Girls' Weekend Trip To Burlington, Vermont

Date of Trip: June 2022

Number of Days: 3

Who went: Jenn, Lori and Randi

In my late 40s, the idea of a "Bachelorette Weekend" wasn't super appealing. But, I loved that my sister and one of my closest friends wanted to take the time to celebrate my upcoming nuptials. So, I set out to plan a weekend trip that was just my speed!

Top takeaways if you are planning a similar trip:

• The private sunset sail boat cruise on Lake Champlain is one of my favorite travel memories of all times. This is a must-do for anyone spending time in Burlington.

• Burlington is a fun and eclectic spot with lots of stuff to do. I felt that 3 days was plenty of time to take advantage the city... but I am also sure you could fill a week with unique things to do.

• If you're looking for fun east coast weekend, this should be a contender. It was perfect for a girls' weekend, and I think it would be a fantastic couples trip too!

• Realized upon looking back that I have a ton of pictures from our hike and our sunset cruise... but no pictures of anything else. Ooops.

Day 1 - Leisurely Burlington

Randi and I arrived from Charlotte around noon on a Friday (Lori didn't arrive until late Friday night). It was a beautiful flight in, Vermont certainly lives up to the name of the Green Mountain State.

The view from above as we were landing. They mean it when they say Green Mountain!

Randi and I grabbed our rental car and made our way to Church Street Marketplace, which is the center of downtown Burlington with numerous streets filled with cafes, bookstores and shops. It was a beautiful place to spend a Friday. We had an awesome lunch, I wish I could remember where it was!

We spent 3 nights at this great airbnb in Burlington's South End. It was small but well appointed and worked well for our trip. Randi and Lori got to relive their summer camp days in bunk beds!

Day 2 - Hiking & Boating

This area is too beautiful to not take advantage of a day hike! We were headed out to Mt. Philo State Park (about a 30 minute drive) when by complete luck we happened upon a Burlington Farmer's Market. We stopped and strolled through the market picking up some great local crafts.

After the market, we made our way to the Summit Trail trailhead in Mt. Philo. This 2-ish mile out-and-back trail was perfect... not too long to get hot, not too steep to get worn out. We were treated with some great views at the top!

Great view from the top!

Relaxing at the summit

After our hike, it seemed beary silly to not stop at the Vermont Teddy Bear Factory (which was on the way back town).

Beary cute!

We didn't take the tour but loved checking out all the stuffed magic in the lobby and gift shop (we may have brought a bear home!)

We went back to the house and got ready for dinner and our sail boat ride. We had a lovely dinner at Splash before heading over to the boat.

The view from dinner

We had an amazing private cruise on the Wild Rose (Whistling Man Schooner Company). Both the captain and the skipper were awesome!

They treated us to an amazing ride... and they had great historical knowledge of the Lake.

Did I mention the captain also took great photos?

The boat was BYOB, they provided the glasses.

We all agreed that this was the highlight of the trips and not to be missed!

Beautiful sunset on Lake Champlain.

Day 3 - Spa Day

What's a girls' weekend without a trip to the spa? We spent the day at Essex Resort where we enjoyed massages, lunch and a day at the pool. Not a bad way to unwind!

For dinner, we headed back to Church Street Marketplace for an Italian dinner and treats at one of the original Ben & Jerry's.

So grateful for these gals for spending the weekend to celebrate me. I loved every minute of it!