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Summer Happenings

Explore Manchester Vermont Summer Activities

Local Activities To Fall In Love With

During the Summer, Vermont truly comes alive. Visitors will fall in love with the lush greenery and exploring stunning nature trails just moments away from Kimpton Taconic Hotel. Prefer to participate in local events? Check out the Vermont Summer Festival to watch a world class riding competition.


Outdoor Activities

It’s in the summer that you really see where Vermont got its name… The Green Mountain State flourishes with green trees, babbling brooks, and pleasant days. Try Lye Brook Falls , Lye Brook Falls , The Equinox Preserve , Prospect Rock or the Bromley Mountain Trail , or the famous Long Trail to get moving in the fresh air.

Horseback Riding

Take in the gorgeous Vermont scenery by horseback with a visit to Hildene Lincoln Family Home for a horse-drawn carriage ride. Saddle Up Stables, Pond Hill Ranch and Equinox Valley Equine all offer horseback riding adventures and lessons you can experience during your stay.

Vermont Summer Festival is a horse jumping competition back and running through August 13th. If you are looking to watch some of the best riders and horses in the country, make sure to visit the competition at Harold Beebe Farm just an 18min drive from Kimpton Taconic Hotel.

Prefer a set of clubs to a walking stick? We’ve got you covered – contact our front desk for exclusive preferred rates on tee times at Manchester Country Club . MCC is also a great place to play tennis, on their signature red clay courts.

Bringing the family? Choose your own summer adventure at Bromley Mountain Adventure Park . They offer family fun activities from water rides to climbing walls to a scenic chair lift (and more!). All this just 15 minutes from the Taconic…

If you’re ready to depart dry land and spend the day traversing the waters in a kayak or canoe, our friends at Vermont River Runners will help you plan your ideal day on the Battenkill.

Some adventurers prefer to forge their path behind a steering wheel. If this sounds like you, the Land Rover Driving Experience is your opportunity to get behind the wheel of a Land Rover and head off-road for an exciting, challenging drive.

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Arts + Culture

The arts come out to play in summer in Manchester! There’s no better time to catch some live music, to see some fine paintings up close, or to experience the thrill of live theatre. From festivals to concerts to shows, sometimes the hardest part is choosing. The Southern Vermont Arts Center offers a world-class arts experience of the arts to Manchester locals and visitors. Situated on 100 acres of pristine forest, you’ll find permanent and rotating gallery exhibitions, workshops and programs for all ages, performing arts, and Vermont’s largest sculpture park. What’s more, most summer weekends you can purchase tickets to live music performances across diverse musical genres, including SVAC’s popular annual “Friday Night Live” concert series. Art galleries nearby include Helmholz Fine Art , Epoch 18 Vermont Artisans Gallery and the Three Pears Gallery in neighboring Dorset.

The Green Mountains will be alive with the sounds of music for several weeks this summer, as the Manchester Music Festival continues its yearly fest. A vibrant celebration of classical music. If you prefer picking, the Green Mountain Bluegrass Festival may be a great Summer festival choice for you.

Theatre aficionados always find something to love by The Dorset Players or at Weston Playhouse . From community theatre to Broadway’s hits performed by nationally recognized artists, summer is a great time to see a comedy, tragedy or musical in Manchester – often in the same week.

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Taste of Vermont

The best starting point for your summer Vermont culinary tour is right here at the Taconic, at our year-round breakfast, lunch, and dinner restaurant, The Copper Grouse .

You can’t come to Vermont without trying the locally-made artisanal cheese. We’re not sure, but we think it’s a law! One great place to start is in quaint West Pawlet at the memorably named Consider Bardwell Farm . At Bardwell, they produce award-winning handmade cheese from goat and cow milk… from happy animals grazing organic pastures. Their raw milk cheese is antibiotic and hormone free, and of course delicious. Visit Consider Bardwell Farm for tours, cheese making workshops, farm dinners, and – most importantly – to buy some cheese to take home as the tastiest possible souvenir of your Vermont visit.

See, feel and taste the bounty of Vermont this summer, at two unforgettable farmer’s markets near the Taconic. Our own town’s Manchester Farmer’s Market is open Thursdays 3PM-6PM, May 24-October 4, at nearby Adams Park. In our neighboring town of Dorset, the Dorset Farmer’s Market is open year-round on Sundays 10AM – 2PM, operating out of the HN Williams General Store during the summer months.

One of the things visitors love about the food community in Vermont is the array of small local businesses producing unique, delicious products that can be taken home, shipped to friends & family, or of course consumed on the spot. One such local Manchester gem is The Crooked Ram . Just down the street from Taconic, The Crooked Ram is Manchester’s only dedicated craft beer shop. They offer free tastings daily, crowlers (not a typo!) to go, and a wide selection of local, regional, and national craft beer, cider and wine.

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