Last week the kids had a couple of extra days off school. So we planned a little fall getaway. We chose to venture to the Louisville/Paoli area. We chose Louisville because it was only a 5-hour drive from Michigan and we really wanted to see the Louisville Jack O’ Lantern Spectacular this year.
Lodging for our Fall Getaway
Hampton Inn & Suites
Scottsburg, Indiana This hotel was only 10,000 Hilton Honors points per night. It was an older hotel, but it was clean and they allowed dogs to stay for free. That’s right, FREE! Plus, they upgraded us to a suite at no additional charge.
We stayed here because we were able to use our hotel points, and bring our dogs and it was a decent location between everything we wanted to do on this fall getaway. There are many other hotel options that you could choose from including staying at Wilstem Ranch!
More On Kentucky
Louisville Jack O’ Lantern Spectacular
This event is nothing short of spectacular and the talent that the pumpkin carvers have is absolutely outstanding. Louisville Jack O’ Lantern Spectacular is a must-see family-friendly event, even for you out-of-towners. The pictures do not do it justice.
Louisville Jack O’Lantern Spectacular has about 5,000 carved pumpkins that illuminate a 1/4-mile walking trail. The illuminated pumpkins are grouped in themes and oftentimes have music playing that coincides with the theme. The proceeds benefit the Louisville Parks Foundation.
Important tips
Go during the week
You guys, this is the most important tip of all. We went to the Louisville Jack O’ Lantern Spectacular on a Thursday and only waited 15 minutes. A worker told us that Fridays and Saturdays can get up to a 3-hour wait. Yep, you read that right, 3 hours! I had also heard someone saying that they go every year and that weekdays after 9:30 are the best. They said the crowds really die down after 9:30.
Bring a phone charger
If you happen to be one of the lucky ones stuck waiting in line, I imagine you will spend a lot of time playing on your phone. If that’s the case, by the time you make your way into the Louisville Jack O’ Lantern Spectacular your phone may be dead. And trust me, if this happens, you’ll be sad. Make sure you have a phone charger handy.
Bring glow sticks
It can get really crowded and it’s easy to get separated from your group. If you are going with kids, you may want to give them glow sticks or dress them in brighter colors. That way they stand out from the crowd. Bringing your own glow sticks or glow toys can save you money. There are many vendors who sell them, but they will certainly cost you more than picking up a few from the dollar store.
Bring extra money or your own snacks & drinks
They have a lot of vendors along the line you wait in. Some vendors have food, snacks, and adult beverages. To save money you can bring your own food and snacks.
Heads Up
I saw some people playing the heads-up app while waiting to get in. While we didn’t have to wait long, I wish I would have thought to download games to play in a group. Having a game to play as a group will definitely help pass the time especially if you have to wait for a long period of time.
Know where you are parked
Use the maps app to mark your parked location or share your parked location with yourself or a friend.
Louisville Jack O’ Lantern Spectacular is a must-do. I highly recommend you look into it if you’re planning a fall getaway.
Wilstem Ranch
We have fed giraffes and petted a bear cub, but we have never been up close to an elephant. So this time we decided to do the educational elephant encounter. It is $29 per person and it includes an educational encounter about elephants, the opportunity to touch and take a picture with an elephant, and also entrance into the Roo and Crew Barn. We first started our adventure at the Roo and Crew Barn. In the barn, they have goats, baby goats, iguanas, snakes, kangaroos, baby kangaroos, porcupines, baby porcupines, birds, hedgehogs, and the list goes on. There were only a couple of people in there, so we were able to easily feed and pet the animals. We spent about an hour in the Wilstem Ranch Barn.
Our favorite highlights from the Wilstem Ranch Barn-
They let a little goat just run around the barn.
It acted like a toddler and was so much fun. We loved how it wagged its tail like a dog when it got fed.
So many baby kangaroos!
We loved watching the baby kangaroos enter and exit the mamma kangaroo’s pouch.
A worker climbed into the porcupine’s cage and sat and played with it for a while.
This was so interesting because we learned porcupines play like dogs. It was the cutest thing we have ever seen and we all have a newfound love for porcupines.
The chicken.
Feed it some oats from the cup, not your hand. You’re welcome!
The Elephant Encounter
A bus picked us up from the Roo and Crew Barn to take us to the Elephants. Once we were there we took seats in the bleachers and started the educational encounter. Here we sat in amazement as we learned so much about elephants from the trainer. Then my son got to feed it a carrot, we watched it play the harmonica, heard it purr and we were able to pet it. It was the best experience. Did you know elephants have hairs on their trunks?
We had such a blast at Wilstem Ranch that we are already considering heading back. Elephants have always been my favorite animal so I am really trying to push my husband to let us do the Rise and Shine Elephant Encounter. My husband, on the other hand, wants to do the Grizzly Encounter and my kids just want to do everything there.
The weather wasn’t the best on our fall getaway. It rained most of the time causing us to boycott our planned hike with our dogs. Our plan was to hike the 5-mile loop at Clifty Falls State Park, but due to the rain and mud (we didn’t want muddy dogs getting our car or hotel muddy) we changed plans. Still wanting to do something with the dogs we decided to walk Waterfront Park in Louisville. It had a paved path preventing the dogs from getting too dirty.
We had a Spectacular Fall Getaway and will definitely be back. Next time we hope to enjoy more animal encounters at Wilstem Ranch and hike Clifty Falls. Have you ever been to any of these places?
Here are some other interesting reads that you may like-
- 56 Amazing things to do in Michigan this Fall
- Exploring Michigan’s Upper Peninsula in Winter
- Universal Orlando Resort- The Ultimate Guide
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