Smuggs during april vacation with kids

I picked up a Last Call to Smuggler's Notch starting next weekend just to get away during our kids (age 5 & 8) april vacation week. I know that there isn't much going on there at that time, and have found some things we can do but I'm looking for more ideas to fill our days. Can anyone tell me if there is anything of interest for them at Burlington's Church St. Marketplace or is this just shopping? How is Echo Lake Aquarium? Is Cold Hollow Cider Mill worth going to (tour or just a store)?
We want to go to Ben & Jerry's but not Vermont Teddy bear as I don't want to spend $50 on each bear. Are there local bike paths or nature walking trails? Or will it still be on the cold side for these activities? The majority of the mountain closes on 4/6 so skiing is out. I'm sure we will be trying to save the pool time for night time fun. We have a 3 bedroom in the Tamarack section. Do we use a different pool location? Thanks for any info you can give me.
PS: I Was told that even Last Calls here are counted in the 1 in 4. ???

Hi, I can't help too much. But, we recently stayed in Tamaracks and my kids (4 & 7) loved the North Hill Aquatics Center. They have a zero entry pool with a small slide and waterfalls. There is also a lap pool that is only about 4ft deep.

Remember to bring pool towels. Smuggs does not provide them.

Have Fun!

It has been a number of years since we've been at Smuggs in April but I can answer a few of your questions. On our April trip, it alternated between sunny, rainy and snowy so you should be prepared for everything. The resort will be very quiet with no activities and maybe one open restaurant. We had four units and a big family reunion so the main thing for us was to spent time with people that we don't usually see. The only excursion we did was to Ben & Jerry's (which we enjoyed). The only thing missing there was the ice cream graveyard.

Tamaracks is great because it is part of the North Hill so you will have access to the indoor pool complex. The outdoor water slide won't be open in April.

Echo Lake Aquarium is nice but very small. It could be part of a day at Burlington. Stowe has a nice bike path. I do not know if you can rent bikes in April so you may need to bring your own. Hiking could be iffy because spring in Vermont is otherwise known as mud season.

Hopefully others will chime in.

Sam

Be aware that the notch will likely be closed, so you won't be able to drive directly between Stowe and Smugglers. You'll have to go "around" the mountain. This will increase your time to about an hour to get to Ben and Jerry's. It's still one of our favorite places to visit and worth the drive though. Pick up some groceries at the nearby grocery store. There's nothing nearly as big near Smuggs.

The 3 bedrooms are huge! It will be a good spot for just hanging out.

I agree with Sam's assessment of the Echo aquarium.

There are likely to be activities this coming weekend, but not after that.

The kids should love the North Hill aquatics center. The restaurants will likely still be open. Hearth and Candle is one of my favorite places anywhere - lots of good memories.

Even though Smuggs may be closed for skiing, at last report (today), Stowe had 367 inches of snow this winter and still has a snow pack of 9 feet at the top of the mountain. And if you are not interested in skiing, you will probably still be able to sled at Smuggs. Or you still may be able to have a sleigh or dog sled ride in Stowe.

The third week of April may be too late for sugaring, but there are a lot of sugar houses around that area so you should ask when you get there. It should be very interesting to the kids to see where their maple syrup comes from.

Yes, Church Street is predominantly a shopping area, but it has a vibrant street scene with dog walkers, jugglers year round. Even if you are not interested in shopping, eating at an indoor sidewalk cafe can be fun. I can recommend the family friendly Sweetwater's, or a little more upscale Leunigs Bistro. Leunigs has windows right on Church St to keep the kids interested. If pizza is your thing, try Three Tomatoes Trattoria or American Flatbread.

The Echo aquarium is great with a lot of hands on exhibits. The other activity that might be fun is the Cabot Creamery.

I'd check out Shelburne Museum - 70,000 items of Americana so there should be something for all ages. Not just a typical museum, (many buildings, 45 acres) it has an old train, a lighthouse and a paddlewheel boat that used to go on Lake Champlain, plus old buildings (one room school, jail that sort of thing) - a lot to do.

Cider mill is mainly a store with free samples of great cider. B&J is worthwhile for the tour (and free samples Cabot in Waterbury is a store with lots of cheese samples, all three of these are relatively nearby to each other.
Cabot does have its main store in Cabot, a bit of a ride from Smugglers, this one does have tours.

If you are in Burlington, you might want to take a ferry across Lake Champlain if it's not too cold.

With Smuggler's Notch closed until about Memorial Day you are a bit isolated on the north side. Stowe will have skiing as noted above, about an hour around the mountain. Stowe village has a long rec path. Burlington is a college town so people watching on church street is always fun. This maybe tough on the kids but take a tide along Rt 2 through the Champlain Islands to North Hero, lunch at Hero's Rest (good soup and sandwiches), then on to Rouses Point, NY. then south to the ferry dock at Cumberland Head and then the ferry ride back to Grand Isle. About a week ago there as still enough ice on the lake for the ferry to have to break through the floating sheets of ice. Noisy and fun. Earlier this week some one's car broke through the ice so it is getting thin and may be mostly gone when you get here.

Take a trip over to Joe's Pond in the Northeast Kingdom and join the raffle and guess when (day, hour, minute, and second) the ice will melt enough for the gauge to fall over and turn off the clock. Not exactly Las Vegas kind of fun but its what we got up here.

There is a similar raffle going on here on a pond in Waitsfield. About 45 min south of Stowe.

The big deal here in the Mad River Valley for next weekend is the Sugarbush Triathlon (4 events "Quadrathlon?"). Come and watch kayaks and canoes rollover in the frigid Mad River.

http://www.madrivervalley.com/vermont/events/detail.asp?evtID=2

BTW, Stay off the gravel roads unless you have 4WD, its mud season.

Unfortunately, the Shelburnte Museum doesn't open until May 18th and the ferry from Burlington opens on May 22nd. However, as Werner mentioned, the Grand Isle-Plattsburgh ferry is running. You might find these websites helpful in your planning: Vermont Life and Vermont Living

We were at Smuggs last year for April vacation and did catch the last two days of skiing. We LOVE the resort, and truly think of it as our 2nd home, so we didn't mind so much having nothing to do, but if this is your first visit, you really won't get a feel for what makes it so special. Plan on lots of board games and rented movies in the condo. The North Hill Aquatic Center will keep your kids entertained for a little while, but not long if they are real swimmers. The Courtside pool down in the main village, which will be covered by a bubble should be open and that's more for actual swimming.

VT Teddy Bears does offer a $19 bear, BTW--they are just a little smaller than than the $49 one and don't have jointed limbs. You get to stuff them, give them a heart, etc. and their quality is FAR superior to Build-A-Bear or other knock-offs.

Church St. is a bit eclectic and makes for interesting people-watching, but I'm not sure there's much there for a 5 and 8 year old. We always have lunch at Ri-Ra, which is an authentic Irish pub.

Smuggs will probably run a trip to Montreal (don't forget passports) and some other things--there will be a welcome party probably Monday night outlining what's offered.

Enjoy the peace and quiet!

Thanks Dollie, I never thought about it being too early in the "season" to be able to enjoy the things we do in July.

Hey if you have passports do a day trip to Montreal. Its a great trip.
Also, we always bring our board games, video games, and make up games. Also, a good time to bring out the old games that older kids wouldn't normally play, freeze tag, hide and seek, make up a scavenger hunt and give out prizes. Also bake, with the kids, make up a play, act out a book, fingerpaint. Believe it or not, most of our vacations when we do this goofy stuff, the kids love it.

Thanks for the info & tips

Thanks for all of the great information. I think I'll add Vermont Teddy Bear back on the list. Also, found out that Sterling part of the mountain should be opened until 4/13 and we check in on 4/11 so maybe we will take our ski stuff. Good to know about the notch being closed too. Unfortunately, our kids don't have passports yet so Canada is out. We will bring plenty of movies, and games too. Just glad to get away and get a chance to see Smuggs, especially on the price of a last call. Which by the way are still available into May. Too bad this is counted as a 1 in 4 though. Also, found out that we can get in to Echo lake aquarium for Free with our Boston Museum of Science card as they are part of the Association of Science-Technology Centers, incase anyone else has a card like this. Keep any other info coming. Thanks

Just saw the bringing games post - be sure to check out what they have at the resort - they do have games and puzzles to borrow (free) and the store does have movies for rent in case you need another. There are also game rooms with things like pool, airhockey, some others etc, for a small fee.

Another of our favorite places in Stowe is the Toy Store. I think that's its name. It is on the Mountain Road on the same side and near The Shed, which is a restaurant. They have lots of board games and unique toys. We always stock up when we're there. It would be a good place to visit for kids the ages of yours.

Vermont Family Fun Activities Website

As mentioned on the evening news, there is a new website that is aimed at things for families to do in Vermont, Find and Go Seek - Vermont Family Fun Activities. You might find it helpful.

Honeydew said:

Unfortunately, our kids don't have passports yet so Canada is out.

Click to expand...

FYI,

According to US State Dept (www.travel.state.gov) a passport is not yet require for land or sea travel to Canada (or Mexico, Carribean, Bermuda)

From the website:
LAND AND SEA TRAVEL
The following summarizes information available on the Department of Homeland Security’s website.

CURRENTLY:
U.S. citizens need to present either(a) a passport, passport card (available in spring 2008), or WHTI-compliant document; or (b) a government-issued photo ID, such as a driver’s license, along with proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate.