Louisville to Detroit drive: Distance, time & best stops
The best road trip stops on the Louisville to Detroit drive are Cincinnati, Dayton OH and Wapakoneta OH. The distance from Louisville to Detroit is 361 miles, with a 5h25m driving time.
Planning a Louisville to Detroit road trip itinerary
A Louisville to Detroit road trip takes you from Kentucky to Michigan’s city of motors and Motown.
Louisville is the biggest city in Kentucky, and has a strong range of attractions to enjoy. The Louisville Mega Cavern has underground zipline tours, the Churchill Downs race track hosts America’s most famous horse race – the Kentucky Derby – and the Louisville Slugger Factory makes the world’s most famous baseball bats. You can take factory tours and there’s a museum attached.
Good Louisville experiences include Old Louisville ghost tours, the Kentucky Derby Museum and a tasting tour of multiple bourbon distilleries. The food and history tours are also worth checking out.
Top Louisville accommodation choices include the history-drenched Brown Hotel and the art-packed 21C Museum Hotel.
Why you should visit the Kentucky Derby Museum
The Kentucky Derby Museum isn’t just about the nation’s top horse race – it’s about the phenomenon that surrounds it. Museum entry tickets include the chance to see the trophies, learn the backstories of famous winners and watch an immersive theater screening. Best of all, they also include a walking tour of the Churchill Downs Racetrack. Find out more here.
David Whitley, author of Best3Stops.
Top things to do in Detroit include the excellent architecture walking tours, the Sealife Michigan Aquarium and the Legoland Discovery Centre. The Motown Museum and Ford Piquette Avenue Plant are great, too.
Louisville to Detroit distance and driving time
By car, the distance from Louisville to Detroit is 361 miles. That makes for a driving time of around five hours and 25 minutes. The quickest route is largely along the I-71 and I-75.
The best stops on a Louisville to Detroit road trip are Cincinnati, Dayton OH and Wapakoneta OH. For more attractions along the route, visit the guides to the individual sections.
Best stops between Louisville and Detroit: Cincinnati
Cincinnati is the biggest city in southern Ohio, with a wealth of attractions. Among the more distinctive are the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center and the American Sign Museum.
Top Cincinnati activities include underground tours – some with beer tasting – and food tours by streetcar. You can also try baseball history tours, indoor skydiving and guided ghost walks.
Louisville to Detroit road trip attractions: Dayton OH
Dayton, Ohio, isn’t a massive city, but it has more than played its part in history. It was here that Orville and Wilbur Wright created the first plane capable of manned, sustained flight. The original Wright Cycle Company Shop that still stands is not where the Wright Flyer was made – that was a future incarnation of the company HQ – but it was home to their bicycle business.
In Dayton, you can also visit the SunWatch Indian Village, a recreated Native American village, and the National Museum of the US Air Force.
Things to do on the Louisville to Detroit drive: Wapakoneta OH
Wapakoneta, Ohio, is home to the delightfully odd Temple of Tolerance. Created by artist Jim Bowsher, this place of refuge has been created over two decades through a process of finding big rocks and moving them into position.
But Wapakoneta is best known as the birthplace of Neil Armstrong, the first man on the moon. The Armstrong Air and Space Museum pays tribute to the pioneer astronaut while also looking at Ohio’s contribution to space exploration.
More Louisville road trips
Atlanta to Louisville | Bowling Green to Louisville | Louisville to Chicago | Louisville to Cincinnati | Louisville to Cleveland | Columbus to Louisville | Louisville to Dallas | Evansville to Louisville | Louisville to Gatlinburg | Louisville to Indianapolis | Knoxville to Louisville | Louisville to Lexington KY | Louisville to Memphis | Louisville to Nashville | Pittsburgh to Louisville.
More Detroit road trips
Detroit to Atlanta | Detroit to Baltimore | Detroit to Buffalo | Detroit to Chicago | Cincinnati to Detroit | Cleveland to Detroit | Columbus to Detroit | Dallas to Detroit | Dayton to Detroit | Fort Wayne to Detroit | Grand Rapids to Detroit | Houston to Detroit | Detroit to Indianapolis | Kalamazoo to Detroit | Detroit to Knoxville | Lansing to Detroit | Memphis to Detroit | Detroit to Milwaukee | Detroit to Nashville | Detroit to Niagara Falls | Philadelphia to Detroit | Pittsburgh to Detroit | Detroit to St Louis | Toledo to Detroit.