Darien (/ˌdɛəriˈæn/ DAIR-ee-AN) is a coastal town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States.

With a population of 21,499 and a land area of just under 13 square miles (34 km2), it is the smallest town on Connecticut's Gold Coast.

According to early records, the first clearings of land were made by men from the New Haven and Wethersfield colonies and from Norwalk in about 1641.

The Loyalist-Patriot conflict in Darien is the setting for the novel Tory Hole, the first book by children's author Louise Hall Tharp.

Some proposed naming the town "Belleville" in honor of Thaddeus Bell, a veteran of the revolutionary war.

The town's exclusive policies in the early 20th century were similar to other segregated suburbs of the time, including Beverly Hills, California, and Tuxedo Park, New York.

It also has two Metro-North Railroad stations for commuter trains into New York City, Noroton Heights and Darien.

Darien has a humid continental climate, similar to that of New York City, with warm to hot summers and cold winters.

[22] Founded in 1928,[citation needed] Noroton Yacht Club runs the largest junior sailing program in the United States.

[34] Films at least partially filmed in Darien with release date include: An ambulance service, known as "Darien EMS – Post 53" is the only ambulance service in the nation staffed and run entirely by high school student volunteers, covers one of the deadliest stretches of Interstate 95, and responds to over 1,500 emergency calls annually.

[38] The Explorer post is chartered under the Connecticut Yankee Council, and is considered a scouting unit.

The service provides emergency care at no cost to the patient, funded entirely by private donations from town residents.