Credit: Kentucky Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus
Kim Hydes has a passion for product development, branding, and creating experiences that emotionally connect with people. From the very beginning of her professional career, Hydes has put her heart and soul into marketing brands that range from Brown-Forman Spirits to the Floyd Memorial Hospital, now known as the Baptist Health Floyd Emergency Care department in New Albany, Indiana, situated just across the Ohio River opposite Louisville, Kentucky.
She took her passion for marketing to the next level when she launched her own marketing and public relations agency, based in Louisville—located in Jefferson County, immediately to the southwest of Oldham County. “In 2007, new Judge Executive Duane Murner approached me about helping create a tourism industry for Oldham County from the ground up,” Hydes tells Group Tour. “What started as a short-term consulting project quickly became a passion. I fell in love with creating experiences that help visitors connect emotionally with a destination while also helping local businesses and communities thrive.”
Five years later, Hydes sold her agency. Today, she serves as executive director of Oldham County Tourism & Conventions—a position she has held for nearly 20 years. Hydes spoke with Group Tour about her love of the community, her passion for the work, and all the features that make Oldham County, Kentucky, a can’t-miss destination for group tours.
Q. What do you love most about promoting Oldham County?
A. What I love most is that Oldham County allows us to create elevated, hands-on Kentucky experiences that feel personal, immersive, and memorable for every type of group and every budget level. We’re close enough to Louisville for groups to easily include iconic attractions like Churchill Downs, the Louisville Slugger Museum, and the Frazier History Museum—but, once visitors book their stay here, it feels like a completely different Kentucky. Slower-paced, more personal, and built around immersive experiences. Everything we do is built around experiences.
One of the things we focus on heavily is keeping our itineraries fresh. Every year, we intentionally introduce new experiences and partnerships for groups. This year, for example, we introduced themed lunch teas inside a restored 1929 dining car, along with fascinator and fedora workshops led by the official milliner of the Kentucky Derby.
We’ve intentionally built Oldham County around hands-on Kentucky experiences, and nowhere is that more evident than in our equine programming. Known as the “Farm Tour Capital of Kentucky,” Oldham County offers groups the opportunity to experience the full life of a racehorse.
We’ve also learned that today’s travelers want experiences built around their interests, not just traditional sightseeing. That’s why we now host everything from bourbon and culinary tours to girlfriend getaway itineraries, horse farm weekends, Underground Railroad history programs, and even a “Thrifting & Antique Group Tour” bringing in 30 guests this fall.
We don’t want visitors simply looking at Kentucky through a bus window. We want them to be changed by it. Our visitors really do arrive as guests and leave as friends.
Q. What are some of the most popular attractions in the county?
A. One of the biggest advantages Oldham County has is that groups can experience nearly every iconic side of Kentucky in one destination—bourbon, horses, Derby culture, trains, river towns, gardens, culinary experiences, and history—without spending hours traveling between attractions.
Oldham County has become known for immersive horse farm and agricultural experiences that allow groups to step behind the scenes of Kentucky’s most iconic traditions. We offer five different racehorse farms open for tours, including experiences that follow the full life of a racehorse—from foaling barns to retirement farms.
Beyond equine experiences, we also offer hands-on culinary and agricultural experiences featuring bison ranches, artisan dairy operations, honey producers, and farm-to-table culinary partners supplying Louisville restaurants. Kentucky Artisan Distillery (KAD) in Crestwood is another major attraction. It’s home to Jefferson’s Bourbon—including the only bourbon in Kentucky aged at sea—and now features the new KAD Clubhouse experience, where guests thieve and taste bourbon directly from the barrel alongside the distillers themselves.
And then there are the settings themselves—sprawling botanical displays with castle gardens, scenic Ohio River communities, preserved rail history, and beautifully designed outdoor spaces that create incredible backdrops for entertainment, dining, workshops, and hands-on experiences.
Q. Are there any new attractions or renovations groups should be made aware of?
A. Oldham County Tourism is constantly working with partners to create new experiences and enhancements for group travelers.
At Yew Dell Botanical Gardens, the newly opened Castle Gardens expansion has added another beautiful layer to the visitor experience and created even more opportunities for elevated group programming.
We’ve also added two new immersive farm experiences to our growing lineup. White Oak Point Farm offers behind-the-scenes honey and beekeeping experiences in a historic setting, while Ashbourne Farms gives groups an opportunity to experience Kentucky’s farm-to-table culture connected to Louisville’s culinary scene. Ashbourne also hosts concerts and elevated dining experiences inside a beautifully renovated show barn.
Q. What are some of your favorite “hidden gems” groups might not know about?
A. Some of my favorite hidden gems are the places groups can only access through our office. We work with several private horse farms that offer exclusive group experiences unavailable to the general public. Each farm tells a completely different story. Two are dedicated retirement farms for former racehorses. One farm welcomed Queen Elizabeth II during her Kentucky visit. Another has become a favorite filming location for Hallmark productions. One even features a practice racetrack built from the same dirt composition used at Churchill Downs.
Westport, our original county seat along the Ohio River, is another hidden treasure. It offers some of the most beautiful river views in Kentucky and creates an unforgettable backdrop for group lunches, dinners, live music, and storytelling experiences centered around river history and the Underground Railroad.
Our bison ranch tours surprise many visitors because they are immersive experiences far beyond simply seeing bison. Guests leave learning about conservation, culinary agriculture, land management, and Kentucky food culture.
The La Grange Train Museum & Learning Center is another hidden gem, especially for multigenerational groups. Its newly restored 1929 dining car has become one of our favorite small-group venues for themed experiences like “Lunch with Lincoln,” where history comes alive through storytelling and interaction.
Q. How does your organization work with groups to make their visit special?
A. From the very beginning, we built Oldham County Tourism around service, customization, and attention to detail for group planners. We make it easy to come visit with free itinerary planning.
Our team develops customized itineraries, coordinates reservations with attractions and restaurants, and consolidates everything into one invoice for all Oldham County experiences whenever possible. We also provide step-on guides for gratuity only, helping make the process easier and more cost-effective for operators.
Beyond logistics, we focus heavily on the details that make a trip memorable. That might mean arranging private shopping experiences before stores open, coordinating morning pastry and coffee welcome stops before tours begin, adding live music during dinner, or creating personalized touches specific to a group’s interests. We work hard to maximize every group’s time and budget while making the experience feel seamless for tour operators and unforgettable for guests.
Q. Is there anything else you’d like to share with our audience?
A. Group travel has changed dramatically over the last decade. Travelers today want more than sightseeing—they want connection, storytelling, hands-on experiences, and opportunities to feel immersed in a destination. That shift has played perfectly into what Oldham County does best.
We’ve intentionally built tourism experiences that feel approachable, personal, elevated, and rooted in authentic Kentucky culture. Whether guests are thieving bourbon straight from the barrel, petting a retired racehorse, listening to live bluegrass beside the Ohio River, or enjoying dessert inside a botanical garden greenhouse, the goal is always the same: creating memories guests will remember forever while helping tour operators craft trips that feel meaningful, memorable, and effortless. We try to make every minute and every dollar count by packing as much authentic Kentucky experience as possible into their time with us.
By Madeline Fuerstenberg
Main Image: Castle Gardens, Yew Dell Botanical Gardens; Credit: Oldham County Tourism & Conventions
