According to Bet Kentucky, Ark Encounter, located in Williamstown, Kentucky, is the state’s top tourist attraction in 2023, the Christian Post reports.

Ark Encounter is a full-sized replica of Noah’s Ark created by Answers in Genesis and is located just 45 miles (70 km) away from the organization’s Creation Museum located in Petersburg, Kentucky.

Bet Kentucky came to this conclusion after analyzing Google search data and using the information provided by Trip Advisor’s 25 best things to do in Kentucky.

Ark Encounter finished at the top of the list with 60k Google searches, followed by Louisville’s’ Churchill Downs with 50k and Brownsville’s Mammoth Cave with 36k searches.

The ark, seen in the photo above, is ten stories high and 510 feet (ca. 155 m) long and is roughly based on dimensions recorded in the Book of Genesis as there are disagreements about the actual length of a cubit.

Inside the ark, there are 136 displays arranged on three stories, that include models of some of the animals that were probably housed in the ark.

Though we have several species of dogs today ranging from wolves to foxes plus our domesticated versions, only one representative pair of canines would have been taken on the ark.

The Bible specifically states that Noah was told to take two of every ‘kind’ of animal, (Genesis 6:20), a term that broadly describes one pair to represent all kinds of canines and another set to represent every ‘kind’ of cat.

Previous studies have shown there was more than enough room on the ark for the needed animals. READ: Physics proves Noah’s ark could hold the animals of the earth

Other displays feature what conditions would have looked like on Earth during the flood and the living and working areas of Noah’s family. There is also a display of artifacts from the Green Collection promoting the Museum of the Bible based in Washington, DC.

Aside from the full-size replica of Noah’s Ark, the site also has other attractions. This includes a zoo featuring animals such as kangaroos and camels, Emzara’s Kitchen which with a seating capacity of 1,500 and is considered one of the largest restaurants in the world, a zip line, and a virtual reality theater.

When it opened in July 2016, a group of atheists planned to campaign against the Ark Encounter, by displaying a billboard near the site of people drowning in the flood along with the caption, “Genocide and Incest Park: Celebrating 2,000 years of myths”.

However, billboard companies refused to sell the needed space. Nevertheless, a group gathered at the highway entrance to the Ark Encounter on July 7th to protest its opening.

But the activists don’t seem to have had much impact as the Ark Encounter had over 1.1 million visitors in its first year. This included several schools from Kentucky and the surrounding states visiting the Ark despite receiving letters from the Freedom From Religion Foundation warning them against arranging school outings at a Christian venue.

READ: Ark Encounter tops list of most popular attractions in Kentucky

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