I spent two months in Louisville and when I arrived I knew nothing about the place. It was a preverbal dart thrown at a map on the wall, and so really digging into the challenge of exploring a new place, making friends, and trying all of the local foods, beverages, and experiences I could fit in within that short time was a really fun experience and adventure. It was also the first long-term spot on my nomadic adventures so I really got to teach myself about what worked and didn’t work when setting up a traveling remote office.

Things I loved about Louisville:

The bar scene and the industry friends I met in town. In the heart of bourbon country, this is truly a great town to drink in.
The food scene was on par with the drinking scene, there was a great mix of cultures represented and some very inventive chefs.
The affordability - everything from drinks out to going to see a soccer game was reasonably priced.
The events - with two soccer teams (male & female!), a fantastic riverside pride festival, and even some smaller theater events, I was never bored and had a lot of fun experiencing all Louisville had to offer.

Things I didn’t love about Louisville:

Having to drive everywhere. Unless you stay right downtown, you can’t get to much without driving. Louisville has some great neighborhoods, and I recommend visiting them all, but to get there you’ll need a car. I missed being able to explore with my feet.
Weather: I was there in October / November so it was just getting into fall / early winter when I left. The weather was honestly pretty mild for winter (everywhere is these days), but it was still a wee bit chillier than I’m looking for long term.
It didn’t have clear access to water. The massive Ohio River runs right through town, but it’s not exactly something that has beaches or swimming access. A lot of locals have boats on smaller tributary creeks but it was almost too tempting to have a nice big body of water there without being able to really enjoy it.

Louisville Post Roundup:

ACCOMODATION SPOTLIGHT: My Louisville AirBnB

The main word to describe the AirBnB I rented in Louisville is quirky. It honestly felt like staying at an elderly great-aunt’s house. Everything was a bit old, and a bit musty. The floors & stairs were a little uneven in places. And the house itself was definitely a funny older hold-out in what was otherwise a relatively new / built up neighborhood. That being said, it was very reasonably priced for the amount of space I had. I used the master bedroom / bathroom / closet suite downstairs, but upstairs held another two bedrooms and a second bathroom that were great when I had a few guests come to stay during my visit. I was able to set up my desk at the dining room table, and enjoy a full kitchen and a living room with a very large TV. The kitchen was mostly well stocked and and even included a dishwasher. The washer / dryer in the basement were very tiny, so keep that in mind if you’re planning on doing a load of laundry because it might take two. The sheets & towels were clean, but definitely well worn. I would recommend always traveling with your own set just in case and I used mine here.

The neighborhood itself was a quiet spot that had a nice big loop of residential road to walk my dog around every day. The neighbors were nice and there wasn’t any crazy parties or loud noises. The whole neighborhood is right near the highway, but it’s hidden behind a bunch of trees at the end of the street and I honestly didn’t even remember it was there most of the time.

The only initial drawback was just how downright musty the house was, but the first week there it was relatively nice out so I threw open most of the windows and got a small air purifier and a glade spray thing that automatically spritzes every half hour-ish. Within a few days the must had dissipated and I didn’t have a problem for the rest of the 2 months.

Final Verdict: This house is large, reasonably priced, and only a 10 -15 min drive from downtown. It has easy access to a few nearby parks that are great for walking a dog, and you can get to most of the bourbon trail distilleries within 1-2 hours in a few different directions. It might be a bit quirky (and a lot of the furniture is a bit dirty / super worn), but if you want something with space, a few bedrooms, and that doesn’t break the bank as much as some other places might for a weekend or a month in Louisville check it out.

Thanks for coming along for my Lousiville roundup!

~ Happy traveling, V ~