Had my daughters Sweet 16 party there! Very accommodating, and just great experience all around!read more

We were a group of four. One person was mid-tour when we arrived. As there is only one docent, she…read morebegan the tour over. We were 3/4 way through our first floor tour when another party arrived. Instead of adding them to the tour, and then covering what they missed, she asked them to wait. The living room is beautiful. Plaster work, beautifully hand painted walls (by a modern artist), elegant furnishings. Photos of the home pre-restoration are showed and discussed in this room. So much work has been done! There are also photos of the family and you learn a bit about them here. We also had the opportunity to ask questions about the home and family. Through this Q&A we discovered in what types of 'shipping' the family were involved. The dining room table displays a variety of period china. The fireplaces on this floor are marble. The dining room light fixture is very interesting, and although not original fits very well and makes a statement. Sadly, the kitchen is not restored for guests to view. There is however a butlers pantry in the dining room displaying more serve ware. An Antarctic research station is named after Captain Palmer and a live feed is shown in the next room as well as several ship models including the one Capt. Palmer was on when he discovered the continent. Information on the gentleman who created these models is also presented. There is a variety of information in this room about Capt. Palmers Antarctic discovery and one of his shipping trades: seal pelts. The short hallway between dining room and this include other items of trade such as Palmer tea and jade. The upper floors are self toured and there are three of them. Stair cases narrow as you ascend. The highest point is a small cupola surrounded by windows with a small bench seat that fits about three. There was a nice breeze with the windows open and long views. The two floors between include bedrooms, 'toilet' rooms, children's play room, fire alarm display, sewing room, office space and storage. Plenty of old furnishings, linens, toys etc. I particularly love the sewing box. Beautiful, intricate work. The price for the two locations is very reasonable and if you have time, are looking for an air conditioned space, love history/architecture/home décor, then this is going to be a nice stop. Free parking is available at the side of the house. Enter at the grand front door. A gift shop is located just inside to the left of the entrance. A restored ice house, storage and out houses are behind the home. I saw no public facilities (but didn't ask). There is a fair amount of land with the home including a small pathway with bench seating along the water on the other side of parking. In July there were plenty of mosquitos. Picnic tables are located behind the research library next to parking. Tickets may be purchased on line through their website as well as at the Stonington light house museum. Stonington residents and historical society member admission is free. Military, senior and first responder discounts are available. July and August the museum is open daily 10am - 4pm. The rest of the year hours are limited - check the website for information.

We visited after being informed that our Stonington lighthouse entrance fee also included entrance…read morehere. It's right down the street Who was Captain Nathaniel B. Palmer? He was credited with discovering Antarctica (whilst hunting for seals) in 1820 at the young age of 21 with a minimal crew. He grew rich and built a stately home in his birthplace of Stonington, CT. After his brothers wife died, Nathaniel and his wife (who were childless) shared the home with his widowed brother and his 4 children. It was great to learn the history of this family and home, feeling transported to another time and imaging what it must have been like. I want to know more. Beautiful furnishings, interesting history and a beautiful setting. Parking is free and plentiful and the grounds are serene and quiet. A great way to spend an hour or so in this quaint town.

My wife and I booked two nights here rather than staying at Foxwoods while traveling through New…read moreEngland. The home was built in the late 1700's, and is beautifully appointed with period antiques and art. So cool. Even though the home is a few decades old, the towels, sheets, soap and even the toilet paper is high end! Breakfast was incredible. Charlotte called the night before we arrived and asked what we would like. My wife had delightful Eggs Benedict, and I had scrambled eggs, and the best bacon ever! The grounds are expansive. Plenty of room to enjoy the huge house, or one of the many outdoor spaces. The views of the rolling hills would make an instagrammer blush. I can't wait to stay here during the holiday season.

We stayed at Heavitree over a holiday weekend for our Anniversary- it was truly amazing! The house…read morewas built in the 1770s, and its decorated to the time period. The grounds are beautifully maintained, it was so peaceful to drink coffee sitting out on the rock wall overlooking the hillside of Christmas trees. Charlotte was a perfect host, friendly, hard working, and makes a delicious breakfast! Highly recommend the basement room, so big and comfortable! We plan on returning to pickup a Christmas Tree!

Following a Yelp event on the spacious and serene grounds, I had dinner at the restaurant. Inside…read morethe lodge is gorgeous--filled with lots of charming pieces and taxidermy game on the wall and mantle (look for the rooster) which I was told was part of the owner's collection. Everyone was most friendly and welcoming. It was a relaxing atmosphere. The dinner menu is on the small side, with a few specials offered. I chose the fish and chips--which I thoroughly enjoyed. The fish was perfectly battered and fried and tasted fresh. I also got to watch a live cooking comedy show in the dining room and they gave out dessert! A bit corny but all quite entertaining. Great nearby place to eat, drink, and be entertained while glamping!

We had a great time at the tamarack lodge! The owners and staff are fantastic people and do a great…read morejob of hosting all that come to this wonderful property. We stayed for the night and were upgraded to a room in the main house for the same price as the cabin. The rooms were very clean and updated. Be prepared that there are no TVs in the rooms...just like camping! We stayed on a Saturday night in September and there is a restaurant in the lodge with live entertainment (comedians on this particular night). There is a full bar with several cocktails on the drink menu. The grounds have an obstacle course, horse shoes pits, stage for a concert, access to beach pond, trails, and cabins for camping. There was a fire provided during the day, but we didn't see one at night. It would be nice if each cabin had its own fire ring to have a camp fire/cook in and a large fire pit for community bon fires. I'm sure the new owners have lots of cool plans and will make it happen as they are open to suggestions. This can definitely be s hot spot to have some fun and not worry about driving home.

I got married this summer, and hiring ESTOccasions to help plan and coordinate my wedding was the…read morebest gift I could have given myself as a bride. Around this time last year, my then fiancé/now husband and I had a decent amount of our wedding planned and booked, but I was starting to stress about the schedule and how we'd be able to handle everything the day of. We decided to get married at Edgerton Park in New Haven because it's across the street from our first apartment together, and it's very special to us. We rented the carriage house, which has a bathroom and some usable space inside, but because it's not a banquet hall kind of venue, we had to bring everything else in ourselves. We wanted our wedding to be fun and feel like a festival at our favorite park, so we rented a big tent and had food trucks instead of standard catering. One day, while walking our dog through the park and scoping out another wedding for ideas, we saw a bride putting flowers on tables and directing food trucks where to go. My husband and I knew that I could not do this the day of our wedding - that's when we should be getting ready and taking pictures - so we started looking into hiring a day of coordinator. Some friends of ours had ESTOccasions plan their wedding, so I asked them about it, and they could not say enough good things about Kia. They said that in the end, she felt like their friend, not just their wedding planner, and by the time our wedding came around, I felt the same way. Kia and her team were amazing from the beginning. One of the first things she asked was, what was I stressed about. It was great to channel what I was worried about into a plan, and Kia had a solution for everything. We went with the day of coordination package, but this included more than just coordinating the day (which they did impeccably). We also got planning meetings, a walk-through of our ceremony and reception area, put in touch with a second food truck and help planning our menu, and several emails and phone calls, including a phone call the day before our wedding when I had a slight meltdown about a potential issue with our tent rental, which ended up working out just fine. The walk-through alone was worth the package price. My husband and I had been struggling with where to have the ceremony in this park we went to almost every day, and Kia figured out the perfect spot right away. We had a natural flow from ceremony to reception, and Kia also found the best spots to put all of our food trucks (we ended up having the Naples Pizza truck, Lizzie's Curbside, the Mobile Pub, and Elm City Kettle Corn, and that's not including our wedding cupcakes from Sweet Mary's in New Haven and coolers of water and seltzer.) Kia and her team were there bright and early to set up the ceremony site and reception decorations, and everything was perfect. They were also there to bring us water when we were taking pictures (it was a hot June day), and they even handled our dog during pictures so that our little best friend could be in some of them. They were the point of contact for all of our vendors, and they made sure everything ran smoothly. They let us know when it would be a good time to cut the cake, when it made sense to do the father/daughter dance, and when it was the perfect time for my brother's band, the Funky Dawgz Brass Band, to top the party off. They packed up our leftover cupcakes and got everything set for us to pick up in the morning, and they were always there with drinks for me and my husband when we needed them. Our wedding was really the best day ever, and we owe a lot of that to Kia and her team.

I definitely didn't go to a wedding over the weekend with the intention of writing a Yelp review,…read morebut after seeing how great the venue was and even more so how hilarious the staff was, this place definitely earned the five star review. I showed up here on Friday at around 5pm and was immediately impressed with the beautiful building surrounded by tons of trees and just how New England this place seemed. After a nice ceremony in the woods (they are able to drive you around on golf carts which is sick) we spent the remainder of the night in the massive building where everything else took place. The main room itself looks amazing and the wood work is certainly something to gawk at. The washrooms were large and clean, all of the food I ate (which I'm pretty sure was handled by the venue) was much better then what I've had at previous weddings, and the staff....oh the staff. From being genuinely charming and funny during very single step of the night to hitting the dance floor for a song and blending in way better then I ever could, it's always nice to see every single person there at least pretending to have fun. Overall, I may not live in Connecticut, but if someone ever got some random reason needed an eastern Connecticut venue recommendation, well, this is the place I'm telling them to pick. Thanks for giving a whole lot of people such an unforgettable night.

From former tree farm to event venue, Wright's is the epitome of bucolic beauty. Winding roads,…read morewaterfalls, stone walls - the best of eastern CT. I came here for a friend's wedding last weekend and it couldn't have been a more perfect setting (OR weather). I didn't see nearly enough of the grounds but what I did see was lovely. They hosted the ceremony in a spectacularly lush wooded area, followed by the reception in a rustic, yet well appointed pavilion. Actual bathrooms instead of portable which was sooo much better! Appreciated the ample parking and quick walk between the parking lot, ceremony site, and reception area. Not sure if all of the weddings are required to use the venue's catering, but the food was solid too!

I had the chicken shawarma in a wrap and it was absolutely amazing. I will make it a point to eat…read morehere when I see their food truck roll in.

Issa catering/food truck is so tasty and we love supporting local and immigrant owned business…read more Amazing chicken and rica shawarma! My coworkers also tried the falafels- amazing flavors!

The Sun Patio is a great outdoor spot to enjoy a beer! This area does not have a lot of outdoor…read morespots, but this spot is nice and new!