Advanced camp. Visiting and staying...

[gill0610]

DS wants us to visit for family day and graduation for advanced camp. If we go we will need to stay for 3 nights since it’s such a long drive for us. Is it worth it? Suggestions as to where to stay (reasonably priced). Thanks

 

[AROTC-dad]

Commissioning is far more important than Advanced Camp graduation.

However if you can afford to go to AC, then go. Your DS will appreciate seeing you after a challenging month.

I would however recommend skipping the buffet dinner at the Ft. Knox Sabre and Quill and instead get your son off base to a restaurant nearby. The dinner buffet is not anything special (no ceremony) and your DS will greatly enjoy getting away from the post. The BBQ at Colton's Steakhouse in Radcliffe was not bad and close by. A nice thing to do is to have your DS invite one or two cadets whose parents couldn't come, and treat them to dinner. There are rules about keeping your cadet close to Ft. Knox, so a trip to Louisville for dinner is not recommended.

There is much to see in nearby Louisville and Fort Knox itself is interesting. There's University of Louisville, good dining, and especially fun were the tours of the Bourbon distilleries. We toured Old Forrester and it was a fascinating visit. If you like baseball, a trip to the Louisville Slugger museum is a must see. A terrific place for breakfast in Louisville is Wagner's Pharmacy across the street from Churchill Downs. This is a historical place for seeing Kentucky Derby history and also fried bologna sandwiches! The Frazier Kentucky History Museum has a great exhibit on Lewis and Clark. If you find this part of history of interest, their installation is really amazing and worth a trip.

A cheap but ageing place to stay is the Gold Vault Inn, which is a few minutes from the Main Gate. It was clean and friendly. They have a nice indoor pool and free breakfast. It ain't the Marriott, but it is very reasonable.

Something to keep in mind is that the main reason you should attend AC graduation, is to support your DS, not for the ceremony itself or the tourism. Keep your perspective and it will be well worth it.

 

[emwvmi01]

I have done a few short duty visits to Knox. Elizabethtown is about 20 minutes and has most major hotel chains. It has a decent little downtown as well with a pretty good pizza place and two or three other non chain restaurants. Traffic getting on post for Camp graduation is a bit of a bear but Cadet Command seems to have it down to a decent drill.

 

[Robo]

DS wants us to visit for family day and graduation for advanced camp. If we go we will need to stay for 3 nights since it’s such a long drive for us. Is it worth it? Suggestions as to where to stay (reasonably priced). Thanks

AROTC-dad said it all.
If I may add....

We were so glad we made the trip.
For us, it was too far to drive so we have to spend extra money to fly but it was great to see my son and his school friends and new friends he made.
We also invited two cadets whose parents couldn't come. They really appreciated our invitation.
We stayed in Hampton Inn near by and you will find lots of other family over there.

My DS had to fly out for CTLT next day so we met at the airport again.

I will do it again if I have a second DS/DD

 

[jackal405]

If you are traveling with kids check out Kart Kountry in Shepardsville. They have a 1.5 mile track, longest in the world. Check out downtown Bardstown, old Bourbon bars and haunted hotels.