I live not far from Sunapee. If nightlife is important to you, you're going to have to go to Concord, which is about 35-40 minutes away.. All the surrounding towns near Sunapee are lovely and small and have zero nightlife. The Town of Newport is next door to Sunapee, and has a few restaurants, but not many. New London is a small college town, and also has a little bit, but housing inventory is next to nothing, and what is there is very expensive, even by New Hampshire standards. The Town of Sunapee becomes more active in the summer, though.