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Saturday Farmers Market in Washington Depot CT

Washington, Connecticut: The Town That Inspired Gilmore Girls [Itinerary]

December 31, 2019 By Elizabeth Larkin Leave a Comment

Some days, you just gotta get in your car and drive to a new town and see the sights. Washington, Connecticut is a really good town to drive to. It’s got a rustic-chic vibe with its mix of locals and weekenders from New York City. There are rolling hills, sprawling farms, and very nice restaurants to eat and drink in.

Washington Connecticut Day Trip

Bryan Memorial Town Hall in Washington CT

You can park your car at the Hickory Stick bookshop and spend an hour or two wandering it’s little “downtown” area. There’s the bookshop, Marty’s Cafe for coffee, some clothing stores and on Saturdays in the spring, summer and fall, a small farmers market.

Washington is famously the setting for the TV show show “Gilmore Girls” and while it doesn’t exactly resemble Stars Hollow, it does have all the trappings of small town life: lots of community activities, a folksy vibe, and tons to do (see my list below). As I say in my Gilmore Girls Guide to Connecticut (coming soon!), Washington is way more rural and outdoorsy than Stars Hollow.

Saturday Farmers Market in Washington Depot CT

The point of traveling to a town like Washington is to just be there, to soak up the small-town atmosphere.

Park at the Byran Memorial Town Hall. There’s a farmers market on Saturday mornings in the spring, summer and fall where you can stock up on local produce. Then hit Marty’s Cafe for a coffee before browsing the Hickory Stick Bookshop. There are other small retailers to dip into as well.

The day I visited I spent about an hour checking out the scene in town before wandering down route 47 towards the intersections of Kirby Road, Whykeham Road, and Parsanoge Lane.

There’ll you’ll find another little town center but this one looks like time forgot it. The buildings are still well kept and blindingly white, but there’s one lonely store and what looks to be an old town square.

I parked my car on a side street ear the intersection, grabbed my camera and roamed the area. There you’ll find the The First Congregational Church, the Gunn Memorial Library and the Gunn Historical Museum.  I didn’t see many people, but there was a fairly regular flow of vintage cars out for a weekend drive.

From there I continued North on Route 47 (enter Hopkins Vineyard into your GPS or Google Maps app) and enjoyed some of the most beautiful scenery Connecticut has to offer: rolling hills, gentleman’s farms and finally, a view of Lake Waramaug on the approach to Warren and the winery.

This would be a beautiful day trip year-round.

PLACES TO VISIT IN WASHINGTON, CONNECTICUT:

Averill Hill Farm
250 Calhoun St.
Washington, CT 06794

For apple picking, pumpkin picking, pizza, apple cider and apple cider doughnuts.

Hollister House Garden
300 Nettleton Hollow Rd
Washington, CT 06793

The Institute For American Indian Studies
Curtis Rd
Washington, CT 06793

Mayflower Spa
118 Woodbury Rd (Route 47)
Washington, CT 06793

I am DYING to try this place. I plan to organize a day trip there with my girlfriends this winter

Gunn Historical Museum
5 Wykeham Rd
Washington, CT 06793

Hidden Valley Preserve
198 Bee Brook Rd
Washington Depot, CT 06794

PLACES TO EAT IN WASHINGTON, CONNECTICUT

The White Horse Country Pub
258 New Milford Turnpike
New Preston, CT 06777

British Pub Food in the Litchfield Hills.

GW Tavern
20 Bee Brook Rd
Washington Depot, CT 06794

The Pantry
5 Titus Rd
Washington Depot, CT 06794

Norimaki
4 Green Hill Rd
Washington, CT 06793

A local Favorite.

Marty’s Cafe
4 Green Hill Rd #1
Washington Depot, CT 06793

The Washington Pizza House
13 River Rd
Washington Depot, CT 06794

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5 Tips for Less Annoying Group Travel

July 14, 2015 by Elizabeth Larkin Leave a Comment

One night over a glasses (or three) of wine in a Brooklyn bar with my friend Amanda, I had a light bulb moment. This was one that would shape the way I interacted with people for the rest of my life, specifically the way I organize group travel with friends and family.  Although at the time it seemed super benign.

Amanda was telling me about the year she spent traveling around Europe after she graduated from Vassar and her experiences staying in hostels. I had not been to Europe yet, so I was on the edge of my seat listening to what it was like to stay in a hostel. She described how everyone met in the hotel’s common room and decided to go to dinner. I think this was in Prague, but the location doesn’t really matter.

Then she said:

“It’s so funny because after dinner we were all standing around talking about what we should do next. Aren’t you glad to know that happens all over the world and not just with your own friends?”

I was, because standing around after dinner on a street corner in New York City (I was living in Brooklyn at the time) wondering where to go next, was something that happened to me on an almost weekly basis, and I hated it.

I think everyone hates this:

Person A: “Where do you want to go next?”

Person B: “I don’t know. Where do you want to go?”

Person C: “I’m up for whatever.”

This is so annoying—for everyone involved—and especially if you’re someone who, like me, has tons of places to visit/eat/drink bookmarked on their computer but can’t think of them in the moment.

To combat this, I started doing research before I met friends and brought names and addresses of places I was dying to try – bars, restaurants, museums, stores – anyplace that I was interested in at the time, and I now apply this technique (it’s kind of why I started this blog) to traveling with my family and friends.

Along the way I’ve come up with other tips to make it easier for adults to travel together.

1. Have a basic plan.

Half the time I don’t even end up doing these things I have in mind for a day trip. I’ll stumble upon something else to do when we see a sign on the road or someone recommends a good place to eat or get a drink. I tend to gravitate towards what the locals recommend, but having a rudimentary plan in mind, with addresses, is a great jumping off point for travel.

People also tend to overlook logistics like parking and public transportation. If you’re heading to a museum in a large city, look up places to park ahead of time. If you’re taking the train or bus, how far is the walk from the train or bus to the museum? Think ahead about logistics. You can leave home without this information if you’re traveling alone or as a couple, but it’s really annoying if you’re traveling with a group.

Having general ideas and addresses in hand, and a plan to deal with travel logistics ahead of time will make group the trip or outing run more smoothly.

2. Meet at your destination (or on the way).

If possible, meet at the destination. Unless you’re still in your early twenties, I don’t advise large groups of adults trying to carpool together. You know ahead of time that someone’s going to be late, someone’s going to get lost, and someone else will not be able to find parking. If you agree ahead to meet at your destination, that very late person or persons may hold up another 2 or 3 people but not the whole group.

If it’s long distance, agree to carpool in smaller groups. For instance if it’s a trip out of state to go hiking, plan to meet at a rest stop with bathrooms and a place to buy water, or a parking lot of a Target so people can run in and grab odd and ends while waiting for everyone else to show.

3. Have a freaking opinion.

People often think they’re being accommodating if they say they “don’t care what we do.” This is wrong. I once read (years ago, so unfortunately, I can’t find the link) that saying, “I don’t care, I’ll do whatever” is not doing anyone any favors, and is actually making it harder for your travel companions. Here’s why:

  • Unless someone is a real jerk, you’re making their decision more difficult because they’re going to try taking into account what you want to do by guessing.
  • You’re kind of being a princess. If you are refusing to give an opinion, you’re not just leaving decisions up to other people, you’re giving them extra work too. They now have to research options, look up addresses and plan timing.

If you’re dealing with an I-Don’t-Care person or group, coming in armed with some ideas (see # 1) actually makes it easier for others to chime in as well. I find that “I don’t care” begets more, “I don’t care.”

If you’re the I-Don’t-Care-er: Start suggesting some things!

4. But don’t be a control freak.

The flip side of the non-chooser is the crazy control freak who wants to do all the choosing—or even worse—the person who stubbornly goes along with someone else’s plan and then pouts the whole time.  Even though these are your friends, you’re not going to 100% agree on what you want to do all the time, and that’s a good thing, because it will expose everyone to new restaurants/venues/attractions they would have never done.

If you’re the control freak: Be more flexible! If you can’t manage some good-natured enthusiasm for someone else’s travel tastes, you won’t have any travel companions much longer.

If you’re dealing with a control freak—or worse, the pouter—strike a deal to switch off and on choosing. If they are serial control freak, find someone else to travel with, pronto.

5. Trade planning responsibilities.

Try trading off planning and driving responsibilities with your friends.

Example: Last year I met up with my friends Michelle and Nancy, and their families, at a winery in Rhode Island. This was long-distance for all of us since Michelle was traveling from Boston, Nancy from Norwalk, and me from Hartford. Michelle researched a good place for us to meet where we could bring babies and dogs, I called the winery to find out where they recommend eating or grabbing take out nearby, and then Nancy stopped on her way and picked up snacks at the recommended take out place.

It worked perfectly and no one felt like they were doing “everything!”

You choose one day trip, your friends choose the next, or divide up responsibilities like in the example above.

Photo/Sébastien Marchand0

Filed Under: Life, Travel Tagged With: good for groups, how to, travel tips

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Connecticut Day Trips is a blog about travel and life in Connecticut, written and photographed by a native who moved away, moved back, and learned to love it: About/Contact

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Washington, Connecticut: The Town That Inspired Gilmore Girls [Itinerary]

Some days, you just gotta get in your car and drive to a new town and see the sights. Washington, Connecticut is a really good town to drive to. It’s got a rustic-chic vibe with its mix of locals and weekenders from New York City. There are rolling hills, sprawling farms, and very nice restaurants […]

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