Sometimes it's easier to skip Thanksgiving. Whether you're hiding from the occasion entirely or are merely lacking a dinner invitation this year, there is a small yet colorful assortment of places open to the public on Thanksgiving Day. There are endless reasons to take a year off from typical festivities or start a new tradition on Thanksgiving Day. The presidential election, for one, is just barely in the rearview mirror. Rather than try to tune out your rowdy relativities' political opinions around the dinner table, sometimes it makes more sense not to attend the event. In other cases, traveling across the country to see loved ones can be difficult and costly. Attempting to make a whole feast for one can feel lackluster and lonely. If someone special is missing from the table this year, going through the motions of the occasion can feel empty and painful. So mark the day a different way. Here are six places in and near Louisville where you can spend your time on Thanksgiving Day.
The storied track where the Kentucky Derby is held each year throws its doors open to the public on Thanksgiving Day. Horseracing at Churchill Downs begins at 11:30 a.m. and runs until the final race at 4:43 p.m. Admission to the track starts at $14, but elevated dining options are available at
Matt Winn's Steakhouse , and
the SI Club , as well as the
Jockey Suites . Tickets are available online at
churchilldowns.com .
Derby City Gaming Downtown will be open normal hours 9 a.m. to 3 a.m. on Thanksgiving Day. The 43,000-square-foot entertainment complex features 500 gaming machines as well as retail and dining options. On Thanksgiving Day, Derby City Gaming is offering discounts on bourbon pours and cigars, as well as half-priced bottles of wine.
Executive Strike and Spare bowling alley hosts a Thanksgiving Day Doubles Shootout. Check-in begins at 5:30 p.m. Each bowler will bowl four games with the total pin fall for both bowlers determining who advances to the finals. The winning team takes home $1,000. The cost to enter is $100 per team. For more information, email
[email protected].
Spend your Thanksgiving Day in the great outdoors. Fifteen
Kentucky State Resort Parks offer a Thanksgiving Day meal for $25.99 for adults and $12.99 for children ages 6-12. Many of the parks are at least a two-hour haul from Louisville, but General Butler State Resort Park in Carrolton is only about 50 miles from downtown Louisville. The hilltop park is a destination for people passionate about hiking, fishing, boating, and biking. There's also a miniature golf course onsite. Reservations are required. Call 502-732-4384 to reach General Butler State Park.
Rather than fill your plate on Thanksgiving Day, you can pack your evening with action.
Main Event opens at 4 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day. The entertainment complex has a full restaurant and bar as well as bowling, an array of arcade games, gravity ropes, lazar tag, and pool tables.
Movie theaters
This Thanksgiving, swap the turkey and dressing for a big bucket of popcorn and a hotdog. Most movie theaters are open on Thanksgiving Day. Some of the best films of the year are released around Thanksgiving and this year is no exception. The musical prequel to "The Wizard of Oz," "
Wicked ," starring Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, and "
Gladiator II ," which stars Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal, and Denzel Washington and is set 20 years after the events of the 2000 film, both hit the big screen on Nov. 22. Visit
fandango.com for showing times and locations.
