Visiting Stowe in the Fall
After our wedding in September, Brett and I wanted to get away for a mini honeymoon. Though we plan on having a longer honeymoon next year, we wanted to get away for a long weekend and enjoy a change of scenery. I’ve long wanted to visit Stowe, Vermont, and Brett was interested in the city, as well. So, after some research on the best weekends for fall foliage in Stowe, we decided to stay at the Lodge at Spruce Peak for September 27 through October 1, the first big weekend for fall in the area. While we both expected the area to be beautiful, we were blown away by the mountains and scenic views. Here, I’m sharing the best parts of our mini honeymoon in Stowe, Vermont, along with some of the gorgeous views you can expect to find in the area.
Overlooking Mount Mansfield in Stowe, Vermont
Table of Contents:
Our Trip to Stowe, Vermont
The Lodge at Spruce Peak Resort
There are a lot of great places to stay in Stowe, but we settled on the Lodge at Spruce Peak because of the resort amenities. Brett wanted to play a round of golf on their course, which you can only do if you stay at the resort, and I wanted to take advantage of their spa. It was expensive, but I am happy to say that the Lodge at Spruce Peak exceeded our high expectations, and not just because they upgraded our room to a 2,600 square foot penthouse (no idea how this happened, but it was pretty awesome to say the least).
Our room had a great balcony that looked out on the resort’s gondola and mountain access. I enjoyed having coffee and reading on my kindle out there most mornings, and we tended to leave the sliding glass door open while we were hanging out in the rooms because the weather was so gorgeous.
From our room, it was a short walk down to the resort’s various restaurants, shops, and spa. While Brett golfed on our first morning there, I wandered through the resort campus and took in the scenery ahead of my hot stone massage appointment. (Unsurprisingly, the hot stone massage was amazing and I cannot recommend it enough!) After my massage, while Brett wrapped up golf, I enjoyed a local lager on the patio of the Alpine Hall restaurant (photos of both just below).
*Note: the Lodge at Spruce Peak was previously called the Stowe Mountain Resort, and is still referred to as such on some websites, like the main Stowe site here.
Visiting Local Breweries in Stowe, Vermont
Brett and I are big brewery fans, so we were eager to try some of the local craft breweries in Stowe. The Vermont beer scene is pretty robust, so we had a long list of breweries to pick from, and we already have a few we know we need to visit next time. Ultimately, we visited three breweries: Von Trapp Brewing, Alchemist Brewery, and Idletyme Brewery. We spent the most time at Von Trapp Brewing, and had dinner there on Saturday night, and then visited Alchemist and Idletyme on Sunday.
Von Trapp Brewing
Von Trapp Brewing was incredibly busy, so maybe go at an off time. The beerhall is pretty sizable, but most of the seating is reserved for the restaurant, unless you can grab a spot at the bar like we did. They have a great patio, too, where you can pass a very pleasant fall evening. We liked all of their beers, really, but my favorites were the Vienna, an Austrian style lager, and the Dunkel, a dark lager. They had their Oktoberfest beer on tap, as well, which we both really enjoyed. I had a fun time telling Brett all about the Von Trapp family, thanks to Michelle Moran’s new book about Maria von Trapp!
Plus, the Von Trapp property is huge, encompassing another gorgeous resort that is popular for visitors to Stowe, Vermont. And, on that property, they have fluffy cows! We got to see them on the way to the airport (see the last photo below).
Alchemist Brewing
We didn’t spend a ton of time at Alchemist Brewing, since we were eager for lunch at Idletyme Brewing just a short walk away, but Brett and I both agreed that, if we lived in the area, this is probably the brewery we’d hang out at most. Alchemist had a very chill atmosphere, with a mix of indoor, patio, and outdoor seating that would suit pretty much any season. The beers were tasty, if a bit heavy after a night of lagers at Von Trapp. We sat in some really comfy Adirondack chairs in their yard and enjoyed watching the many dogs that visited the brewery.
Idletyme Brewing
The Idletyme Brewing restaurant came highly recommended to us, so I was really excited to try it out. They have a nice back patio with a separate bar, which was predictably busy because of the gorgeous weather, so we sat inside because we were too hungry to wait. We started out with an order of their Vermont Cheddar Fritters and a flight of beer, which was a great choice on both fronts. The beer flight featured six of their most popular or seasonal beers, including a very tasty Helles and Oktoberfest Marzen Lager, which I greatly enjoyed. All of these paired well with the fish and chips I had for lunch!
The Ben & Jerry’s Factory Tour
Since we were so close, I knew we had to go to the Ben & Jerry’s factory for their tour. I had been when I was a kid, so I was excited for Brett to see it, too. We got our tickets online ahead of time and the reservation process was really easy, even when we had to swap our time because we double-booked ourselves.
I’m not sure if it’s this busy year-round, but we went on Monday at noon and the whole place was slammed. The tours start every fifteen minutes, and each group we saw was full. I can see why it’s so popular, though; the tour was quick and informative and it came with tasty ice cream. On the day of our tour, they were giving out their Dirt Cake ice cream flavor, which was delicious.
After the tour, we got more ice cream — we were on vacation, after all — and walked up to the Flavor Graveyard. This was a bit of a trek, especially with stomachs full of ice cream, but it was a cute way to end the tour. Some of the lost flavors featured in the graveyard sounded really good to me!
Gondola SkyRide
Our last planned activity for our mini honeymoon in Stowe was to ride the gondola up the mountain to the Cliff House restaurant. Mostly, I wanted to go to the top of the mountain, and lunch seemed like a good idea. The gondola ride was in two parts: first, we took one gondola from the Lodge at Spruce Peak to the main gondola hub, where we switched cars and went up the mountain. The first leg of this ride was free; the second required a ticket which I bought ahead of time online. Also, we made reservations at the restaurant, which was a good call, because their operating hours are a little confusing (they close at 2:30 but our reservation was at 2:30? I’m not sure why, but it worked out).
As a native Floridian who didn’t see snow until she was 25, the gondola ride was a little harrowing. I imagine it would seem less high up if there was snow on the mountain, but, still, I did not like when it would randomly stop, causing our car to sway. Regardless, it was a great way to see the mountain and certainly the easiest way to get to the top of the mountain, where the views made it all worth it.
General Vibe & Scenic Beauty of Stowe, Vermont
In all, Stowe, Vermont, exceeded even our highest expectations. As far as a relaxing getaway is concerned, I can’t say enough good things about Stowe in the fall. Brett and I realized we had never really taken a proper vacation where relaxation was the entire point, and we both came home feeling refreshed after a busy year-plus of wedding planning, work, and life curveballs. In short, if you’re looking for beautiful places in Vermont to visit to refresh and recharge, Stowe is a great option. I can’t wait to go back!
From left to right:
The view overlooking the Von Trapp Lodge in Stowe, Vermont | Stopping by Cold Hollow Cider Mill | Visiting Waterbury Reservoir
Helpful Links for Planning Your Visit to Stowe, Vermont
- The Lodge at Spruce Peak
- Gondola SkyRide Tickets
- The Official Stowe, Vermont Site – great for ideas of what to do, where to eat, and so on!
- The Travel Bite on Stowe, Vermont – we used this travel guide to help plan our trip to Stowe!
