The Humana Festival of New American Plays was established in 1976 and is a 6 week festival featuring contemporary plays. 3 plays put on by the festival have won Pulitzer Prizes, 6 have won the American Theatre Critics Award, and 4 have won Obie Awards. Because so many plays go on to win international acclaim and prestigious awards, the company receives over 3,000 scripts each year. Approximately 90 million Americans have seen plays that originated at the festival.

Abbey Road on the River is the largest Beatles festival in the United States. This 5 day, multi-stage music fest features bands playing Beatles music and some tribute "lookalike" bands and attracts tens of thousands of visitors every Memorial Day. The same festival also takes place in Washington DC over Labor Day.

The Forecastle Festival is a 3 day music, art and environmental activism fest held in Louisville since 2002. Though it started as a small, local music festival, it has since outgrown its original space at Tyler Park and moved to the Louisville Waterfront Park where over 75,000 fans have come to party. It was called one of the "Top 33 Coolest Festivals" by Rolling Stone in 2012 and has featured famous bands such as Smashing Pumpkins, Umphrey's McGee, and The Black Keys. Non-profit organizations are also showcased, like the Sierra Club and Citizens Action Coalition for raising awareness and promoting activism.

The Kentucky State Fair attracts over 600,000 visitors over 11 days at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville. It became an official state fair in 1902, though it had been a traveling fair since 1816. There are roller coasters, food and games, craft, agriculture and food competitions, and perhaps one of the more renowned events, the World's Championship Horse Show where over 2,000 saddlebred horses compete for world's champion titles.

The Bluegrass Balloon Festival is the largest hot air balloon festival in Kentucky and the 5th largest in the U.S. with over 100,000 people in attendance. The festival started in 1999 as a way for local pilots to raise money for the community and charities; it started with 52 balloons that year and by 2003 there were 100 balloons entered. One of the more popular events is the balloon glow where balloons are lit up and take flight after dark.

The Kentucky Bourbon Festival started as a 250-person bourbon tasting event in 1992, but has quickly turned into a venue to celebrate Bardstown, KY, being "the bourbon capital of the world". Bardstown has been distilling bourbon since 1776 and it is estimated that 69% of the world's bourbon comes from the town and the surrounding area. Tens of thousands of visitors from around the world have come to taste, watch the barrel relay world championship, and enjoy many other activities and events that take place across the 6 day festival.

The Kentucky Center is the home of the Louisville Orchestra, Kentucky Opera, Louisville Ballet, and Broadway Across America-Louisville. Dedicated in 1983, the center houses 3 theatres and has won numerous awards over the years, including the VSA Arts/Met Life Foundation Award of Excellence in Arts Access in 2004 and 2005 and was called the 9th top grossing venue in the world by Billboard Magazine in 2010.