1 Day in New Haven Connecticut: Easy Budget Travel Guide

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Wow, another day another road trip. This time, I’m traveling throughout the New England region – starting with (a little more than) 1 day in New Haven, Connecticut!

If you’re new to my blog, hello. I’m Kay. I love road trips and exploring my own backyard…which, as an American, my “backyard” is pretty big. I know a lot of travel bloggers prioritize counting new countries and exploring abroad, and don’t get me wrong, I GET IT, that’s super exciting. But there’s also something humbly grounding about domestic travel. In my honest opinion, if I can’t trust a travel blogger to explore their own home, why should I trust them to explore someone else’s?

BUUUUT I digress.

Blogging ethos aside, I do genuinely enjoy driving and visiting new cities, the lower the expectations the better! As I round out my goal of visiting all 50 US states, the week of PTO I had burning in my pocket compelled me to check off a few new states, namely Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Maine.

Now, I had previously visited New England for a similar road trip back in 2016 as part of a girls trip, but we didn’t hit Connecticut. Or…Maine or Rhode Island, clearly. So now I’m doubling back and spending more time in the region with my partner in tow. In total, I spent a day and a half in New Haven, Connecticut, so I’ll be condensing and refining my experience into a few recommendations for your own trip.

Whether you’re in town for a campus tour, heading there for a personal getaway, or passing through on your own road trip, here are my recommendations for 1 day in New Haven, Connecticut!

The Basics

• State: Connecticut
• Nearest Cities: Hartford, CT (1hr); Providence, RI (1hr30m); New York City, New York (2hrs); Boston, MA (2hr15m)
• Closest International Airport: Bradley International Airport (BDL) in Hartford, CT
• Ancestral Lands: the Quinnipiac Tribe
• Best season to visit (in my opinion): Fall, Summer
• Transportation: It’s not a big city, very walkable but if you happen to have a car the parking isn’t bad

Breakfast/Brunch

The first thing I always do when I arrive in a new destination is eat. Depending on when you arrive in town for your 1 day in New Haven, you may not make it in time for breakfast. But if you eat at one place during your trip to New Haven, I highly highly highly recommend it being Havenly! It is a non-profit cafe that employs and uplifts refugee and immigrant women through job training, education, and organizing. The menu’s range reflected many of the countries the women were from, like Iraq, Sudan, and Syria.

Which also meant the menu was delicious.

What originally attracted me was their bowls – I ended up ordering the Sakarya Bowl which featured basmati rice and deliciously spiced meatballs, My partner ordered the Baghdad Bowl. He devoured it. Like I blinked and it was gone. I also ordered Iraqi tea which REALLY hit the spot. The staff were all super friendly and welcoming, and I loved the sense of community I felt while dining in and also with the students and professionals who dropped by for their favorite regular pick-up order.

It’s located on Temple Street and is conveniently in the heart of downtown, making it a great jumping off point for your 1 day in New Haven.

Morning Activities

A big chunk of the morning was spent aimlessly wandering around the Yale University campus and admiring the architecture. This trip is also a mini tour of some of the Ivy Leagues, and I must say that in my opinion, Yale is the prettiest when it comes to the buildings. It also has the best merch, but maybe that’s just me idk idk

They were also the most open and welcoming to visitors, which makes it a great add on to your 1 day in New Haven! The library has a section that is open to anyone, and since I actually had some work to do I spent some time at one of the open tables. It really puts you in a studious mood – I wish my office at home had the same vibes haha.

After that, we strolled around the Yale shops – though I think Google Maps calls them the “shops at Yale.” Potato potato. I grabbed a juice refresh at Pedals Smoothie and Juice Bar, super tasty juice and my partner ordered a smoothie which he loved. However a shop that I really wanted to check out (but it wasn’t opening until 2 days later) was 2nd Street Yale, a new second hand store. They seemed to have some higher end items as well, so if you go let me know how it is!

Lunch

Since I started my 1 day in New Haven a little late, my lunch was also pushed back. After walking around the Yale campus and nearby shops for a bit, I followed a crowd of students to Crown Street, which looked like a pretty poppin spot. Plus, it was on the way back to where our car was parked, so it seemed like a solid choice.

We opted to eat at a restaurant called Mecha Noodle Bar, which we learned is a small regional chain. We also learned that it was happy hour so we gladly took our seats and ordered some half-off snacks and a bowl of ramen. New Haven, as a town, was a lot more diverse than I had assumed. Sure, there is a huge popular Ivy League campus contributing to bringing minds from all over the world, but I also learned that Yale has the most robust scholarship program which also allows form opportunities for students of varying socio-economic backgrounds (compared to the other Ivy Leagues).

What was the point I was trying to make?

Oh yeah, it was so refreshing and comfortable grabbing a quick bite in a restaurant that so many others enjoyed. The food was tasty (especially their hand rolls!) and while I didn’t order any drinks, their beverage menu looked creative and fun too.

Afternoon Activities

Then for the afternoon, we headed back to the car for some fun just outside of the city. If someone asked me my favorite memory during my 1 day in New Haven, it would be stopping by the Pez Visitor Center.

YES. You can visit the PEZ VISITOR CENTER.

It’s about 10 minutes from town, so if you don’t have a car it’s not too difficult to grab a rideshare or bus. I have a whole blog post on my experience at the Pez Visitor Center, but just to summarize here, for an affordable $5 USD, you get to visit the largest public display of Pez dispensers in the world, as well as see some cool memorabilia and pick up some candy for the road!

It’s very cute and good for all ages. I’d say budget for about 30-40 minutes since it’s not too big. I spent a lot longer though because…I’m me and like to turn everything into an event haha.

Dinner

So allegedly New Haven, Connecticut is the “pizza capital of the country” ????

I just know New York City, Chicago, and Detroit are all lookin REAL confused right about now. But, giving the state some grace, New England has a very rich Italian-American community, so it does make sense pizza is no laughing matter here.

There seems to be a bit of debate from the locals on who actually has the best Connecticut pizza (or if it’s even in New Haven at all), but most folks recommended either Pepe’s or Sally’s as a good starting point. They both had lines out the door and around the building, so I went with the one that had a paring spot lol.

I waited in line at Frank Pepe Pizzeria for about 30 minutes which wasn’t too bad for a dinner time of like 6pm. We ordered one of their specials and we also built our own which…clearly we have specific tastes cuz it ended up being almost identical to the menu pizza lol. Honestly, it was solid. I’m typically not a big fan of thin crust anyway, so maybe it’s just me, but it was just a fine pie? Someone did tell me Pepe’s is more famous for their white clam pizza but let me know if you’ve had Connecticut pizza and your thoughts on it!

Either way, I’m glad I tried it and do recommend you do the same just for the cultural experience to round out your 1 day in New Haven haha.

Where to Stay

If you want to stay a bit longer than just your 1 day in New Haven, I do think it’s a cute town to stay overnight. Since I was road tripping throughout the area (and on a budget) I stayed at the Getaway Cabin site about an hour away since I had coupon codes.

Unless you also have codes…I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it for a NEW HAVEN SPECIFIC itinerary since it is a bit of a drive. For somewhere in town, I would have booked Hotel Marcel, a Hilton Tapestry Collection hotel which is my favorite of their hotel brands. It’s very conveniently located, while also offering very cute and spacious rooms.

But alas, ya girl’s budget was not in alignment for hotels in every city on this road trip, so to the woods for me.

Conclusion: 1 Day in New Haven

Alrighty, that wraps up our 1 day in New Haven! I’m sure there’s tons more you can do in this cute lil town, but for me I felt like 1 day in New Haven felt like a good amount of time. Have you ever been? Let me know in the comments below what you would recommend!

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