Louisville | World’s Best Cities

Louisville

It’s easy to love Louisville; the city checks lots of boxes as a tourism destination to visit and a place to live: it’s prosperous (#43 in our measure of Household Income and #35 for Fortune 500). Then there’s its uncountable varieties of craft bourbon and some 2,500 restaurants, several manned by James Beard honorees. The city is also the birthplace of the Louisville Slugger, baseball bat of legend Babe Ruth—you can visit the factory and museum, and watch the manufacture of one of the 1.8 million bats that are made every year. If your idea of a home run is The Greatest, there’s the three-level Muhammad Ali Center. And, of course, the most famous horse race in the world. If you miss Derby Day, you can bet on Churchill Downs’ on-site museum to deliver the flavor. No surprise that Louisville is #30 in our ranking for Attractions; those are only a few of myriad offerings that run the gamut. This is a city with a Museum Row—and a #31 ranking in our Museums category.