In my role as Destination Sales Manager, I have been fortunate to bring many meetings and conferences to the Burlington area over the past 7 years. One question that I am often asked is “What’s the Burlington region really like?” A great question and one I take pride in answering.

 

View from an Airplane flying over Burlington, VT with the city scape and Lake Champlain in the foreground.

 

Getting Here Is Easier Than People Expect

I've had planners tell me they almost skipped Burlington because they assumed it would be difficult to fly in and out of Burlington. It isn't. BTV has direct flights from most major East Coast and Mid-West hubs, and you're downtown before you've even finished checking your email from the flight. No forty minute shuttle ride eating into your first afternoon in our great city. Once your group lands, the city and its amazing hospitality do the rest. Church Street Marketplace, the waterfront, most of our hotels, all of it is within a walk. That means fewer logistics for you as the planner to deal with and fewer excuses for attendees to skip the group dinner because "it's too far."

If you're leaning toward a resort experience, I always point planners to The Essex, Vermont's Culinary Resort & Spa. The resort offers substantial indoor and outdoor meeting space, on site dining, and a full-service spa. It’s one stop shopping for guest rooms, meeting space, dining options and activities.  If your group skews academic, or you needs larger group blocks, UVM offers meeting space and accommodations in the summer months.  Downtown hotels offering meeting space and guest rooms include:  Hotel Vermont, a small independent boutique right off Church Street Marketplace that reads as more personal than corporate; Hotel Champlain, Curio Collection by Hilton, offering over 20,000 square feet of meeting space and honestly some of the best lake views in town. DoubleTree by Hilton Burlington Vermont, offers one of the largest conference centers in the state if you're running something larger; Delta Hotels by Marriott Burlington, recently renovated and reliable for group blocks; and Best Western Plus Windjammer Inn & Conference Center, a solid mid-size option I use often for smaller conferences that still need on site meeting space. You can browse the rest on our Places to Stay page if none of this fits what you're picturing.

 

Fall

This is the season everyone asks for first. Church Street Marketplace turns red and gold like it's on a schedule, the air gets that first real bite, and people actually want to be outside between sessions instead of scrolling in a hallway.

Church Street in the Fall

Winter

People underestimate winter here, and I get it, but I've watched it win over plenty of skeptical planners. A few properties run shuttles straight to the mountains, so "skiing by 9am" is a real line item on an agenda, not wishful thinking. Evenings tend to be quieter and cozier, which some groups prefer over a big loud mixer.

  • Skiing and riding at nearby mountains, shuttle accessible from several downtown hotels

  • Fireside après at a Church Street Marketplace bar

  • Ice skating as a team activity that doesn't feel forced

  • The indoor Farmers Market, which keeps going all winter

10 Ways To Experience The Charm Of Burlington, Vermont In The Winter

Spring

Spring doesn't get the marketing dollars that fall does, and I think that's exactly why it works so well for planners who want their group to feel like they found something rather than follow a brochure. The market stalls come back, the sugarhouses run their last boils of the season, and the waterfront path fills back up with people who've clearly been waiting for it.

International Workshop on Agritourism

Summer

This is Lake Champlain’s season; plain and simple Burlington fully embraces it. The waterfront basically becomes a second venue. Patios fill up, the bike path gets busy, and the daylight stretches long enough that an evening off site doesn't have to wrap early. If your group wants an outdoor option that isn't a compromise, this is the season to do it in.

South End Get Down at night