See stalactites (or is it stalagmites, I can never remember?) at Kentucky's Mammoth Cave National Park.

See stalactites (Or is it stalagmites? I can never remember.) at Kentucky's Mammoth Cave National Park.

World renown for horse racing and bourbon, Kentucky also excels at having big holes. And if exploring Mammoth Cave National Park isn’t enough to merit a trip to the area (and it might not be), check out these other things to do in the area.

Famous for: Being the world’s largest known cave system

Admission: Cave tour fees range from $2.50 to $48; see this Mammoth Cave National Park fees table for details

Families with young kids will like: The 75-minute, 0.25-mile roundtrip Frozen Niagara Tour, which highlights the decorative area of the cave

Families with teenagers will like: The 6.5-hour, 5.5-mile Wild Cave Tour, which includes free-climbing cave walls, crawling through areas nine-inches high and twisting into tight openings

Other travelers will like: The range of tours–14 in all

Easy site seeing: It’s a dark cave; nothing is easy to see

Best hotel in the park: The Mammoth Cave Hotel–it’s dated, but as it’s the only hotel in the park, it’s the best

Best campground in the park: Mammoth Cave Campground

Worst lodging experience: Getting lost in a cave and having to live there until you starve to death

Best months to visit for weather: March through November (some campgrounds are closed the other months)

Best months to visit to avoid crowds: Early or late in the season

Best hotel: 21c Museum Hotel 90 miles south in Louisville

Nearest major city: Brownsville, Ky.

More info can be found at the always helpful NPS.gov site: http://www.nps.gov/maca/

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Photo: Courtesy National Park Service