Connecticut scenic Shoreline drive meander through quaint, historic towns

Oct 17, 2021

Great Fall 2021 Family Fun along the Shoreline. Scenic drive in Connecticut will take you through a postcard world of rolling hills, parks, town greens, steepled churches, and family farms. Along the Long Island Sound shoreline, you will trip across beautiful seascape and nice places for a seafood lunch or dinner.

Shoreline Route Guide: Drive from New Haven to Stonington

This Connecticut shoreline drive will take you through some of the most beautiful and iconic New England towns, along a beautiful waterfront Leaving New Haven, travel south via Route 337 to Lighthouse Point Park . Take jog along Route 142 into Branford and then out from the center of town along Route 146 toward the peninsula and views of the Thimble Islands. Plan a ferry trip around the islands during the ferry tour season.

Continue on route 146 into the picturesque Guildford Town Green. Take route 146 back to Route 1 for a drive through the pretty town of Madison Leaving Madison Center, Route 1 will take you to Route 450 to Hammonasset Beach State Park and the adjacent Hammonasset Nature Area Preserve. Return to Route 1, heading eastward for more beautiful views of shoreline and marsh meadows.

Go through Westbrook Center and enter Old Saybrook, home of The Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center and Saybrook Point Resort & Marina. Eastward bound, cross the Connecticut River and enter Old Lyme. Plan a visit to the Florence Griswold Museum, home of American Impressionism and many gorgeous gardens in season. Moving eastward from Old Lyme, the shore road is Route 156, which will take you through Rocky Neck State Park and into picturesque Niantic. Leaving Niantic, Route 156 joins Route 1, which joins I-95 to cross the Thames River, which passes between New London and Groton.

Ahead you will reach Mystic, home Mystic Seaport, Mystic Aquarium, and Olde Mistick Village, a quaint shopping village immediately off the highway. From Mystic, take Route 1 for a beautiful shore drive into Stonington and Stonington Borough, also a place to find good dining and shopping, including many, many small antique shops.