513-777-8221   www.JoyTours.com   1-800-875-4569
You deserve a SPRING BREAK too!
We have some amazing all-inclusive deals with
non-stop flights from Cincinnati! Call us TODAY!  
The Most Beautiful Small Town with a Beautiful Song

 

You might know that Bardstown, Kentucky iscalled the "Bourbon Capital of the World" with the famous Jim Beam, Heaven Hill, and Maker's Mark's distilleries. You might also k now that Bardstown was named 2012's "Most Beautiful Small Town" in America. But did you know that Stephen Foster's "My Old Kentucky Home" was written about Federal Hill, a Georgian Mansion in Bardstown? Federal Hill was built between 1795 and 1818 with originally 13 rooms by Judge John Rowan. The number 13 is repeated throughout the house, supposedly to honor the 13 colonies at the time of America's independence from Great Britain. The front of the home has 13 windows, and there are 13 steps to each floor of the house. Ceilings are 13-1/2 feet high. The floors are made of yellow poplar and the walls are 13 inches thick. 

 

Post Card of "My Old Kentucky Home" circa 1930

Aaron Burr, Henry Clay, and other important
political and social figures enjoyed the hospitality of the Rowan mansion. Stephen Collins Foster of Pennsylvania, a Rowan family relative, is credited with immortalizing Federal Hill in his hauntingly beautiful song "My Old Kentucky Home Good Night."  Written in 1852, the words and music have touched the hearts of generations of Kentuckians. The song did not become associated with Federal Hill until the Civil War. Soldiers who saw the house and knew the song began to refer to Federal Hill as "My Old Kentucky Home." Soon other people began referring to the mansion as the house that inspired one of Foster's most beloved melodies.
 

 

If you would like to visit the "Most Beautiful Small Town" in America and visit "My Old Kentucky Home," be sure to join us on our Bardstown, Kentucky Experience on June 17 & 18th. Experience lunch at the oldest Western Stagecoach stop in America, The Old Talbot Tavern.  After lunch, visit the oldest operating jail complex in Kentucky, The Old Jail, formally known as The Nelson County Jail.  Next, visit the first cathedral built west of the Allegheny Mountains, Basilica of St. Joseph Proto Cathedral.  Afterwards, you will be off to My Old Kentucky Home.  Enjoy an outdoor drama at the Stephen  Foster Amphitheatre. Enjoy a sample of Kentucky's fine bourbon while you visit  Heaven Hill Distillery.  While you are in the spirit, make a stop at  Springhill Winery for tasting.

 

Ready for ADVENTURE? 
We're heading to the South Pacific and Ireland with Collette Vacations! We have some great early booking discounts available to you for just a little bit longer on these tours! 

 October 13-22, 2014 
Save $250 per person when you
book before April 11th 
Your visit to the Emerald Isle includes a castle stay, Limerick, Cliffs of Moher, Galway, a farm visit, Killarney, Ring of Kerry, Blarney Castle, Waterford Crystal, Kilkenny and Dublin. Tour Includes: 10 days, 8 nights accommodations, 13 meals, visits to all the areas listed plus an Irish Evening, round trip airfare from Cincinnati, Ohio, and a professional tour director.
 
October 20 - November 3, 2014 
Save $500 per person when you  
book before April 20th 
Travel with Joyce Wingham on this 15 day journey of a lifetime!  Highlights include Cairns, Great Barrier Reef, Sydney, Sydney Opera House, Christchurch, Mount Cook National Park, Queenstown, Milford Sound, and Arrowtown.  Tour includes: Round trip airfare from Cincinnati, 13 night's accommodations, hotel transfers, temperature-controlled motor coach, 12 breakfasts, 2 lunch, 6 dinners, all room and meal taxes, and gratuities to bellmen and a professional tour manager.

From $999
Guaranteed Departure 
Space is limited. 
From $1999
Space is limited. 


Are you looking to get away for just one day? We have day trips departing from Cincinnati & Dayton almost every month. Click here or the Longaberger Basket above for more information.  
Click here to search our Guaranteed Departures
Let Us Put Some JOY in Your Travel! 
9674 Cincinnati-Columbus Rd.
Cincinnati, Ohio 45241
(513) 777-8221
1-800-875-4569