| Thursday, May 14, 2026 One more week until Memorial Day weekend officially kicks off summer around here, and honestly, you can already feel it starting. Garden fairs are filling town greens, wine tastings are spilling onto patios, seedlings are disappearing into car trunks, and people are suddenly very interested in spending entire afternoons outside again. This weekend’s lineup includes the Stars and Stripes Over Stonington Gala at Stone Acres Farm, the 42nd Annual Garden Market Fair, natural wine at Oyster Club’s Treehouse, whiskey tastings, shoreline cleanup events, live music, the Mystic Half Marathon, and one dangerously good-looking Sunday Supper collaboration between Fox Farm Brewery and Engine Room. Summer’s basically warming up in the parking lot at this point. And if you end up somewhere fun, send us photos or upcoming events we should know about: 📩 hello@thectbeacon.com 📘 The CT Beacon Facebook Page |
May 16 @ 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Cocktails, Auctions & A Summer Night at Stone Acres Farm
One of the shoreline’s biggest community nights returns this weekend as COMO’s Stars & Stripes Over Stonington gala takes over Stone Acres Farm with cocktails, dinner, dancing, live auctions, and some seriously tempting local getaway packages. Even if you missed tickets to the sold-out gala, the online auction is still packed with shoreline experiences, restaurant packages, hotel stays, wine dinners, and other local finds worth browsing.
May 17 @ 9:00 am – 2:00 pm
Plants, Alpacas & A Perfect Sunday in Wilcox Park
The 42nd Annual Garden Market Fair returns to Wilcox Park this Sunday with plants, artisan vendors, gardening workshops, live music, alpacas, food, and one of the best small-town spring atmospheres anywhere along the shoreline. Whether you’re looking for herbs and flowers, soil advice, local crafts, or just an excuse to spend a few hours outside before summer officially arrives, this one feels like peak New England May.
May 15 @ 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Organic Wines & A Friday Night in Stonington Borough
Cove Ledge Liquors is kicking off the weekend with a relaxed sustainable wine tasting featuring organic, biodynamic, and small-batch wines curated by Kim from Ungrafted Selections. Set right in the heart of Stonington Borough, this feels less like a formal wine class and more like the kind of Friday evening that reminds you summer is almost here.
Seedlings, Mushroom Logs & Peak Spring Energy
Hunts Brook Farm’s Annual Seedling Plant Sale returns this weekend with organically grown vegetables, herbs, flowers, fruit-bearing plants, and even mushroom logs for anyone ready to fully commit to gardening season. Between the greenhouse atmosphere, rows of fresh plants, and people loading crates into their trunks like it’s a competitive sport, this feels like one of those classic southeastern Connecticut spring weekends.
Flowers, Fundraising & A Saturday in Pawcatuck
Operation Fresh Start’s Annual Plant Drive returns to Pawcatuck this Saturday with flowers, raffle baskets, local craft vendors, and plenty of spring energy, all supporting families across New London County. It’s the kind of easygoing neighborhood fundraiser where people show up for plants and end up staying longer than they planned.
Kayaks, Cleanup & A Better Mystic River
Mystic Cleanup with ORCA and Adventure Mystic turns environmental cleanup into a shoreline adventure this Saturday as volunteers head onto the Mystic River by kayak and paddleboard, while others help clean areas throughout downtown. It’s part community event, part outdoor activity, and a pretty solid excuse to spend a few hours outside doing something that actually helps the place everybody’s here to enjoy.
Whiskey Education With A Buzz Attached
Kitch Mystic is hosting an evening dedicated to whiskey, bourbon, and Scotch this Saturday with guided tastings, cocktail history, and enough smoky aged spirits to make you suddenly start describing things as “oak-forward.” Led by mixologist Anthony Caporale, the class blends actual whiskey education with storytelling, humor, and a tasting lineup that ranges from Scotch to local bourbon and rye.
Running Through Mystic Before Summer Starts
The Mystic Half Marathon & 10K returns Sunday morning with runners winding past the shoreline, through downtown Mystic, and alongside some of the area’s most recognizable waterfront scenery. Even if you’re not the type of person who willingly runs 13.1 miles for fun, the atmosphere around Olde Mistick Village and downtown Mystic tends to turn the whole morning into an unofficial kickoff to summer activity season.
Oysters, DJs & Day Drinking in Mystic
Natty Wine Fest Vol. 3 takes over the Treehouse at Oyster Club this Sunday with more than 50 natural wines, DJs, oysters, curated food bites, and the kind of stylish early-summer atmosphere Mystic does especially well. If your ideal Sunday involves sipping small-batch wine above Water Street while someone shucks oysters nearby, this is probably your event.
John Williams, Gershwin & A Sunday Afternoon Orchestra
The Southeastern Connecticut Community Orchestra brings film scores, jazz influences, and classic American compositions to East Lyme High School this Sunday for Americana 250th, a family-friendly concert celebrating composers like John Williams, George Gershwin, Aaron Copland, and Duke Ellington. It’s the kind of relaxing cultural outing that feels especially right on a late spring Sunday afternoon.
Farmhouse Ales, Southern Food & A Very Limited Guest List
Engine Room teams up with Fox Farm Brewery this Sunday for an intimate supper pairing craft beer with a Southern-inspired four-course dinner inside one of Mystic’s most consistently packed restaurants. Expect farmhouse ales, chef-driven comfort food, and the kind of beer conversation that starts educational and ends with someone ordering another round.
| Long before modern casinos arrived in Connecticut, Watch Hill had its own “casino.” But in the late 1800s, the word meant something very different. The historic Watch Hill Casino served as a social and recreational club for wealthy summer visitors arriving by train and steamboat from New York and Boston. Tennis matches, dances, dinners, and oceanfront gatherings helped turn tiny Watch Hill into one of New England’s most fashionable seaside destinations during the Gilded Age. The building still exists today as part of the Watch Hill Yacht Club and Casino. Back then, Watch Hill was lined with massive Victorian hotels overlooking the Atlantic, including the famous Ocean House, which first opened in 1868. Much of the area changed forever after the devastating Hurricane of 1938 tore through the coastline, destroying homes, reshaping beaches, and wiping out many of the grand old resort buildings. Only two of the historic hotels survived the storm: the Ocean House and the Watch Hill Inn. Today’s rebuilt Ocean House still stands high above the shoreline, carrying echoes of the era when America’s elite escaped the cities for cooler air and long summers by the sea. |
Last modified: May 18, 2026
