Explore an affordable, multicultural and highly walkable New England city steeped in Americana this summer on a day trip by ferry to New London, Connecticut.

“We have a very walkable downtown and plenty of free parking,” says Elizabeth Nocera, New London’s economic development coordinator. The 6-square-mile community founded in 1646 boasts a “strong arts and culture center” with attractions, dining and entertainment located steps from the ferry dock, Nocera says.

Dine out on ethnic foods or sip local microbrews on a deck or patio overlooking the water. Bike to the boardwalk at a fun-filled public beach, mark the nation’s 250th anniversary at the site of a pivotal Revolutionary War battle, or honor Black history where the slave ship Amistad put ashore. Find affordability on a free or low-cost boat or walking tour in a city rated a “Walker’s Paradise” by walkscore.com.

Here are things to do on a trip across Long Island Sound to the southeastern Connecticut shore.

Getting There

The Cross Sound Ferry offers daily service to New London from Orient Point (41270 Main Rd., Orient, 631-323-2525, longislandferry.com).

• Fares begin at $70 for car and driver, one way
• Passengers: adult: $21-$23 one way, $37 same-day round trip; child: $7.50 under 12 one way, $13 same-day round trip; bicycle additional $12.)

What’s new in New London

New businesses offer dining and drinking on downtown Bank and State streets, which were recently designated as Connecticut’s third cultural district. Water Street Waffle Co., which opened in November, serves waffle creations, craft coffee and cocktails (133 Bank St., 959-716-4023, waterstreetwafflecompanynl.com). Next door, the Tox Brewing Company tap room (123 Bank St., 860-440-8127, toxbrewing.com) serves 11 different pizzas and 15 light to dark beers brewed on-site ($7-$9). A 50-seat patio blooms with flowering plants, says Tox co-founder Dayne Laskey. A new “Taste of the Caribbean” menu boasts empanadas and pernil roasted pork at Mambo Bar & Dominican Restaurant (200 Bank St., 860-847-7685, mambobarrestaurantct.com). Social Bar & Kitchen offers 50 craft brews and a drag show competition/brunch (208 Bank St., 860-442-6900, socialnewlondon.com).

New London also is home to socially responsible shops like women-owned Flavours of Life (86 Bank St., 860-444-9428, flavoursoflife.com), where “fairly traded goods from around the world” include jewelry, décor and stationery, and toys, books and clothing in a children’s section. “We have over 50 countries represented in the shop, as well as local artists,” says proprietor LaKisha Moon Lee. Shop for herbs, tea and books, decorate your own terrarium or chill out at a free open mic night at The Golden Owl independent book shop (19 Golden St., 860-924-2695, goldenowl.shop).

If affordability is your mantra …

1. New London joins thousands of cities around the world celebrating Make Music Day on June 21, when “music pops up all over the downtown” with up to 10 local venues hosting free live entertainment, Nocera says (makemusicday.org).
2. Also free is a self-guided walking tour of the Black Heritage Trail, which opened in 2021 recognizing “three centuries of Black strength, resilience and accomplishment,” the city’s website says. Fifteen downtown sites include the location where the Amistad landed after the 1839 rebellion by African captives, and the 1678 Joshua Hempstead House, which documents the life of an enslaved man of African descent (11 Hempstead St., house tours May through October, visitnewlondon.org/black-heritage-trail; $16, $5 ages 6 to 18).
3. The Amistad and its cargo were auctioned off at the current site of the Custom House Maritime Museum, where a permanent exhibit tells the story of the Africans’ fight for freedom. The museum also offers tours inside three of its lighthouses, open mic nights and maritime history talks (150 Bank St., 860-447-2501, nlmaritimesociety.org; $10, $6 under 17).
4. In the 19th century, New London was one of the East Coast’s busiest whaling ports, a past that inspired the leviathan-sized “Great Sperm Whales” mural at 124 Captains Walk. The free, self-guided Wall to Wall: New London Mural Walk visits two dozen public artworks depicting underwater spacemen, exotic shells and the musicians Prince, Bob Marley, Jimi Hendrix and Willie Nelson. The tour begins at the nonprofit Hygienic Art Galleries (open Thursday to Sunday, 79 Bank St., 860-443-8001, download a tour map at hygienic.org/mural-walk; free).
5. Continue your deep dive into New London’s maritime past at Fort Trumbull State Park, where British troops commanded by Benedict Arnold won their last Revolutionary War battle (90 Walbach St., 860-444-7591; $6, $2 ages 6 to 12).
6. The original site of the modern U.S. Coast Guard Academy, Fort Trumbull along with the City Pier are passenger boarding locations for water taxi “Hop on, Hop off” harbor cruises of the Thames River Heritage Park. Repurposed Navy boats visit 25 national and historic sites “that tell the story of our nation,” says June Henley, park executive director (Saturdays and Sundays, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., June 6 through Sept. 6; 860-333-6706, thamesriverheritagepark.org; $10, $5 ages 4 to 12).

See the city on a bike

About 12 miles of bike paths “alternate between painted lanes and road routes,” says Robert Bareiss, 56, of New London, a former local bike shop owner. Bareiss says popular bike routes include a “9-mile round trip from the ferryboat” to New London’s own Ocean Beach Park, home to a boardwalk, an Olympic-size swimming pool, mini golf, arcade and concession stand (98 Neptune Ave., 860-447-3031, ocean-beach-park.com).

“It’s definitely an easy to navigate city and it’s fairly bike-friendly,” says Pat Lamond, owner of Wayfarer Bicycle, a sales and repairs shop offering free water refills (120 Ocean Ave., 860-443-8250, wayfarerbicycle.com).