Woodstock VT: what to see, where to stay and how to get around
Woodstock is often called one of the prettiest villages in America, and it has worked to stay that way, with Federal-style houses, a covered bridge in the middle of town and a green that has hardly changed in two centuries. Much of its look was protected by the Rockefeller family, who married into the Billings estate above the village. This walk takes about two hours and ends with a climb to a lookout and a pond. Wear shoes for a forest trail.
A short history of Woodstock VT
Woodstock was chartered in 1761 and in the 19th century was a prosperous county seat, with Federal-style houses around a village green. George Perkins Marsh, one of the pioneers of conservation, grew up here, and his farm later passed to the Billings and Rockefeller families. In 1934 the first ski rope tow in the United States was set running on a hill in the town. In 1992 the farm became a national historical park, the only one in Vermont.
The ten best sights in Woodstock VT
1Middle Covered BridgeThe covered bridge in the middle of the village, a minute from the Green; walk through it, cars cross one at a time
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2Woodstock Green
The oval village green ringed by old houses, the county courthouse and the inn; park nearby and walk
3Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical ParkMansion tours in summer and autumn, and free trails on Mount Tom all year
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4Billings Farm & Museum
A working dairy farm with Jersey cows and a farm museum; milking in the afternoon
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5Woodstock History Center
Small museum of village life in an early-1800s house on Elm Street
6Taftsville Covered BridgeOne of the oldest covered bridges in Vermont, 10 minutes east on the road to Quechee
7Lincoln Covered BridgeA red-painted covered bridge 10 minutes west, with a small pull-off for photos
8Quechee GorgeLook down from the highway bridge, then take the trail to the river; 15 minutes east
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9VINS Nature Center
Birds of prey that cannot be released, plus a canopy walk in the treetops
10Simon PearceWatch glassblowers at work in an old mill by the Quechee falls; free
Scan with your phone camera to open the map there
What is an audio walk?
Tours in Woodstock VT →A guide in your headphones: open the walk on our site, walk from stop to stop, and at each one your phone tells its story. No guide, no group, and free. This is the first walk in Woodstock VT:
Free walking tours in Woodstock VT
The village on foot
Woodstock is often called one of the prettiest villages in America, and it has worked to stay that way, with Federal-style houses, a covered bridge in the middle of town and a green that has hardly changed in two centuries. Much of its look was protected by the Rockefeller family, who married into the Billings estate above the village. This walk takes about two hours and ends with a climb to a lookout and a pond. Wear shoes for a forest trail.
- Woodstock Green · Woodstock has been the shire town, the county seat, of Windsor County since the late 1700s, and the courthouse still stands on the Green. The houses around the oval are mostly Federal-style, built by lawyers and merchants who prospered from the county business.
- Middle Covered Bridge · It looks old, but it was built in 1969 by Milton Graton, a New Hampshire bridge-wright who used traditional joinery and hand tools. It was the first covered bridge built in Vermont in many decades, and it is still open to cars.
- F. H. Gillingham & Sons · The store has been run by the same family since 1886. The wooden floors creak, and the shelves still mix local maple syrup and cheese with nails, paint and kitchen tools.
- Woodstock History Center · The museum is in the Dana House, a family home from the early 1800s, with rooms furnished as they were lived in. A separate gallery tells how Woodstock grew from a mill village into a resort.
- Mount Tom · When Frederick Billings bought the estate in 1869, these slopes were bare sheep pasture. He replanted them with trees from all over the world, and the forest you climb through is one of the oldest planned forests in the United States.
- The Pogue · A pond high on Mount Tom, reached by the old carriage roads of the estate. The carriage roads were laid out for horse-drawn rides, so the grades are gentle, and in winter they are groomed for cross-country skiing.
Man and nature
In 1864 a man who grew up in Woodstock wrote that people were wrecking the land, and the idea of American conservation grew from this valley. This route follows it from the estate and farm where it began to the gorge, the bird centre and the craft workshops along the Ottauquechee River. Most stops are within 15 minutes of each other by car. Allow a full day, and end across the river at a sculptor's garden in New Hampshire.
- Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park · George Perkins Marsh grew up on this estate and in 1864 published Man and Nature, one of the first books to warn that people were destroying their environment. It is the only national park in Vermont, and it tells the story of American conservation.
- Billings Farm & Museum · Frederick Billings, who read Marsh's book, set up a model dairy farm here in 1871 and imported Jersey cows from the island of Jersey. The farm still milks a Jersey herd today.
- Quechee Gorge · Called Vermont's Little Grand Canyon, the gorge is about 50 metres deep, cut by meltwater at the end of the last ice age. The bridge you stand on was built in 1911 for the railway and carries the road since the trains stopped.
- VINS Nature Center · The Vermont Institute of Natural Science treats injured wild birds, and those that can never fly free again, such as eagles, owls and hawks, live here in open-air enclosures. The canopy walk rises about 15 metres into the treetops.
- Simon Pearce · The Irish glassblower Simon Pearce opened his workshop in 1981 in an old woollen mill beside the Ottauquechee falls. The river's water still turns the turbine that helps power the glass furnaces.
- Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park · Augustus Saint-Gaudens, the leading American sculptor of his day, spent his summers and last years here, and other artists followed, forming the Cornish Art Colony. He designed the 1907 twenty-dollar gold coin, often called the most beautiful American coin.
Covered bridges and a quiet president
West of Woodstock the valley narrows into the Green Mountains, past covered bridges, the hill where American ski lifts began and farms selling maple and cheese. The road leads to Plymouth Notch, the tiny village where Calvin Coolidge was born and became president. The whole loop is about 100 km of country roads. Coolidge's village closes in winter, so in the cold months end at the brewery instead.
- Lincoln Covered Bridge · Built in 1877, it has an unusual timber truss with an arch added along its length. It crosses the Ottauquechee on the quiet road west of the village, with a pull-off for photographs.
- Taftsville Covered Bridge · Built in 1836, it is one of the oldest covered bridges in Vermont. Tropical Storm Irene damaged it badly in 2011, when the Ottauquechee flooded, and it was rebuilt and reopened in 2013.
- Saskadena Six · In 1934, on a hill just next to this ski area, a group of skiers rigged a rope tow driven by a Model T Ford engine: it was the first ski tow in the United States. The ski area itself opened soon after under the name Suicide Six.
- Sugarbush Farm · A hilltop family farm that makes maple syrup and smoked and aged cheeses. You can taste them free at the farmhouse and walk out to the sugarhouse where the sap is boiled in spring.
- President Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site · Coolidge was born here on 4 July 1872. When President Harding died in August 1923, the news reached him in this village, and his father, a notary, swore him in as president by the light of a kerosene lamp in the family parlour.
- Long Trail Brewing Company · The brewery sits beside the Ottauquechee River in Bridgewater Corners, and its deck hangs over the water. It is named after the Long Trail, the 440 km footpath along the Green Mountains, the oldest long-distance hiking trail in the United States.
Getting to Woodstock VT and getting around
- Lebanon Municipal Airport · Small regional airport 30 minutes east, with a few daily flights to Boston and New York
- White River Junction station · The Amtrak Vermonter stops here once a day each way, between Washington, New York and St Albans
Cheap eats in Woodstock VT
Vermont food is farm food: sharp aged cheddar, maple syrup from the spring sugaring, apple cider doughnuts in autumn and a famous craft-beer scene. Around Woodstock, farms invite you in to taste cheese and syrup for free. For a cheap lunch, a deli sandwich eaten on the Green is hard to beat. Prices are in US dollars, and a tip of 18-20% is expected at any table with service.
- Woodstock Farmers' Market · Deli sandwiches, soups and baked goods, about $10-16
- Mon Vert Cafe · Breakfast and sandwiches in the village, about $6-14
- Worthy Kitchen · Farm diner with burgers, fried chicken and local beer, about $14-22
- Sugarbush Farm · Free tastings of cheese and maple; a block of cheese about $8-12
- King Arthur Baking Company · Bakery café at the flour company in Norwich, a pastry and coffee about $5-12
Museums in Woodstock VT
- Billings Farm & Museum · Dairy barns, a restored 1890 farmhouse and farm films
- Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park · The mansion with its art collection, by guided tour
- Woodstock History Center · Village history in a period house
- President Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site · The whole hamlet, the family homestead and the cheese factory
- Hood Museum of Art · Dartmouth College's free art museum in Hanover, 30 minutes east
Nature and day trips near Woodstock VT
- Quechee Gorge · An easy trail down to the river at the bottom of the gorge
- Mount Tom · Village lookout trail and carriage roads
- The Pogue · A pond in the forest above the village, an easy loop
- Silver Lake State Park · Swimming beach and picnic in Barnard
- Lincoln Covered Bridge · Riverside stop on the quiet road west
Things to do in Woodstock VT with kids
- VINS Nature Center · Owls, eagles and a canopy walk; bird shows in season
- Billings Farm & Museum · Calves, milking and wagon rides
- Saskadena Six · A small, friendly ski hill for families in winter
- Sugarbush Farm · Farm animals, maple tastings and a nature trail
- Montshire Museum of Science · Hands-on science museum with outdoor water play, in Norwich, 30 minutes east
Where to eat in Woodstock VT
- The Prince and the Pauper · Candlelit dinner in the village, mains about $30-45
- Simon Pearce Restaurant · Dinner over the waterfall, served on the house glass and pottery, mains about $30-45
- Worthy Kitchen · Lively farm diner with a long beer list, about $14-25
- Long Trail Brewing Company · Beer and pub food on the river deck, about $14-22
- Woodstock Inn · A drink by the fire in the big inn on the Green
Frequently asked questions about Woodstock VT
What is there to see in Woodstock VT?
The top sights in Woodstock VT are Middle Covered Bridge, Woodstock Green and Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park. The full list on this page has 10 sights, each with a photo and a short note.
How many days do you need in Woodstock VT?
Three to four days are enough to see the best of Woodstock VT without rushing, including at least one walking tour.
Is there a free walking tour in Woodstock VT?
Yes. sleepntrip has 3 free audio walks in Woodstock VT, with no guide and no group: your phone tells the story at every stop. The first one: The village on foot.
How do you get to Woodstock VT and get around?
The main ways are Lebanon Municipal Airport and White River Junction station. Full details are in the transport section on this page.
Where to stay in Woodstock VT, and for how much?
sleepntrip shows only rooms in Woodstock VT that meet nine conditions: a good location, high guest scores, cleanliness, and a price of up to $80 a night for two. Pick your dates and see what is free.
Looking for a hotel in Woodstock VT for your dates?
Only rooms that meet nine conditions, up to $80 a night.