We stayed in Louisville over Memorial Day weekend. We had some extra time on our hands, so we searched some places in the city to visit. We settled on Waterfront Park, and I’m so glad we went. It’s a beautiful park right on the Ohio River. It’s so nice we actually went three times! It’s right across the street from the Louisville Bats’ stadium. You can watch the stadium fireworks from the park.

Downtown is really nice. We heard a lot of bad stuff about downtown Louisville, so we were a little nervous to try it. I think some common sense will get you a long way. We stayed together, stayed in the populated areas, left before dark, etc. We never felt scared.

The RED LOT (you can search “Waterfront Park Red Lot” in your GPS) - FREE parking by the older playground. There are some bathrooms and lots of benches. Good shade. Walking paths that go down to the water near the bridges. You can walk the riverfront by all the bridges, the Lincoln memorial area, and all the way to the pedestrian bridge, the new playground and splash pad. There are LOTS of benches, swings, and shaded areas along the way. It’s a pretty, easy walk. It’s very nice. Lots of families and couples. Lovely.

The SILVER LOT (you can search “Waterfront Park Silver Lot” in your GPS) - FREE parking by the new playground and splash pad. There are other parking lots nearby too, if this lot is full. The playground and splash pad were great; the kids loved it! There are bathrooms right there. Lots of benches, tables, and swings and a nice walking path by the river. You can access the ramp to the pedestrian bridge (Big Four Bridge) from here. It’s a nice, easy ramp up to the bridge. The bridge itself is 1 mile across to the Indiana side. There are no benches on the ramp going up to the bridge, but there are lots of benches once you get on the bridge. Food trucks set up in the area as well. We had a great time there, and would definitely go back!