Places to Visit in Northern Kentucky

Places to Visit in Northern Kentucky

Places to Visit in Northern Kentucky

Visiting Northern Kentucky? While in the area, you will want to get out and see the sites. Here is a list several popular activities that are either free or reasonably priced in the area.

The local area has an interesting history dating back to the early 1800’s. Nestled along the Ohio River, Northern Kentucky is the center of the “Tri-State” of Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky. A melting pot of cultures and lifestyles.

Ready to plan your visit? 

Since we all have to eat… 

The top 20 Restaurant list by Northern Kentucky Magazine would be the place to start. Northern Kentucky offers a wide variety of cuisine. If you leave the area hungry, it’s your own fault.

Places to go… Depending on whether you are traveling with children or off on a history jaunt, NKY is packed with so much history…mixed in with a little crazy fun!

World Peace Bell and Exhibit Center  ~ Newport, KY

Places to Visit in Northern Kentucky
Photo credit: World Peace Bell

The World Peace Bell is the world’s largest free swinging bell. It weighs 66,000 lbs., is 12 feet in diameter and 12 feet high. Its clapper alone weighs an amazing 6,878 pounds. The yoke in which it swings weighs an additional 16,512 pounds. This magnificent bell rings with a powerful, awe-inspiring, deep resonant tone that is truly a majestic symbol of freedom and peace. Bell swings and rings each day at noon.

Newport on the Levee  ~ Newport, KY

Newport on the Levee
Photo credit: Newport on the Levee

Activities include Dining, IMAX movies, Bowling, Shopping (they offer Visitor Incentive Coupons)

Newport Aquarium ~ Newport, KY

What To Do in Cincinnati - Newport Aquarium
Photo credit: Newport Aquarium

Voted the #1 Aquarium in the Country! Local hotels and Grocery stores offer discount coupons for admission. You can also arrange for group/school/scouting rates…contact them before visiting. For a super visit, schedule an overnight inside the aquarium.

Activities include Dining, Play area, Shopping, Penguin Encounter, and Ride the Ducks

Jane’s Saddlebag ~ Union, KY

Places to Visit in Northern Kentucky
Photo credit: Jane’s Saddlebag

Activities include: A natural amphitheater with a 1700 replica flatboat for guests to go through, a kids village with themed buildings, corn hole area and a petting zoo with tons of fury animals including new babies every year just waiting to greet you.

Jane’s Saddlebag has something for everyone in the family to enjoy; a visit to Jane’s will be a memorable one for your family for years to come.

City of Newport ~ Newport, KY

Places to Visit in Northern Kentucky
Photo credit: City of Newport

Founded in 1795, Newport provides an excellent mix of historic amenities and Contemporary development. The community’s riverfront area provides a striking view of the Cincinnati skyline and is host to premier attractions including the Newport Aquarium, Newport on the Levee, and the nearby World Peace Bell.

Newport is also home to the East Row Historic District and a revitalized, historic downtown filled with eclectic businesses

Benton Family Farms Walton, KY

Places to Visit in Northern Kentucky

Activities include: Milking the cows, Tending to the chicks, Shearing sheep and goats, Hayrides & working in the dirt, Working in the garden, Scavenger hunts & outdoor games, and Learning to fish & collecting plenty of worms.

Vent Haven Museum ~ Fort Mitchell, KY

Places to Visit in Northern KentuckyThe world’s only museum dedicated to the art of ventriloquism

Behringer Crawford Museum ~ Covington, KY

Places to Visit in Northern Kentucky
Credit: Behringer-Crawford Museum

The Behringer-Crawford Museum is a center for the collection, presentation, study and enjoyment of our natural, cultural, and visual and performing arts heritage of the Northern Kentucky Area.

Battery Hooper Park and Civil War Museum ~ Ft. Wright, KY

Places to Visit in Northern Kentucky
Credit: Battery Park

Accessible to most of the community, though small, the beautiful and shady, Battery Hooper Park has a variety of play things along with open spaces great for kids of all ages to run, climb and play, swings, sand box, picnic tables and benches, even a museum. Twice a year they hold civil war reenactments with a real camp set up all weekend and several kids activities. 1402 Highland Avenue, Ft. Wright, 41011

 

Big Bone Salt Lick Park ~ Union, KY

Places to Visit in Northern Kentucky
Credit: Big Bone State Park

Activities include: Basketball, Birding, Camping, Fishing, Hiking, Horseshoes, Miniature Golf, Picnicking, Playgrounds, Swimming, and Tennis

 

Boone Woods ~ Burlington, KY

Places to Visit in Northern Kentucky

 

Activities include: Basketball, Bocca Ball, Creekside Stage, Horseshoe Pits, Playgrounds, Tennis, Volleyball, and an old Fort to investigate

Cathedral  St Mary’s Bascilla    ~ Covington, KY

Places to Visit in Northern Kentucky

Building the Cathedral  began in 1894 and is largely unfinished even today, the Cathedral is a monument which speaks of the faith and determination of the Bishop and the community. It is an art and architectural monument to be treasured for centuries by people everywhere.

Dinsmore Homestead  ~ Burlington, KY

Places to Visit in Northern Kentucky
Credit: Dinsmore Homestead

 

The Dinsmore Homestead is a unique historic site where visitors can learn what rural life was like in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Nature enthusiasts enjoy the hiking trails developed in cooperation with the Kentucky Nature Conservancy and the Boone County Parks Department. It is a resource for students and scholars and an area where artists can sketch and paint. Those who enjoy antiques and historic interiors delight in touring the house that contains the original accumulated belongings of five generations of the Dinsmore family.

Erlanger Train Depot Park ~ Erlanger, KY

Places to Visit in Northern Kentucky

 

With a playground including a mini wood train for the kiddos to climb on and live trains with conductors who wave at them and more places to play, the Erlanger Train Depot Park is a must! This awesome park offers plenty to see and do with lots of room to run around and a covered picnic area. Crescent Avenue, Erlanger, 41018.

Creation Museum  ~ Petersburg, KY

 

Creation Museum
Photo Credit: Creation Museum
Places to Visit in Northern Kentucky
Credit: Creation Museum

The  museum brings the pages of the Bible to life, casting its characters and animals in dynamic form and placing them in familiar settings. Adam and Eve live in the Garden of Eden. Children play and dinosaurs roam near Eden’s Rivers. The serpent coils cunningly in the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Majestic murals, great masterpieces brimming with pulsating colors and details, provide a backdrop for many of the settings.

They also have a petting zoo, picnic area and gardens you can visit without entrance fees. Bonus: Kids get in free in 2014!

Kentucky Speedway   ~ Sparta, KY (30 minutes)

Places to Visit in Northern Kentucky
Credit: Kentucky Speedway

Activities include: Nascar racing, tours, local acitivites such as field trips and carnivals. Camping is also available on grounds and in the area.

If you are looking for additional or different activities, check out MeetNKY or the NKY Tourism sites as they are updated each week by county. Another source specifically geared toward children is the HulaFrog site.

Simply Sherryl

 

Sherryl @ Simply Sherryl