Anytime the bugle sounds at Churchill Downs, all racehorse fans know what that means. Anytime the first Saturday in May approaches, all Louisvillians especially know what that means: it’s tourist time! While Louisville is home to other various tourist attractions, like the Louisville Slugger Field and Museum, the Muhammad Ali Center, Whiskey Alley and Whiskey Row and the Mega Caverns among other sites, Churchill Downs and the Kentucky Derby Museum is hands down the ultimate tourist destination for all those who visit the city, especially during Derby time.
It is safe to say that the Kentucky Oaks and Derby are the events that bring in the most revenue for the city by far. But how much money actually comes into the city? How many people are traveling in and out of Louisville around Derby time? And how expensive are hotels and Airbnb’s for the first weekend of May? Well, the 2025 Kentucky Oaks and Derby are expected to bring in over $440 million dollars to the city, according to Louisville Tourism. Here’s a glimpse into the breakdown of how $440 million dollars is earned during Derby weekend.
Airbnb and Hotels
Louisville Airbnb prices have spiked over 338% during the 2025 Kentucky Derby weekend. An average two-night stay at an Airbnb for two people will cost $1,909 and accommodations on Booking.com costs an average of $2,454.
According to Hilton.com, five out of 27 Hilton hotels within approximately 25 miles of the metro area are sold out for Derby weekend. Among the hotels, the newly opened Hotel Bourre Bonne Louisville currently has the highest price for a Hilton. A two queen bed room for two-nights will cost over $4,000 dollars. In contrast, the cheapest option would be at the Hampton Inn New Albany Louisville West, which would cost about $700 for the weekend.
Louisville’s iconic hotel, The Galt House, will cost upwards of $1,500 a night during the weekend as compared to the average cost of $225 a night not during the Derby. Marriott Hotels located in the downtown area are approximately $3,000 a night.
Airport
If you think the airport is busy over spring break, you haven’t seen anything yet. Louisville’s Muhammad Ali International Airport, known as SDF, hosts an influx of travelers Wednesday through Friday of Derby week. “Departure Sunday and Monday” sees those same travelers exiting the city.
According to an email sent by SDF’s Director of Public Relations, Natalie Chaudoin, 34,000 people were expected to arrive between Wednesday and Friday, with the busiest day for arrivals being Thursday with 15,500 scheduled people to fly in.
Chaudoin and airport officials expect over 28,000 people to depart on the Sunday and Monday after Derby, which “will be our busiest outbound period yet for Derby traffic.” Sunday is expected to be the busiest day out of the two, “with nearly 18,500 scheduled seats across 117 departing stops.” (For reference, “the average outbound Sunday in May is roughly 8,000-9,000 passengers.”)
SDF is also home to Atlantic Aviation, which is the fixed-base-operator that serves private, corporate and charter aircrafts and jets. They will have been expected to “handle 500-600 aircrafts from Wednesday to Sunday.” With a large amount of aircrafts parked on the ground, Atlantic Aviation is expected to “sell more than 210,000 gallons of jet fuel.”
SDF serves eight airlines, and five of those airlines added a total combination of 16 more nonstop flights to SDF just for Derby. American “added the most with seven flights,” followed by “Delta with three,” “Spirit with three,” “United with two” and Southwest with one. Airport officials did note, however, that the addition of two nonstop flights to SDF via Spirit Airlines had already been planned and just so happened to coincide with Derby.
Business
Hotels, restaurants, bars and other local attractions near Churchill Downs and within the downtown are bringing in much attraction and much revenue. With a couple of hours to spare between the calls to post for Oaks and Derby, visitors will have numerous opportunities to venture within the city. And all the local businesses are ready for them.
In an interview with WDRB, Hotel Genevieve’s marketing manager, Rachel Porter, shared that “Everything we have for our guests is pretty solidified. We’re so excited for our guests to have not only an experience at the track, but an experience at the hotel as well.” Hotel Geneivee is a local chic hotel located in the heart of the NuLu area.
Aaron Barbour, owner of Dasha’s Barbour, which is a restaurant located on Main Street, is also looking forward to the crowds of people and increase in business. He told WDRB that “[w]e’re looking forward to the hotels being full, people walking on the streets, tourists, definitely looking forward to it.”
After recent flooding events in early April negatively impacted the downtown community, even leading to the decision to cancel Thunder Over Louisville, many local businesses are excited and eager to host the crowds of Derby fans.
“[T]his will be even more exciting considering Thunder was canceled, people are ready to get out and get in the Derby spirit,” Porter said.
“We’re looking forward to having seats full and making up that revenue,” Barbour added.
While local businesses will definitely reap the benefits of Oaks and Derby, so do other small, mom-and-pop businesses that are created just for the events. Many Louisvillians take advantage of the crowds by providing rides to and from Churchill Downs and even offering their yards or driveways for people to park in, refreshments, hand-crafted gifts and more.
Job Opportunities
During Derby weekend, over 7,000 jobs are supported in the area. This does not even include the multitude of jobs for Derby. Over 150,000 attendees dictates for a number of additions to the regular 4,700 employees at Churchill Downs.
Southern Indiana Tourism also reports that they see an increase in revenue and an increase in jobs for Derby. In 2023, they estimated that each visitor during Derby weekend spends on average $550.
To prepare for Derby week, Churchill Downs has a hiring push that allows for a mix of new and older associates to work together. They look to fill temporary positions such as catering, culinary, cleaning and janitorial, concessions, food services, guest services and security. This hiring push and the addition of temporary positions gets the number of employees up to over 14,000 on Derby day.
Safe to say, a lot goes on behind the scenes to ensure everybody has an exciting first weekend of May. With the 151 Kentucky Derby on the horizon, locals and tourists are more than eager to make the most of their experience in Louisville.
