Bacon, Bayous, Boogie & Berries, Bubbling Over This Weekend In Connecticut

CONNECTICUT — As if you needed any more indication that it's a glorious time to be alive, there's a Bacon Festival in Connecticut this weekend.

The 2025 Connecticut Bacon Festival will be sizzling at the Lebanon Fairgrounds Saturday, June 14 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sunday, June 15 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and there's really nothing to quibble about. The admission is free, the parking is free, and the bacon is everywhere: chocolate covered bacon, bacon Mac, candied bacon, bacon games, bacon crafts, bacon everything… because everything is better with bacon.

On Saturday, June 14, the 21st annual Connecticut Open House Day returns, inviting state residents to enjoy free or discounted admission, exclusive tours, and special events at more than 200 of the state’s best attractions. Beer and wine tastings, art exhibitions, boat rides, trolley excursions, behind-the scenes tours, and family fun experiences are all part of the mix. Here's the county-by-county lineup.

Gov. Ned Lamont has announced that The Connecticut Governor’s Residence in Hartford will be open to the public for tours on Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., as part of the festivities. Neither tickets nor reservations are needed to participate in the tours, and there is no admittance fee. Visitors will be able to tour the first floor of the house, as well as the outdoor garden near the pool. And if you bump into the governor, be sure to ask —or sing to him — about HB 5002.

Get your swamp on in Goshen this weekend at the 2025 Bayou Boogie Festival, June 13 through 15, at The Fairgrounds. Full schedule and lineup is online here, tickets are here. That's three days of Louisiana Zydeco music, camping, a covered wooden dance floor, and free dance lessons daily. Unless you don't need Cajun Jitterbug lessons, in which case, we want to party with you, chère!

Connecticut is still in peak Strawberry Season, a point being driven home this weekend in Middlefield and Southbury. There's a strawberry festival at Lyman Orchards on Saturday, June 14, 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., and the 49th Annual Southbury Strawberry Festival at the same time and date at the United Church of Christ on the Southbury Green. Admission to both good times is free.

There are not many venues that can pull off a train and car show, but the Danbury Railway Museum is one of them. The museum is itself a fully restored train station, built in 1903, and houses a collection of historically significant artifacts and a research library. This Saturday, the curators get a little crazy and host The Steel & Wheels Benefit Car Show from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. The last time the museum tried this, over 130 cars, from classics to customs, rolled in. The family fun includes free train rides, music, raffles, trophies and more.

Arts & Crafts on Bedford slips into Stamford on Saturday, June 14, from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Stroll around, shop for one-of-a-kind handcrafted goods made by local and regional artists, and enjoy the extended outdoor patio cafés offered by all the restaurants along Bedford Street.