Thunder Over Louisville

Thunder, Thunder, Thunder.
Thunder Over Louisville has been something I literally look forward every year. And I almost feel like there is nothing left after it’s over. We not only get to see bad ass planes fly over our city but we also have one of the largest fireworks displays in the world as well!
It kicks off the quickest two minutes in sports and all the festivities leading up The Kentucky Derby and the mint julep loveliness therein. Hundreds of thousands of people flood the waterfront on the Indiana and Kentucky side each year to watch the planes, fireworks and it just wouldn’t be complete without all the greasy, fried food, cocktails and beer. I even saw a couple of tents selling Old 502 Winery wines.
If large crowds and loud noises aren’t your thing then you should probably wait at home. Another thing you’re going to be expecting to see is the traffic, they shut down parts of the expressway and when the show is over getting home can take upwards of 3 hours depending on how far out you live from the waterfront.
If you don’t mind the aforementioned above then, get down to experience the joy that is Louisville’s kick off to a two minute horse race. It’s super fun and you get to learn about what our armed forces go through and even witness one helluva show at 9:30 p.m. that’s set up to music and takes on a more theatrical sense each and every year. Thunder is what I look forward to each and every year.

If you have never attended Thunder you are really missing something special. We’ve been going for the past 16 years and this year was one of the best. The weather was perfect, the air show spectacular and the fireworks were indescribable. the music from the Louisville Orchestra was so special we hope they continue for many years to come. If you decide to go next year, go early and get a seat on the Great Lawn. People are friendly, it’s clean when you get there (not when you leave) and the view is unbeatable. Go early to mark you territory and you can’t go wrong.

My first Thunder here was amazing! I loved everything about it!
Masses of people, tons of fried food, the best fireworks around and did I mention the masses of people! Most of them are aware of the thousands of other people around them and are relatively courteous. The food from the vendors is pricey because it is an outdoor event, but that was not a surprise and a lot of trash ends up on the ground
I was lucky to have access to a banded building, so real bathrooms and air conditioning and that was the way to go. Any port-​o-​potty i saw had a line and after a full day, they could not have been pleasant.
I didn’t really care about the air show, but if you are not paying attention to the programming, you will miss it. The fireworks were my favorite, they really put on a great show and I could feel the cannon blasts and explosions through the ground.

Thunder is an EXPERIENCE.
And you need to be ready/​prepared for it.
Hundreds of thousands of people in a very small area. For the most part everyone is behaving and courteous (until you get in your car to leave after everything is done). This was my first year coming down for any part of the air show. I honestly didn’t see a single plane. Every time I looked the sky was empty. I missed whatever schedule there was. So I have no comments about that. And I don’t really care about air shows… I’m a ‘there for the fireworks’ person. But what I can say, for myself, is that I will only be going to Thunder in the future when I have access to real toilets, climate control, and either a place to stay the night downtown or if I love close enough to walk home. For me, once is enough.
If you really love fireworks and go bonkers for airplanes… this is for you.

Had the chance to take in the Thunder Festivities from atop the Humana parking garage this year! I got the tickets via work but if I don’t get them next year it’s well worth the $ 100 price. free food (Great food at that) and free drinks all day… perfect views of the air show and fireworks… Not to mention the GREAT weather we had!

HATE IT!!! The noise & crowds.
Just a precursor to the archiac & exploitative KY Derby where horses are beaten to run… while greedy people «bet» and cheer.
66% of bred racing horses die due to injuries inflicted on them due to this «sport»…, most right on the track. Money & Greed. Horses are herd animals and are NOT born to «race» not be cramped in stalls. nor have meta hooks & rods shoved clamped into their mouths & be forced to run to exhaustion, and then to their premature death.
DIRTY DIRTY INDUSTRY!!! Go look at these slaves to humans pockets and see how they really live out of the spotlight. Not the «pampered» derby horses.
Kentucky.shame on you!!! Find another way to «love» your horses!
RIP EIGHT BELLES :(

Thunder over Louisville is worth the the visit. It’s a legit BIG fireworks display. I love that it kicks off the KY Derby festivities in style.
The air show is cool. It’s all free.
It’s worth doing but be aware that you’ll need to brave big crowds to do it. As long as you keep that in mind you’ll be ok.
Tip: buy a derby pin. The lines for food in the derby pin section were not as bad as the lines out side the pin section.

2016 was a good year. Wait, 2016 was a GREAT year! Fantastic Air Show. Wonderful Weather. Outstanding music performed and recorded by the Louisville Orchestra to accompany the best fireworks show I’ve seen in my 20 years of viewing Thunder.
Whether watching it in person and braving the crowds or viewing it on your t.v. or computer this was a terrific event.

Great area event! The air show was a little lite this year due to the construction cranes. Along with the bounce houses, the food vendors, and the toy sellers, the sight of the fireworks will be spectacular.

Who doesn’t love a huge air show and North America’s largest annual firework show… FOR FREE?! Like, Shyeah!
In all seriousness though. Thunder Over Louisville is really, really tough to beat. I’ll break it down for ya…
The Good:
* Free. Any other explanation needed here?
* Air Show. This portion of the show used to be the bomb diggity. I *think* that the KY Air National Guard used to do a lot more with the air show, and they used to get in some pretty incredible aircraft. Lately, it’s been mostly biplanes, WW2 type aircraft, and whatnot. However, last year, they did have the Blue Angels (which were incredible). This year, they had the Thunderbirds. But there really wasn’t a whole lot more than that… I think I heard that the bridge construction had something to do with it? Either way — it’s free. I can’t complain. I enjoy it, regardless.
* Fireworks. The firework display is as good as any that I’ve ever seen anywhere. They do it right. I used to live in London. London is known for having a very impressive annual New Year’s Eve/​Day firework display that they have on the London Eye. When I told my British friends about Thunder Over Louisville, they all kind of gave me a little pat on the head and said, «That’s nice. I’m sure it’s very good.» When I showed them the videos of Thunder Over Louisville, they were all blown away at how good it was. One of my friends remarked, «I thought it was going to be some little hillbilly thing by a pond with like 150 people there. I was way off. That’s just as impressive as anything anywhere.» Yes, mate. I know. Been tryin’ to tell ya…
* Greasy food. Yes. Fair food. Foot long corndogs, nasty hamburgers, chili cheese fries that will send you to the bathroom 15 minutes after you eat them… that kind of stuff.
* Crowd. I love crowds. I love being around people and rubbing elbows with the public.
* Weather. When it is a nice day, it’s awesome to sit out in the sun and soak up some Vitamin D.
The Bad
* Crowd. The crowd has some good things about it. I enjoy people. But the bad thing being — it can be a nightmare getting back to your car when 700,000 people are funneling through Waterfront Park and the streets of Louisville.
* Weather. Love it when it is good, hate it when it is bad. In fact, if the weather is bad, I won’t go. I’ve been to Thunder when the weather was cold, rainy, windy, and snowy… it’s miserable. Absolutely miserable. The good news — the crowd is much smaller when it is this way, if you care to go under such conditions.
* Traffic. This portion of Thunder is a bloody nightmare. The key is, and I noted this under the «tips», is to park far away. The further away from the waterfront you park, the quicker you get home. If you park at some garage on 2^nd and Main or 1^st and Witherspoon, then you ain’t gettin’ home until like 2am.
* Food prices. It is what it is. $ 8 for a hamburger, etc.
* Length. It is a long day. And you will get sun burnt. And you will be exhausted.
* Cell Phone Service. Because so many people are condensed into one area, you will pretty much lose all cell phone service.
The Ugly
* Crowd. Free events bring out the dregs of society. So you need to get there early enough (noon or earlier) to pick out a good spot, away from any silliness.
All in all, Thunder is a great event for people of all ages. Kids to adults. It’s free, and a wonderful day out. If you don’t mind braving the crowd, I’d highly recommend it to you.

Jaw. Dropping.
This is a seriously huge fireworks show over the Ohio River. I mean that. As in the biggest in North America. As an aside, you can see it from both the Kentucky and Indiana sides of the river.
There is food, there is activities, there is beverages and more. But really, its all about the fireworks. The show was about 45 minutes long, and worth all the waiting. I find that words don’t really do the sheer magnitude of the fireworks justice. It’s really something you’ve just got to see with your own eyes! GO!

For the past few years, I have been planning on taking a trip to Louisville to visit some friends at Thunder Over Louisville. So this year was finally my chance and I wish I had made it a priority to go before! This was the best festival I have ever been to. The air show lasted for hours and included the famous Blue Angels. The fireworks were unlike any other, with the show being the largest firework show in North America. The festival costs the city of Louisville over 1 million dollars, just to give an idea of what goes into this event. I hope to be back next year!

I’ve been many times, but for the past three years me and the kids have been on the Jeffersonville side and I must say it is fantastic. I’m not one to just sit so we walk around and people watch and look at all of the foods and exhibits. We logged over 5 miles yesterday. The crowd isn’t quite as congested as Louisville, but still a ton of people. I always sit right on the river’s edge and it’s so beautiful.
The air show is so much fun. If you haven’t been before, it’s a must.

A truly fantastic all day event that everyone should try and attend at least once in your life. There are plenty of food trucks and booths if you are looking for something to eat or drink (yes, beer and liquor can be found, but you can’t bring it in) or buy souvenirs.
To have the best time, be sure to buy a Pegasus piin. This pin will give you access to all of the food and drink booths under the interstate and access to the great lawn, where you will have the best seats to see the air show in the afternoon and the fantastic fireworks show at night.
This was my second time going to this event and I hope to go again next year. A word of warning, if you go, do yourself a favor and pack some warm clothes, even if the temperature is in the 70’s. It gets much chillier when you sit near the Ohio river.

Fireworks, people love ‘em or hate ‘em with a few falling somewhere in between those two poles. Me? I’m somewhere in the middle… just so you know for the sake of this review. And this was my first Thunder…
The fireworks show at Thunder was freaking outstanding. I’d imagine even folks all the way on the ‘fireworks= whatever’ side would have good things to say. It lasts for a good 45 minutes and each set is more exciting than every finale at your average baseball game fireworks put together.
If you can find a friend with a boat, I’d highly recommend piling on board and watching from the Ohio where you get a spectacular view of the city line with the fireworks directly overhead. It was great that we got to pack our own picnic, didn’t have to worry about car traffic (still a little boat traffic) and got a perfect view.
Anyway, I gotta say I love a good crowd of random people from all over the state and country and world gather round to take pleasure in something simple (well as an observer, it looks simple at least). So at some point I definitely wanna experience it in the sea of the masses. However, tuning into the radio station with Thunder coverage from the boat was just about as entertaining of people watching, maybe even better.

Been two years in a row and I’ve loved it each time. If you love fireworks, get yourself here next year and be amazed.