Convention Centers in Kentucky With Plans

Most convention centers in Kentucky that organizers shortlist sit in four places: Louisville, with a downtown convention center, an exposition center and several hotels with exhibit space; Lexington; Covington in Northern Kentucky, across the river from Cincinnati; and Owensboro. Below are the Kentucky venues that already have ready-made floor plans in Map D's Venue Library, grouped by city and linked to their venue pages so you can open a plan and start your booth layout. First, here is how to weigh a hotel-connected hall against a standalone expo center.

Dimensions in this article come from the plans drawn in Map D's Venue Library, not from official venue specifications. They are approximate, so confirm every measurement, column, door and utility location with the venue before you sell a single booth.

Hotel-Connected Hall or Standalone Expo Center?

Louisville in particular gives you a real choice between exhibiting inside or next to a hotel and renting a standalone exposition building. The right answer depends on how long attendees stay and what exhibitors bring.

• Hotel-connected or downtown hall: Attendees walk from their rooms to sessions and the floor, which helps multi-day association shows. Expect a room block, attrition clauses, food and beverage minimums and in-house services.
• Standalone exposition center: Large open floors, docks and big parking lots suit consumer shows, equipment shows and events with heavy freight. Attendees usually drive in for the day, so parking and traffic flow matter more than hotel rooms.
• Hotel ballroom or exhibit hall alone: Suits a conference with a tabletop expo or sponsor area. Check ceiling height, floor load and whether freight comes through a service corridor or a lobby.

How Room Blocks Change the Math

When a venue or its partner hotels ask for a room block, the cheapest rent is not always the cheapest show. Read the attrition clause, which sets how many rooms you must fill before you owe the difference, and the cut-off date for releasing rooms. Some venues reduce rent when a show fills a block, so ask for the rent with and without the block before you compare. For rent, labor and service charges, see how much it costs to rent a convention center.

Worked Example: Booth Count From a Plan

A planning assumption many organizers use is that booths take a little under half of the gross hall area once aisles, registration, food, stages and storage are added. Your ratio depends on the layout and the fire marshal's rules.

• Plan used: The Northern Kentucky Convention Center in Covington, drawn at about 247 x 249 feet, or roughly 61,500 square feet gross.
• At 45 percent for booths: roughly 27,700 square feet.
• Booth mix example: 200 booths of 10 x 10 feet (20,000 square feet) plus 8 islands of 20 x 20 feet (3,200 square feet) uses about 23,200 square feet, leaving room for a lounge or demo stage.
• Next step: Ask the venue which halls and airwall sections the drawing covers, since a plan like this may include more than one room.

These are planning assumptions, not venue capacities. Run your own mix in the exhibit hall size calculator.

Questions to Ask a Kentucky Venue Before You Sign

Use this list on site visits, and see our full list of questions to ask an event venue for contract terms and costs.

1. Which hall, ballroom or building is in our contract, and can you send a current CAD or PDF plan?
2. Where are columns, exits, airwalls, floor ports and fire equipment?
3. How does freight reach the floor, and does it share docks or service corridors with hotel operations?
4. Is there a room block, what is the attrition clause and when is the cut-off date?
5. Which services are exclusive, such as electrical, internet, food, cleaning and security, and what do they cost?
6. What other events share the building or campus on our dates, including large events that affect parking and hotel rates?
7. How long are move-in and move-out, and are those days charged as rent?
8. How do you handle ice, severe storms or other weather delays on move-in day?

Louisville Convention and Expo Venues

Louisville has the most choice in the library for Kentucky. The Kentucky International Convention Center has two listings drawn for different spaces, so check which halls your contract names before you open a plan.

• [Kentucky International Convention Center](/venues/kentucky-international-convention-center-louisville/), Louisville: the drawn plan spans about 659 x 276 feet. A second listing has a plan titled "Exhibit Hall E & C" of about 436 x 184 feet.
• [Kentucky Exposition Center](/venues/kentucky-exposition-center-louisville/), Louisville: the drawn plan spans about 609 x 373 feet. Ask which halls the drawing covers.
• [Freedom Hall](/venues/freedom-hall-louisville/), Louisville: the drawn plan spans about 241 x 402 feet.
• [Galt House - Exhibit Hall & Foyer](/venues/galt-house-exhibit-hall-and-foyer-louisville/), Louisville: the drawn plan spans about 234 x 174 feet. A separate Galt House Hotel listing has a plan of about 148 x 113 feet.
• [Omni Louisville Hotel](/venues/omni-louisville-hotel-louisville/), Louisville: the drawn plan spans about 249 x 136 feet.
• [Hyatt Regency Louisville Hotel](/venues/hyatt-regency-louisville-hotel-louisville/), Louisville: the drawn plan spans about 180 x 238 feet.
• [Louisville Marriott Downtown - Salon 5-10](/venues/louisville-marriott-downtown-salon-5-10-louisville/), Louisville: the drawn plan spans about 169 x 112 feet. A second listing for the Kentucky Ballroom has a plan of about 139 x 97 feet.

Lexington

• [Central Bank Center](/venues/central-bank-center-lexington/), Lexington: the drawn plan spans about 546 x 1,052 feet, a drawing large enough that it likely covers more than one space. Confirm with the venue which halls you are renting and trim the plan to them before laying out booths.

Northern Kentucky

Covington sits across the Ohio River from Cincinnati, so a Northern Kentucky venue can draw attendees and exhibitors from both states.

• [Northern Kentucky Convention Center](/venues/northern-kentucky-convention-center-covington/), Covington: the drawn plan spans about 247 x 249 feet. A second listing has a plan titled "Hall II" of about 245 x 119 feet, which suits a show that rents one hall.

Western Kentucky

• [Owensboro Convention Center](/venues/owensboro-convention-center-owensboro/), Owensboro: the drawn plan spans about 292 x 376 feet, an option for regional and state association shows in western Kentucky.

Plan Around Big Event Weeks

Major races, tournaments and festivals can fill hotel rooms and raise rates across a city for a week or more. Before you lock dates, ask the venue and your hotel partners which citywide events overlap yours, and avoid move-in days when downtown streets, parking and freight routes are busy. Winter can bring ice, and spring brings severe storms, so publish a weather contact and a decision deadline for exhibitors.

How to Start a Layout From a Venue Library Plan

Each venue page in the Map D venue directory shows the plans drawn for that building, their dimensions in feet and a preview.

1. Open the venue and choose the listing and plan that match the hall in your contract.
2. Select Use This Floor Plan Free and create a free account; the plan opens in the editor.
3. Trim a large drawing down to the halls you rent, then check walls, columns and doors against the venue's current plan.
4. Block out registration, food, lounges, stages, exits and fire clearances before adding booths.
5. Lay out booths and aisles in standard sizes and number them in a logical order.
6. Mark sponsor spots, price booths by size and location, and hold space for returning exhibitors.
7. Send the layout to the venue and the fire marshal for review before you open booth sales.

Comparing cities across the region? See the companion list of convention centers in Tennessee.

Common Mistakes When Picking a Kentucky Venue

• Signing a room block without reading the attrition clause and cut-off date.
• Laying out booths on a whole-campus drawing instead of the halls you rent.
• Choosing dates that overlap a citywide event that fills hotels and streets.
• Comparing hotel space with an expo center without adding food and beverage minimums.
• Selling booths before the fire marshal has reviewed the layout.

Where Map D Fits

Map D is floor plan and booth sales software for organizers. You open a venue plan, then add booths, aisles, sponsor areas and labels in the editor. When the layout is ready, a paid plan lets you publish an interactive map, share it with exhibitors and sell booths online, with exhibitors choosing their own booth at checkout. Event floor plan software gives you one to-scale plan that the venue, the fire marshal, exhibitors and staff all review, instead of trading marked-up PDFs. Map D does not book venues, quote rates or replace the venue's official plan, so keep the venue and the fire marshal in the loop on every revision. To see it with your own show, request a demo or build a free floor plan.