what to do

Don’t let the cold weather keep you from getting out and about! Take a look at these fun places to go to make the most of your winter in New England.

This page will be updated throughout the season, so check back for more activities and events!

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fridayYale’s Ingalls Rink
Open for public skating, but you need to bring your own skates (no rentals available).

Ralph Walker Skating Rink
The rink provides an opportunity for ice skating enthusiasts to develop their skills and ice skate in a safe and managed environment.

Branford Land Trust
Explore nearly 775 acres of rugged rock outcroppings, tall oaks, beeches, groves of mountain laurel, wetlands and magnificent bluffs.

Flanders Nature Center & Land Trust
Flanders Nature Center & Land Trust promotes the understanding and appreciation of nature and supports the conservation, preservation and management of natural resources.

Skiing and Snowboarding
Explore the mountains of New England for downhill and cross-country skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing and tubing. For larger mountains, visit Maine, New Hampshire, or Vermont. For easy daytrips, check out mountains in Connecticut and Massachusetts.

Take a Hike
CT Department of Environmental Protection Hiking Maps.

Peoples State Forest
Situated in Pleasant Valley, this 2,954-acre forest includes evergreen and hardwood forests with wetlands and streams that support diverse wildlife populations and plant communities. It features a 200-year-old white pine grove and a number of archeological and historic sites, including the Barkhamsted Lighthouse Site and the Indian Soapstone Quarry. Visitors can enjoy winter sports including cross-country skiing and snowmobiling.

Mohawk State Forest
Located in Cornwall in northwestern Connecticut, the 3,351-acre forest offers opportunities for snowmobiling and cross country skiing. It is located adjacent to the Mohawk Mountain Ski Area, one of the state's most popular winter sporting areas.

Dinosaur State Park
This nearby park features a geodesic dome exhibit center that encloses an exposure of rock bearing 500 actual dinosaur tracks made during the Jurassic period, 200 million years ago. Surrounding the exhibit center are more than two miles of nature trails and the Dinosaur State Park Arboretum, containing more than 250 species and cultivars of conifers, as well as katsuras, ginkgoes, magnolias and other living representatives of plant families which appeared in the Age of Dinosaurs.

White Memorial Conservation Center
Commune with nature at White Memorial Conservation Center in Litchfield. More than 35 miles of trails through varied terrains are open year round for hiking, biking, cross country skiing and horseback riding. There are also interpretive nature trails and a boardwalk trail for observing the extensive bird life found in a wetland environment.

Yale Outdoor Education Center
Located on 1,500 wooded acres, the Yale Outdoor Education Center (OEC) is nestled on the south shore of a pristine mile-long lake.

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fridayConnecticut Children’s Museum
A place where children can experience the magic and wisdom of learning at their own pace by interacting with exhibits that are full of whimsy and wisdom, in spaces built to their size and specifications.

Connecticut Landmarks
A state-wide network of twelve significant historic properties that span four centuries of New England history.

Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center
A combination wildlife sanctuary, visitor attraction and educational facility featuring all-new exhibits highlighting the habitats and wildlife of southeastern Connecticut, as well as eight miles of trails that wind through a beautiful 300-acre wooded preserve.

Fairfield Museum and History Center
13,000 square-foot museum presenting exhibition galleries, library and reading room, family education center and 80-seat theater.

Harriet Beecher Stowe Center
The Harriet Beecher Stowe Center preserves and interprets Stowe's Hartford home and the Center's historic collections, promotes vibrant discussion of her life and work, and inspires commitment to social justice and positive change.

Leffingwell House Museum
One of the finest restored examples of New England Colonial architecture and home of revolutionary patriot, merchant, and industrialist Christopher Leffingwell.

Lutz Children’s Museum
A multi-faceted museum for children to explore culture, history, and the natural sciences through internal and external exhibits, programs, and experiences.

Mark Twain House & Museum
The mission of The Mark Twain House & Museum is to foster an appreciation of the legacy of Mark Twain as one of our nation’s defining cultural figures, and to demonstrate the continuing relevance of his work, life and times.

Mashantucket Pequot Museum & Research Center
Extensive interactive exhibits depict 18,000 years of Native and natural history, while two libraries, including one for children, offer a diverse selection of materials on the histories and cultures of all Native peoples of the United States and Canada.

New England Air Museum
The Museum is situated in three large display buildings consisting of more than 75,000 square feet of exhibit space. In fair weather, the outside storage yard is available for touring as well.

New Haven Museum
Three hundred and sixty-two years of history come to life at the New Haven Museum. From the colony’s founding as a puritan village through its growth into a major industrial center and now a thriving metropolitan area, New Haven’s history is brought to life for our visitors, inspiring a rich appreciation of the City’s past, present, and future.

Submarine Force Museum
Home of the Historic USS Nautilus submarine.

The Children’s Museum
A museum dedicated to science inspiration and learning amongst children aged twelve and under.

Trash Museum
Learn about the problems of old-fashioned methods of disposal and exciting new trash solutions like source reduction, recycling, trash-to-energy and landfills.

Yale Center for British Art
The Yale Center for British Art is a public art museum and research institute for the study of British art and culture.

Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History
Learn about dinosaurs, earth's history, life and culture and much, much more!

Yale University Art Gallery
The mission of the Yale University Art Gallery is to encourage appreciation and understanding of art and its role in society through direct engagement with original works of art.

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fridayCitySeed Weekly Farmers’ Markets
 Outdoor markets in different parts of New Haven, even through the winter.

Connecticut State Capitol Tours
Learn the history of the Capitol, a National Historic Landmark.

Leitner Family Observatory and Planetarium
Weather permitting, the telescopes at the observatory will be set up for public viewing on Tuesday evenings after the planetarium show, starting around 7pm.

Mystic Aquarium
Learn to care for and protect our ocean planet through education, research and exploration.

New York Botanical Gardens
See spectacular seasonal exhibitions inside a glasshouse with a tropical rain forest and cactus-filled desert of plants that can be seen nowhere else in New York. Explore 50 diverse gardens and plant collections across 250 acres of year-round beauty throughout the National Historic Landmark landscape. Find a list of current exhibits online, including Caribbean Garden which includes photography and salsa dancing lessons.

The Maritime Aquarium
Sail the waters of Norwalk Harbor and Long Island Sound with the Aquarium’s marine science educators in hopes of spying harbor seals, gray seals and even harp seals that regularly winter here. Departure times for the approximately 2.5 hour cruises vary by low tide, find details online.

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fridayConnecticut Wine Trail
Follow the trail of the vine as it winds through some of the most picturesque towns in Connecticut.

Running Races in Connecticut
Races of all shapes and sizes.

 

 

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Have a Suggestion?

Have a suggestion for a fun winter activity? Please e-mail the details to: oiss@yale.edu

Surviving Winter

Materials from our
Winter Care Day event