Nice place to stay near New Canaan?
 

Going to tour Glass House at end of May. Any suggestions for nice places to stay in the area? Doesn't have to be *in* New Canaan; anyplace within an hour or so would be fine. Also, any nice dining suggestions, also, within an hour of New Canaan? Thanks so much.

My husband grew up in New Canaan and we visit his family quite often. A great place to stay is The Maples Inn, which is just a short walk to town (about 1/4 mile). You can also check out The Roger Sherman Inn (next door to The Maples). For dining in New Canaan, Chef Luis on Elm Street (serving primarily Italian) is really good (reservations are strongly recommended as it is quite small). It's BYOB but there's Francos Wine Merchants across the street. For seafood, I would recommend Rowayton Seafood in Rowayton, about a 15 minute ride (reservations a must - call two weeks in advance if you go on a weekend). Also, a good, casual spot for a burger and pub food is Cherry Street East in New Canaan. For coffee, there is a neat local hangout in New Canaan (Zumbach's) as well as a convenient Starbuck's. Enjoy your stay in the area, and the Glass House.

There are quite a few restaurants in New Canaan, Thali for Indian, Bistro Bonne Nuit for guess what?, Cava for Italian, a new place called Harvest Supper and so on. Nearby towns, Stamford, Greenwich, Westport, Ridgefield -- all have good choices as well.

New Canaan is a beautifully maintained village with a charming New England character and many good stores. Very walkable and easy to wander there.

Holy smokes! What wonderfully informative responses. Thank you both for so many choices & so much detail.

Now I'll just cross my fingers that I haven't waited too long to book the stay or the meals!

Hi Clarin:

Let us know how you liked the Glass House - I hear that tickets are impossible to get! When my husband was in high school, he did a report on architecture and Philip Johnson let him come up to the house and take pictures. He says it is spectacular.

I really don't think you'll have a problem booking. And, the meeting point for the tour is right across the street from the town center, so you can walk to the shops and restaurants.

You might also want to just drive around some of the roads around the town, just to get a feel for a pretty suburban town (and see some very nice houses in the process!!). I would recommend getting a map and wandering around the northern half of the town for the prettiest parts.

MarieF: Yes, the tickets sell out quickly. We'd planned to take the tour last summer, so I inquired about tickets in May of '07. Hah! At that point '07 was sold out & those for '08 were going quickly. So this jaunt was booked exactly one YEAR in advance. I've no doubt, however, that it will be well worth the wait. I opted for the late-in-the-day tour, as it's a bit extended & photos are permitted. Will report back.

For anyone's who's interested, the Glass House is not to be missed. I don't know if 2009 tickets are available yet, but I am considering returning next year. We had the 2 hour tour & it went by in a flash, I kid you not. When our guide started walking up the drive, away from the Glass house, I thought, "That's odd. Why aren't we spending more time at the house?" I looked at my watch only to realize that the tour was 15 minutes from over! An hour an a half went by like 20 minutes.

Our guide was delightful. She knew all about Philip Johnson, etc, but didn't bog us down with useless facts, if you know what I mean. Everything she said was interesting/fascinating. Our tour included the house, of course, which was nothing short of surreal. We also toured the sculpture building and painting gallery. The deal w/the painting gallery is that you never know which paintings are going to be showcased. I would've liked to have seen more Warhol, but hey, the one Warhol they had was a multiple-portrait piece of Philip Johnson (like the Jackie & Marilyn portraits) and it was fabulous. Also toured da monsta (sp?) which did not impress, but that's just me.

In closing - Yes for the Glass House.

Clarin: Thanks so much for reporting back. I am going to look into getting tix for 2009. It's been on our to do list for a while. Now I can't wait to see it!