For free, you can visit this one-room museum and historical society and learn a lot about…read moreGlastonbury as well as Connecticut River Valley. They have an amazing array of artifacts, including outfits, arrow heads, and old maps. They also sell some of the only Glastonbury "swag" I've seen in town at a reasonable price. The people who work here are enthusiastic and super knowledgeable. Definitely worth a visit!

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.

Jenn does beautiful work and her prices are very reasonable . I use her for all of my framing.read more

Great little shop with an artist owner who has an excellent eye for matching frames to your…read morepaintings/photos/art. Very reasonable prices, as well. The small gallery has lots of interesting small pieces of art, beads, and other items for sale by the owner and other local artists.

The Science Center has a lot of interactive exhibits. There is plenty to read, if you want to, but…read morehonestly, the children I saw were jumping in and participating in the many hands-on exhibits. Some of the favorites were the air cannons where they tested their skills keeping a ball aloft while moving it toward a 'hoop' to drop the ball through. The interactive downhill ski machine was also visited often. The day we visited, a group of high school students were there with a display on aerodynamics. They had visual displays of air moving objects and then the children were allowed to build their own paper airplane, put it into a wind tunnel and see how well their design flew. They very much enjoyed that. There is a huge megalodon static display with a wide open mouth to show just how much one could eat in a bite. All the kids wanted to crawl inside, which of course is not allowed, but it was certainly large enough to swallow all of them whole! The shark exhibit had lots of information and a video game they could use to make a shark eat a squid. They enjoyed that as well. The admission is quite expensive, which I understand as everything is quite expensive these days and there are plenty of staff on hand in each exhibit to answer questions. Then there's maintenance, electricity, etc. At one time the Science Center offered passes through the libraries for half off admission which would certainly be helpful to families straining to live within a budget. Camp groups were in house during our visit so perhaps they choose to focus their giving back to the community in that way instead of offering the library passes. A sandwich shop and an ice cream shop are on the first floor along with the gift shop. The gift shop has a variety of items from games to jewelry at a variety of price points. Some exhibit spaces have restrooms and water fountains. Ask a staff member for directions. Very long, steep staircases lead between exhibits and you have to exit the exhibit on the correct side to access these stair cases. An elevator bank runs from the lobby to each floor as well. They do have a parking garage, which was full when we visited. The Convention Center parking garage is just across the street and a short walk away.

CT Science Center is located in Hartford and is a hands on science museum. There are many exhibits…read morein all the science fields that you can explore; it's also for all ages too. My favorite was the butterfly encounter; there is a room just for butterflies and they do land on you. There is a parking garage available. There are 4 levels open to the public. My family and I enjoyed the exhibits. There were plenty to keep us all busy. My children enjoyed the play kitchen, dinosaurs, and butterflies. Blue Chip Creamery is also located there. I highly recommend it and can't wait to go back soon.

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.

I had the best time at the Carousel Museum! Prices are a little steep but once you see everything…read morethey have to offer you can see it's worth it and totally necessary to keep them running! I originally went because I thought my toddler would love it honestly I think we all had an equal amount of fun and enjoyment here! Two floors of beautifully constructed animals and cool history of them all. My daughter loved the carousel ride and probably could've gone around on it for hours if we let her. She also loved the puppet show area with books and dress up items. Second floor was absolutely beautiful and a firehouse museum was on it which my husband enjoyed. Everything was super accessible. My mid 80s grandmother had a blast and everything was flat, walkable and had elevator access. People working are dedicated and passionate about this museum. I've been recommending it to everyone!

Once a month festivities on the first Thursday of every month where Manchester celebrates its…read moreculture and it's businesses. You can walk down all of Main Street and walk into ALL the businesses there that showcase themselves. There also sometimes are bands, zumba, games, food and other fun activities. I highly recommend going sometime. The only day Manchester is anything like Hartford. It's held from May until October.

I love coming to the Bushnell to watch amazing shows. I seen three show here so far and had great…read moreexperience for all of them. They have good parking, which is right across the street. It might take time to get out of the parking after the shows but it is manageable. I suggest to get there early to get good parking, light snacks, and some merchandise. The merch line is usually long but it is organized. All the staff is friendly and willing to help if you have questions. Seating in the theater can be a bit tight but it is not too bad. Overall I love coming here when there is show I want to see but don't feel like going to NYC to watch it.

Can't wait for the show to begin. Some of the young girls have dressed up as Belle- so cute.read more

Small event that is great for families and kids, good selection of food trucks and rides. Beer tent…read moreis always busy and everyone working is kind and helpful. Music can sometimes be very loud but what else would you expect from a music festival

"You are the apple of my eye Forever you'll stay in my…read moreheart" (Stevie Wonder) Wow, wow, wow!! Were we impressed by the Glastonbury Apple Harvest and Music Festival. The Festival grounds (located in Riverfront Park) was enormous. There was a big midway with amusement rides and games, plenty of food trucks, three stages of live music, craft and clothing vendors, a petting zoo, a pub, ice cream stands, apple pies and fritters, and even a 5k Road Race for tomorrow. We had such a fun time, just strolling the grounds, checking out all the food options. We eventually settled on a plate of Tofu Pad Thai and dumplings from Siam. We also picked up a 6-piece order of Apple Fritters and split that between three apple and three pumpkin. I also had a nice visit to the at the Pan De Oro booth and learned they make salsa and tortilla chips right in Hartford! Who knew? We parked at the high school and took a shuttle bus to the gate. Admission was $5 per person. Sure beats the crowded Southington Apple Festival in our opinion.