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Lake Champlain Islands Bike Tour

  • Picture of Lake Champlain Islands Bike Tour
  • Picture of Lake Champlain Islands Bike Tour
  • Fall colors on Lake Champlain
  • Picture of Lake Champlain Islands Bike Tour
  • Field of flowers and mountains by Lake Champlain
  • Ice cream and apples with leaders
  • Vermont Green Mountains toward Camel's Hump
  • View on Lake Champlain shore sunset
  • Apple orchard on the islands
  • Lake Champlain with mountains
  • Rider at the farm stand
  • The Burlington causeway
DURATION
6 Day(s)
DAILY BIKING
20 to 46 miles
TRIP DIFFICULTY
2-Easier to Intermediate
REVIEWS
STARTING FROM
$3295
SINGLES ADD FROM
$1,000

Trip Overview

On this outstanding bike tour in Vermont, you stay the first two nights at the fabulous multiple-award-winning Hotel Vermont. Described as “rustic and modern, natural and sophisticated, hand wrought and high tech,” this new hotel is located just a few hundred feet from Burlington’s Lake Champlain waterfront and the vibrant nightlife of Church Street. The next three nights you are a guest at the extremely popular North Hero House or Shore Acres Inn, where you can relax in your Adirondack chair while enjoying the last rays of the sun reflecting across the lake onto the Green Mountains.

Every day on this spectacular tour includes leisurely lakeside cycling and awe-inspiring views of Lake Champlain, the sixth largest (and surely one of the loveliest) lakes in the U.S. You ride to Charlotte, then cross by ferry to ride through the nationally recognized historic village of Essex, New York. You bike along the renowned Burlington Bike path, follow a causeway into Lake Champlain and take the bike ferry onto the islands. Your easy cycling includes a visit to Vermont’s oldest settlement at Fort Saint Anne (and the Saint Anne Shrine), to the oldest log cabin in the nation, and to the quarry at Chazy Reef where the oldest fossils in the world are located. You can opt to visit to Snow Farm Vineyard and ride north into Canada (bring your passport!). You also enjoy an afternoon of professionally guided kayaking along the quiet shores of the lake.

See a list of all current Vermont tours

Surfaces for this tour: 85% Paved and 15% Gravel.

Itinerary

From start to finish, check out the route.

DAY 1 - Arrival Day
Arrival Day | Hotel Vermont
Many plan to arrive early to relax and perhaps enjoy the beautiful college town of Burlington, including the Church Street Marketplace and beautiful Waterfront Park, Echo Lake Aquarium and Science Center, Frog Hollow Craft Center … and treat yourself at Lake Champlain Chocolates.

Dinner is at 7 p.m. and is followed by an introductory meeting with your leaders.
DAY 2 - Charlotte & Winery
Distance: 26 or 38 miles | Terrain: Easier to Intermediate | Hotel Vermont
Monday’s ride takes you south along quiet roads that give you great views of Lake Champlain and the Adirondack mountains. Arriving in the Village of Charlotte, you may stop at the 160-year-old Old Brick Store where you can buy snacks and a vast array of Vermont products, gift items, and great penny candy. Pick up lunch here to eat along the way … or after the ferry to New York. Board the Essex ferry with your bike (about 15 minutes across the lake) and enjoy cycling a 5-mile loop with views back across Lake Champlain.

After taking the return ferry to Vermont, you cycle through an old covered bridge to the lake shore and enjoy water views from the Charlotte Town Beach. Lake Champlain is the sixth largest lake in the U.S. French explorer Samuel de Champlain led the first European expedition here on July 4, 1609. And while it seems rather peaceful and quiet today, in earlier times it witnessed a great deal of tumultuous history including battles in the French and Indian Wars as well as the capture of Fort Ticonderoga in 1775 with the efforts of Ethan Allen, Benedict Arnold and the Green Mountain Boys. The British also had a large fleet here during the war of 1812 and were soundly defeated by American forces in the nearby battle of Plattsburgh in 1814.

Climbing away from the lake shore you pass through orchard and horse country and are rewarded with an included wine tasting at the Shelburne Vineyard where you can savor their excellent organic wines. There are 12 more miles of country roads and bike path to the day’s route, but for those hankering for time to explore and shop in Burlington, you can take our passenger van from the winery back to Hotel Vermont.

You are on your own for dinner this evening and can select from several local options in Burlington within walking distance of the inn.
DAY 3 - Waterfront Path and onto the Islands
Distance: 33 miles | Terrain: Easier | North Hero House or Shore Acres Inn*
Today you start cycling on the beautiful Burlington Waterfront Bike Path. The Bike Path follows the Lake Champlain shoreline, offering wonderful views of the lake and the Adirondack Mountains to the west and the city of Burlington to the right. The bike path links six major waterfront parks, crosses the Winooski River on a pedestrian/bike bridge and ends on a causeway that juts out into the lake. From here a seasonal bike ferry takes you and your bicycle just a few hundred feet across a gap in the causeway to Grand Isle and the Champlain Islands. In Grand Isle, guests often have lunch at a local farmstand. From here you wind your way along the western shore of the lake and then cross a drawbridge leading into North Hero, where you are welcomed at your inn. You might want to take the opportunity to explore Hero’s Welcome General Store. This iconic general store is located in a century-old building on the shore of the lake, and you will enjoy walking through its many aisles and outbuildings, including a bakery, cafe, as well as the general store itself.
DAY 4 - Canada and delicious cheese
Distance: 25 or 46 miles | Terrain: Easier | North Hero House or Shore Acres Inn*
Today you enjoy a pleasant ride north to Alburg and then head north for an optional ride into Canada (bring your passport!). One Canadian highlight is a visit to Fromagerie Kaiser, a boutique cheese and bread shop and a great place to have a picnic before cycling back on a loop to the United States. From here, West Shore Road leads down another beautiful side of the lake and to Alburg Dunes State Park. This 625-acre property is named for the sand dunes located along the long south-facing natural sand beach, and you cycle along a tree-shaded “beach road” before riding your last few miles back to North Hero.
DAY 5 - Fort Saint Anne and kayaking
Distance: 20 or 25 miles and kayaking | Terrain: Easier | North Hero House or Shore Acres Inn*
Today you explore historic Isle La Motte. Heading north, you soon come to a point in the road where Lake Champlain is very close on both sides. This is known as “The Carrying Place” a narrow isthmus that was used by Native Americans to traverse canoes between sections of Lake Champlain as well as by rum-running smugglers trying to avoid Jefferson’s 1808 embargo on trade with Canada. Crossing the bridge over Alburg Passage, you then ride the narrow neck and bridge leading onto Isle La Motte.

Here you visit the site of Fort Saint Anne and Saint Anne’s Shrine. The shrine includes a chapel, scenic walkways, historic site markers and seasonal snack bar. Fort Saint Anne was built by the French in 1666 as protection against Mohawk Indian raids, and was the first white settlement in Vermont. In addition, General Montgomery had his headquarters here before the 1775 expedition into Canada. Benedict Arnold also anchored his fleet near here before the Battle of Valcour Island (1776), and the British fleet stopped here before their defeat at the Battle of Plattsburgh (1814).

Leaving St. Anne, you continue to hug the island shore with great views west into the Adirondacks. You can opt for a visit to the Fiske Farm and Quarry Preserve where old quarries have exposed outcroppings of the Chazy reef formation. This is the world’s oldest coral reef (450,000,000 years old and nearly a mile long).

After completing your ride, you return to the North Hero House to enjoy an included professionally instructed and guided afternoon of kayaking on the beautiful eastern bays of Lake Champlain, often including a stop on Butler Island, so you can hike the beautiful pathways and stretch your legs. (On some dates, kayaks are available for use on your own instead.) *(On the June 11, June 25, July 9, July 30, Aug. 27 and Oct. 1 departures you stay at Shore Acres Inn for nights 3, 4 and 5.)
DAY 6 - Departure Day
Distance: 26 miles | Terrain: Easier
Today’s ride takes you back over the drawbridge and then along the eastern shore of the islands where you enjoy lovely views of the Green Mountains across the lake. You then ride the spectacular causeway across Lake Champlain and follow the paved bike path back to Burlington.

Map

Dates & Pricing

Prices are per person based on double occupancy (2 people in one room). Single supplement for private room is listed at the top of this page. A deposit of $500 holds your reservation for most tours. For weekend tours, the deposit is $300.

Start End Cost Availability
Jul 28, 2024 Aug 02, 2024 $3295.00 Available! Reserve Reserve
Aug 25, 2024 Aug 30, 2024 $3295.00 Available! Reserve Reserve
Sep 08, 2024 Sep 13, 2024 $3295.00 Available! Reserve Reserve
Sep 22, 2024 Sep 27, 2024 $3295.00 Available! Reserve Reserve
Sep 29, 2024 Oct 04, 2024 $3295.00 Available! Reserve Reserve

What’s Included

5 nights’ lodging, 5 breakfasts, 4 dinners (you are on your own for dinner 1 night in Burlington). Professionally guided kayaking (conditions permitting), wine tasting, ferry ride to Essex, bike ferry on Lake Champlain causeway, an optional ride into Canada. We also include detailed maps and itineraries, experienced guides, full van support — plus use of a bike and helmet. Airfare is not included.

Dates & Pricing

Prices are per person based on double occupancy (2 people in one room). Single supplement for private room is listed at the top of this page. A deposit of $500 holds your reservation for most tours. For weekend tours, the deposit is $300.

Start: Jul 28, 2024
End: Aug 02, 2024
Cost: $3295.00
Availability: Available!
Reserve
Start: Aug 25, 2024
End: Aug 30, 2024
Cost: $3295.00
Availability: Available!
Reserve
Start: Sep 08, 2024
End: Sep 13, 2024
Cost: $3295.00
Availability: Available!
Reserve
Start: Sep 22, 2024
End: Sep 27, 2024
Cost: $3295.00
Availability: Available!
Reserve
Start: Sep 29, 2024
End: Oct 04, 2024
Cost: $3295.00
Availability: Available!
Reserve

What’s Included

5 nights’ lodging, 5 breakfasts, 4 dinners (you are on your own for dinner 1 night in Burlington). Professionally guided kayaking (conditions permitting), wine tasting, ferry ride to Essex, bike ferry on Lake Champlain causeway, an optional ride into Canada. We also include detailed maps and itineraries, experienced guides, full van support — plus use of a bike and helmet. Airfare is not included.

Inns

Where you stay along the way.

Hotel Vermont
Vermonters are known for being independent, together. And like Vermont, Hotel Vermont is full of compatible contradictions. Located in downtown Burlington near the shores of Lake Champlain, they’re rustic and modern, local and global, natural and sophisticated, hand wrought and high tech.
North Hero House
The North Hero House is an historic, beautifully restored country inn. Nestled in the heart of a charming well-preserved 19th century village on Lake Champlain, the Inn has been welcoming guests since 1891 when they arrived by paddle wheel steamer.
Shore Acres Inn
Tucked away on 46 acres on the shore of Lake Champlain, this quiet country lakeside inn awaits you. Stroll along their half mile of private lakeshore, and you'll embrace a side of Vermont that only few are lucky enough to experience. With perennial Purple Martins vibrant throughout the grounds, and morning sunrises unlike you’ve ever seen, Shore Acres Inn and Restaurant will provide you with the recharge and relaxation we all truly need.

Guests say …

Quotes from guests about this tour:


"This trip allowed us to venture up into the middle of Champlain and see all the amazing islands, farms, lakefront, and causeway, it was so great. I was thrilled with the scenery and lack of cars/traffic. Wish all biking was that clean/scenic."
— Laura.

"All of our needs and expectations were met on this tour. Loved the leaders!"
— Frank B.

"Great routes, great support by guides, very flexible on adapting to what we wanted to do throughout the day."
— Harry H.

"The leaders were so helpful and attentive. We really enjoyed their leadership! We’ve been on other bike tours and they’re the best we’ve had. They took good care of us. So positive, all the time ."
— Sarah B.

Gallery

Images from this tour. Click each to see it larger.

Picture of Lake Champlain Islands Bike Tour Picture of Lake Champlain Islands Bike Tour Fall colors on Lake Champlain Picture of Lake Champlain Islands Bike Tour Field of flowers and mountains by Lake Champlain Ice cream and apples with leaders Vermont Green Mountains toward Camel's Hump View on Lake Champlain shore sunset Apple orchard on the islands Lake Champlain with mountains Rider at the farm stand The Burlington causeway