Worth getting out of bed for...

Viewpoint

Hike up 2,326 feet to the summit of Bear Mountain, Connecticut’s highest peak, for beautiful panoramic views of three states. To get to the top, you must pass through atmospheric deer- and coyote-filled forests.

Arts and culture

You can barely move for actors and writers up here, thanks to the Litchfield Hills’ proximity to NYC – so the area’s cultural scene punches far above its weight. Galleries, specialising in everything from sculpture to watercolour can be found in even the smallest towns, and theatres draw in an affluent, educated audience most nights. Take in a show at the splendid art deco Warner Theatre (www.warnertheatre.org) in Torrington.

Something for nothing

Get into the car, wind down the windows and drive the 56-mile North Litchfield Hills scenic drive. Take the car up through rural northwest Connecticut, heading west across rolling hills from Winsted before driving south along the state’s border with New York. Pass through the Housatonic River valley, and finish at Canaan. You’ll have passed through some of the most dramatic scenery in New England.

Shopping

It’s all about antiques in this part of Connecticut – a part of the US where displaying one’s heritage is a way of life. Woodbury (www.antiqueswoodbury.com) is known as ‘the antiques capital of Connecticut’. For a guide to the region’s hundreds of dealerships, visit www.litchfieldhills.com. For the best local products, head to the Connecticut Store on Bank Street in Waterbury. Stop by for wine-tasting parties on Friday nights and pick-up local vintages to savour at home at Casa Bacchus at 41 West Street, on the Green. Can't be bothered to venture out? They also deliver (+1 860 567 1117; casabacchus.com).

Daytripper

If all that rural tranquility starts to make you feel like Jack Nicholson in The Shining, then the well-documented delights of New York City are only a couple of hours’ drive away. Boston, perhaps the most historic city in the US, is a similar distance.

Perfect picnic

Fill your hamper with goodies at the March Farm market and bakery (www.marchfarms.com) in Bethlehem, then drive out to Kent Falls State Park. Work up an appetite by climbing up to see the stunning 200ft waterfall, then flop down in one of the many idyllic picnic areas nearby.

Walks

Follow in the footsteps of the original Connecticutians, and take the two-and-a-half hour Indian Lore Loop walk from the main entrance of the People’s State Forest in Pleasant Valley. The path, which takes you through former Mohican villages and past favourite hunting spots, is clearly marked.

Children

Kids will love Lake Compounce Family Theme Park (www.lakecompounce.com) in Bristol and Quassy Amusement Park (www.quassy.com) in Middlebury, which offer plenty of vertigo-inducing rides and opportunities for getting soaked. Adults, though they may pretend otherwise, will too.

Activities

Connecticut is blessed with a temperate-enough climate to allow for vine growing, and the state is home to several award-winning vineyards. Sample some of its finest wines at Hopkins Vineyard (www.hopkinsvineyard.com) near New Preston. COPIA in the Napa Valley stocks its chardonnay, so it must be doing something right.