount’s private jets with a stay at one of Kentucky’s most luxurious hotels.

The Grady Hotel, Louisville
The Grady Hotel is set in the heart of Louisville near the Kentucky Center for Performing Arts, Muhammad Ali Center, and the Ohio River.   The historic building was once an apothecary, then home to the Swann-Abram Hat Company, which made hats for Derby clientele.  The walls of the hotel feature local art, including paintings and photographs.  Rooms contain silk robes reminiscent of those worn by famous boxer and native son Muhammed Ali.  Southern hospitality is served up along with small plates and cocktails at the Wild Swann, Grady’s in-house restaurant.  Drinks can be savored fireside or in the hotel’s comfortable library.

Hotel Covington Cincinnati Riverfront, Covington
Hotel Covington sits on the south bank of the Ohio River, across from Cincinnati.  It was constructed from the iconic 1910 Coppin’s Department Store building.  Its signature eatery, Coppin’s Restaurant & Bar, gives recognition to these historic architectural roots.  The building was Kentucky’s first skyscraper, and its preserved decorative elements include high ceilings and large display windows. The Hotel features a 24/7 fitness center, a bar and social room, a garden and terrace, as well as business facilities. 

21c Museum Hotel Louisville 
The 21c Museum Hotel in Louisville is on West Main Street along Museum Row in the heart of downtown.  The hotel was constructed from five historical 19th-century warehouses that once were used by cotton and bourbon merchants.  It is a contemporary art museum along with a hotel, and home to a highly acclaimed restaurant, Proof on Main, which highlights the foods of the Ohio River Valley.  The Bar has over 100 Kentucky Bourbons in supply.  Contemporary artwork fills the public spaces, including a double-size replica of Michelangelo’s David outside the front door, and the museum’s signature red plastic penguins.  The hotel also features a spa and a 24-hour fitness center.

Hotel Distil, Louisville
The Hotel Distil is centered on Louisville’s historic Whiskey Row downtown.  The Distil was built using the facades of two mid-19th-century buildings, which were originally barrel houses and bourbon company offices.  The hotel offers a 24-hour fitness center and the Repeal Oak-Fired Steakhouse, a classic American bar and restaurant.  Here the Barrel Room offers a deluxe private fine dining experience, and the Bitters End Bar provides rooftop cocktails along with a fireplace and a retractable roof.  Every night there is a complimentary toast to the repeal of Prohibition at exactly 7:33 p.m., which when written in the 24-hour clock equivalent as 19:33 represents the year that Prohibition was rescinded.

Lexington Griffin Gate Marriott Golf Resort & Spa
Located within the rolling bluegrass hills of Lexington, the Griffin Gate Marriott Resort & Spa is beautifully secluded yet still close to the city’s attractions.  There is a championship golf course onsite, along with a 24-hour fitness center, spa, indoor and outdoor pools, and a whirlpool tub.  There is a biking trail next to the resort, and bikes are available for rent. Outdoor activities include hiking, biking, and horseback riding.  The principal restaurant is JW’s Steakhouse, which also features a large selection of Kentucky Bourbon. 

The Brown Hotel, Louisville
The Brown Hotel was built in 1923 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  Located in the heart of Theater Square in downtown Louisville, The Brown’s elegant Georgian Revival architecture captures attention, and its glamorous lobby has a hand-painted coffered ceiling, mahogany furnishings, and marble floors.  Amenities include a fitness center and rooftop garden, and there is fine dining at the English Grill and bourbon flights in the Lobby Bar.

Omni Louisville Hotel
The Omni Louisville Hotel is in the heart of the action downtown.  It has a heated rooftop pool and 24-hour fitness center, the full-service Mokara spa, and a wide choice of restaurants on the property.  These include the Neighborhood Bar & Services, Bob’s Steak & Chop House, Pin & Proof, a Prohibition-style speakeasy with bowling lanes and light bites, and the poolside Water Company.  There is also the Falls City Market and an upscale bourbon retail shop on site.

The Seelbach Hilton, Louisville
The Seelbach Hotel in downtown Louisville has a venerable history, built in 1905 and chosen by F. Scott Fitzgerald for a wedding scene in The Great Gatsby.  The hotel is on the National Register of Historic Places.  This elegant hotel has a Beaux-Arts architectural style, a grand lobby with European marble, and a glass dome with 800 panes, and there are murals painted with pioneer scenes from Kentucky history.  Amenities include a fitness center, and fine dining is available at The Oakroom, Kentucky’s only AAA Five Diamond Restaurant. 

The Galt House Hotel, Louisville
The historic Galt House Hotel in Louisville opened in 1835, and is the city’s only waterfront hotel, offering great views of the Ohio River.  Guests can enjoy a rooftop fitness center, an outdoor pool, and the full-service Xhale spa.  The property has two towers which are connected by skywalks to the Kentucky International Convention Center and KFC Yum! Center.  A revolving rooftop restaurant, Swizzle Dinner & Drinks, lets diners take in the river scenery, and there are two founding members of the Urban Bourbon Trail, Down One Bourbon Bar and Jockey Silks Bourbon Bar. 

21c Museum Hotel Lexington
A combination of contemporary art museum and hotel, the 21c Museum Hotel in Lexington is stylish and luxurious.  Located in the heart of downtown, 21c is located within the historic Fayette National Bank Building dating back to 1913, and is on the National Register of Historic Places.  Rotating art exhibits keep things fresh, and the decorative scheme incorporates the hotel’s iconic blue penguins.  Amenities include a 24-hour fitness center, and the fine dining options are topped by Lockbox restaurant, a communal table affair set inside the old bank vault and features the products of the surrounding Bluegrass region.

Hiring a private jet service from Paramount is a great way to travel in comfort and style to Kentucky’s vibrant cities and beautiful natural sights.  From Lexington and the scenic Bluegrass region to Louisville and the Kentucky Derby, Kentucky offers a bounty of incredible scenery and fascinating history.  Here are some of the very best places to see.

Cumberland Falls State Resort Park, Corbin
Cumberland Falls is in its namesake State Resort Park in Corbin in the Daniel Boone National Forest located in southern Kentucky near the Tennessee border.  The majestic Falls are 125 feet wide and drop 68 feet into the Cumberland River.  They have been called the Niagara of the South, and under a full moon, the Falls create the only moonbows in the Western Hemisphere, as the moonlight is refracted off the water droplets.  The Park also offers 17 miles of hiking trails, as well as opportunities to go on horseback rides, take a white-water rafting trip, or go camping or fishing.

Ashland Estate, Lexington
Ashland is a 19th-century plantation home built by Henry Clay, who was a senator from Kentucky and subsequently Secretary of State under President John Quincy Adams.  The Lexington estate is a registered historic landmark, and the elegant home has ornate furnishings and gives insight into Clay’s life and times.  Constructed in 1811, the house was constructed by African American slaves, whose story is also told on a visit here.  Clay was also a farmer and livestock breeder and grew hemp as a cash crop on his grounds. Clay lived at Ashland for nearly a half-century.

Natural Bridge State Resort Park, Slade
Another of Kentucky’s beautiful natural attractions is at Natural Bridge State Resort Park near Slade, east of Lexington in the Daniel Boone National Forest.  The striking Natural Bridge, a sandstone arch that was created millions of years ago, is 65 feet high and 78 feet long.  A skylift brings visitors to the top of the ridge, and you can walk across the bridge itself, which is 30 feet wide.  Other recreational opportunities in the park include hiking, biking, canoeing, and fishing. 

Pleasant Hill Shaker Village
Kentucky has the largest restored Shaker community in the U.S. The Shakers were a sect of the Quaker religion, and the Shakers are often remembered for their furniture design.  The Pleasant Hill Shaker Village, located east of Lexington, began in 1805 and lasted until 1910.  Thirty-four of the original 250 pre-Civil War buildings have been restored, and the community is a living village with history exhibits and craft demonstrations.  There are also 40 miles of hiking trails that crisscross the area’s pastures and gardens. 

Louisville
Louisville is Kentucky’s largest city, built along the banks of the Ohio River.  Its biggest claim to fame is the annual running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs, but there is much more to the city.  Former heavyweight boxing champion Muhammed Ali was a native of Louisville, and his Center provides a look at his life and career.  Historic Old Louisville is the best place for a walk, with one of the largest collections of Victorian homes in the U.S.  One of the most interesting sights here is the stately 1895 Conrad-Caldwell House Museum.

The Louisville Slugger Museum & factory lets visitors see how the famous bats are produced and learn about some of the famous players who used them.  One such bat was used by Joe DiMaggio during his record 56-game hitting streak.  A 120-foot-tall bat sits outside of the museum entrance.  Other top sights include the Speed Art Museum (Kentucky’s largest), the Frazier History Museum, and the Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft.  Cruise the Ohio on the Belle of Louisville Riverboat and visit the Louisville Mega Cavern and Louisville Zoo. 

Mammoth Cave National Park, Mammoth Cave
Mammoth Cave National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is the longest-recorded cave system in the world.  Located about 40 miles east of Bowling Green, Mammoth Cave offers tours of its subterranean features, with the Classic Historic Tour offering a trip through the tunnels and huge rooms to learn about the Cave’s history and see the awe-inspiring natural formations.  Outdoor activities include horseback riding, hiking, camping, biking, and scenic drives. 

Kentucky Horse Park, Lexington
Think Lexington, and you think horses. This Bluegrass city’s primary sight is the Kentucky Horse Farm, where visitors can learn about the history of the horse, its role in world culture, and various famous breeds like the Arabian.  There are four museums on site including The International Museum of the Horse and the American Saddlebred Museum.  The Hall of Champions presents Thoroughbred horse legends, while there is also a blacksmith shop and the opportunity to take a horseback ride through the beautiful grounds. 

Newport Aquarium, Newport
The Newport Aquarium is along the Ohio River across from Cincinnati.  Here there are fascinating displays of worldwide marine life.  There is an acrylic tunnel visitors walk through while being surrounded by sharks, as well as exhibits on coral reefs, the Amazon River, a shark bridge that is suspended inches above the shark tank, an alligator display, and an exhibit entitled Shipwreck: Realm of the Eels that shows how sea creatures have made sunken ships their home.

Churchill Downs and the Kentucky Derby Museum, Louisville
The main cultural event of the year in Louisville is the running of the Kentucky Derby at the famed Churchill Downs racecourse.  This is a grand outing with attendees dressing their finest, the highest of haute couture hats on display, and mint juleps the drink of choice.  The Kentucky Derby Museum tells the history of the famous race and its famous horses and jockeys.  The first race was held in 1875.  There are also tours given of the Churchill Downs racecourse itself.

Lexington and Bluegrass Country
Lexington is horse country, situated in the lovely Bluegrass region of the state.  Home to the University of Kentucky, Lexington showcases its horse heritage at the Kentucky Horse Park, but also contains much more interest for visitors, including stops along the famed Kentucky Bourbon Trail.

Historic sites include the Georgian-style family home of Mary Todd Lincoln House, where she lived as a young woman.  In addition to Henry Clay’s Ashland, other historic homes include the Waveland State Historic Site, whose antebellum mansion was built in 1817 for the nephew of Daniel Boone, and the 1814 Federal-style Hunt-Morgan House. Other sights of interest include the Headley-Whitney Museum for its collection of art, the Aviation Museum of Kentucky, which displays both vintage aircraft and modern planes, and the Arboretum State Botanical Garden of Kentucky.