Stowe, Vermont and the surrounding towns are famous in the winter if you are a skier. The area is beautiful in the autumn too! We made the short trip to Stowe, Vermont last October to enjoy the changing of the leaves and participated in the Fall Foilage Festival.
It is a relatively short drive from our home. We crossed into the US at the small border crossing at Rouses Point. Three cars were in the lineup when we crossed on a Friday afternoon. There was no Nexus line!
Fall Foilage Festival
The fall festival was very well attended. There was a big tent sent up at Top Notch Field. There were handmade arts and crafts, and many options to sample a variety of local Vermont foods- which often contained apple or maple syrup. The food trucks had tasty dining options, and we enjoyed the musical acts throughout the weekend. Pets were not allowed.
Sweet Treats
We enjoyed the famous apple cider donuts from the renowned bakery called Cold Hollow Cider Mill. The bakery was bustling! The wait to purchase and the difficulty in parking here dampened our enthusiasm. The donut, however, was delicious!
We also sampled several maple syrup-infused beverages and apple ciders over the weekend. My favourite beverage was from Stowe Cider, the local craft cidery. They created a tasty apple cider donut cider! Stowe Cider has a huge restaurant that easily accommodated the crowds.
We drove up to the Trapp Family Lodge (the same Von Trapps that inspired the Sound of Music) and enjoyed watching a wedding party navigate the puddles to get to their photo shoot. We did not stay at this famous singers’ chalet.
We travelled to the festival on the Canadian Thanksgiving weekend. Since the town is small, all traffic must move along a windy two-lane road.
Waterbury’s Famous Ice Creamery
One of the most famous places to visit was in nearby Waterbury. This is the home of the original Ben and Jerry’s ice cream!
Since it was a busy time, we pre-booked our factory tour ahead of time. It was worth the wait and there was a tasty treat at the end of the tour! We also like visiting the graveyard of the discontinued flavours!
As a group of 4 adults, we booked a rustic Airbnb that was a 15-minute drive from town. This made our accommodation costs quite reasonable. Book your accommodation well ahead if you plan to visit the Stowe area in October. Places sell out! TripAdvisor helped select our food options and reviews were also up to date.
Would We Go Again?
We enjoyed our experiences and loved the landscapes and the tasty food and beverage options. Everywhere we went we spoke to friendly people. We would not go to the Fall Foilage Festival again because the traffic congestion and lineups were off-putting. A car was necessary to visit the area and each stop required patience in parking.
Visiting Vermont to enjoy the changing of the leaves and delicious homemade food and ciders could be done the week after the fall festival. If we were to visit again we would go mid-week in mid-October. It would be less congested and hotel prices would be considerably cheaper!
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