Self-Guided Bourbon Distillery Tour Kentucky: Four Distilleries

Hear insider stories and explore Kentucky’s bourbon and horse racing roots on your drive

This self-guided driving tour covers Kentucky's bourbon region with audio commentary, GPS directions, and offline access to maps. You drive your own vehicle and set your own pace through stops at James B. Beam, Maker's Mark, Four Roses, and Woodford Reserve, plus Bardstown and the Kentucky Cooperage. Admission and tastings at each distillery are separate purchases, but the audio guide includes insider stories from Master Distillers and details on bourbon-making and barrel craftsmanship.

Step-by-step itinerary

Drive and visit Kentucky bourbon distilleries

• Stop at James B. Beam Distilling Co.
• Pass through Bardstown town
• Visit Maker’s Mark Distillery
• Optional stop at Kentucky Cooperage Visitors Center
• Drive past Heaven Hill Brands Warehouse
• Visit Woodford Reserve Distillery
• Pass the Jim Beam Barn
• Stop at Four Roses Distillery
• Explore Four Roses Visitor Center

The experience

Three hours of driving through Kentucky's bourbon heartland, with the flexibility to linger or move on as you choose. The tour starts with directions to James B. Beam Distilling Co., where you'll hear about the Beam family's influence on bourbon history. From there, the audio guide walks you through Bardstown, the Bourbon Capital of the World, and takes you to Maker's Mark, where Bill Samuels' story unfolds as you see the distillery's signature red wax seal. The commentary keeps running between stops, so the drive itself becomes part of the experience rather than dead time.

Along the route, you'll pass the Heaven Hill Brands Warehouse, one of the world's largest collections of aging barrels, and have the option to detour to the Kentucky Cooperage Visitors Center to learn how bourbon barrels are made. Woodford Reserve and Four Roses round out the distillery stops, with insights from Chris Morris and Brent Elliot on bourbon innovation and flavor. The Jim Beam Barn offers a glimpse into bourbon's agricultural roots. Each stop is yours to explore at your own pace. You decide whether to enter, taste, or simply photograph and move on.

The tour comes with lifetime access and works offline, so you can replay it anytime or listen like an audiobook from home before you go. You'll need your own vehicle and a smartphone with headphones, and you control the route entirely. Distillery admissions and tastings are purchased separately at each location, letting you choose which experiences fit your budget and time.

What’s included

• Unlimited lifetime access to the tour.
• audio guide in English with insider commentary from Master Distillers.
• offline audio, maps, and GPS directions.
• the option to listen as a virtual playback from anywhere.
• flexibility to explore at your own pace and skip stops as you choose.

Before you book

Days and timesEvery day

GroupPrivate

Audio guideEnglish

Meeting point and pickupNo hotel pickup: you go to the meeting point. Ends at a different place from where it starts.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated 10 days ago

Good to know

Low physical effortPets welcomeInfants must sit on laps

Operated by VoiceMap Audio Tours

Is this one for you?Choose this self-guided drive if you want to explore at your own pace and pause whenever something catches your interest: perfect for families or anyone who prefers moving independently rather than following a group schedule.

Traveler reviews

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Top questions

Can I listen to this tour before I drive to Kentucky?

Yes. The virtual playback option lets you hear the audio commentary like an audiobook from anywhere, and you have lifetime access to replay it as many times as you want.

What happens if I don't want to stop at every distillery?

You set the route. The GPS tour gives you directions and audio for all four distilleries, but you can skip any stop or spend extra time at one without affecting the rest of the drive.

Do I need to buy admission and tastings at the distilleries?

Admission and tasting fees at James B. Beam, Maker's Mark, Four Roses, and Woodford Reserve are separate from the tour and purchased on-site. The audio guide prepares you for each stop, but entry is optional.

What's included in the Kentucky Cooperage stop?

The tour directs you to the Kentucky Cooperage Visitors Center and includes audio about barrel-making from the CEO of the world's largest barrel company. Admission to the center is optional and not included.

Will the tour work if my phone loses signal?

Yes. Offline access to audio, maps, and geodata is included, so the tour runs without cell service or data once downloaded.