East Hartford, Connecticut: Across the River from the Capital

East Hartford sits at the crossroads of I-84, Route 2 and Route 15/US 5 immediately across the Connecticut River from Hartford; I-84 Exit 58 (Roberts Street/Silver Lane) is the main gateway, with Route 2 Exit 5A (Main Street) from the south and Route 15's Charter Oak Bridge carrying US 5 across the river. Interstate 291 does not pass through East Hartford — it runs through Windsor, South Windsor and Manchester — though its US 5 interchange provides access toward town. There is no rail station in East Hartford; the nearest is Hartford Union Station, about two miles west, served by the CTrail Hartford Line and Amtrak's Northeast Regional, Valley Flyer and Vermonter.

Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field opened August 30, 2003 on the site of the company's former airfield, and is named for Frederick Rentschler, who founded Pratt & Whitney in 1925; it hosts UConn Huskies football, soccer, lacrosse and concerts. Riverfront Recapture's Great River Park runs free weekly programs — Friday Tai Chi, Monday HIIT, Wednesday yoga and Thursday RiverZumba — on the Connecticut River facing the Hartford skyline. Augie & Ray's Drive-In, founded in 1946 by two East Hartford police officers and still run by the founder's great-grandsons, is the town's classic stop for footlong hot dogs and milkshakes.