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Ridgefield, CT Short-Term Rentals: Occupancy Limits (2026)

Some Restrictions
Compiled from the official code textEditor Martyn O'NeillLast verified September 2026

Key Facts

Guest cap
10 people per Lodging Party, §2.2
Simultaneous parties
Only one Lodging Party at a time
Adopted
Amendment A-26-1, effective June 23, 2026
Applies to
Both Short-Term Rentals and Bed & Breakfasts

Summary

Ridgefield's Zoning Regulations define a Lodging Party as everyone in a single reservation at a Short-Term Rental or Bed & Breakfast, and Section 2.2 caps that party at ten people regardless of whether the guests are related, on top of separate time-and-frequency limits on the rental itself.

Lodging Party - One or more person(s) who together constitute a single reservation or booking for transient lodging accommodations, regardless of whether such persons are related. At a Bed & Breakfast or Short-Term Rental, a single Lodging Party may never exceed ten (10) people.

View official code

Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: the cited page had not changed since it was quoted.

Full Breakdown

2, Defined Terms, builds the town's short-term-rental rules around three linked definitions. Short-Term Rental covers an entire residential property, an entire Accessory Dwelling Unit, or one room within a Single-Family Dwelling offered as accommodation to only one Lodging Party at a time, with the owner allowed but not required to be onsite. Lodging Party is defined as one or more persons who together constitute a single reservation or booking for transient lodging accommodations, regardless of whether such persons are related, and the same subsection sets the hard cap: at a Bed & Breakfast or Short-Term Rental, a single Lodging Party may never exceed ten people.

11. Because a Short-Term Rental can only host one Lodging Party at a time, the ten-person cap functions as the property's total overnight-occupancy ceiling, not a per-room limit; a host cannot book two unrelated groups simultaneously to get around it. 1.

Violations & Fines

Hosting more than one Lodging Party at a time, or a Lodging Party exceeding ten people, is a violation of the Short-Term Rental definition itself, not just a permit condition. The ZEO can issue a violation notice under § 9.4.C ordering the condition corrected within ten days, and a host who keeps operating over the cap faces the fines and injunctive remedies under Conn. Gen. Stat. Chapter 124 via § 9.4.D, assessed per day the violation continues.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many guests can stay at a Ridgefield short-term rental?
Section 2.2 defines a Lodging Party as everyone in a single reservation, related or not, and caps it at ten people at a Bed & Breakfast or Short-Term Rental. A Short-Term Rental can only host one Lodging Party at a time, so ten is effectively the property's overnight-occupancy ceiling.
Can I book two separate groups into different rooms on the same night?
No. The Short-Term Rental definition in § 2.2 limits the use to accommodating only one Lodging Party at a time. Splitting the property between two unrelated bookings on the same night would mean hosting two Lodging Parties simultaneously, which falls outside the definition and the permit that authorizes it.
When did Ridgefield adopt the ten-person cap?
The current Short-Term Rental and Lodging Party definitions were adopted under amendment A-26-1 on June 23, 2026, part of a broader rewrite that also added the Zoning Permit and Special Permit tiers in Section 3.3 and the $100/$300 fee schedule in Section 10.1.

Sources & Official References

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