Things to see and
places to visit
for visitors to Vermont

Vermont Links

Guests at our cottages often ask us for suggestions of places to visit and things to see. Therefore, we've started a list of links, and we've been pleased to learn that other Vermont visitors have also found it to be valuable. It's far from complete, but we plan to keep adding to it and will greatly appreciate suggestions. If you know of any other service or attraction that should be listed, please let us know.

General Information

A travel/culture/vacation site, with information ranging from skiing to camping to state history, is www.VirtualVermonter.com

A fairly extensive listing of listing of businesses, restaurants, and attractions in the Lake Champlain Valley can be found at www.LakeChamplain.com

The official state tourism site is VermontVacation.com. A wide variety of interesting Vermont information can be found at www.vermonter.com

The regional Chamber of Commerce site is www.vermont.org

The official site for the town of Hinesburg is www.hinesburg.org

A fascinating and colorful account of the early history of Fletcher is at www.rootsweb.com/~vermont/FranklinFletcher.html

Fishing License

To obtain a Vermont fishing license (temporary for a short visit or for the full season) go to http://www.vtfishandwildlife.com/licenses.cfm

Restaurants

We've never verified the truth of the claim, but we've often heard the comment that the Burlington area has more restaurants per capita than any other city on earth. While many restaurants statewide are listed in the more general directories, there is a specific one with much detail for greater Burlington. Go to http://hungryburlington.com/ Note: the information is supplied by the restaurants, so don't expect objective reviews, but this is a handy place to compare fare, prices, etc. In some cases, the full menus are included.

Ski Areas

The general site run by the ski area association is www.skivermont.com .

The big ski area and year-round resort near the Fletcher cottage is Smugglers Notch, popularly known as "Smuggs." For information, click on www.smuggs.com/ .

The closest ski area to Hinesburg (and not too long a drive from Fletcher) is Cochran's. This is a family-oriented, kid-friendly area with four lifts, eight trails, and low rates, run by the famous family of Olympic skiers. For information, click on www.cochranskiarea.com.

For cross-country skiing (and also mountain biking in the summer months) near our Hinesburg cottage you might be attracted to the Sleepy Hollow Ski and Bike Center just a few miles away. Information is at www.skisleepyhollow.com .

The closest big ski area to Hinesburg is Bolton Valley: for information, click on www.boltonvalley.com .

Within an hour's drive or less from either of the cottages are the other major mountains (aside from Smuggs); the Stowe area at www.stowe.com , and the Waitsfield-Warren area, which includes Sugarbush at www.sugarbush.com and Mad River at www.madriverglen.com .

Individual Attractions

The Burlington Book Festival, which comes up in September, is described at www.burlingtonbookfestival.com.

One of the biggest summertime attractions for Vermont visitors is the Shelburne Museum. For information, click on www.shelburnemuseum.org .

A very short drive from the Fletcher cottages is the famous Boyden Valley winery. For information on visits and tours of the winery, click on www.boydenvalley.com .

Stowe is a very short drive from Fletcher in summer, when the road through Smugglers Notch is open. Stowe has many summer attractions, including its famous Alpine Slide. For information, go to http://summer.stowe.com/activities/mountain.php .

Owls Head Blueberry Farm in Richmond is a popular attraction for many of our guests. Live music, free to pickers (and a modest fee if you just want to listen) is available many evenings. Click on www.owlsheadfarm.com for current attractions and other information. .

A wonderful, relatively little-known treasure is the Birds of Vermont Museum, a natural history museum based on amazing wood carvings of the state's birds. Getting there is a short and lovely scenic drive of a few miles from the Hinesburg cottage. For more information, click on www.birdsofvermont.org .

Several visitors to our cottages have strongly recommended Yoga Vermont, which offers classes and workshops in Astanga Yoga. Check it out at www.yogavermont.com . Another yoga option, right it Hinesburg, is Beecher Hill Yoga, with information at www.beecherhillyoga.com.

Many of our guests have enjoyed touring Ben and Jerry's ice cream factory in Waterbury. Information is at www.benjerry.com/our_company/about_us/tours/.

Tours of the Vermont Teddy Bear Company have also been popular. Information is at http://store.yahoo.com/vtbear/storeinfo.html.

If you enjoy gliding and soaring, you'll want to check out http://www.sugarbush.org in Warren.

For hot-air balloon rides, check out http://www.vermontballooning.com.

For information about Vermont's famous granite quarries, a good source is www.central-vt.com/web/roa/.

Another major attraction is the Vermont Mozart Festival. For information, click on www.vtmozart.com.

The biggest cruise ship on Lake Champlain is the Spirit of Ethan Allen. Cruises range from lunch-hour jaunts to major events, between May and October. For information, click www.soea.com .

If you're interested in the Vermont City Marathon, click on http://www.runvermont.org/.

For information on the annual Discover Jazz Festival, click on www.discoverjazz.com.

Information on the Vermont International Film Festival is at www.vtiff.org.

To learn about the Champlain Valley Folk Festival, click on www.cvfest.org.

If you're interested in Burlington's alternative music scene, the site to visit is www.bigheavyworld.com .

As noted, this is far from being a comprehensive listing, and additional suggestions are always greatly appreciated.

Cottage-Related Links:

Frequently Asked Questions about the Cottages
Vermont Attractions and Information
Comments from our Guests
Lake Iroquois Cottage
Fletcher Cottage # 1
Fletcher Cottage # 2
Fletcher Cottage # 3
Main Cottage Page

View from the deck

Metcalf Pond

Hinesburg Cottage Exterior