Best Places to Visit in Vermont

Vermont is one of the most visually coherent destination states in the country, in part because of deliberate policy — its 1968 billboard ban being a prime example — which means its mountains, villages, farms, and foliage drives reinforce each other rather than competing for attention.

Stowe

Stowe remains the state's most complete single destination, combining Mount Mansfield's scenery and trail access with a highly developed village-tourism infrastructure that works across ski season, foliage season, and summer alike.

Shelburne Farms and Shelburne Museum

Just south of Burlington, Shelburne Farms — a working dairy farm and National Historic Landmark set on a former Gilded Age estate — sits near the Shelburne Museum, an extensive collection of Americana that includes an actual steamboat relocated onto the museum grounds, together forming one of the state's richest cultural stops.

Woodstock

Woodstock is one of the strongest village destinations in New England, appealing to travelers who want classic Vermont atmosphere without leaning as heavily on resort infrastructure as Stowe does.

Burlington

Burlington adds genuine lakefront city life to a state otherwise dominated by small-town travel, broadening what a Vermont trip can include with its waterfront, university energy, and food and brewery scene.

Mad River Valley

The Mad River Valley offers one of the best ways to experience Vermont as a living, working landscape rather than a packaged tourism brand, combining scenery, local food, and mountain access in unusually close balance.

Northeast Kingdom

Travelers looking for a quieter, more spacious version of the state find it in the Northeast Kingdom, which shows Vermont at its most rural and least polished — a contrast that is exactly why many visitors find it the most memorable part of the trip.