2023 Connecticut Travel Guide | Best Restaurants, Hotels, & Things to Do

With an eye on what’s new for 2023, Yankee’s editors round up the best attractions, eateries, and hotels in top Connecticut travel destinations. Headed to the city? Check out our spotlight guide to New Haven, Connecticut.

Editors’ Picks: Where to Eat and Drink in Connecticut in 2023

Bakery, Bread | Soleil Bakery, Woodstock

Step around industrial-size sacks of flour stacked on the bakery floor and place your order at Soleil’s pastry-packed glass counter. The aroma of fresh-baked bread permeates this Quiet Corner bakery tucked away in a modest strip mall. Loaves emerge from the ovens throughout the day, along with a vast array of cookies, cakes, pies, muffins, brownies, and more. Local favorite: the melt-in-your-mouth kalamata bread, loaded with tart, brined Greek olives.

Coffee Roaster | Perkatory Coffee Roasters, Middletown

On your way to heaven (or Hartford), be sure to grab a cup of soul-reviving java at Perkatory. Steeped in the skate-punk culture of the 1980s, this youthful place is tricked out with lots of spooky art and skateboards repurposed into seats and benches. Their most popular offerings include drip, espresso, and cold-brew coffees and lattes made from single-source beans roasted on the premises. Check out the roasting machine churning away behind the counter.

Destination Brewery | Elicit Brewing, Manchester

Elicit is that special brewery that welcomes the entire family. Housed in an 1800s brick mill building, the expansive space includes a beer hall with dozens of brews on tap, several rooms for private parties, and a massive beer garden with firepits out back. And there’s a kitchen counter for ordering light meals and bar foods. Numerous pinball machines and arcade games keep the kids (and adults) busy in this frenetic hall of fun.

Historic Restaurant | Griswold Inn, Essex

How’s this for history? The Griswold Inn is one of the oldest in the country and was occupied by British soldiers during the War of 1812. Today, “The Gris” is a peaceful gathering spot with a priceless collection of maritime and other antiques, sea chanty singalongs on Monday nights, and a global menu with some New England classics (chowder, fish and chips, and prime rib). Don’t miss the apple pie.

New Restaurant | Materia, Bantam

This newest star in the Litchfield dining firmament is wowing foodies from near and far. Chef-owner David DiStasi, a Le Bernardin alum, brings his fresh take on Italian cuisine to a six-course tasting menu and à la carte delights such as roasted corn velouté, tagliatelle al ragú, and aged Rohan duck breast. Finish with a nip from Materia’s seductive grappa cart.

Pizza | Sparrow Pizza Bar, West Hartford

Hometown boy Adam Greenberg has returned after multiple Chopped championships to helm this busy, colorful bistro that’s half pizza joint, half watering hole. The bar pizzas feature paper-thin crust with inventive, mostly veggie toppings. Street art enlivens the walls, adding to the electric atmosphere. There are more than 25 seats around the oval-shaped bar, providing a focal point for socializing and game watching on flat-screen TVs.

Seafood Shack | Lobster Landing, Clinton

This salt-scrubbed shack perched on pilings over Long Island Sound serves our favorite hot-and-buttered Connecticut-style roll. Owner Enea Bacci sources meat from Long Island Sound and delicately poaches it in lobster stock, giving it wonderful sweetness. The menu is limited, but the lobster bisque and chowder are also great, and the sausage sub with peppers will satisfy the seafood-averse.

Editors’ Picks: Best Places to Stay in Connecticut in 2023

Budget Stay with a View | Blackberry River Inn, Norfolk

When lodging prices in western Massachusetts spike during the summer arts season, rates remain steady and reasonable 45 minutes south in the Berkshire foothills. Set on 27 acres with gentle ridgelines in view—even while you’re cooling off in the outdoor pool—activity here revolves around the 1763 main house, where breakfast, featuring signature raised waffles, is served every morning.

Green Hote | Saybrook Point Resort & Marina, Old Saybrook

Four-star and eco-friendly don’t always go hand in hand, but they come together in grand style at Saybrook Point. The resort became the state’s first “Green Lodging”–certified hotel in 2009, but it didn’t stop there: From the pool warmed by recycled heat to biofuel generators, and from locally focused cuisine to electric vehicle charging stations, Saybrook Point continues to set the eco-innovation bar high.

Hotel Restaurant | Terreno at the Goodwin Hotel, Hartford

After a prolonged closure, there’s a restaurant again at the capital’s finest hotel. And not just any restaurant: Celebrated chef Tyler Anderson is behind a menu of comforting California-Italian dishes crafted with travelers and the pre-theater crowd in mind. Start with Sicilian-style pizzettes, made with superb local bakery Small State Provisions’ focaccia, before you oink out on house-made pasta or cioppino loaded with East Coast seafood.

Luxury Suite | Greenhouse at Winvian Farm, Morris

For lovers of architecture and design and cravers of pampering and privacy, Winvian Farm’s cottages and the surrounding 113 acres of woodlands and fields are the ultimate escape. While options like Treehouse and Helicopter are fantastically whimsical, the restyled, dog-friendly Greenhouse is our choice for a summer steal-away. Steps from the spa and pool, and with its own jetted bathtub and stone-walled patio, it’s a space where nature seeps into your psyche. The Great Room’s high glass ceiling lets a little starlight magic in, too.

Pet Pampering | Delamar Greenwich Harbor, Greenwich

If pups could talk, they’d implore their families to take them to this swanky, marina-side hotel. Not just because the pet amenities here include a welcome treat and a snuggly bed, plus add-on services like walking, grooming, and even dog massage. But because a portion of the nightly $50 pet fee is donated to local nonprofit Adopt-a-Dog, ensuring homes as loving as yours will be found for their canine kin.

Romantic Overnight | The Homestead, Madison

A vitamin-infused shower softens your skin; 1,000-thread-count sheets soften your sleep; and beach passes and bikes to borrow make playful adventures easy-breezy for you and your boo. Mood-setting vinyl will be waiting by your room’s record player if you share your musical tastes pre-arrival, and two outdoor firepits make staying “out” late to sip wine and stargaze equally inviting.

Stay & Play | Water’s Edge Resort & Spa, Westbrook

A private, creamy-sand beach is a rare amenity in Connecticut. And with indoor and outdoor pools to complement the gently wavy waters of Long Island Sound, all of your cool-off options are covered. But wait: There are more reasons you’ll rarely venture off-property. Play tennis, revive your skin at the spa, dine at four restaurants, and don’t miss the spectacle that is Sunday brunch.

Editors’ Picks: Best Things To Do in Connecticut in 2023

Animal Encounter | Riverside Reptiles Education Center, Enfield

Most days, especially weekends, you can interact with a few of the 200-plus creatures that inhabit education- and conservation-focused Riverside Reptiles. Private experiences, though, are even more unforgettable. Spend 20 minutes with a reticulated python in your lap. Hand-feed giant tortoises Leo and Fig and African spurred tortoise Tank (but don’t wear red sneakers, which they’re apt to confuse for strawberries). Or be zookeeper for a half day … if you can deal with cleaning up reptile poop.

General Store | Warren General Store, Warren

The late-19th-century general store at the crossroads of Litchfield County had been vacant eight years when John Favreau decided to restore it. He’s now run Warren’s vibrant hub for four years—and he’s crushing it, with smartly curated products from emergency necessities (Pampers!) to local craft and gourmet goods to order-ahead indulgences (caviar!). People drive miles for the privately roasted coffee, pastries, creative sandwiches, to-go meals, hand-selected wines, and yesteryear community spirit.

Ghost Tour | Seaside Shadows Haunted History Tours, Mystic

Walk among Mystic’s dead, who may or may not be RIP-ing, on a lantern-lit tour that is equal parts history lesson and creepy-good fun. Think you’ll need liquid courage? A paranormal pub crawl is the option to book. Once you’ve met Mystic’s spirits, venture across the Rhode Island state line for a rendezvous with the souls of shipwrecked sailors and the witches of Westerly.

New Attraction | Connecticut Golf Land, Vernon

A 50-year-old attraction that shut down in 2014 is resurrected at last. Golf Land is set to open in May with all-new family enticements including dinosaur-themed mini golf, bumper boats, and the Rocking Horse Smokehouse: a barbecue restaurant in an old movie theater. ConeHeads ice creamery will satisfy your cravings for classic flavors. And as summer progresses, even more fun will be on offer: Watch for a game room, volleyball courts, and a rooftop patio.

Stay-All-Day Beach | Ocean Beach Park, New London

Soft sand and the Sound’s relatively gentle, warm waves may be the main attraction, but a multitude of amusements keep Ocean Beach lively 14 hours each day. There’s an Olympic-size pool, a Spray Park for kids, an arcade, mini golf, water slides, and nostalgic rides, plus everything you might want to consume including bay scallop pizza and local beers. As daylight wanes, hear a band, learn to salsa or line dance, “Ooh!” at fireworks, or admire classic cars.

Summer Performances | Levitt Pavilion,Westport

You don’t have to be besties with the promoter. You don’t have to be caller number nine. You just have to scoop up free tickets online or at the box office before any of the more than “50 Free Nights Under the Stars” hosted by Westport’s riverfront venue each summer. You can see big names here, too, for a price. It’s a feel-good investment that helps to sustain a 50-year-old nonprofit with a mission of making live music accessible for all.

Used Bookstore | Pourings & Passages, Danielson

Playful, bright, and eight times the size of its old space, this volunteer-powered purveyor of children’s books, best sellers, movies, music, craft kits, and puzzles may cure your Amazon addiction. Prices are more than fair. All proceeds benefit St. James School just around the bend. And the tiny café is just mighty enough to keep you browsing for hours if that’s your heart’s content.

Check out our full 2023 Best of New England Summer Travel Guide to find our current editors’ picks in all six New England states.