Connecticut has long battled its reputation as a little… well, boring. But from shoreline gems to small-town food spots, social media influencers in the state are reframing it as a destination. Haley Eklund is behind the popular Instagram account and blog The Connecticut Life, documenting her travels throughout the state and beyond. She spoke with WSHU’s Sabrina Garone about the power of a good post.
WSHU: Right out the gate, I'm going to ask you the big question! Connecticut...we're often described through comparison, right? To New York, to Boston, or New England in general. So, what do you think people most often misunderstand about this little state we love so much?
HE: It's funny because I've been hearing this a lot lately. I feel that Connecticut is such an underrated New England state. It's always ranked last when people are asked what their favorite New England states are! I feel like when they think about Connecticut, you always hear that it's a drive-through state or people just come here for the casinos and Mystic, maybe New Haven pizza — but there's just so much more to the state that people don't realize that we have, so many amazing things to do here. There's a rich arts and culture community, a ton of accessible hiking, a lot of history, great food across the state, and several award-winning restaurants! One thing that I really love about living here is how many walkable coastal towns there are. You can really go all around the state and find towns with small businesses, restaurants, beaches, and things to do.
WSHU: Now, are you originally from Connecticut?
HE: I'm not from Connecticut originally, actually! I'm originally from the Pacific Northwest. I came to the East Coast for undergrad, I went to Syracuse, moved to New York City to work in sports marketing for ten-plus years, and then a job took me out to Connecticut. I live in Stamford now. I think when you move to a new city, a new area, you're always looking for things to do, and it really helps you appreciate the state more. I think when you grow up here, maybe you're a little bit jaded. But people new to the area are exploring things to do around here.
WSHU: I'm so glad you brought that up because I was about to ask. I'm from Long Island, and I was just talking with a co-worker from this area — she said, 'You always know all the spots, and I feel silly that I've lived here my whole life and don't know of half the places you talk about!' Could you talk about that a little more? What do you notice about Connecticut that long-time residents have stopped seeing or appreciating?
HE: That's something I find and notice a lot, whether it's comments I get or people I speak with who grew up here. I'll post about a place and they'll say, 'I never knew that was there!' When you come to a place as a new resident, you're looking for your spots! You're more open to trying new places. That's really how The Connecticut Life was born! I moved here in 2019, right before COVID. When COVID hit, and we were stuck inside for so long, I started going on walks and getting outside in a safe way and started taking photos of all the different beaches and hiking trails that I was visiting. I started posting those photos, and it's kind of evolved and grown from there into travel around New England, travel around Connecticut — restaurants, shops and coffee shops, and things to do around the region. I've always been very passionate about small businesses and the New England coast, so being able to share all of those places has been really fun and just something I'm really passionate about.
WSHU: Very cool. Was there a moment when you went 'wow, people are really watching and engaging with my content!'?
HE: I mean, Mystic has always been a really popular place, but it's become even more popular over the last few years. When I started posting about some of my favorite things to do in Mystic, that's when my content really took off. Back then, I was posting still photos when Instagram was more of a still-photo app, which has since evolved into a video app. But when I was posting beach photos, that coastal-New England vibe, a lot in Mystic and Newport — that's when it really took off.
WSHU: Some fan favorites, for sure! What I really like about following you is that it does give that old-school Instagram vibe, like you just said. Everything is very curated; you can tell it's thought out and not this chaotic, flashy, in-your-face stuff. As you said, that's what the algorithm really likes, but I'm curious if that's something you have made an active decision to do? To stick to that "old way" of doing things?
HE: One hundred percent. I will always stay authentic to myself in what I post. I'm not posting anything just to beat the algorithm or to go viral. I will rarely go to a place just once I post about it — I'm really thoughtful about the places that I recommend to people. The algorithm changes all the time, and I see people get caught up in posting things that they know are going to perform well and gain followers. I try not to care about that too much. Authenticity and staying true to yourself are something that I've tried to do throughout this content creation journey.
WSHU: As a huge consumer of this kind of content, I really appreciate that! We need more of that on the internet, for sure. And speaking of which, I mean, how do you think that social media has changed the way people travel in general?
HE: It's a great question. It's changed how people travel immensely. Even as a consumer of content myself, you know, when I go to a place, I'm immediately searching TikTok or Instagram for that location and seeing what kind of posts are coming up. Sometimes it's good, sometimes it's not, but I think it's awesome to see people's authentic experiences. I think that's how people go and get their travel inspiration now. You can post a reel of a cool hotel, and then somebody will immediately want to visit that hotel — it's very interesting.
WSHU: Yeah, I feel like it'd be impossible to do anything without checking Instagram first, right? It's just my go-to! And you know, this is something now that even the state government has picked up on in this expanded push for tourism, lately. We have those signs on 95 now, like "pizza capital of the U.S." and the oyster trail, the wine trail — all things to do like that. I know earlier this year they launched a platform — I don't know if you are able to speak to this at all — but that platform that connects creators with small businesses. Are you involved in that in any way? What can you share?
HE: I am, absolutely! The state is incredible about supporting its content creators and influencers. I don't know many other states that are doing this. What's awesome about Connecticut is that they're supporting the content creators who live in Connecticut. I know some other states will work with creators in surrounding states, but I think Connecticut and the tourism office there have done such an incredible job of supporting the influencers that are based here.
So they created this database essentially where creators can have profiles on there, and small businesses, restaurants, you know, things like that, can go to this portal and find influencers that are a good fit for them. You can put in your pricing, your demographics, and all these types of things — it's really kind of a centralized spot for people. Not everybody has the resources to hire a PR team or an agency to help them. The state also holds events throughout the year — there's actually one coming up on June 8 in Old Saybrook — where they host panels and networking opportunities that bring together small businesses and influencers. What I love about it is those small businesses! The people who need the support the most are not the brands with huge marketing budgets. It's the people in the community. When I work with businesses that I meet at events, I feel like I'm really making an impact, and it's really fulfilling for me.
WSHU: Is this your full-time gig?
HE: It is now! Like I briefly mentioned before, I went to school for sports management and marketing. I worked in sports marketing for over ten years. I worked for Major League Soccer, and then for a few agencies, and in August of last year, I decided to quit my full-time job and pursue this full-time. I just realized that I'm so passionate about doing things on a smaller scale. I was working with brands with huge marketing budgets and doing these huge, massive national campaigns, which was awesome, but just felt like I was so much more passionate about my local community, about Connecticut in general, really building The Connecticut Life as a platform and something that I can kind of continue to grow. It was kind of the best decision I've ever made. It's not where I thought I would end up in life, but I'm happy that I'm here, and just loving doing this full-time!
WSHU: That's amazing! Okay, so with that, let's get into some specific recommendations for people. What do you think are some of Connecticut's most underrated towns? We know Mystic, of course, but what deserves a little love and attention?
HE: I have so many, but I'll try to narrow it down. I think the shoreline in general — everybody thinks Mystic is the pinnacle of where you go on the shoreline. But I think the Guilford and Madison area is really underrated. Guilford is one of my favorite places to visit. The town green there is just beautiful — with shops lining it, bookstores, restaurants, bakeries, all the classic New England things. Madison, close by as well, has a great little downtown with, you know, shops. They have RJ Julia, which is a fantastic bookstore. A little farther north, Niantic is a really underrated beach town. It has that classic beach town feel with the main street with shops, and then there's the boardwalk you can walk along, and there are beautiful beaches. Waterford Beach, which is probably my favorite beach in the state. Harkness Memorial State Park is also over in that area. There's the Book Barn, an incredible used bookstore.
Litchfield County has gotten a lot more love recently. I used to say that that was one of the most underrated areas in the state. Especially in the summertime when everything along the coast is so crowded and busy and touristy. Litchfield County — I've been there in the peak of summer, and it still feels quiet and relaxing. There are farm stands, and farm-to-table restaurants, hiking trails, and cute towns — New Preston is a great area with some wineries and great restaurants. One of my favorite restaurants in the state is Community Table, which is in New Preston. Ridgefield in Fairfield County has an incredible arts and culture scene. There are some world-class museums there, the Aldrich Museum, several theaters, great restaurants, and a really cute main street with some great shops. The last thing I'll say is the northeast part of the state rarely gets any love, but it's really, really beautiful out there as well —Woodstock, Putnam.
WSHU: You mentioned some beaches. Now that we're heading into summer, can we talk about that a little bit more? Listen — no shade to Connecticut beaches, but they're not Long Island south shore beaches! I'm always looking for something that feels like "not Connecticut" for lack of a better term.
HE: I would say Waterford Town Beach, definitely. It is a town beach, so there are rules around the summer for either being a resident or having to pay for parking. Something to keep in mind there. I would say that for more accessible beaches for the average person, Hammonasset Beach State Park is an incredible beach, and if you're a Connecticut resident, you have Connecticut plates, you can go there for free. I also love Sherwood Island State Park in Westport. The local beach that I go to in Stamford is West Beach. Again, Waterford Town Beach is pretty incredible and doesn't feel like a Connecticut beach. I agree, we're not known necessarily for our beaches, but there are some really beautiful beaches!
WSHU: I'll remember Waterford, that's a good tip. What about some really unique or quirky attractions that the state has that people might not know about?
HE: Oh, that's a good question. I don't know if you consider this a quirky attraction necessarily, but one thing that I've done is I went to a farm-to-table dinner at a place called Little Dipper Farm in Brooklyn, Connecticut. It was so cool! It was called the Spring Awakening dinner, and they had a chef use local produce to create an incredible spring menu. They paired that with a live opera performance in their barn, which you wouldn't necessarily think those two things go together! But it was such a cool, cool evening. The other thing I think is cool about Connecticut, and something that I'm really, like, interested in is just history. Connecticut, like other New England states, has a ton of historic homes and museums. I'm sure people know about this place, but the Mark Twain House in Hartford — you can tour Mark Twain's home, where he lived in Connecticut, and he wrote several of his most famous works while he lived in Connecticut, which I don't think I realized.
WSHU: How about some day trips outside of the state?
HE: Oh, there are several. That's one great thing about living in this area, too, you can get to so many places in a short amount of time. I love the North Shore of Massachusetts as an area to visit. It has some really deep maritime history and beautiful coastal towns. Watch Hill, Rhode Island, that's a great little area to visit, not too far from Mystic. They have a cute little downtown area, great beaches, and then the Ocean House Hotel is there, as well. The Berkshires in Massachusetts, Lennox, Massachusetts, is incredible, has a lot of cultural attractions, the Norman Rockwell Museum, and Edith Wharton's home is there.
WSHU: I hope everybody listening was taking lots of notes! So, you know, to finish up — after exploring so much of New England, what does home mean to you now?
HE: That's a great question. There's that phrase, 'home is where the heart is, and I do honestly think that's true. As I said, I grew up in the Pacific Northwest, and I love that area. I love going home; my parents still live there. But Connecticut is home to me now, absolutely. New England is home. I didn't necessarily think I would say that, you know, five, ten years ago. Home is where your community is, where your friends are. Since I've lived here, I've really just tried to embrace this area so much, and I've totally fallen in love with it. I've fallen in love with Connecticut. It always gets a bad rap, but it's really a special place. There are incredible people here, people doing incredible things. It truly feels like home to me now, for sure!
