Top 10:
Easy spring break trips
Y
ou don���t have to go far from Southern Indiana to
have some fun family time over spring break. Here
are a few suggestions.
1. Find fun for everyone in and around Cincinnati,
Ohio. Try Newport on the Levee (www.newportonthelevee.com) just across the river in Kentucky, featuring
Newport Aquarium, shopping, restaurants, movies, and a
beautiful view of The Queen City. Attend a Reds game, and
be sure to try some famous Cincinnati chili. Check out the
National Underground Railroad Freedom Center (www.
freedomcenter.org) for some fascinating American history.
Also nearby is Great Wolf Lodge (www.greatwolf.com), an
indoor water park with themed suites.
2. Enjoy some American history at Abraham Lincoln
Boyhood National Memorial (www.nps.gov/libo/) in
Lincoln City. In Rockport, you can ��nd the Lincoln Pioneer
Village and Museum (www.lincolnpioneervillage.com).
To extend your learning, visit the two Lincoln exhibits at
the Indiana State Museum (www.indianamuseum.org) in
Indianapolis (on display until July 25) or the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum (www.alplm.org) in
Spring��eld, Illinois.
3. The French Lick Springs Resort and West Baden
Springs Resort (www.frenchlick.com) are a close-to-home
source of fun with their pools, indoor sports, arcade, golf,
historical tours, entertainment, horseback riding and special activities for kids ages six to 10. Also in French Lick,
Big Splash Adventure Indoor Water Park & Resort (www.
bigsplashadventure.com) o ers the fun of a water park
without any worries about the weather.
4. How about a trip to Indianapolis? The Indianapolis
Zoo (www.indyzoo.com) features a dolphin theater with
daily shows, a shark pool, and a baby elephant. The Children���s Museum of Indianapolis (www.childrensmuseum.
org) is widely regarded as one of the best in the nation.
Other options include visiting the Indianapolis Museum
of Art and its gardens, the Indiana State Museum, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum, or the
Rhythm! Discovery Center (www.rhythmdiscovery.org)
where you can visit many exhibits about the science and
history of percussion, then enjoy an interactive area where
you can try percussion instruments.
March/April 2013 ��� 10
5. Head to Louisville, Ky., and explore the Kentucky
Science Center (www.kysciencecenter.org), hike in the Jeffersonville Memorial Forest, ride on a riverboat or visit the
Louisville Slugger Museum (www.sluggermuseum.com).
Many attractions feature special spring break activities.
The Kentucky Derby Museum (www.derbymuseum.org)
is a great stop even on a non-racing day. Various tours of
Churchill Downs are available (reservations are encouraged).
6. Drive south to Mammoth Cave National Park (www.
nps.org/maca) in Kentucky for cave tours, camping, hiking, canoeing, horseback riding and bicycling. Children
ages eight to 12 can take a special tour with a park ranger,
and families can take an introduction to caving course together.
7. Make a memory by doing a zipline tour with friends
or family. Choose from six di erent tours with eXplore
Brown County (www.explorebrowncounty.com), and take
time to explore the rest of the area. Other options include
Dagaz Acres in Rising Sun (www.dagazacres.com), Rawhide Ranch (www.rawhideranchusa.com) in Nashville,
and Lark Valley Zip Lines in French Lick www.larkvalleyziplines.com).
8. At the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington (www.kyhorsepark.com), you can go horseback riding, take a horsedrawn trolley tour, or go on a tour of horse farms. Pony
rides are o ered for children. Nearby in Harrodsburg, tour
a preserved Shaker community in Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill (www.shakervillageky.org).
9. If the weather���s good, visit one of the many state
parks in Indiana, Illinois or Kentucky. You can enjoy hiking, biking, ��shing, canoeing, camping, and more. A few,
such as Ferne Cly e State Park in Illinois, even o er rock
climbing. Some of the parks have inns on site, including
Clifty Falls State Park near Madison.
10. There���s no shortage of attractions and activities in St.
Louis, Mo. Visit the Gateway Arch; take in a baseball game
at Busch Stadium; tour the zoo; let the kids��� imagination
go wild at Magic House (www.magichouse.org), an interactive children���s museum; walk around Forest Park, site
of the 1904 World���s Fair; feed bu��alo and goats at Grant���s
Farm (www.grantsfarm.com) and see the Budweiser
Clydesdales; check out City Museum (www.citymuseum.
org) or the St. Louis Science Center (www.slsc.org); and
enjoy great dining and shopping. Explore St. Louis (www.
explorestlouis.com) has lots of helpful information for trip
planning. ���