Quite a unique hotel restoration that hosts community events. This former hotel was a rest and meal…read morestop aside the railroad tracks heading north to Massachusetts. It went out if business a century ago when dining cars came into fashion. I enjoyed the Christmas arts and crafts show, which included handmade jewelry, photography, paintings, wood works, knitted/crocheted items (and more). Free hot chocolate and kids story time. The center of the hotel had an old toy train with a large toy village. The 2nd floor is set up with historic artifacts including a cool ledger and receipts from an old country store. This was such a fun place to visit!

We had the most amazing visit to the CT Trolley Museum. We came with a group, including children,…read moreand easily spent two and a half hours here. We could definitely have stayed longer, but alas, they were closing. The museum offers trolley rides with paid admission. You will be given trolley tickets, and the motorman will 'punch' the ticket for each ride. Trolleys leave on the hour and they have two different trolleys they alternate using. One has sides and windows (like a bus), the other is open on the sides (more like a San Fran. street car). Each ride lasts about thirty minutes, there and back again and we rode both trolleys so an hour of our visit was on the trolleys. A scavenger hunt is available for the kids and they loved it! Clip boards with the list of questions and pencils are located in the museum for the child to use during their hunt. Areas where you will find the answer to a questions have a big star on them and the question number. The kids were so excited to bring their answer sheets to the employee in the gift shop. She pulled out her answer key and 'graded' each paper making sure everyone had all the answers correct! Once a paper was graded, the child got to choose a trolley coin and were told those coins are rare! Only scavenger hunt participants get a coin, you can't buy them, so guard it well! Also for children is a Lego area, a dress up area, a kid sized wooden trolley they can play in, hand-held wooden trollies to play with, arts and crafts and other kid activities. There is even a reading nook off to one side in a sunny corner. The static display trolleys are very interesting. I especially enjoyed the snow sweeper trolley and the three wheeled, one person, conveyance. It's really too bad trolleys went 'out of fashion'. They covered so much ground and were a convenient way to get where you were going before the advent of the automobile. Your museum trolley ride includes information about historic local service that was quite interesting too. If you have time, there is a fire truck and apparatus museum in another building behind the trolley museum. A tour guide there will answer any questions and they have a lot of fire truck knowledge. Very interesting! We did leave a donation in the boxes in both buildings and we made some purchases in the gift shop to help support the mission. Most of the staff are volunteers, so if they do a good job and improve the quality of your visit, feel free to tip them. Not needed, but I'm sure it's appreciated. The kids want to return for their autumn pumpkin patch event. I want to return for their Christmas light event! Bring a warm blanket and cozy up with the kids! Sound like good winter fun to me. Parking on site with handicap spots near the entrance. Paved pathway to the building. You will have to hop up onto the trolley to ride. Restrooms were clean. Water fountain and bottle filling station are inside along with two vending machines for snacks. This is an excellent stop for all ages.

We celebrated my son's 2nd birthday here, and they we so accommodating! The room was already set up…read morewith tables and tablecloths. We were able to bring in our own food and dessert. The staff was very friendly and very easy to deal with. We were a little worried about going over the limit for guests, but everyone was able to get a Trolley ride! They even let all the children pull the whistle, which they absolutely loved! The price was very reasonable, and they even opened up the museum part so the children could play and take a bunch of great photos! This children all received party favors of one free future Trolley ride. My advice is to get a membership for an even more amazing deal! Our party guests exclaimed that this was the most fun they've ever had at a birthday party! Great job!

The Japanese Festival is a free event that takes place in Blue Back Square; right near Noah Webster…read morelibrary. There is dancing, martial arts, drumming, good and vendors. I saw people dancing, there was a sushi vendor, and origami. The event was small but it was busy. It's nice to see these type of events, love the diversity.

We had the pleasure of attending the opening of " MIDAS."…read moreThe theatre was perfect in size and the chair not tight fitting! The staff were great in directing us to the evening's event and activities. We will return!!

I have come here twice to see this documentary "No Other Land" because it isn't streaming or…read moreplaying anywhere else. I'm grateful that we have a theater like this in Hartford! I am not a member yet but I intend to become one. There is also an art gallery which I have not explored yet. I took a star off because the popcorn was not great. I only got it once. Maybe it wasn't fresh. I'm going back tomorrow to see the movie one last time before it's gone and will check out the art gallery and try the popcorn again!

My old Tourette psychologist recommended I come to Limerock 5 years ago, to try and pick up men…read morehere. She always said or assumes that is pick up joint for couples to meet. As awkward, weird or interesting as her thoughts around this are, I would have liked to think there is more substance to that shallow remark she gave me in the office. For example, knowing I do enjoy the mountains, rural life and cars, those are other great reasons to suggest going to Limerock. Limerock has a FABULOUS track and with the Berkshire mountains overlooking the track, it's even more stunning. The races are all day events so you don't necessarily have to show up when doors open. You do need to bring your own chairs and there is food on the premise. Honestly, I packed my own picnic goodies and brought my own homemade lunch while i sat and watched the race. I was at the Memorial day and mid July races and even in May it can get really hot which became uncomfortable after a few hours. If you can't be in the heat due to fainting, dizziness, etc, be cautious if you decide to go to Limerock. I had to leave at around 2pm or so, because i wasn't able to sit outside for that long. Also bring a hat, specific garments to have for all kinds of weather. You can layer up or dress loosely depending on weather.

Sunday in the Park. Park Provision has a sign claiming Cold Beer Sold Here, but has No Beer…read moreavailable for sale. 1000% guest satisfaction fail.

The Marlborough Arts Center strives to offer local artists a space in which to display their work,…read moreto give residents the opportunity to take art lessons and master their crafts, and to host a range of musical performances. I think they do an admirable job of all three. The main building is still very new and has a pleasant, open feel, with bright track lighting to highlight the works displayed on the walls. Each time I've visited, the exhibits have been well worth looking at. I've seen photography, paintings, and most recently a display of Lionel model trains on loan from several owners. Although small compared to a dedicated museum, the accompanying descriptions and arrangement of the items could teach museum professionals how to do it right. As a performance space, it's very live. I've played here with my folk/acoustic duo a couple of times, and it's one if my favorites. People sing along here, and you can hear them. I'm always happy to have a plausible excuse to visit.

There's always something going on at the Marlborough Arts Center. The 4th Friday music shows are…read morealways a blast ($10, BYO wine) and the center brings in some very talented regional and national acts for a performance in a very intimate setting. There is a constantly revolving exhibition of fine arts on display. For example, this weekend there will be a Photography Exhibition featuring works from a number of amateur and professional photographers across the region. Check the website for current exhibits and arts classes.

I spent most of my youth growing up in Bristol and I think I only went to the Carousel Museum one…read moretime. Now, as a grown adult who lives thousands of miles away in Los Angeles, it was time to revisit this place on a recent trip back to the nutmeg state. My wife and I ended up coming here on a Wednesday morning because we collect museum magnets and we figured Bristol was a fun little spot to grab one of these. The building itself is insanely beautiful and gave me some wild flashbacks. From the moment we walked into this place to the second we left we are surrounded by hundreds of beautiful vintage carousels from the 1800's up to more recent times. On top of having the carousel's themselves they had binders with info on everything so you could absolutely learn every possibly detail about these things and that's so cool. On top of the carousels, they had a big section dedicated to Lake Compounce which is where I practically lived as a kid. It was super interesting to see photos from the original park, old photos of the Wildcat Coaster from back in the day, and a ton of old photos and memorabilia from old rides and the park itself. Are we done? No, they also had a fire museum upstairs and even though it's not something that really interests me, it was still a cool little bonus at the end of our tour. Overall, The Carousel Museum is such a cool spot and definitely somewhere everyone in Connecticut should go to at least once. It was really cool getting to see some of the same pieces I saw as a little kid 30+ years later. This was a wonderful time.

What a cool place! I loved learning about the carousel making process, admiring all the cool art…read morepieces, and getting a little history at the same time. I never realized how much work goes into making a carousal ride and character happen. You can see so many unique pieces from horses to lobsters! There's even a real carousel from Italy that kids and adults and ride and a really robust kid play area. The museum does hold events although I must caveat the overall vibe can be a little creepy. Not in a ghost way, but more like the artists can give a bit of that old school odd feel. Make sure you visit before booking an event, but there must be a venn diagram between people who love the vibe here and people who love halloween / eccentric things! There's a smaller event space downstairs (up to about 30 people) and the large event space upstairs must hold 150+ people comfortably.

The Japan Society of Greater Hartford holds an annual Japan Summer Festival for its 11th year. The…read moresquare is filled with vendors highlighting the Japanese culture, goods, snacks and food. Event though it's on its 11th year, the festival itself is not very big. There is sure is enough activities to try for an afternoon though. The general info tent were selling shirts and another one next to them had a yukata experience where you can try one for free. Always feel free to buy if you like it. The was a book author in the library which was followed by an origami activity. That was a challenge and definitely required patience. As for food, one table sold sushi which were kept in coolers since it was a hot day. I didn't recall seeing it being prepared on sites and other tables sold snacks and things. Since the event was in Blue Back Square, there are a number of options to dine in. They had both Pikachu and Hello Kitty on-site for pictures!