Elizabethtown, known as E’town to the locals, is a historic and charming city full of museums, entertainment places, recreational areas, and other attractions for travelers.
This town is fortunate to have many green spaces where tourists can spend the day relaxing and enjoy happy times with family and friends.
In less than an hour south of Louisville, you can find this lovely town with many activities for your get-away and fun trip.
Find the best travel deals for you and start planning your Kentucky vacation.
Here are the 20 best things to do in Elizabethtown, KY:
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Recharge your batteries and spend your day in the largest city park in the town, which is Freeman Lake Park.
The main attraction in this 170-acre park is fishing and boating, and if ever you decide to go on fishing, you can catch a Rainbow Trout, Channel Catfish, Crappie, Large Mouth Bass, and Bluegill.
If you want to go fishing, remember that all 16 years old and up can get a fishing permit available daily or yearly, and if you like to go on boating, you can rent a paddle or rowboat to go around the lake.
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In the lake park, there is also the first kayak launch dock and handicap-accessible canoe.
You can play volleyball or tennis, go hiking in the 7 miles walking trail, try playing in the golf course, or just go on a picnic since there are small shelters and restrooms available for everyone.
You can do numerous activities, and make sure you visit the Sarah Bush Johnson Log Cabon, Lincoln Heritage House, and One-room schoolhouse.
Don’t forget that there are small and large dog parks so you can have fun with your pets.
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Enjoy a journey through time and check out collections of documents, memorabilia, and artifacts that tell the story of Hardin County.
One of the best places to go if you want to know more about history is this history museum, where there are many exhibits, tours, and promotions about the town’s heritage.
The speakers strive to promote the knowledge of the Kentucky frontier and see how the original settlers lived their everyday lives in the pioneer days in Hardin County.
The history museum is the home of stories of the region dating back to the 18th century.
There are many preserved and displayed objects in honor of the founders and inhabitants of the past centuries.
You can go to the museum for free, and there are also parking lots to arrive at the place quickly.
You should not miss out on some entertainment and fun on your trip, so make sure you go to this restored theater, known to the locals as “The State.”
In the cornerstone of downtown Elizabethtown, one building will undoubtedly stand out when you are walking through, and it is the Historic State Theater Complex originally built way back in 1942.
The building retains its 1940’s Art-Deco original style, but they wholly modernized and restored it, and the theater was open to the public in 2009 to hosts events, shows, and even movies.
Make sure you visit this theater and watch a classic movie, a concert, comedy show, or a live theater production that will surely suit your taste.
You can also rent someplace in the facility that is perfect for your parties, wedding receptions, and corporate luncheons.
Wander around this impressive Georgian mansion that hosts a genealogy library and history museum.
John Hill built the Brown-Pusey House in 1825 for many purposes, such as a boarding house for illustrious visitors.
But then, the owners donated the mansion to the community in 1923.
Now, the public can visit from Tuesday to Saturday for free to explore the Pusey Room Museum and relax in the well-maintained garden.
You can take a guided tour to see and learn more about the stunning mansions.
The public can also use the genealogy library to know more about Alfred Brown Pusey and William Allen Pusey.
If you want to rent the house, it has the perfect and personal atmosphere for a business meeting, birthday party, or wedding suitable for 300 persons.
They also have the Poplar Suite with a complete kitchen, chairs, and tables suitable for 30 guests for smaller or intimate meetings.
If you are a sports enthusiast or a sports rookie, Elizabethtown Sports Park is the perfect place to go as it holds many athletic competitions, and you can do some workout outdoors.
The sports park is about 150 acres, and it has three baseball and softball fields, 12 soccer and field hockey turf fields, many covered seats, and space for playing outdoor activities.
You’ll be amazed at this sports park because of the state-of-the-art designs, modern professional sports facilities, free WI-Fi, Hi-Cast streaming that are the best for you.
Elizabethtown Sports Park is a true destination of all events that features 12 cool-season ball diamonds.
What are you waiting for today? Spend your day doing recreational activities or watching a sports game in this sports park.
Anyone interested to know the history of automobiles back to the early 1900s should check out Swope’s Cars of Yesteryear Museum.
The Swope Family privately owned this museum that offers a variety of collections of vintage and antique cars such as the 1921 Dodge Bradesh model, 1955 Dodge Custom Royal Lancer, 1969 Chevrolet Camaro, 1970 Cobra Torino SCJ, and many more.
You can visit the museum for free to know how cars evolved and changed over the decades and see the old treasures and gems available for sale.
Take a guided tour if you want to comprehensibly know the details of the history of the place, the family dealership of cars, and see the car collections of the family.
In Elizabeth Nature Park, you can find the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Hall, the best location to reflect and pay tribute to thousands of people who served in the armed forces, bravely marched to the war, and gave their lives to protect the country.
The memorial wall built way back in 2018 is about an 80% scale replica of the Veterans Wall in Washington, DC.
This place is an excellent reminder of the devastation of the war.
Thousands of armed forces paid the price in protecting the liberty and safeguarding of the country.
The setting is in the form of the star that honors the civil and military service’s five branches–the Army, Air Force, Coast Guard, Marine, and Navy.
Check out and see a piece of natural history by going to the place and seeing the bronze sculptures that include over 58,000 names of brave heroes who defended the USA.
One of the best ways to relax and regain your energy for the week is to spend your day in a park or just do some recreational activities that will help you to have peace and calm mind and body.
The park features a community pool, a nine-hole golf course, four tennis courts, a splash playground with water slides, a pool house, a rock-climbing wall, and a splash pad.
The kids will have a great time playing in the Funtopia playground and learn many things in the Born Learning Trail, a mini-educational trail for children.
Near the playground in the Americal Legion Post 113 Memorial is the area to pay tribute to the soldiers who died in the Hardin Country war.
So if you are looking for a place to relax and cool off, you should go to the Americal legion Park, especially on hot summer days.
In Main Street, Downtown Elizabethtown, you will find a place that offers many selections of retro arcade games, pinball, and you can hear music from the 1970s and 1980s and hear the sounds of 8-bit sound effects.
If you want to spend a few hours playing Super Mario and Tetris, winning a pinball match, or having a high score in Pac-Man, you can go to the 3 Decade Arcade and reminisce about your favorite games in the past.
There are 15 standup arcade games, an air hockey table, and eight pinball machines which are classic and modern.
Snacks and bottled drinks are available for purchase in the arcade, so outside food and beverages are not allowed.
You don’t need to reserve a slot or pay for entrance fees because quarter machines will release quarters for you, so just play as you pay.
You can also pay via your cards such as Visa, MasterCard, Apple pay, or Google Pay.
3 Decade Aracage is open from Sunday to Thursday from 12 noon to 9 PM, and on Friday and Saturday, it’s available from noon to midnight.
Do you want to go to a place where you can hang out with the locals, and you can drink the best beer with the best ambiance and music? Then going to Flywheel Brewing is a great idea!
As the only microbrewing in Elizabethtown, Flywheel Brewing is a relaxing place where you can create bonds and lasting friendships, and you can try out their local beers.
You should also drink their latest barrel-aged bottle series and get some brick oven pizza.
Check out the calendar of events of this local bar as it has Flywheel Trivia League, Barrel and Swine, Scratch Batch, Southern Sliders, and many more.
Flywheel Brewing is open from Monday to Thursday from 4 PM to 10 PM, and from Friday to Sunday, it opens and closes at different times, so make sure you check out their page.
If you are looking for a place to walk, run, or hile, you can go to this two-mile Buffalo Lake Walking Trail with beautiful and luscious scenery.
Take a moment to appreciate nature, listen to the birds singing, and gaze in the creek-side vegetations, wildflowers, and rock formations.
The trail surrounds Buffalo Lake, and it was named a “Wildlife Preserve” as you can see native flowers, trees, scrubs, and even hills.
In the scenic trails, your path meanders southwest and then crosses Buffalo Creek until it goes to the main course leading to a high dam.
There are three entrances to the trail-first on the trail along Commerce Drive, then the second, at the parking lot at the end of the road, and the last one is near the bridge entering into the woods.
You can see red markers for moving in one direction and yellow markers for another path.
Take note that you can also go on bird-watching and fishing in the area.
Go to Sky’s the Limit if you are looking for indoor family entertainment because it has fun games with recreations activities that will provide a memorable experience for all.
Compete in dodge ball games, do jumping activities and go on the trampoline, have your exercise session, then all of it is possible with Sky’s the Limit.
You can also book a reservation to throw a birthday party or make your field trip in this interactive place.
Take note that you cannot bring food, beverages, or even pets inside the premises.
Sky’s the Limit is a family-oriented park, so fighting and misconduct are not allowed and tolerated.
Check out Emma Reno Connor’s collection of arts dedicated to preserving the Black American’s history.
Her gallery is proof of the hard work and perseverance to let the community know the history of Black Americans in the United States.
Emma Reno Connor is a schoolteacher, and she collected articles, pictures, and other materials about African Americans and used it in her classes.
But since Emma’s death in 1988, her family was the one who is managing the museum in their childhood home.
If you want to visit this exciting gallery, you can set an appointment to view the variety of collections in the place.
The go-to place if you are looking to buy some collectibles, antiques, and souvenirs is Elizabethtown Peddlers Mall.
This flea market features extensive furniture, decorations, clothing, toys that you can buy to add to your collections or just to add variety to your house vibes.
Take your time to check the items because you may find valuable and vintage items that will capture your heart or are hard to find these days.
There are great deals in over 18 retail stores you can go through when you visit the mall.
Elizabeth Town Peddlers Mall is open from Monday to Saturday from 10 AM to 8 PM and on Sunday from 11 AM to 6 PM.
You must try skydiving if you want another unusual activity for your vacation trip and for sure, you will have a thrilling experience.
If it’s your first time trying skydiving, do not worry because Skydive Kentucky provides a fun, safe, and secured skydiving experience, there are safety precautions you need to follow for this kind of activity.
There are veteran jumpers who can teach you what to do, and if you are seeking a Parachute Association License, you can take and complete their training classes.
Schedule your appointment now and arrive at your designated time so you have the time to know more about skydiving, the equipment you need to use, and start training to have the jump that you have been waiting for so long.
A fun, innovative new game called Xtreme Cornhole mixes cornhole and miniature golf.
Set up with holes, it resembles a minigolf course, and every hole has a unique obstacle or barrier waiting for the player.
You must overcome unique obstacles with varied themes to get your bag through the hole in all of them.
The game may be played similarly to minigolf, adding up your throws on a scorecard to determine the winner.
You can also play head-to-head using the standard cornhole guidelines.
Players in Xtreme Cornhole may fight against the Highest Scores on a live scoreboard!
Basketball goes beyond simply a pastime in Kentucky.
Visitors are invited to the Kentucky Basketball Hall of Fame to discover more about how high school basketball promotes a work ethic, a sense of teamwork, and individual accountability among the players and their instructors.
The Kentucky Basketball Hall of Fame was founded in 2012 to recognize, educate, and promote Kentucky High School Basketball’s rich history.
It is committed to boosting and better educating the public about the tradition, customs, and rich history of high school basketball in Kentucky.
While preserving and showcasing historical data and game-related artifacts, it respects previous coaches and players and offers an appropriate testament to them.
The Taylor family has been the proprietors of B&B Lanes, previously Dix Etown Lanes, for approximately 60 years.
B.L. Taylor was the first person to hold a portion of ownership and control in the lanes.
He began his career in bowling, intending to offer families in the Hardin County region an enjoyable, secure atmosphere.
They have 24 lanes with the most modern bowling industry technologies today and a pro shop for all your equipment needs.
They include a sizable video gaming room, a bar & grill, and a dining space with several big-screen TVs.
Private conference or event rooms totaling 1,500 square feet are available.
It seems strange that you can’t get inside the Hardin County Playhouse.
A joyful troupe of actors has entertained Elizabethtown’s citizens and guests under the signature “Hardin County Playhouse” for nearly 50 years.
Members of The Playhouse have been holding live concerts all around the city, and as their viewership expanded over time, they frequently had to switch locations.
The Hardin County Playhouse was last housed in the Elizabeth Country Technical College’s Science Auditorium.
Watching one of their outstanding theatrical plays would complete your trip to Elizabethtown.
The Wicked Eyed Woman Public House encourages guests to stop by and enjoy a casual lunch or supper in a historic environment.
It is housed in a magnificent old building that is said to have once been a place of ill behavior.
The restaurant’s interiors have been carefully rebuilt to highlight the greatest features of the building’s historic backbone without obliterating all signs of its ancient times, creating a cozy environment.
The menu offers Elizabethtown typical British pub fare with a Southern touch, utilizing the freshest seasonal ingredients wherever possible.
They have a wonderful team of talented local “food critics” who study, create, and adjust their food recipes until they arrive at the perfect combinations to please any palate.
As you can see, Elizabethtown is about history, nature, museums, and parks, so make the most out of your trip in this vibrant community.
Make sure you take your time to plan what places you will visit and what kind of activities do you like, as Elizabethtown has many things to offer to you.
Enjoy your vacation with your family, friends, or loved ones.
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