Vermont’s main airport is Burlington International (BTV). It turned 100 in 2020, and continues to offer jaw-dropping views of Lake Champlain and the Green Mountains to passengers in window seats. On the ground, you’ll find rental cars and ample ground transport, including taxis. Visitors also rely on Boston’s Logan International Airport (BOS), 208 miles southeast of Vermont’s center, and Canada’s Montréal-Trudeau International Airport (YUL), 116 miles northwest. Train travel can be a wonderful alternative, and bus routes also lace the region. Rideshares operate in Vermont too. Driving remains a popular option, with straightforward interstates running north to south. But get a good navigation app or mapwise friend for journeys across the state. The routes get byzantine quickly, and many mountain passes close in winter.

Locals like to joke that northern New England has just two seasons: winter and August. That said, May to mid-October brings pleasant temperatures, while avoiding winter’s snow and the worst of the mud season in April. Fans of snow sports should visit in February, when the Stowe Derby pits downhill skis against cross-country ones (the route requires both, but participants must pick just one). Spring also shepherds in the Vermont Maple Festival, while July showcases the state’s cheesemaking prowess (expect samples of chocolate, beer, wine, and spirits too). Catch acclaimed chamber musicians during summer’s Marlboro Music Festival and the state fair in mid-September. Leaf-peeping kicks off from then and runs through October: check a foliage forecaster for the peak splendor.

Since 1820, one of America’s only floating bridges has spanned Sunset Lake here, 53 miles southeast of Burlington. Now in its eighth iteration, it forms part of Route 65, is fully accessible, and relies on modern materials like durable fiber-reinforced polymer pontoons. Timber decking preserves its historic look and makes for a picturesque stop.

A folk artist built this celebration to man’s best friend in 2000, following a grave illness and two-month coma. Styled like an 1820 white-steepled village church, it sits among the pastures and rolling mountains of St. Johnsbury, Vermont. Light from canine-themed stained glass spills across dog carvings, as well as notes and photos of visitors’ beloved pups. It also provides treats for any dogs tagging along, who can run, swim, and explore the property’s obstacle course sans leashes. Volunteers maintain this free attraction, which welcomes “All creeds, all breeds. No dogmas allowed.”

Take the road less traveled — or rather this National Recreation Trail in the Green Mountain National Forest. Poems by Robert Frost feature along this easy, flat 1.2-mile loop, running through woods, fields, and berry patches. Wheelchair users can access the first third of a mile, where a boardwalk crosses a beaver pond.