Travel Tips for Vermont Winter Tourist Attractions

Vermont comes to life in the winter.  The bumper to bumper traffic is long gone from the autumn leaf visitors, and the emphasis shifts to the ski slopes and the natural beauty of this state.  Here are our top attractions for Vermont:
 

1. The natural beauty -- just drive around and admire the scenery as well as the small towns. 
    

2. Manchester and the surrounding area -- this is a very popular tourist area, but once you get away from the outlet stores, you step back into a quaint New England area.  Manchester has a lot to offer as a destination -- good restaurants, highly rated inns and B&B's, a small town atmosphere, and great scenery.
    

3. Hildene (Manchester) -- the summer home of Abraham Lincoln's son, Robert, the mansion is still impressive today.  Hildene has a very good visitors' center, and the home and grounds are supported by visitors and volunteers. Travel Tip -- as you are facing the front of the house, turn to your left and walk to the small observatory.  This is perched on the side of a hill, and there are some dramatic views of the countryside from there.
    

4. British School of Falconry -- one of the highlights of our trip.  Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have a hawk land on your outstretched arm?  It happens here.  After a short introduction (including meeting their eagle), you begin working one of the school's hawks.  And, refreshingly, there is none of the "Our insurance company won't let us do that" attitude here -- you really do get to experience a Harris Hawk coming in for a landing on your arm with its four foot wingspan.  Not once, but a number of times.  During the winter, when we visited, the school uses a long barn and the birds fly inside.  Highly recommended.  Note:  the school is difficult to find -- see our photos of the exterior so you know what to look for.  Also, if you have a GPS, the physical address is 1550 River Road in Manchester. 
    

5. Covered bridges -- of course you will want to see at least one of these.  If you are in the Manchester area, plan on visiting the West Arlington Bridge.  It's one of Vermont's most photographed bridges, and it is not far from the main roads.  Take Route 313 west of Arlington, and watch for the signs. 
    

6. Ben and Jerry's Factory (outside Waterbury) -- as we drove up to the factory, it was small enough that we thought it had to be just a visitors' center.  It's not -- this is the main plant, and by utilizing a very high degree of automation the company is able to produce approximately one third of its total ice cream here each day.  This was very enjoyable tour, and we were glad we went.  Surprises:  Ben and Jerry sold out to a large conglomerate in 2000; the tour is not free; and (worst of all) you only get a tiny cup of ice cream at the end of the tour (you can, of course, buy more at the visitors' center). 
    

7. Trapp Family Lodge (outside Waterbury) -- yes, this is still run by THE Trapp family, of "Sound of Music" fame.  The scenery here is great -- we ate lunch at the Austrian Tea Room and looked out over the Green Mountains. 
    

Also see:

Vermont Overview

Vermont Lodging and Restaurants

Vermont Travel Photos