If you like touring historic mansions, this place is superb! Our docent Midge was extremely…read moreknowledgeable and an excellent storyteller. She demonstrated a passion for the history of the mansion, the time period, and the complicated inter-relations between the involved individuals which was truly inspired and fascinating. She answered all our tour group's questions with great skill and delight. We reserved our spots online for the 90-minute noon tour today, featuring the first and second floors, the main entertainment rooms, bedrooms, and servants' quarters. On-site parking for free. The mansion has been closed for two years to renovate the electrical/HVAC system and recently reopened for public tours. They'll be opening the basement floor to show the bowling alley and vault sometime next year. If you're in the area on Dec 14, they'll be open for a festive Christmas event.

Wow!!! What a great museum. A coworker highly suggested it and I wasn't disappointed. It's truly…read morebeautiful, one of a kind. You are required to take a tour and there are one hour tours of just the downstairs or two hour tours of the first and second floor. I did the first and second floor and I would highly suggest that. Additional, my docent was A+++!

Came here with family on a 2 hour weekday tour…read more Our tour guide Sara(h?) was very informative, clear and engaging. She made the experience great. She also made sure guests who needed to take breaks and sit were accommodated. The compound itself is incredible. The buildings, vision, art collections - all very interesting. Even if you're not super into art, I bet you would enjoy the diversity of things to see here. Highly recommend!

I recently spent a long weekend in Connecticut with my husband and some friends. The impetus for…read morethe trip was - in part - to visit the Glass House. It definitely lived up to my pretty high expectations. So what is the Glass House? Also known as the Johnson House, it's a house designed by American architect Philip Johnson for use as his own residence. Johnson lived at the house (and the rest of the property, more on that below) on weekends for over 50 years. The house is one glass-enclosed room, which includes a kitchen, dining area, bedroom, and living space (as well as one bathroom that is contained within the black cylinder in the right side of the structure. Because the house is almost entirely of glass, you can see through it to the landscape beyond, making it blend in to its surroundings and beautiful but different in each season. The house is an important piece of American architectural history and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1997. Now owned by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, you can sign up for a tour to visit the home - you cannot visit or even see the house without signing up for a tour (the house is not visible from the street!). Tours are available April-December, typically, so check dates before you book a tour. They offer several different tour options: a 1-hour "Glass House Tour," which allows you to see the Glass House and the Brick House; a 2-hour "Glass House + Galleries Tour," which allows you to see the Glass House, the Brick House, the Painting Gallery, the Sculpture Gallery, outdoor sculptures, and Da Monsta, a visitor center and exhibition space); an extended tour lasting 2.5 hours; a self-guided tour (currently offered on Sundays only); group/private tours; and an in-depth 3-hour tour. The website has all of these options spelled out so you can choose the option that is right for you. We selected the 2-hour "Glass House + Galleries Tour," and I'm so glad we did. I wouldn't have wanted to miss the painting and sculpture galleries! You meet your tour at the visitor center (there isn't parking there, but there are paid lots nearby) - you cannot drive yourself to the property. Then you board a little shuttle bus with the rest of your tour and you're on off on a very short drive to the property. We walked down a path, while our guide pointed the studio and a few other notable things on the grounds (a Donald Judd sculpture that is enormous and very cool, just in front of the house, being one). Then you're at the Glass House. First a view of the outside while the guide explains the architecture and context of the design. Then you can wander through the interior of the space. It's minimalist (duh), but it's also incredibly beautiful. I found it an inspiring design. (FYI - no air conditioning in the house, so in the summer, it can be quite steamy in the house.) Since we were there for the Glass House, I was surprised by just how much I enjoyed touring the other spaces! Then we were off to the Brick House, the Glass House's opposite, just a few steps away. The Brick House was such a pleasant surprise; it has a bedroom, reading room, and bathroom, connected by a skylit corridor. The design of the Brick House is so different from the Glass House (bright, colorful, lush - that bathroom with all its marble, that colorful reading room, and the vaulted ceiling and Fortuny-covered walls of the bedroom!?), but I loved it entirely. I could certainly see why Johnson would have spent quite a bit of his time in the Brick House. Then our guide pointed out a few more features and sculptures on the grounds before we visited the Painting Gallery. The gallery contains works by Frank Stella, Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, and more, so it's worth a visit to see what they have on exhibit. But it also features some amazing design features! The exterior of the gallery is a grass-covered mount, and the gallery's art is displayed by use of a rotating "poster-rack," which is operated manually (Johnson preferred to view six works at a time, but the system allows for the storage of 42 paintings). Then it was time for a visit to the Sculpture Gallery - another incredible building (this one inspired by the architecture of the Greek isles). Because I'm running out of characters (I have a lot to say about this experience), I will just say that the our tour ended at Da Monsta. Then it's back to the visitor center via the shuttle bus, where you can do some shopping at their very cool design shop. Our tour guide was lovely - informative, interesting, incredible well-versed in everything Glass House-related. It was a hot day, so I got a bit sweaty and overheated at times, but it was worth it to visit this bit of American architectural history. It was an American travel bucket list item for me, and I'm so glad to have made it there finally. I'd go again!

Books on the Common is a great bookstore in the heart of Main St in Ridgefield that provides the…read morecommunity a great place to buy books, meet authors and learn about the latest titles among a friendly and helpful staff. The place is small but boy can they pack in the books. Along with the best sellers they also carry indie publisher books and unique titles. If they don't have it they will order it for you promptly and if they can't find it they are honest about that too. They have a great story-time for kids and they have a buy ten get one free on kids books. They also gift wrap for free and have a great selection of cards and some little gifts too. So head over to Books on the Common and support your local bookseller!

Our little town Of Ridgefield is so lucky to have this gem of a bookstore here. It's a warm and…read morewelcoming place with lovely employees ready to help you at a moments notice. If they don't have a book for you, they will order it and it will come with a week most of the time. Let's support this gem in our community, it's wonderful

I dropped in recently and was bowled over by the selection; the books I brought home were very…read moreenjoyable. Later I reached out over email with a few requests and was pleased by the quick response time; I just today received an order that I placed less than a week ago. Highly recommend.

Friendly, neighborhood bookstore with good selection and quick orders for anything not in stock.read more

Love this place so cute and I love the verity of tea the staff is amazing by the way and if you…read moreneed recommendations just ask the staff.

I really had a great time visiting the location in Oxford,CT. It was a day trip with just my MIL…read moreand I. She is very particular so I was thrilled to see the variety of teas and other tasty menu items to select from. The grilled cheese sandwiches were amazing. The staff were busy but still gave great recommendations and were warm and friendly even helping each other out. If ever I am in the area again I would like to visit for dinner.

I just bought cards here. They had a very nice selection of cards. It's mostly just books. Not too…read moremany gifts but at least I was able to buy some greeting cards because I needed to stock up. Very friendly staff here!

Walked in on a whim while walking the Ave. The woman working barely looked up from behind the…read morecomputer and asked, "Do you need something?" I said, no thank you. I'm just browsing. She replied with a snarky "OK" and went back to her computer work. Cute shop with great selections, but shockingly bad customer service. Left with a few ideas of new books, but did not purchase.

House and grounds were really nice to explore; it's a very serene atmosphere and hidden tucked away…read morefrom all the madness. Just make sure you bring your own snacks and drinks because nothing was available for purchase there.

Used a Culture Pass to visit the Bartow-Pell Mansion in the Bronx. It was a perfect day for it!…read moreWarmish & sunny. The home is open Sundays 12-4p. Tours are given and I highly recommend taking one. There are QR codes in the rooms, and a guide on the Bloomberg Connects App, but Angelique gave an excellent tour! She kindly answered all my questions after each room's description and made this 3 story historical gem come to life. Only thing that would've made the tour better would be to come back in Spring when the garden is in bloom.

Such cute clothes here and friendly store associates! Owner Barbara is best and stocks her store…read morewith finds from Aviator Nation, Free City and many more. Definitely my go-to local shopping destination.