Burlington Lodging in a Nutshell |
Deborah Straw, Contributing Writer |
 Burlington, Vermont is a fine place to live and to visit, as witnessed by several awards over the last several years. These range from “Best Overall Standard of Living in the United States,” to the "Great American Main Street Award," to “Best Air Quality in America.”
This largest “city” in Vermont is quite cosmopolitan. The population remains around 39,000 year-round residents, but the town feels much larger because of its big-city amenities.
The arts are alive and well in Burlington during all seasons. One of the reasons for this is the presence of six colleges and universities within a 10-mile radius. The largest is the University of Vermont, but lectures, concerts, and art shows take place at all of the colleges. Students of all ages keep Burlington residents on their intellectual toes. In the summer months, there's the the Mozart Festival, with outdoor and indoor concerts at Shelburne Farms and the Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe, and aboard a Lake Champlain ferry. The Mozart Festival also holds a winter series. The June Jazz Festival in June is also extremely popular.
The Lane Series and the Flynn Mainstage Series also offer world-class concerts year-round, many in the Flynn Theatre for the Performing Arts, a restored art deco masterpiece on Main Street. Burlington is also home to the Vermont Symphony Orchestra, a folk music festival, and an international film festival.
Food in Burlington is top-rate. The area hosts more than 200 restaurants. Try Smokejacks, Sweet Tomatoes, Opaline's, or the Daily Planet, all downtown. The introduction, two years ago, of the New England Culinary Institute’s excellent restaurant and take-out bakery/cafe, has upped the city's standards. A school for chefs, NECI also runs restaurants in neighboring Essex Junction and nearby Montpelier, the state capital. Several gourmet or ethnic shops are also worth browsing: Fresh Market; a Bosnian food market and restaurant; two or three Asian markets; three health food stores, and more.
Vermont and its residents fully embrace all four seasons, although spring is a bit too fleeting. Summer rolls in around the middle of June, and the wonderful, warm weather generally continues into September and early October. The foliage from September through the beginning of November is spectacular because of the oak and maple trees (which also produce the country’s top -flavored maple syrup in late winter.)
Winter comes into its own sometime in December and lasts into April. Eighty-one inches is the annual snowfall; winter sports are celebrated. But Burlington no longer gets the sub-zero temperatures of days past. Temperatures from December to April average in the 0 to 50-degree range. Six downhill ski areas are within an hour’s drive, as are several cross-country ski facilities.
Spring comes in late April and lasts until early June. It is the area's most provocative, beautiful season because of all the blossoming trees and bushes (crab apples, cherries, forsythia, and lilacs), the return of varied shades of green, and especially the lush carpet of grass. In spring, everyone -- maple sugarers, spring skiers, lovers, and gardeners -is happy. Because of the lake’s influence, Burlington's spring comes earlier and summer lasts longer than in most other Vermont locations.
You’ll not be disappointed with Vermont hospitality. It’s a mix between down-home and elegant. Burlington offers the best of both urban and rural life, with something for everyone to enjoy.
Top
|
