Best of the Connecticut Gold Coast | 2015 Editors’ Choice Awards

Heading to the Connecticut Gold Coast? We’ve got the perfect roundup of what to see, do, and eat while you’re there, plus where to stay when it’s time for bed. Read on to see our picks for the best of the Connecticut Gold Coast for 2015!

BEST ATTRACTIONS ALONG THE CONNECTICUT GOLD COAST

Best Adults-Only Museum
Connecticut Air & Space Center, Stratford
Connecticut’s own mini-Smithsonian runs on devotion. Thanks to volunteers’ painstaking efforts, remarkable aircraft and artifacts that tell the tale of Connecticut’s preeminent place in aviation history are preserved within this living museum, where you can observe helicopter and airplane restoration work in progress. Its current location inside a federal installation necessitates visitors be age 18 or over.
550 Main St. 203-380-1400; cascstratford.wordpress.com

Best Relaxation
Saltana Cave, Ridgefield
Her asthmatic daughter benefited from time in a man-made salt cave in Poland, so Anna Husted built a sanctuary with tons of Himalayan salt rocks. Within this glowing pink cave, you’ll experience utter tranquility while drifting away in a zero-gravity chair. Even if you doubt salt’s therapeutic powers, you may be tempted to head immediately back in for another 45-minute session.
590 Danbury Road. 203-969-4327; saltanacave.com

Best Town Beach
Jennings Beach, Fairfield
Plentiful parking, a “sandcastle” playground, a patriotic pier lined with American flags snapping in the breeze, a skate park, a concession stand with affordable fare, including tender fried shrimp with zingy cocktail sauce… Oh, and the town’s largest public beach, where lifeguards watch over swimmers and warm sand lulls sunbathers to sleep. Parking: $20 weekdays, $50 weekends and holidays, Memorial Day through Labor Day.
880 South Benson Road. 203-256-3191; fairfieldct.org/content/2765/2783/3418.aspx

BEST PLACES TO STAY ALONG THE CONNECTICUT GOLD COAST

Best Gourmand Getaway
Homestead Inn/Thomas Henkelmann, Greenwich
This Euro-sophisticated escape earns accolades for both Thomas Henkelmann’s exquisite, contemporary French cuisine and Theresa Henkelmann’s impeccable eye for bold, inviting interiors. Masterfully married ingredients and exotic design elements achieve the couple’s objective of enchanting and transporting guests. Rates: from $350. Entrées: from $38.
420 Field Point Road. 203-869-7500; homesteadinn.com

Best Inn on the Sound
The Inn at Longshore, Westport
Situated between a stunning curve of shoreline and a historic public golf course built as an exclusive private club in 1929, the Inn at Longshore has a dozen rooms. Often occupied by wedding guests on weekends, they’re quite a value midweek and off-season. Rates: from $139.
260 South Compo Road. 203-226-3316; innatlongshore.com

Best Dog-Friendly Hotel
Delamar Greenwich Harbor, Greenwich
It’s happened: Humans have actually expressed jealousy over the pampering that dogs receive at this stylish waterside hotel. From treats at check-in to their own cuddly beds to bottled mineral water at turndown, pups enjoy every creature comfort on designated dog-friendly floors. Walking and grooming services are available, and a portion of the nightly pet fee supports Adopt-a-Dog. Rates: from $299; $50 pet fee.
500 Steamboat Road. 203-661-9800; delamargreenwich.com

BEST PLACES TO EAT ALONG THE CONNECTICUT GOLD COAST

Best Garden Lover’s Restaurant
Terrain Garden Café, Westport
Tucked inside Terrain, a shop that’s pure Eden for gardeners, is an equally divine indoor/outdoor restaurant, where the conservatory-like setting and seasonally evolving fare soothe and satisfy the senses. Chef Alissa Svorka builds a five-course tasting dinner, which can be ordered as a feast for two with 10 different dishes, using the epitome of locally procurable ingredients, from heirloom carrots to Stonington scallops. Entrées: from $19.
561 Post Road East. 203-226-2742; shopterrain.com/westportrestaurant

Best Gold-Coast Meal Deal
Valencia Luncheria, Norwalk
Never had arepas? Neither had television host Guy Fieri when he put this tiny, strip-mall Venezuelan beach-food restaurant on the map. Now in larger digs with a “Beach Patio”for outdoor diners, it’s a budget-conscious place to load up on Latin American comfort foods. Pair arepas—corn cakes fried and filled with everything from beef to bananas—with fresh-squeezed juices. Arepas: from $3.75.
164 Main St. 203-846-8009; valencialuncheria.com

Best Loaded Hot Dogs
Super Duper Weenie, Fairfield
Put America’s favorite tubular food in the hands of a Culinary Institute of America grad, et voilà! People drive miles to get their hands (and you’ll need both, plus extra napkins) on chef Gary Zemola’s meals on a bun. The New Englander—a butter-grilled dog piled with sauerkraut, bacon, mustard, homemade sweet relish, and raw onion—is legendary. Specialty hot dogs from: $3.75.
306 Black Rock Turnpike. 203-334-3647; superduperweenie.com