Things To Do

How Locals Spend Free Time in New Haven

Curious about what you'll do when you live in New Haven? If you like the idea of strolling along the Green, getting artsy wandering through Yale galleries, and are daring enough to try kite boarding in Long Island Sound, New Haven is calling you home! This list of fun things to do will take you from ivy quads to harbor views and give you a lively sampling of New Haven's cultural depth and coastal charm.

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Lynn Nelthropp
New Haven Local Expert

Lynn, Our Local Expert Guiding Your Move

Lynn has lived in Connecticut almost her entire life, and knows the difference between shoreline charm and quiet river towns. She's sampled pizza and donuts all over the state visiting all 169 Connecticut towns. Her most memorable (and probably last ever) move involved the trifecta of a hurricane, loss of power, and an August heatwave (so don't even get me started on moving horror stories!). She knits, bakes, metal detects beaches, and firmly believes New Haven pizza is a food group of its own. At Snappy Scout Lynn turns decades of CT discoveries into sage moving advice you'll enjoy reading and actually use.

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Written with local insight from Snappy Scout relocation experts

What Will You Do in New Haven?

From weekend adventures to iconic road trips, here's how locals spend their time off.

On a Saturday with perfect weather

CitySeed Wooster Square farmers market, cherry blossoms, Italian food coma.

Rainy, dreary day

Hide in Beinecke, glowing marble, Gutenberg flex, librarians hush.

intellectually stimulating

Peabody dinosaurs, twinkling gemstones, fossils judging your posture.

Artsy

Yale University Art Gallery then British Art, brushstrokes and smug portraits.

Something inside and free

Yale University Art Gallery free forever, including the air conditioning.

Outdoorsy

East Rock summit, Quinnipiac River sparkling like gossip, West Rock hikes.

Fitness-oriented

Tighten up your helmet and bike the Farmington Canal or East Coast Greenway.

If you're a shopaholic

Chapel and Broadway boutiques at The Shops at Yale, your wallet will whimper.

With your dog

Wooster Square sniff fest, share a cannoli from Libby's.

In need of a selfie

Cuddle up to Handsome Dan; get Harness Tower looming to live out your Gilmore Girls fantasies.

You have to see this

Pepe's lines, underground cemetery.

On a budget

Long Wharf food trucks, ocean breeze, ten dollars becomes feast.

Local's Q&AReal answers from someone who lives here

My Favorite Local Spot in New Haven

Atticus on Chapel Street for a quick snack and hot beverage (French Toast Latte - Yummy!) while perusing the bookshelves. Afterwards, pop into one of the Yale art museums (free).

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— Lynn Nelthropp

Connecticut Local Expert

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