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Connecticut Isn't Boring: Here's What to Do All Over the State
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items I have since moved from Connecticut to Massachusetts after 25 years of my life there but that doesn't CT doesn't have much to offer! Here's what you need to check out if you're ever in the nutmeg state.
Sections
4
Food and Drinks
Museums
Fun Activities
Shopping
Food and Drinks
This place does not joke about its love for mac n cheese. It offers over 70 different dishes including Pepperoni Pizza Mac and the Mac Dog.
Mac N' Out Macaroni & Cheese
This place has loads of traffic on the weekends so prepare accordingly. But the donuts, coffee and breakfast sandwiches will absolutely be worth the wait :)
Neil's Donuts
Cava is best-known for its high quality, movie set style displays that diners can enjoy as they eat. As I'm writing this, the current theme is a Wicked display :)
Cava Italian Restaurant
Known for being the King of Roast Beef, this place has deli sandwiches of all kinds to die for, refreshing sodas and its memorabilia on display makes its love for Elvis Presley well-known :)
Vinny's Roast Beef and Deli
Offers a main dining room, rooftop tiki bar, agave lab and rubber ducks if you're able to get your hands on one :) Great for both happy hour and brunch
Elm City Social
This horror themed coffee shop offers baked goods and hot and cold beverages (At one point, they had a drink dedicated to Betty White not long after her passing)
Perkatory Coffee Roasters
Stopping by for ice cream is a MUST if you're ever in Storrs. All of the milk in the ice cream comes from cows at the Kellogg Dairy Center as part of UConn's campus.
UConn Dairy Bar
This place operates as both a coffee shop AND a bar. Many seasonal options with creative names as well as snacks and baked goods from local businesses and live music.
Yellow King Brews
The ice cream here is so good, there is often a long line during the summer months. It also offers sorbet, sherbert, frozen yogurt, ice cream cakes, milkshakes, and more!
Main Street Creamery & Cafe - Wethersfield
This place is a mixture of a coffee shop and sit-down meals including gourmet pizzas, paninis and pasta dishes.
Half Moon Coffee and Grille Cafe | Wallingford CT
Aside from delicious pizza, it's the restaurant that inspired the 1988 film “Mystic Pizza” starring Julia Roberts. The inspiration is fully embraced here with memorabilia from the film all over the restaurant, drawing in tourists from all over the wo...
Mystic Pizza | Home
Originally a deli shop, it's expanded to offer breakfast, bar bites and happy hour. You can also build your own sandwich :)
Max Bibo's
Even if you're not a vegetarian, there's plenty of tasty options here including sandwiches, flatbread pizzas, quesadillas, and vegan whole grain pancakes. This year, the restaurant celebrated its 50th anniversary.
Claire's Corner Copia
A refreshing take on Thai cuisine. No matter what you get, MAKE SURE YOU GET THE COCONUT NOODLES
September in Bangkok
Wooster Street in New Haven is known for its pizza as a whole. Aside from Sally's, there's also Frank Pepe, Modern Apizza and BAR. Most of these places serve pizza by the whole and slices are rare. Addtionally, bring cash, expect long waits and try t...
There are pizza restaurants. Then there's Sally's Apizza - Italian restaurant
Museums
Come here to view exhibits centered on the man who came up with characters such as Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. You can also go on a tour (Including haunted tours during the Halloween season), check out the garden and cafe and much more that they...
The Mark Twain House & Museum
Aside from offering live entertainment, the center hosts a small museum where you can learn more about the four-time Oscar winner (That's more than Meryl Streep BTW). Katharine Hepburn spent many summers in the town of Old Saybrook and was born and r...
Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center
As part of UConn's School of Fine Arts, it offers a small number of exhibits. When I went here, they had an exhibit for Where the Wild Things Are
Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry
Come here to learn about the women who wrote “Uncle Tom's Cabin” and join an immersive tour with much discussion on the book's relevance to society back then as well as today
Harriet Beecher Stowe House
This underrated attraction features authentic movie memorabilia and exhibits with numerous life-sized figures of classic horror movie characters.
Witch's Dungeon Classic Movie Museum
A beautiful art museum showcasing pieces by artists including Georgia O'Keeffe, Caravaggio, Renoir, Monet, Andy Warhol and even more!
Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art
A great place to take the kids! Featuring numerous dinosaur footprints and life-sized displays, it offers nature walking trails and interactive, educational activities both for indoors and outdoors depending on the season.
Dinosaur State Park
Although PEZ originated in Austria, its manufacturing has since moved to Orange, CT and now also hosts the world's largest PEZ collection in the world, with the focus of its history and memorabilia over the years
PEZ Visitor Center
Truly the ultimate collection of cartoon, childhood and pop culture memorabilia. I've been here personally numerous times and it never gets old. Right next door is the Barker Animation Art Gallery where you can view (and purchase) art and operates as...
Barker Character Comic and Cartoon Museum
A great place to take the kids, it's very hands-on and is complete with live demos and a theater to enhance the experience. Recent exhibits at the museum include “The Science Behind Pixar”
Connecticut Science Center
Fun Activities
One of two casinos in Connecticut. Mohegan Sun offers hotel accommodations with a spa and pool, shopping, restaurants including TAO, live entertainment including plenty of options for standup comedy and even an arcade that will keep your kids enterta...
Mohegan Sun
One of two casinos in Connecticut. Aside from gambling, it offers hotel accommodations with a pool, shopping, restaurants including a Hard Rock Cafe and Gordon Ramsay's Hell Kitchen, and a number of activities to check out including indoor golf and k...
Foxwoods Resort Casino
90s Con comes to Hartford every spring. Also taking place in Florida each year, this convention brings photo ops, a costume contest, vendors, a chance to hear and meet from your favorite 90s stars.
90's Con - Connecticut Convention ...
A live music venue and nightclub near Yale University, artists like the Rolling Stones and David Bowie have performed here. Nowadays, it's a mixture of established and up and coming acts. Keanu Reeves even performed here with his band Dogstar in Octo...
Toad's Place
The perfect place for picking out numerous fruits, purchasing home baked goods, going through the haunt in the fall and also has a sunflower maze :)
Lyman Orchards
This is a one-of-a-kind mini golf course themed to the country of Switzerland. A very good substitute if you aren't able to make the actual trip (Although they do offer travel brochures).
Matterhorn Mini Golf
Scarecrow displays are all throughout CT in the fall but the one in Wethersfield is my personal favorite. It brings people from all over to see what people have made for each year as they compete for prizes in different categories. Great opportunity ...
Scarecrows Along Main Street - Old Wethersfield
Upon entering Storrs, you'll see a sign that says Storrs is the basketball capital of the world. That's because when it comes to March Madness, UConn is supreme amongst the rest of the schools in the country. The women's basketball team is the most s...
Women's Basketball - University of Connecticut ...
I was a student here for years and I can say that Hartford Stage produces Broadway level quality work (It does just so happen to be home to at least a few shows that have since transferred to the Great White Way). The staging is so innovative, and it...
Hartford Stage
One of the best nature trails in the state, it's called Sleeping Giant because of the unique shape of the park's ridgeline
Sleeping Giant State Park
Among nature trails is Gillette Castle, the former estate of actor William Gillette who played the role of Sherlock Holmes on the stage.
Gillette Castle State Park
This is America's oldest continuously operated amusement park. It offers historic and award-winning wooden roller coasters, a water park, the Phantom Fall Fest, Holiday Lights and more!
Lake Compounce
Located next to Bradley Airport, it's the largest aerospace museum in New England. In addition to displays, it offers flight simulators and open cockpit days.
New England Air Museum
Among the many sea creatures here are the only beluga whales in New England.
Mystic Aquarium
This is the largest maritime museum in the entire United States and includes a historic seaport village.
Mystic Seaport Museum
Gilmore Girls is known for taking place in Connecticut. While Stars Hollow itself is fictional, there are many towns in Connecticut that inspired it. This guide offers some great suggestions should you come to CT to live like Lorelai and Rory :)
10 of the Best Gilmore Girls Towns Like Stars Hollow in Connecticut
Shopping
In a small suburb not too far from Hartford, this store offers what could be a whole shopping spree: Nostalgic candies, local beverages, handmade goods, fun and nostalgic gifts toys and homemade ice cream. If you're lucky, you might even find merchan...
Old Wethersfield Country Store
With two locations in Niantic (One being a downtown store and the other being a barn with themed buildings), the Book Barn offers a variety of different genres of books including ones that are rare and used. The barn location in particular has garden...
Book Barn
Also in Wethersfield, it's named after the novel the Witch of Blackbird Pond which happens to take place in Wethersfield. It offers a number of healing services including Reiki as well as items to purchase such as crystals, tarot cards and essential ...
The Blackbird House
It may be hard to find at first and with limited hours, but if you're able to go, it's absolutely worth it. Items in here span from the Victorian era to the earl 2000s. With a special emphasis on the 1950s to 1970s. You can purchase as well as rent i...
Fashionista Vintage & Variety
There are so many beautiful flowers and plants here. As well as gardening essentials. You can also purchase food here that are hand crafted and used with locally sourced ingredients including sandwiches and sweets such as donuts.
Heirloom Market at Comstock Ferre
An open-air shopping center (which also offers dining and a movie theater), fan favorite shops here include Cloak and Wand, Alice in the Village and Sofia's Mystical Christmas. The village is also home to seasonal events throughout the year, especial...
Olde Mistick Village