New Haven, CT Road Trips

With a population density of 6,000 people per km2, downtown New Haven has a particularly residential character. As a result, numerous shops, cafes and top-rated restaurants have proliferated. Ethnic restaurants include Ethiopian, Vietnamese, Eritrean, Chinese, Japanese, Spanish, French, Mexican, Thai, Indian and Malaysian cuisines, among many others. According to the Hartford Courant, New Haven has more pedestrian activity than any place between New York City and Boston, and also has a burgeoning nightlife scene. The area is a center for bicycling and hiking, with nearby East Rock Park, West Rock State Park, and Sleeping Giant State Park. Together, they provide many miles of hiking trails and summits with expansive views over hundreds of square miles. Bicyclists enjoy cruising along the beautiful shoreline, or along the Farmington Canal Trail, a former canal and railroad that has been converted for recreational use.

Yale University has several sights of interest: 1 Yale University Visitor's Center, 149 Elm St (Visitor Center), ☏ +1 203-432-2300. Visitor Centerː M-F 9AM-4ː30PM, Sa Su 11AM-4PM. Guided toursː M-F 10ː30AM ̩& 2PM, Sa Su 1ː30PM. 2 Peabody Museum of Natural History at Yale University (Whitney Avenue and Sachem Street, Science Hill section of the Yale campus), ☏ +1 203-432-8967, [email protected]. M-Sa 10AM-5PM, Su noon-5PM. Free. 3 Yale University Art Gallery, ☏ +1 203-432-0600, [email protected]. Chapel at High St. Tu-Sa 10AM-5PM, Th until 8PM from Sep-Jun, Su 1-6PM. Free. 4 Sterling Memorial Library at Yale University, 120 High St, ☏ +1 203-432-1775. Includes the Yale Babylonian Collection donated by JP Morgan in 1910, and many other world-renowned artifacts and collections. (updated May 2019) 5 Yale Center for British Art, 1080 Chapel Street, ☏ +1 203-432-2800. Tu-Sa 10AM-5PM; Su noon-5PM. Free. 6 Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library, 121 Wall St, ☏ +1 203-432-2977, [email protected]. M 10AM-7PM, Tu-Th 9AM-7PM, F 9AM-5PM, Sa noon-5PM, Su noon-4PM. Closes for holidays and special events, check website or call. The Beinecke holds Yale's rare books and manuscripts. The building is impressive from outside, but particularly beautiful inside due to the glow that the translucent veined marble walls have on a sunny day. Rotating exhibits and a Gutenberg Bible are always on display. Free. (updated Dec 2019) 7 Yale Collection of Musical Instruments, 15 Hillhouse Ave, ☏ +1 203-432-0822, [email protected].

Free community bike rides leave various bookstores and cafes each day; check with the Devil's Gear Bike Shop to rent cycles or find out about community rides. Local beaches are also a short bike ride or drive from the city center, and provide additional recreational opportunities. Dine at one of Wooster Street's popular Italian restaurants. New Haven is famous for its old-world style pizza. Visit the Crypt, an ancient graveyard under the Center Church on the Green. It is open April-October, Th & Sa 11AM-1PM. St. Patrick's Day Parade, one of the oldest in the United States. Visit summit of East Rock Park and West Rock Park where you can see the Three Judges Cave and hike along miles of trails. Tour Yale University. See an avant-garde jazz concert at Firehouse12, a firehouse converted into a modern bar and cutting-edge concert venue and recording studio. See a show at the famous Toad's Place, a must for any music lover. Bicycle along Farmington Canal, or shoreline bike routes. 1 Long Wharf Theatre, 222 Sargent Dr, ☏ +1 203-787-4284. Not only are some of the best plays in the North East performed right on this stage, the theater also gives back to the community by hosting classes and sessions for those interested in theater and want to get involved in the performing arts. 2 Shubert Theatre, 247 College St, ☏ +1 203-562-5666. Box officeː M-F 9ː30AM-5ː30PM, Sa 10AM-2PM and prior to all performances. (updated Feb 2020)

New Haven has many famous pizza parlors and is often credited with having introduced pizza to the United States, although New Havenites themselves often contend that New Haven-style apizza (pronounced uh-BEETZ) is a separate food from pizza altogether. The pizza has a thin, bitter crust, offset by high quality ingredients, making for one of the world's best pizza experiences. The most famous pizza locations are Pepe's and Sally's, which are over 80 years old and usually have lines going around the block. Modern Apizza—a more recent arrival (1934), further from the city center—has nonetheless usurped these establishments as the local favorite. For a real New England New Haven experience, order the white clam bake pizza—the simple toppings of garlic, olive oil, and New England clams against the backdrop of the bitter, oven-scorched crust make for a delight to the senses. While it is a bit sacrilegious to pass through New Haven without trying the pizza, the small city has an astonishing wealth of fine dining establishments—easily rivaling the dining scene of any of New York's outer boroughs. The blocks just south of Yale University along Chapel, Crown, and George Streets are home to the majority of the city's best restaurants. Often-cited top restaurants in town include the Union League Cafe, Ibiza, Heirloom, and Zinc, but there are fantastic options around every corner in this part of town to try. Wooster Square 1 Sally's Apizza, 237 Wooster St, ☏ +1 203-624-5271. 5-10:30PM (closed Mondays, closes at 10PM on Sundays).

Crown and Chapel Streets run through downtown New Haven and are packed with hundreds of restaurants, cafés, wine bars, lounges and the like. New Haven is the primary entertainment destination for the 800,000 people who live in the immediate area. When driving, watch pedestrians since the crowds can be thick, especially on weekends. Archie Moore's, 188 Willow Street, ☏ +1 203-773-9870. Bar and the Brü Rm, 254 Crown Street, ☏ +1 203-495-1111. The Playwright, 1232 Whitney Ave, Hamden, ☏ +1 203-287-2401. 1 Toad's Place, 300 York St, ☏ +1 203 562-5589, [email protected]. Prime 16, 172 Temple Street, ☏ +1 203-782-1616. 16 taps of craft beer, accompanied by imaginative burgers Willoughby's, Church & Grove; York & Chapel. Locally roasted coffee. The to-go tumblers are reusable and a great deal.

Clarion Hotel & Suites, 2260 Whitney Ave, ☏ +1 203-288-3831, fax: +1 203 281-6032. Courtyard New Haven at Yale, 30 Whalley Ave, ☏ +1 203 777-6221, fax: +1 203 772-1089. Omni New Haven Hotel at Yale, 155 Temple Street, ☏ +1 203-772-6664. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: noon. Downtown luxury hotel with John Davenport’s restaurant on 19th floor; sample expensive wines at Bar 19, the Omni's own wine bar. Fitness and business centres, concierge, Wi-Fi. Baymont Inn & Suites, 3 Business Park Dr, Branford (I-95 Exit 56 N/S), ☏ +1 203-488-4991. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: noon. from $79. 1 The Study at Yale, 1157 Chapel St, ☏ +1 203-503-3900, toll-free: +1 866-930-1157, [email protected]. The Blake Hotel (The Blake), 9 High St., ☏ +1 203-390-5352. (updated Jan 2019) Hotel Marcel, 500 Sargent Dr., boutique hotel in renovated former office building.

New Haven sits at the junction of Interstates 91 and 95. Be careful to lock your doors, as the crime rate in New Haven has been known to elicit broken windows. Do not leave your GPS unit or its accessories (such as mounting units, suction cups, or suction cup marks on the window) in plain sight. Belongings are typically not taken in these incidents. 1 Tweed New Haven Regional Airport (HVN IATA), 155 Burr Street, ☏ +1 203 466-8833. Avelo Airlines and Breeze Airways are the only commercial airlines that fly into Tweed. As of April 2025, flights are available from Atlanta, Charleston (SC), Charlotte/Concord, Dallas/Fort Worth, Daytona Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Houston-Hobby, Jacksonville (FL), Lakeland, Orlando, Myrtle Beach, Nashville, Norfolk, Orlando, Raleigh/Durham, Richmond, San Juan (PR), Sarasota, Tampa, Vero Beach, West Palm Beach, Wilmington (NC), Washington-Dulles, and seasonally from Baltimore, Chicago-O'Hare, Destin/Fort Walton Beach, Detroit, Greenville/Spartanburg, Knoxville, New Orleans, Portland (ME), Savannah, and Traverse City. Additional airports for flights with additional airlines: Boston Logan International Airport (BOS IATA) As the major airport for the New England area, Logan provides frequent non-stop service from most major cities in the United States and almost all major European airports.

Downtown New Haven is compact enough to be traversed by foot. The city is also served by an efficient public bus system. CT Transit New Haven, ☏ +1 203-624-0151. Bus stops are marked with signs or a white stripe around utility poles in some cases. Buses all have bike racks. Other transportation options include: A&S Taxi, ☏ +1 203-361-6198. M7 Ride, ☏ +1 203-777-7777. Devil's Gear Bike Shop, 151 Orange St, ☏ +1 203-773-9288. Provides low-cost daily or weekly bicycle rentals.

As with New York City, New Haven's crime rate has gone down considerably since the early 1990s, and it is now considered to be a safe city, at least in the downtown area. Today, there is very little risk involved with traveling to New Haven's tourist attractions as streets bustle with crowds generated by hundreds of restaurants, cinemas, theaters, cafes and stores. Luxury apartments and million-dollar condominiums have proliferated, adding a large population base to formerly industrial or commercial zones. In such areas, the downtown area is generally safe at night, but like other cities, late night travel through certain city neighborhoods outside the downtown, without someone who knows the area, is not recommended. When visiting, exercise the same precautions you would use in any large city. It is not recommended to venture outside the Metro North stop at Union Station at night. Taxis wait near the doorway, and it would be wise to take advantage of them if you must arrive in New Haven during the evening. The surrounding area is poorly lit and has seen a variety of violent and non-violent crime.