New Haven, Connecticut: Fight, Bulldogs, Fight!

You may have heard of the Hartford area from the popular show "Gilmore Girls," or because it is the home of Ivy League school Yale University. Top-notch education isn't the only thing you'll find in this New England town. Visit these three attractions to lean a bit about the history and biology of the area and even make an escape on a daring adventure:

Yale Bowl

Drive your Hartford rental car to 81 Central Avenue in New Haven and you'll hear the screaming and barking of Yale Bulldogs fans. This expansive stadium can hold up to 61,446 people in its 12.5-acre facility. Over 600 games have been played here on Class of 1954 Field, which was named after the generous financial gifts the graduating students gave to see the Bowl rebuilt. If you visit, be sure to keep your eyes peeled for Handsome Dan, the Yale mascot. The various canines who have played this famous bulldog have been owned and cared for by past Yale University directors, deans and coaches as well as a former head cheerleader who went on to become a Secretary of State. While the dog may change, the love for this short, pudgy mascot remains the same and is touted in the fight song, "Bull-dog" with lyrics, "Bull-dog! Bull-dog! Bow, wow, wow, Eli Yale!" For an especially rousing game be sure to come when Yale is playing its main competitors, Princeton or Harvard. These decades-long rivalries bring a lot of energy to the players and the crowd.

Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History

This museum, founded in 1866, holds specimens for research and teaching. Inside, you will find fossils, sculptures, mummies, taxidermy animals and birds, and more. You can learn about our planet and what it's made of in the "Hall of Minerals: Earth and Space" exhibit or see 3-D reconstructions of natural habitats you may have seen in North America. If you're looking for scenes a little closer to what you might find when you walk outside of the museum, head to the Southern New England dioramas, where you can spot flora and fauna similar to the area around the facility. These exhibits are world-famous for their extremely life-like qualities and minute details. Check out the Discovery Room, where you can see hissing cockroaches, tropical leafcutter ants, rat snakes and even a bearded dragon! Plus, there’s a rainforest habitat with 16 live poison dart frogs and a 100-million-year-old fossil that you can touch.

Escape New Haven

Have you ever wanted to test your logic skills in a real live-action adventure game? Then drive your Hartford rental car to Escape New Haven at 111 Whitney Avenue. Here, you can challenge yourself and friends in a puzzle game that requires you work together to get out of a library, workshop or studio. You'll solve clues and follow hints to get yourself and your teammates back out into the real world. This is a great activity for families, couples or even business colleagues. The scenarios change every three months so you can always come back for more fun mayhem.