1. Centennial Inn
City: Farmington, CT
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (860) 677-4647
Address: 5 Spring Ln.
Description: This hybrid hotel and year-round living center with apartment homes on 12 beautiful acres has an outdoor pool, fitness center, and more. There are 56 hotel rooms and 56 studio or one-bedroom apartments, with voice mail, high-speed Internet access, business center, car rental from the lobby, complimentary breakfast, daily newspapers, laundry, barbecue grills, grocery shopping service, snack shop, and more. Moreover, they are pet friendly, for an extra $20 a day (less if you’re doing a long stay). The Centennial Inn is located between the Hillstead Museum, Lake Compounce, and the best hiking in the county. Stay here for a few nights or for a month, and enjoy the best of Connecticut.
2. University Of Connecticut Health Center And John Dempsey Hospital
City: Farmington, CT
Category: Health Care
Telephone: (860) 679-2000
Address: 263 Farmington Ave.
Description: John Dempsey Hospital is the teaching hospital for the University of Connecticut. With 224 beds, the hospital provides inpatient and outpatient services for the greater Hartford area, and it has the only full-service emergency department in the region. In particular, the hospital is noted for maternal fetal medicine, cardiology, orthopedics, and cancer-care programs. In addition to the hospital, the University of Connecticut Health Care Center includes the UConn Schools of Medicine and Dental Medicine, the UConn Medical Group, Health Partners, and University Dentists. The center’s Farmington location expands the economic and social impact of UConn’s main Storrs campus. The Health Center employs over 5,000 people, making it the 16th largest employer in the state, and half of the university’s budget, half of its employees, and half of its research is devoted to the center.
3. Prestige Properties, Llc
City: Farmington, CT
Category: Relocation
Telephone: (860) 677-9000
Address: 06032
Description: Often called the “Gateway to the Quiet Corner,” Tolland County is a peaceful mix of residential and rural space. The 13 towns that make up the county together have a population of about 153,000 people spread out over 410 square miles, so there are about 372 people per square mile. Technically included as part of the Hartford Metropolitan Area and bordering Massachusetts, the county may seem tucked away and offers much respite for those looking for natural beauty and space. Seventy percent of households are made up of families, and 21 percent of the population is under 21. More than 50 percent of the population is between ages 25 and 64. Sixty-two percent of those living in Tolland County were born in the state, and 83 percent have been living there for more than a year. The rate of home ownership is about 76 percent, and the median value for a house is $257,600. Twenty-four percent of home owners rent their properties. The average monthly cost for a mortgage is $1,863, and the average rent is $924. Property taxes average $4,400, and that amounts to 4.8 percent of income. Median income for the county’s residents is $78,471, above the state’s average. The main industries fall under the categories of educational services, health care, and social assistance. Among the biggest employers are correctional facilities, hospitals, and the University of Connecticut, which employs about 8,700 people. Other employment opportunities come from retail trade, manufacturing, and agriculture. There are 355 farms in the county working over 36,000 acres.
4. Ann Howard’S Apricots
City: Farmington, CT
Category: Restaurants
Telephone: (860) 673-5405
Address: 1593 Farmington Ave.
Description: Apricots mixes seasonal country cuisine with nouvelle French-American techniques for a wonderful result. Downstairs a pub serves a lower-priced menu in a more boisterous atmosphere. Upstairs the linen tablecloths are spread with finery, and the food that comes out of the kitchen is some of the best in the state. The menu changes, because Ann Howard and the chefs are always searching for the next flavor. But the apricot dessert sampler is a staple here, with gelato and truffles made with this underused flavor. Sit in one of the rambling rooms overlooking the river in summer, and watch fly fishermen and barn swallows catching their own treats. At night the river is floodlit, and the experience is even better.
5. Grist Mill Restaurant
City: Farmington, CT
Category: Restaurants
Telephone: (860) 676-8855
Address: 44 Mill Ln.
Description: The Grist Mill is, appropriately, located in an antique mill dating back to the 1640s, what was certainly Farmington’s first gristmill, and was used all the way up until 1963. Today it houses this beautiful restaurant on the river, where every table has a view. If you like seafood, get the Dover sole in amandine sauce, boned tableside, or the “Carpetbagger” lobster. If beef is your thing, they have mouthwatering steaks, or their specialty, calves’ liver. There are classic Italian, French, and American dishes on the menu, which doesn’t take huge risks, but does the things you love just right. For a lighter, more casual experience, you can eat in the tavern area of the Grist Mill, too.
6. Hillstead Museum
City: Farmington, CT
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (860) 677-4787
Address: 35 Mountain Rd.
Insider Pick:
Description: This is one of the most beautiful attractions in the state, a rambling 1901 house with one of the best personal collections of art in the country. It was originally home to Alfred Atmore Pope, an iron baron from Cleveland who was persuaded by his daughter to move here (she attended Miss Porter’s school down the road). The house was designed by architect Stanford White and the daughter, Theodate, who became the first licensed female architect in the US. The Popes assembled an eclectic collection of art, furniture, porcelain, and sculpture. But the Impressionist paintings on the walls, including three Monets, are what draw most people. The gardens (including the famous Sunken Garden) are a wonderful place to ramble as well, and the trails teem with birdlife, extending up to the blue-blazed Metacomet Trail, now part of the New England National Scenic Trail. Sit on the porch of the Hillstead before you leave, and meditate on the beauty that wealth can bring and wish that everyone left a legacy for the public like Theodate Pope did.
7. Sunken Garden Poetry Festival
City: Farmington, CT
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (860) 677-4787
Address: 35 Mountain Rd.
Description: One of the country’s premier poetry venues, the Sunken Garden Poetry Festival takes place Wed evenings every summer on the grounds of the Hillstead Museum in Farmington. Since 1992 the gardens have drawn nationally acclaimed poets and upwards of 5,000 visitors annually. Lawn chairs and picnic blankets spread out in front of the majestic pillars of Hillstead’s white mansion, and the sunken gardens’ topiary bushes and manicured hedges frame the gazebo where the artists perform. The festival sponsors competitions for adults and high school student writers. Winners are featured along with top poets. In past years readers have included Billy Collins, Maxine Kumin, Yusef Komunyakaa, Mark Doty, and Connecticut poet laureate Dick Allen. Musicians and bands like Ol’ Skool, an 11-piece horn ensemble, begin the evening’s affair. The event is free, though parking fees apply. Doors open at 4:30 p.m. Pack a picnic dinner, get there early, enjoy the summer green of the gardens, and appreciate poetry as twilight descends.
8. Winding Trails
City: Farmington, CT
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (860) 674-4227, ext. 25
Address: 50 Winding Trails Dr.
Description: This is a hidden gem for cross-country skiing and bicycling. An extensive 12-mile network of trails began as a cross-country center, and now has opened up to mountain bikers in the summer. The trails are tightly interconnected, with turnarounds and small connecting paths, which have the effect of making the network seem endless. It can get confusing, though, so make sure to bring a trail map along. There is a small fee to use it for mountain biking, but Winding Trails is worth it. They run the Fat Tire Classic here every spring for those of you who are more than enthusiasts. If you’re coming here in the winter for cross-country skiing, be sure to call ahead to confirm the condition of the trails.