Northern Kentucky

Northern Kentucky may lack the big-name attractions of its neighbors around the state, but it makes up for it with quirky sights and riverfront charm. A museum of ventriloquists' dolls and a circus brewery lead the peculiar pack. Most of the action centers on the towns of Covington and Newport, which are basically suburbs of Cincinnati, OH, located just over the Ohio River. Newport is more modern and commercial, with a vast restaurant and shopping complex. Neighboring Covington has the MainStrasse quarter, filled with cozy restaurants and bars in vintage brick row houses. Antebellum mansions fringe Riverside Dr, and old paddle-wheel steamboats tie up along the water's edge.