Barn and Backside Tour

Temporarily suspended due to Covid-19 restrictions

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This tour has been temporarily suspended due to Covid-19 restrictions. We apologize for this and hope you check back soon for updates.

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Barn and Backside Tour:

This is your opportunity to experience the Backside of Churchill Downs Racetrack and see Thoroughbreds in their environment. This area is closed to the general public and is available only to Museum guests!

On any given day of training, visitors could see a two-year-old in line to win next year’s Derby, a nine-year-old nearing retirement or a Derby winner themselves. Along with more than 1,400 stalls, catch horses during a bath or getting new horseshoes, and learn about the fascinating community that lives on the Backside!

• Available March 25 - November 30 (Not available Thurby, Kentucky Oaks or Derby Day)
  • Monday - Saturday
    10 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 1 p.m., 2:30 p.m., 3:30 p.m.
  • Sunday
    11:30 a.m., 1 p.m., 2:30 p.m., 3:30 p.m.
• $15 per person in addition to General Admission ticket

Tour Temporarily Suspended

Barn and Backside Workout Tour:

• 7 a.m. and 8:30 a.m.
• Take the workout tour for the best chance to see Thoroughbreds in action, training on the track! Workouts end daily at 10 a.m.
• $20 per person in addition to General Admission ticket

Tour Temporarily Suspended

Off Season Barn and Backside Workout Tour:

Want to see the barns and backside of Churchill Downs but the horses aren’t back yet? No worries! With our exclusive off-season barn and backside tour you are able to see exclusive areas that are closed off to the general public!

This is a guided van tour of the "other side" of the Churchill Downs Racetrack to see the stable area that will be filled once the track reopens for business in late March. Not only will you be able to view over 1,400 stalls, you get to see a panoramic view of grandstand and an exclusive photo-op of the Twin Spires, all while hearing about the Backside Learning Center and Thoroughbred history! This exclusive one hour tour also takes you to barn 42- the stable of Kentucky Derby record holder, Secretariat.

• Available December 1, 2019 - March 22, 2020
• Please note that the Off-Season Barn and Backside Tour takes place when there are usually no horses residing at the Churchill Downs Racetrack. Guests will most likely not see a horse during this tour.
• $10 per person in addition to General Admission ticket

Tour Temporarily Suspended

 

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All Barn and Backside Tour options include:

• A 1-hour guided van tour
• Limited to 12 people, suggest purchasing in advance
• Children on this tour are required to be eight years and older, or taller than 57 inches, in compliance with Kentucky state law.
• Van stops will accommodate picture-taking trackside (time and weather permitting).
• Guests must be escorted by a tour guide at all times and are not allowed inside of barns
• Tours are available rain or shine. Umbrellas are not allowed due to safety restrictions for Thoroughbreds on the track. In the event it does rain we suggest bringing ponchos and rain boots. The Derby Museum Gift Shop also sells souvenir ponchos.