LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Louisville is preparing to welcome thousands of basketball fans this weekend. The NCAA Tournament court was installed Tuesday, and landscape crews were busy Wednesday outside the KFC Yum! Center, but area hotels' preparation is slightly different from other big events that come to down.
A rush of hotel guests arrived Wednesday at the Galt House Hotel downtown, just some of the thousands expected to nearly fill hotel rooms throughout the city. Louisville Tourism believes the economic impact will be about $15 million, and while the city is not totally sold out yet, it very well could be starting Friday.
"We are expecting about 75-80% occupancy for the downtown area, which is really, really strong and kind of what we have seen in 2016 and 2019," said Zack Davis with Louisville Tourism.
Alabama will play San Diego State at 6:30 p.m. Friday followed by Creighton and Princeton around 9 p.m. The winners will play in the Elite Eight on Sunday.
Because the tournament is only in town every few years, it's challenging to gauge reservation nights well in advance. A lot depends on where the teams are from, which is announced just a few days before the tournament.
Main Street in downtown Louisville. (WDRB Photo)
"Of course, we know it is coming (but) we don't know who is coming," said Martin Van Der Laan, general manager of the Galt House. "All those things pan out, really, in the last couple days."
The traveling teams book about 75 rooms each, including enough for players and the traveling staff. As for prices, some hotels are nearly twice their usual price but still lower than Kentucky Derby week or other major events. Across the river at the Sheraton Louisville Riverside in Jeffersonville, it too is getting ready. And while the demand is there, it’s a little different.
"It is a little challenging on the forecasting end, in the hopes we are going to sell out,"Â said Trish Etherton, general manager of the Sheraton Louisville Riverside. "So we're trying to price accordingly and be priced within the downtown market as well as pricing according to the Indiana side.
"We are a little slower than the downtown market, but that is our first and foremost competition."
With Museum Row just a few blocks down from the KFC Yum! Center, West Main Street is expecting a lot of visitors from the four tournament teams coming from across the country. Businesses nearby, especially the ones on Museum Row, are ready for the crowds. The Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory is anticipating a busier-than-normal weekend, already having more than 1,000 reservations for Saturday.
Further down the road in NuLu, businesses are not only expecting a rush from basketball fans, but also a crowd for Bock Fest on Saturday. Revelry Boutique Gallery expects many of its visitors to be first-timers, hoping the guests will want to take back a piece of what the city has to offer.
Some businesses, like Down One Bourbon Bar on Main Street, which are typically closed on Sundays, will be open this weekend.
"We're excited that the NCAA is back in Louisville, Kentucky, and it just adds to the overall experience here in our great city," Van Der Laan said.
Copyright 2023 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.
