This policy explains how Explore Bardstown decides what to publish, how facts are checked, and what happens when something changes. It applies to every page on the site.
Independence
Explore Bardstown is published by Appalachian Frontiers LLC and is not affiliated with any tourism office, government body, distillery, restaurant or hotel. No business pays for inclusion, placement or wording. Businesses do not review pages before publication.
Sources and fact-checking
- Tour names, prices, hours, addresses and phone numbers come from the business’s own website or booking system whenever possible. Parks, museums and historic sites are checked against the agency that runs them, for example Kentucky State Parks or the National Park Service.
- Every business listed as open has recent evidence that it is operating. Where a detail cannot be confirmed, the page says so in practical terms (“call ahead for winter hours”) rather than guessing.
- Key facts link to their source on the page, and each page’s structured data lists the URLs it relied on.
- Dates and events in history pages come from archives, historical societies, National Register of Historic Places documentation and well-documented secondary sources. Legends are presented as legends, with the evidence.
- Every page shows the date its facts were last checked. When a page is re-checked, the date changes.
Writing standards
Pages are written to help you plan: the answer first, then the details. We do not publish invented first-person experiences. When a page describes what visitors think of a place, it summarizes published visitor reviews, not a visit of our own.
Responsible drinking
Bourbon is central to Bardstown, and this guide covers it in depth for adults 21 and over. We never encourage over-consumption, and every itinerary that includes tastings assumes a designated driver, a tour company or a place to stay within walking distance.
AI-generated illustrations
Images on this site are AI-generated illustrations, not photographs of the real places. They are created from detailed written briefs describing the general scene (architecture, landscape, season, light), then checked by an automated vision review for problems such as invented signage, wrong landscapes or people who could be minors, and regenerated when they fail. Every image carries an “AI-generated illustration” note in its alt text and IPTC metadata (DigitalSourceType: trainedAlgorithmicMedia). Real buildings may differ in detail from their illustrations, so rely on the text and the linked official sources for facts.
Corrections
If a fact on the site is wrong or out of date, tell us through the contact page. We verify the report against a primary source, correct the page and update its checked date. Significant corrections (a closure, a changed price, a wrong address) are made as quickly as they can be confirmed.
Affiliate disclosure
Some pages include a Stay22 lodging map. If you book through it, the publisher may earn a commission at no cost to you. Affiliate relationships never influence recommendations. See the about page for more on how the guide is funded.