Connecticut

I skip the Hamptons and head to a coastal town in Connecticut instead. It's less crowded and wonderful year-round.

Published

1 year ago

November 2, 2024

Press Room

I skip the Hamptons and head to a coastal town in Connecticut instead. It's less crowded and wonderful year-round.

For years, I spent countless hours stuck in traffic driving to the Hamptons from my home in NYC.
I got fed up and started spending weekends in Madison, a coastal Connecticut town.
Madison’s beautiful beaches and cute downtown offer lots to do without the crowds.

I vacationed in the Hamptons for decades but eventually got a bit tired of it.

I can’t count how much time I’ve spent sitting in traffic on the Montauk Highway, searching for parking spots at the beach, and waiting for tables at trendy restaurants.

Fortunately, “destination dupes” are all the rage right now with many turning to TikTok to find less-crowded, cheaper, and more under-the-radar alternatives to their dream vacation spots.

So, I found my own “dupe” of the Hamptons about 100 miles away in New England: Madison, Connecticut.

The town defines coastal calm, with just about everything the Hamptons has minus the crowds. It’s still upscale but less expensive — and my drive from New York City to Madison isn’t so bad.

Here’s why I love Madison so much.

The beautiful beaches get me every time

I haven’t encountered many crowds at Hammonasset Beach.

Allison Tibaldi

The local beaches attract me like a magnet. Fortunately, Madison has about a dozen.

My favorite is Hammonasset Beach State Park, with about 2 miles of Long Island Sound shoreline and trails that I can bike on. It’s felt clean and uncrowded each time I’ve visited.

I love enjoying the views.

Allison Tibaldi

I stay at a bed-and-breakfast that blends cozy with chic

There are several bed-and-breakfasts in Madison, plus a beachfront Hilton hotel.

I usually stay at The Homestead, an upscale B&B that hits the right balance between charming and modern. Its dozen or so rooms are individually decorated with high-end furnishings and posh perks like Japanese toilets, showerheads infused with vitamins, and record players with an eclectic selection of vinyl.

Each guest has access to complimentary bikes, towels, and beach chairs to borrow. Plus, its gardens and decks with firepits make it easy for me to spend time outdoors.

I also love its gourmet snacks and elegant breakfast buffet with things like quiche, cake, fresh fruit, and yogurt.

There’s plenty of retail therapy and artwork to be found in town

RJ Julia Booksellers is beautiful inside and out.

Allison Tibaldi

Madison’s downtown is low-key, laidback, and walkable, with excellent New England vibes.

I can get lost for hours at RJ Julia Booksellers, which I consider one of the best independent bookstores in the entire country.

I always stop at Savvy Tea Gourmet, which sells a variety of unique teas and has in-store tastings. When I’m not sure which tea leaves to buy, the owner steers me in the right direction.

The town also has a cluster of cute clothing boutiques. My favorite is The Dressing Room, where the staff is friendly and the sales are legit.

Madison has some great art and sculptures.

Allison Tibaldi

Along the way, I take in some of the local art. Madison has plenty thanks to the Sculpture Mile, a free outdoor public art installation of museum-quality sculptures scattered around town.

Madison Cinemas is perfect for rainy days

When it’s cold or rainy, you’ll find me at Madison Cinemas watching arthouse and international films.

The century-old theater has freshly-popped popcorn topped with real butter and local beer and wine.

There’s often something happening on the town green

Madison’s historic town green is its leafy centerpiece. I like to stroll the peaceful paths and listen to live music during the free concerts on Sunday evenings in the summer.

It hosts a great farmers market every Friday afternoon from May until Thanksgiving and the town often has seasonal festivals.

The culinary scene is great, too

Madison has restaurants, shops, and more.

Allison Tibaldi

Madison has a few eateries I try to stop at each time I visit.

French bistro Bar Bouchée transports me right to Europe with its ambiance and traditional Gallic fare. I can also never resist ordering the profiteroles drenched in warm chocolate sauce.

I book a table at The Wharf when I want to eat fresh seafood with a view of the water. My go-to order is the warm lobster roll served with a mountain of crisp shoestring fries.

When I crave pasta like my Nonna used to make, I head to Café Allegre. The Italian eatery serves classics like spaghetti with fresh clams and robust rigatoni with meatballs and sausage.

Madison is also lovely in the fall and winter

In the fall, the area’s numerous farms and farm stands overflow with fresh produce and pretty flowers. My favorite is Bishop’s Orchard in neighboring Guilford, where I go apple-picking each autumn.

The beaches are fun to visit throughout the year, too. The water usually stays warm well into October, so I can have a dip surrounded by fall foliage.

I even go in winter for chilly seaside strolls and snowshoeing on the maze of wooden boardwalks.

Source link

Click to comment

Connecticut

State police investigating suspicious incident in Burlington

Published

3 hours ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

State police investigating suspicious incident in Burlington

BURLINGTON, Conn. (WFSB) – Connecticut State Police are investigating a suspicious incident at a residence on Case Road in Burlington.

Multiple state troopers and police vehicles were seen at the home conducting an investigation. A viewer reported seeing nine police cars and numerous troopers at the scene.

State police said there is no threat to the public at this time. The investigation is ongoing.

No additional details about the nature of the suspicious incident have been released.

Source link

Connecticut

Ecuadorian national with manslaughter conviction sentenced for illegally reentering United States through Connecticut

Published

15 hours ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

Ecuadorian national with manslaughter conviction sentenced for illegally reentering United States through Connecticut

NEW HAVEN, CT. (WFSB) – An Ecuadorian national with a manslaughter conviction was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison for illegally reentering the United States through Connecticut after being deported.

40-year-old Darwin Francisco Quituizaca-Duchitanga was sentenced and had used the aliases Darwin Duchitanga-Quituizaca and Juan Mendez-Gutierrez.

U.S. Border Patrol first encountered Quituizaca in December 2003, when he used the alias Juan Mendez-Gutierrez and claimed to be a Mexican citizen. He was issued a voluntary return to Mexico.

Connecticut State Police arrested him in March 2018 on charges related to a fatal crash on I-91 in North Haven in March 2017. He was using the alias Darwin Duchitanga-Quituizaca at the time.

ICE arrested him on an administrative warrant in Meriden in August 2018 while he was awaiting trial in his state case. An immigration judge ordered his removal to Ecuador in September 2018, but he was transferred to state custody to face pending charges.

Quituizaca was convicted of second-degree manslaughter in January 2019 and sentenced to 30 months in prison.

After his release, ICE arrested him again on an administrative warrant in Meriden in August 2023. He was removed to Ecuador the next month.

ICE arrested Quituizaca again on a warrant in Meriden on June 28th, 2025, after he illegally reentered the United States. He pleaded guilty to unlawful reentry on July 30th.

He has been detained since his arrest. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated the case.

The case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative by the Department of Justice to combat illegal immigration and transnational criminal organizations.

Source link

Connecticut

Justice Department sues Connecticut and Arizona as part of effort to get voter data from the states

Published

1 day ago

January 7, 2026

Press Room

Justice Department sues Connecticut and Arizona as part of effort to get voter data from the states

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Officials in Connecticut and Arizona are defending their decision to refuse a request by the U.S. Justice Department for detailed voter information, after their states became the latest to face federal lawsuits over the issue.

“Pound sand,” Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes posted on X, saying the release of the voter records would violate state and federal law.

The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division announced this week it was suing Connecticut and Arizona for failing to comply with its requests, bringing to 23 the number of states the department has sued to obtain the data. It also has filed suit against the District of Columbia.

Attorney General Pam Bondi said the department will “continue filing lawsuits to protect American elections,” saying accurate voter rolls are the ”foundation of election integrity.”

Secretaries of state and state attorneys general who have pushed back against the effort say it violates federal privacy law, which protects the sharing of individual data with the government, and would run afoul of their own state laws that restrict what voter information can be released publicly. Some of the data the Justice Department is seeking includes names, dates of birth, residential addresses, driver’s license numbers and partial Social Security numbers.

Other requests included basic questions about the procedures states use to comply with federal voting laws, while some have been more state-specific. They have referenced perceived inconsistencies from a survey from the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.

Most of the lawsuits target states led by Democrats, who have said they have been unable to get a firm answer about why the Justice Department wants the information and how it plans to use it. Last fall, 10 Democratic secretaries of state sent a letter to the Justice Department and the Department of Homeland Security expressing concern after DHS said it had received voter data and would enter it into a federal program used to verify citizenship status.

Connecticut Attorney General William Tong, a Democrat, said his state had tried to “work cooperatively” with the Justice Department to understand the basis for its request for voters’ personal information.

“Rather than communicating productively with us, they rushed to sue,” Tong said Tuesday, after the lawsuit was filed.

Connecticut, he said, “takes its obligations under federal laws very seriously.” He pledged to “vigorously defend the state against this meritless and deeply disappointing lawsuit.”

Two Republican state senators in Connecticut said they welcomed the federal lawsuit. They said a recent absentee ballot scandal in the state’s largest city, Bridgeport, had made the state a “national punchline.”

Source link