A state that loves a gathering
Vermonters gather to celebrate in every season — the maple boil, the harvest, the first snow, and every kind of music, craft and community tradition in between. Timing a trip around a festival is one of the best ways to feel the state’s character, and there’s rarely a weekend without one. This is a season-by-season guide to the celebrations worth planning around.
Spring festivals
As the snow melts, the sugarhouses open and the towns thaw out.
Maple Open House Weekend (statewide, March) — free sugarhouse tours, tastings and pancake breakfasts.
Vermont Maple Festival (St. Albans, April) — the maple capital’s three-day street party.
Waking Windows (Winooski, May) — a multi-venue indie-music and arts festival.
Summer festivals
Summer is the state’s busiest festival stretch, centered on Burlington and the mountain towns.
Discover Jazz Festival (Burlington, June) — ten days of free stages and Flynn Theater headliners.
Quechee Balloon Festival (June) — New England’s longest-running, with mass sunrise launches.
Vermont Brewers Festival (Burlington, July) — 40+ breweries on the Lake Champlain waterfront.
Festival of Fools (Burlington, August) — street performers and buskers take Church Street.
Autumn festivals
Fall pairs foliage with harvest and heritage celebrations.
Tunbridge World’s Fair (September) — an authentic agricultural fair held since 1867.
South End Art Hop (Burlington, September) — Vermont’s largest visual-arts celebration.
Stowe Oktoberfest (late September) — a Bavarian village of beer, brats and oompah bands.
NEK Fall Foliage Festival — a rotating week of village celebrations across the Kingdom.
Winter celebrations
When the snow settles in, Vermont leans into it rather than hiding.
Wassail Weekend (Woodstock, December) — a Victorian holiday with a horse-drawn parade.
Stowe Winter Carnival (January) — ice carving, snow golf and two weeks of winter fun.
Harbor lights & first-night events — town celebrations ringing in the season.
Planning around a festival
Festivals fill lodging fast — foliage-season fairs and Burlington’s big summer weekends can sell out rooms across a whole region, so book early and expect premium rates. Check exact dates each year, as many float within their month, and arrive early for parking at village fairs and balloon launches. Pair a festival with the season’s scenery — a fall fair with a foliage drive, a summer beer fest with a lake day — for the fullest taste of Vermont.
Good to know
What’s Vermont’s most famous festival?+
The Tunbridge World’s Fair (since 1867) and Burlington’s Discover Jazz and Vermont Brewers Festivals are among the best known.
When is maple season celebrated?+
Maple Open House Weekend runs statewide in March, and the Vermont Maple Festival takes over St. Albans in April.
What festivals happen in winter?+
Woodstock’s Victorian Wassail Weekend in December and the Stowe Winter Carnival in January lead the winter calendar.
Do festivals affect lodging?+
Yes — foliage fairs and Burlington’s summer weekends sell out rooms region-wide, so book early at premium rates.
What’s the biggest arts event?+
The South End Art Hop in Burlington each September, Vermont’s largest visual-arts celebration.