Ten Great Things to Do in Northern Vermont

Northern Vermont ranges from hip lakeside Burlington to deep, pristine forests.

Vermont vacations cannot be complete if they do not get within shouting distance of the Canadian border, because northern Vermont has special charms of its own. From the Lake Champlain Valley in the northwest, to the ski resorts of the north-central Stowe/Waterbury region, to the pristine beauty of the Northeast Kingdom, northern Vermont is where the beauty of nature comes into sharp focus. A large selection of state parks offers plenty of outdoor sports, camping, and lovely beaches. Some highlights are the city of Burlington – home of the University of Vermont -- on the shore of historic Lake Champlain, where you can find inns and other lodgings, fine dining, shopping, high-caliber spas, and hip nightlife. Before heading east, toward Stowe, fans of covered bridges may want to swing northward – especially during foliage season -- toward the towns of Montgomery and Enosburg Falls, where there is a cluster of these historic beauties. In the north-central region, Stowe is the place to go for year-round activities, although winter, of course, is the ski resorts time to shine with downhill skiing, snow tubing, snowshoeing, and other outdoor winter activities.

The Northeast Kingdom, a more remote jewel of the Green Mountain state, is the place to go for rustic state parks, camping, fishing, hiking and biking trails, snowmobiling, and spectacular forests. The region also offers indoor forms of enjoyment for the body and the mind. Take, for instance, a visit to Ben & Jerry’s in Waterbury, complete with a guided tour of the factory and a sampling stop at the FlavoRoom. The state offers many places and opportunities to enjoy local foods, like cheese, chocolate, and the famous Vermont maple syrup.To feed the mind, plan a stop at any of these museums: the Shelburne Museum in Shelburne, the Fairbanks Museum and Planetarium in St. Johnsbury, the National Museum of the Morgan Horse (bred in Vermont) in Shelburne, or the Maple Grove Farms Museum and Factory in St. Johnsbury.

The principal city of the region is Burlington, home of the University of Vermont and heavily endowed with cultural activities, good shopping, and hip nightlife. Other major towns are St. Albans, which was once a major railroad hub and still boasts an elegant rail station as well as a massive public green; Newport, northern anchor of the Northeast Kingdom, situated at the tip of the fantastically named Lake Memphremagog; and St. Johnsbury, named in honor of Michel Guillaume St. Jean de Vrevecoeur, a French dignitary and acquaintance of Ethan Allen’s, and home to the St. Johnsbury Academy and St. Johnsbury Athenaeum.

Ten Great Things to Do in Northern Vermont