A bronze whale's tail erupts from the paving stones of Parade Plaza in New London, Connecticut — a fountain that pours water over its edge like a diving fluke. It's a fitting centrepiece for a town that was once the second-largest whaling port in the world, and a good starting point for exploring New London County, a stretch of the Connecticut coast that punches well above its weight.

The case for choosing it over Cape Cod is simple: fewer people, lower prices, and easier access for many East Coast travellers. While the Cape draws millions of visitors each summer, Ocean Beach in New London attracts only around 500,000 a year — despite a carnival-style summer scene with concerts and events that has earned praise from National Geographic and Travel + Leisure since the 1940s.

New London itself has spruced up its old harbour. A roughly one-mile walkway now traces the waterfront where industrial land used to sit, passing the Shaw's Cove Railroad Bridge — a steel swing bridge that still rotates for boats. Fort Trumbull State Park adds thick granite walls, antique artillery, a boardwalk and a fishing pier, plus broad views of passing sailboats.

For quieter time outdoors, Bluff Point in Groton is the county's under-the-radar pick: more than 800 acres of seaside woodland with miles of gravel trails for hikers and easy, obstacle-free terrain for mountain bikers. A sandy beach with picnic tables sits on its western edge, and a tombolo — a walkable sand spit — crosses the Poquonnock River, with planes taking off from the neighbouring airport for extra spectacle.

Then there's Mystic, the county's best-known coastal town, a relaxed year-round base with hotels concentrated in and around its centre.

Getting there is genuinely easy. Interstate 95 runs straight through the county, putting both New York and Boston within driving reach, and Amtrak's Northeast Regional stops several times a day at both New London's Union Station and Mystic's station on the New York–Boston line. Some fares between East Coast cities cost about as much as a coffee, making day trips from New Haven or Providence realistic. Better still, the Southeast Area Transit District bus network means you can visit without a car at all — rare for this part of New England.

For anyone priced out of Cape Cod in July or simply tired of the traffic queue over the canal, New London County offers the same essentials — sandy beaches, lighthouses, coves, state parks — plus cultural institutions the Cape can't match, at a friendlier price.