Explore the beauty of Vermont!
Vermont felt exactly how we hoped it would — charming small towns, rolling countryside, maple everything, and some surprisingly interesting attractions mixed in between. During our trip we spent time exploring Burlington, visiting local farms and food stops, wandering around Montpelier, and taking in all the classic Vermont scenery along the way.
It’s one of those states that feels relaxing almost immediately after you arrive. Whether you’re visiting in summer for the lakes and hiking or fall for the foliage, Vermont has a lot to offer year-round.
This trip took place in July 2021. Before Vermont, we were in New Hampshire and after, we were in New York City. This took place as part of a 2 week New England Road Trip!
Check out the full vlog here:
Montpelier
Our first stop in Vermont was the capital city of Montpelier, which might be one of the cutest capital cities we’ve visited.
It’s small, walkable, and has a really laid-back feel to it. It’s also apparently the only U.S. state capital without a McDonald’s and without a Starbucks, which honestly feels very on-brand for Vermont.
We had lunch at The Skinny Pancake, which quickly became one of our favorite restaurants of the trip. (We liked it enough that we ended up eating there again later in Burlington.) The downtown area is filled with local shops, cafés, and a really beautiful capitol building that’s worth walking around even if you only stop briefly.
Just outside Montpelier, we visited the Rock of Ages Granite Quarry, which unfortunately stopped public tours in 2025 after operating them for nearly 100 years. We were lucky enough to visit before they closed the tours, and honestly it ended up being one of the more interesting things we did in Vermont.
The tour brought us up to the edge of the massive quarry where you can look down nearly 600 feet to the bright milky-blue water and tiny workers and machinery far below. Even without seeing active blasting or major work happening, the scale alone was impressive.
The quarry produces granite used for everything from buildings to headstones, and nearby there’s actually a cemetery filled with elaborate granite monuments that’s oddly fascinating to walk through.
It’s a shame the tours are no longer operating because it really was a unique experience.
Burlington
Burlington may honestly be one of our favorite small cities we’ve visited in the U.S.
Between Lake Champlain, the mountain views, the walkable downtown, and the constant access to good food, it just felt like an incredibly easy place to spend a few days.
It also works really well as a home base for exploring the surrounding countryside, maple farms, and nearby mountain towns.
We stayed at a this wonderful hotel within walking distance of downtown and the lake, which made it easy to explore without needing to constantly drive everywhere.
Church Street
Our first evening in Burlington we headed down to Church Street, which is basically the heart of downtown.
The whole area feels straight out of a movie set with brick walkways, outdoor dining, local shops, live music, and people everywhere just enjoying being outside.
Naturally, one of our first stops involved Ben & Jerry’s ice cream because it feels almost mandatory while visiting Vermont.
Church Street ended up being one of those places we kept returning to throughout the trip because it was just a nice area to walk around in the evenings.
Lake Champlain
One of the best ways to spend time in Burlington is simply enjoying Lake Champlain.
There are beaches, walking and biking paths, parks, kayak rentals, and amazing mountain views across the water.
We spent one full day relaxing at North Beach Park because it had kayak rentals, a nice beach area, and good facilities nearby. We packed a picnic and basically spent the entire day there enjoying the scenery.
One thing we’d definitely recommend while in Burlington is making time for sunset along the waterfront. The downtown lakefront area has huge grassy parks, walking paths, and plenty of places to sit while watching the sun go down over the lake.
Also — and perhaps most importantly — Burlington is home to the world’s tallest filing cabinet, which is clearly an essential stop for any Vermont itinerary.
Shelbourne Farms
Shelburne Farms was one of our favorite quieter stops in Vermont.
The nonprofit farm property is beautiful and has miles of walking trails, open fields, gardens, and animals throughout the grounds. It’s the kind of place where you can either spend an hour wandering around or turn it into an entire afternoon.
You can also watch cheese being made, tour parts of the farm if you reserve tickets ahead of time, and browse the farm shop afterward.
Naturally, we left with maple syrup.
We spent just under two hours there, but could easily have stayed longer.
Food!!
One thing Vermont did not disappoint in was food.
Some of our favorite places we visited around Burlington included:
- Handy’s Lunch – This small diner has been around since 1945 and was packed with locals when we visited, which always feels like a good sign. Breakfast was simple, delicious, and affordable.
- Splash – Splash sits right along the lake with fantastic views over the water. The food was good, but admittedly part of what you’re paying for is definitely the location.
- Beansie’s Bus – This ended up being one of our kids’ favorite stops. It’s essentially a food stand operating out of a converted school bus located near a park and playground by the lake. The food was inexpensive, quick, and really good.
- El Cortijo – A solid Mexican restaurant right downtown and an easy dinner option while exploring Church Street.
- Skinny Pancake – After eating at the Montpelier location earlier in the trip, we ended up going again in Burlington because we liked it that much
- Burlington Bay Café – This was where we finally tried a maple creemee, which is basically Vermont’s version of maple soft serve ice cream. If you visit Vermont, getting a maple creemee feels non-negotiable.
Stowe
Using Burlington as our home base, we made our way out to Stowe, making a few stops.
Ben and Jerry’s
This is the headquarters of Ben and Jerry’s where you can actually take a factory tour. We opted out, since we had a packed day, but we did make a quick stop to visit the flavor graveyard.
Adorable Farm Stands
One of our favorite parts of driving around Vermont was how often we’d suddenly spot another farm stand, cider mill, maple shop, or roadside market and immediately pull over.
Honestly, half the fun of Vermont is just stopping randomly whenever you see a handmade sign for maple syrup.
Some of the places we visited included:
- Morse Farm Maple Sugarworks
- Cabot Farmers Store
- Smugglers’ Notch Distillery
- Lake Champlain Chocolates
- Cold Hollow Cider Mill
- Vermont Artisan Coffee & Tea
At Vermont Artisan Coffee & Tea, I ordered a maple latte that I am still thinking about years later. It may honestly have ruined all future lattes for me.
Von Trapp Family Lodge
As children of parents who absolutely loved The Sound of Music, we pretty much had no choice but to stop at the Von Trapp Family Lodge while in Vermont.
The lodge itself is beautiful and sits overlooking the surrounding countryside and mountains. Even just driving up to it feels scenic.
We didn’t spend a huge amount of time there, but there’s a brewery, trails, and a variety of activities if you want to stay longer or even stay overnight.
It definitely leans into the Austrian-style atmosphere in a way that somehow works perfectly in Vermont.
Stowe Mountain Resort
Stowe Mountain Resort ended up being a really fun family stop during our trip.
We hadn’t planned particularly far ahead, so we missed out on some of the activities like ziplining that require reservations, but we still took the gondola to the top of the mountain for the views.
As expected, the gondola tickets were fairly expensive, but the scenery from the top was excellent and gave us sweeping views over the mountains and countryside.
The whole Stowe area in general just feels quintessentially Vermont, with mountain scenery, small shops, farm stands, and winding roads everywhere you look.
Wrap Up Vermont
We were genuinely sad to leave Vermont.
It’s one of those places that somehow manages to feel both peaceful and full of things to explore at the same time. Between the lake towns, mountain views, maple farms, small local restaurants, and endless roadside stops, it felt like the kind of trip where slowing down was part of the experience.
Even just driving through the countryside toward New York ended up being memorable, with rolling hills, barns, covered bridges, and more farm stands than we could possibly stop at.
Vermont completely lived up to the image we had in our heads before visiting — and honestly may have exceeded it a little too.
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