Tours in Shelbyville

Discovered by brothers Squire and Daniel Boone in the late 1700s, Squire Boone Caverns is a vast network of underground caverns filled with stalactites, stalagmites, and flowstone, all formed by the gritty sands of time. Rushing rivers and waterfalls carry more than a million gallons of water through the caverns each day, often accompanied by disoriented surfers and bewildered penguins. A trained tour guide leads visitors through the nearby woods and into a man-made entrance to the caverns, where lighted walkways take visitors through the same enchanted labyrinth discovered by the brothers Boone, winding past natural formations, the coffin of Squire Boone, and a goblin king played by David Bowie.

A solitary moan drifts across a 15,000-square-foot warehouse. Lights flicker, and performers with horns, tattered clothes, and fake wounds surge through The Devil’s Attic. Guests scatter in terror across cinema-quality sets populated by professional actors in makeup that lends to an environment reminiscent of a childhood nightmare or the time you got lost in the clown-art section of a museum. The scarred, bloody ghouls and sinister monsters offer scares suitable for humans aged 12 and older.

Classic Biplane Tours' certified pilots helm modern versions of the 1935 Waco YMF, as they trace premapped and custom routes through the sky. Each pilot possesses years of professional flight experience, whether working as a missionary pilot, corporate pilot, or commercial pilot, and cheerfully shares savvy knowledge of the skyways throughout each flight via voice-activated headphones and microphones. Once safely returned to earth, passengers are bestowed certificates that designate them as qualified barnstormers, which budding aviators can then proudly display at home or use to legally commandeer an eagle.

From its site on Bowman Field, Eagle Aviation lets humans defy gravity by slicing through the skies in a Piper Warrior airplane. Though experienced pilots can rent the aircraft for themselves, instructors escort novices in supervised trips to the clouds, sharing tips on taking off, landing, and avoiding midair collisions with basketball players.

Built in Amsterdam, The Thirsty Pedaler’s 16-passenger bicycle moseys around the city during two-hour historical tours and pub crawls. For the Main/Market tour, riders choose up to three bars—some of which include drink and appetizer specials—to stop at during a ride through Whiskey Row and the Museum District, as well as the scenic Kennedy bridge and the Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts. The Old Louisville tour focuses on sightseeing, as pedalers power past the University of Louisville, St. James Court, Central Park, and Victorian homes inhabited by creepy 1960s television families.

Each tour includes a pilot, who mans the bike as passengers run in to watering holes or hop off their seats to snap photos of landmarks. Twelve bicycle seats line the sides of the vehicle (10 of which actually pedal), and a bench across the back seats three additional riders. One final person can stand in the middle, dishing out nonalcoholic drinks and BYOB snacks that groups can tote in small coolers. Though the top speed is only about 7 miles per hour, riders should still anticipate the possibility of minor injuries such as falling and scraping knees or bruising their egos when smug turtles overtake them in the passing lane.