Bluegrass Treasures

by Wilma Clapp & Mary Davis

If you’re coming to the Bluegrass region for the first time or just want a fun “staycation,” this beautiful and informative book will ensure you experience the best of the area. Recently updated – and now available in e-book format - it is truly the ultimate traveler’s guide, featuring only independently-owned and operated regional businesses. As lifelong Kentucky residents, we found and sampled outstanding accommodations, gourmet restaurants – some at cafe’ prices – and fun and inexpensive entertainment. We also took care to ensure that all of the businesses included in the book are located within easy driving distance of Lexington.

If you’re looking for lodging that is both charming and comfortable, Bluegrass Treasures includes almost 30 of the finest (but not necessarily the priciest) inns, beds and breakfasts, and even a lavishly appointed castle in the area. Included is A Storybook Inn, voted “Best Overall Top Ten Bed and Breakfasts in the United States,” for 2007-2008, by BedandBreakfast.com; Gratz Park Inn, a lovely boutique inn located in the heart of downtown Lexington; the Lyndon House, a stately 1880′s Victorian with lovely, well-tended gardens; and CastlePost, which sits, in all its splendor, less than 10 minutes from Bluegrass Airport. All of these accommodations offer the very finest in Southern hospitality; without exception, the innkeepers we interviewed stressed their desire to make their visitors’ stay both warm and welcoming.

Our dining section includes taverns, a dinner train, coffee shops, cafes, bistros, and 5-star restaurants. The restaurants run the gaumet from Jonathan’s at Gratz Park, where only the finest gourmet meals are served, to Keene Springs, where you can find some of the best down-home cooking in the region; and. As an added bonus, some of the finest chefs in the area donated mouth-watering recipes so that you can re-create the joys of Southern dining once you return home.

For fun while you’re here, there are golf courses, horseback riding, lakes for fishing and boating, hiking trails, theaters, and festivals, all arranged so that you can easily navigate from one point to another. Both the wine and bourbon trails are included as well.

To make it easier for visitors to our area, there is a brief synopsis of some of the smaller towns which surround Lexington, such as Wilmore, Midway, and Frankfort. In short, we did everything we could to make this travel guide what we’d love to have when we’re on the road. If you want something a little out of the ordinary and would like to investigate all that the Bluegrass has to offer, this book is a must.

What a wonderful book for visitors and residents alike . . . B. Carpenter (Kentucky)

This book IS a treasure! I grew up in Lexington, and my wife and I are planning on returning for the FEI games. We’ve been looking for a unique place to stay, and came across this book. It brought back such great memories of the charm of the bluegrass region, and we loved the recipes. The crème brulee is awesome!! T. Pritchett (Colorado)