I stumbled upon this Fall Foliage train tour after planning a trip from Virginia to Vermont for my…read morehusband's birthday. It was our first time in Vermont, and we were very much looking forward to a romantic, slow weekend. The train tour seemed like something we'd really like. I actually very much enjoyed the ride. We came a little early in the year (the 1st day of fall), so the fall foliage wasn't completely changed over yet, but we still saw some great views. I purchased the tickets online. They offer a variety of tours and 2 different locations for the fall foliage tour. You can either choose a 1 hour trip to Rockingham, which is the tour we chose. Or you can choose a 2 hour trip to Ludlow. From my understanding, Ludlow is more town views and Rockingham is more mountain views. It was $25 per person for our tour. This does not include beverages or a meal; it is simply a train ride. Country Girl Diner was available on board should snacks or beverages interest you for an additional fee. They do offer dinner rides, which did not interest us. We were scheduled to leave at 3:30pm and arrived about 15 minutes prior to boarding. There wasn't any directions on where to stand when we arrived; some folks were waiting on one side of the building, and some on the other...a few inside. So I asked a gentleman, who looked as though he might be staff, and he told me where we'd be boarding. It would've been nice if someone was there that gave directions to all of us, so people wouldn't seem to be confused on where they need to be. I assume that that is his job, but instead he just stood around awaiting for the train with everyone. Once the train arrived, he walked over and threw down a stepping stool and we all started following him. We did not have to print off our tickets; we simply screenshot the tickets for them to see before boarding. It was open seating. We chose a seat facing the opposite direction of the depot, which proved to have the better views. The conductor does slow down for photos of a few of the sites (like a covered bridge), but overall, he does go fast and like several reviews mentioned, there is a lot of brush and not much to see. What we did see was very nice, but I would highly recommend that they slow it down for the majority of the trip rather than the other way around. The conductor did give a little information about what we were seeing over the intercom. I think I enjoyed this activity a lot more than my husband; and maybe more than many others who've been on it. I didn't expect much from it; it was a nice leisurely, simple ride through Vermont. I do feel like the tickets should have been about half of what they cost, due to the little you get to see. The train will go one direction a half hour up, and come back the same direction a half hour back. If you don't expect too much from the trip, you will be satisfied with the ride.

The "Champlain Valley Dinner Train" takes you from Burlington to Middlebury and back. This is a…read morelovely way to spend 3 hours in Vermont with an excellent meal, scenic views, a lovely lakeside journey, and some railroad history. Drinks were not included but surprisingly reasonably priced. Pro Tip: Arrive early for a lakeside seat. Dinner includes a salad, your choice of half a dozen entrees, and a choice of strawberry trifle or flourless chocolate cake for dessert. I had the sirlion au poivre, which was cooked nicely, but perhaps a little heavy on the pepper, and RL had the filet of sole stuffed with scallop and crab. I could see the vegetarian lasagne at the next table, and it also looked wonderful. Large portions all round. Service was very friendly. And the sunset views across the lake were wonderful.

Great little tour. Maybe ask if you can sit on the side with the better lake view. Dinner was good…read moreand staff were nice.

This was my first dinner train and I honestly am unsure if I would do it again. The train itself…read morewas clean but the seats were uncomfortable. The food was good, tasty but the dessert was lacking. I do wonder if service issues was due to staffing but am unsure. I felt the price point was way over. The train ride itself was a couple if hours so be sure you have good company All in all it was ok.

What a treat! Highly recommend this spot to view an eclectic and vast assortment of items. Found…read morethis place on Reddit, and really didn't know what to expect. A perfect slightly-rainy day activity, but bring an umbrella. AAA and student discounts available. Open seasonally (check their website) but daily from 10am-5pm. We arrived at 10:30am and didn't leave until closing @ 5pm. They allow you to visit the following day if you show your receipt. We took our time, stopping by the cafe a couple times, only rushing a bit in the last 20 minutes, although we did not see the exhibitions in the shiny and new exhibition center near the entrance. Could definitely knock this place out in one day if you were efficient. Little shuttles available (think long, covered golf carts), running every ~15 minutes. Don't miss the Prentis and Stencil House tours (10:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m., and 3:30 p.m. 45 minutes) and Ticonderoga steamboat tours (11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. 45 minutes). The top floor of the Ticonderoga was closed off due to rain (potential slipping). Demonstrations at the blacksmith and printing house, which was a pleasant surprise (special thanks to Joe!). Plethora of impressive and comprehensive collections ranging from circus, carriage, taxidermy, furniture, dolls, paintings - really anything and everything!

We had visited here once before in 2006 and were happy to have a chance to return as we were…read morepassing through town this week. It was a rainy day which meant there were very few people here and we really enjoyed it being so uncrowded. The rain wasn't a problem at all as we had raincoats and umbrellas for traveling between buildings and we could leave our umbrellas near the door at each building so we didn't drip all over the floors. Staff were really knowledgeable and friendly as we explored all the buildings on the grounds. They don't dress as historical characters and do role playing here which is a huge plus for me. I much prefer how Shelburne just has knowledgeable staff available. They seem, overall, more geared towards adults than kids which is unique among similar history museums. We spent about 5 hours here and still didn't see everything and so this can definitely be a full day activity! Highlights are the restored ship the Ticonderoga and circus parade sculpture that is over 500 feet long and took over 25;years to complete, as well as the round barn and covered bridge. The exhibits in all of the buildings are so interesting and the general store and apothecary have so much detail ton look at, those exhibits alone are great for spending lots of time. We had a nice lunch in the cafe. The options are basic, but good. I had a chicken salad sandwich that had nice chunks of chicken, dried cranberries and cheese along with lettuce and tomato on hearty bread. Prices were reasonable. Definitely a great rainy day activity option!

Full Disclosure: I'm a professional public transportation advocate, and much of my work focuses on…read moreAmtrak. The small station at Essex Junction serves the Burlington region. While Amtrak removed the station agent as part of budget cuts in 2002, there is still a friendly and knowledgeable caretaker who opens the station for the morning departure of the southbound Vermonter and the evening arrival of its northbound counterpart. He keeps the interior stocked with Amtrak timetables, announces train status information, and answers other general questions. The station is accessible from Burlington via Chittenden County Transportation Authority bus route 2. Enterprise Rent-A-Car in South Burlington (not the airport location) has also been more than happy to drop me off at the station.

Trains in Vermont! Where the fares are cheap,…read moreThe scenery is green, The seats are mostly empty, And the toilets are clean. Trains in Vermont!

You should be truly ashamed of yourself. When are the…read moreSaratoga to Montreal RailRoad Tracks getting Fixed. What are all those broken RailRoad ties on the side of the tracks. It was fun camping out at Ft Henry. Should have brought my fishing pole. I did like the AMTRAK burger

I decided I wanted to get back in n scale hobbies, I bought my locomotive and box cars from a…read moredifferent place 3 days ago they wherw sent immediately. This company i bought an expensive basis track for 222 dollars, more expensive then the train.its been 3 days and 5 phone calls with 3 e mails and nothing no calls,no e mail nothing they ghosted me for my money and I gave them a deadline today at 1200 to have my stuff sent or im filling the dispute. So im basically getting my train with no track its awful, there horrible customer service saty away from this company. Im a disabled American and they treated me and my money like trash. They dont even deserve 1 star but I had no option to pick nothing.I would also like to add when I asked for my refund the guy told me to be quiet and said never call her again!!! Talk about the worst of the worst, to tell a customer to be quiet and never call them again way rude,that's how they speak to paying customer Save yourself the massive headache with them and never go there ever!

Bought my first DCC controller from Tony's Trains and was quite pleased. However recently ordered…read moreDCC wire and LED lights from them and received only the wire without the lights. Emailed the store about the problem and did not receive a response even though I was charged for the lights. I suspect they believe I was trying to get something for nothing. I believe anyone can make an error in shipping, but I don't think I will trust them again with a purchase.

If you haven't explored the Granby Zoo and you live in upstate NY and Canada WHAT ARE YOU DOING?…read moreFirst and foremost, everything is better with the Canadians in the winter. What other zoo can you happily walk around in snow pants and see beautiful animals when it's absolutely freezing outside?! It was not even crowded and all the animals are active. They have such a wide range of amazing animals such as elephants, giraffes, lemurs, monkeys, leopards, moles, birds, tigers, lions, red pandas, kangaroos, turtles hippos, bats and beyond! You can have the opportunity to feed and ride horses and goats! They are incredibly friendly and will rub against you and follow your children; they're ridiculously hilarious and don't care about personal space. So affectionate! In the summer you can have the water park and other amenities, but the winter time we had so much fun! The mascots will have dance parties and greet you! They're so much fun! Also they speak French and English here! Also don't forget to stop by the gift shop OMG THEY HAVE EVERYTHING! The best gift shop ever and I bought my favorite lemur stuffed animal!! We had the best time here and hope you get to visit this incredible zoo!

Minimal English translation specially on signages, everything is on french. Some summer job kids…read morestaff know how to speak english. Moderately well maintained zoo. Accepts credit/debit but bring cash since their terminals might fail and you cant take the transaction(which happened to us, so we werent able to ride the train). Bring food! Most stalls when we visited are closed, their own cafeteria is the only opened and it is expensive for the quality and quantity and does not taste good. Their is a stroller rental if you forgot one near the entrance. There was no wait on our visit and moderate crowd as what othrrs say but for us it was alot.