Destination:
Connecticut

The Riverfront

Riverfront Recapture is a non-profit organization working to reconnect metropolitan Hartford with the Connecticut River. It has established a network of four beautiful parks and public recreational facilities along seven miles (11km) of shoreline. Here, free events are staged year-round, and visitors can walk, run, bike, picnic, enjoy boating and rowing activities, fish or set sail on a river cruise.

Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art

The Wadsworth Atheneum is the oldest public art museum in the United States, and the highlight of its permanent collection exposes visitors to a unique American movement: the Hudson River School. These fine paintings, originally obtained by Daniel Wadsworth, are now considered American masterpieces.

Old State House

The Old State House was built in 1796. It is one of the oldest state houses in the country and has been named a National Historic Landmark. Visitors can tour the magnificently restored rooms, listen to the audio tour and visit the education centre and museum shop.

Mystic Seaport

Mystic Seaport, just under an hour's drive from Hartford, allows visitors to experience the classic New England seafaring community. Its four sections include a restored 19th century village, comprising more than 30 shops and businesses; the waterfront, featuring tall ships and other historic vessels that visitors can climb aboard and explore; the preservation shipyard, where antique vessels are restored using traditional methods and tools; and a collection of galleries and exhibits. Mystic Seaport is the perfect family destination, with several restaurants, boating activities and children's programs.

Yale University

Yale, a member of the Ivy League, is one of the oldest universities in the country and one of the most distinguished in the world. Its beautiful campus is home to a wealth of stunning architectural achievements as well as multiple museums, exhibition spaces and theatres. Visitors might browse the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library or take in a performance of the Yale Glee Club.

Freedom Schooner Amistad

Long Wharf Pier in New Haven is the homeport of the Freedom Schooner Amistad, a re-creation of the schooner involved in the 1839 AmistadIncident, in which a group of Africans being transported to the Caribbean as slaves revolted and took over the ship. The ship was seized by the US government, and the Africans eventually won their freedom in a case before the US Supreme Court.

Peabody Museum of Natural History

The stunning exhibitions of the Peabody Museum of Natural History are sure to amaze visitors of all ages. In addition to the Great Hall of Dinosaurs, visitors can discover Egyptian mummies, sabre-toothed cats and Native American artefacts. Multiple youth programs are held during the summer.

Mark Twain House and Museum

Mark Twain, one of America's most celebrated writers, lived in this stately house on Farmington Avenue between 1874 and 1891. The elegant, 19-room mansion - built in a Victorian Gothic style - was where Twain wrote many of his most famous and successful works (including Adventures of Huckleberry Finn), and has since been declared a National Historic Landmark. Visitors to the Mark Twain Museum Centre can anticipate a fascinating Ken Burns documentary detailing Twain's life and work, and state-of-the-art exhibition facilities. William Faulkner once called Mark Twain "the father of American literature" - and anyone with even a passing interest in American culture, would be ill-advised to pass up a visit to this significant, and memorable museum.