Where is Burlington Vermont?
Situated along the eastern side of Lake Champlain, Burlington is Vermont’s largest city with a population nearing 45,000 and serves as the region’s economic, cultural, and educational hub. It has become one of Vermont's most appealing areas to live in by proxy of its small-town charm and progressive atmosphere. It is nestled between Lake Champlain and the Green Mountains, offering a plethora of outdoor activities for nature lovers without sacrificing a bustling nightlife.
Understanding the 6 Neighborhoods within Burlington VT
Here at the Vermont Condo Pros one of our core specialties is helping people find condos for sale in Burlington VT and we often get asked for guidance on which neighborhood would be best for their lifestyle and needs. That's whey we wanted to make this post to share with you.
Within Burlington, six core neighborhoods cover a wide variety of vibes and lifestyles while maintaining the community-oriented and nature-accessible atmosphere that the city has become famous for. Let’s deep-dive Burlington and the neighborhoods that reside there:
The Hill Section
Just to the west of the University of Vermont lies the Hill Section. Upscale single-family homes are found tucked along the neighborhood’s tree-lined streets, providing hilltop views of the nearby Lake Champlain and distant vistas of the Adirondack Mountain chain for residents and visitors alike. This neighborhood is known for its large, turn-of-the-century homes which are host to intricate woodwork, large windows, and decadent porches.
The Hill Section is the perfect distance from just about everything Burlington has to offer – the University of Vermont, downtown nightlife, and waterfront areas are all walkable. It is also the closest of any neighborhood in the city to the UVM Medical Center. As a result, many students and faculty members of the university and hospital staff call this area their home.
At the same time, the Hill Section is home to families and retirees because of its quietness and community feel despite being in close proximity to the bustling downtown. Its tranquility is likely because of how established the neighborhood is, with the homes remaining largely unchanged since the 19th and 20th centuries. The nearby Burlington Country Club provides local members with a golf course, high-end restaurant, pool, cross-country skiing areas, aquatics, and social events. Rice Memorial High School, one of just two Vermont high schools with the AP Capstone Diploma Program, is also a short walk away from most homes in this neighborhood.
While some residents of this neighborhood are renting students and UVM faculty, the Hill Section’s quiet charm, beautiful, historic architecture, educational opportunities, and recreational areas also make it the perfect spot for retirees and families alike. Those with pets will find that the neighborhood’s walkability and dog parks are unparalleled relative to the rest of the area in addition.
View Condos For Sale In The Hill Section
New North End
The northernmost area of Burlington, the New North End provides as suburban an atmosphere as there is to offer in the city. Within the New North End, there is a healthy blend of single-family homes built in the early-to-mid-20th century, townhouses, and newer apartment and condominium developments. The city’s most populous neighborhood also hosts plenty of opportunities to explore nature and participate in recreational activities.
One of the neighborhood’s most enticing features is the beachfront parks: North Beach and Leddy Beach are two of the most popular beachfront parks in the state and are must-visits on hot summer days. Rock Point, which lies a mile north of North Beach, has gradually opened up more over recent years and now shows off gorgeous hiking trails through 400-million-year-old shoreline cliffs as well as providing workshops on beekeeping and maple sugaring. On top of that, Ethan Allen Park resides in the New North End, where they can peruse around the 60-acre lot that holds the historic Ethan Allen Tower. Smaller, quieter parks are located throughout the neighborhood to boot.
The New North End is also the host of the second and fourth-highest-ranked elementary schools (C.P. Smith School and J.J. Flynn School, respectively) and second-highest-ranked middle school (Lyman C. Hunt Middle School) in the Burlington School District, making this neighborhood perfect for those with children. Two local bus routes provide ample public transportation to these schools, around the neighborhood, and to other parts of Burlington.
Overall, this neighborhood is ideal for families, retirees, and those looking for a quieter, suburban atmosphere while still having easy access to Burlington’s downtown perks and nightlife. Outdoorsy folks will enjoy this area more so than other neighborhoods with robust park and beach access and bike paths spanning the area.
View Condos For Sale In The New North End
Old North End
Located just to the north of Burlington’s downtown is the city’s oldest neighborhood: the Old North End. On top of its historical significance, it stands as the area’s most diverse neighborhood, being host to many of the immigrant communities within Burlington. Even grocery stores cover a wide range of cultures here, with easy access to Latin, African, and Asian foods. If ever there was a tangible sense of diversity and community within Burlington in the air, it’s in the Old North End.
Battery Park provides stunning views of Lake Champlain and the Adirondacks, and the Intervale Center provides residents and visitors with 360 acres of gardens, farms, forest, and recreational trails to explore in the heart of Burlington. For history buffs, the Ethan Allen Homestead, a historic museum built in 1797 by one of Vermont’s founding fathers, resides here and is open to public viewership from May until October.
For nightlife-seekers, the Old North End sits in a walkable distance to the downtown district, while also providing several late-night spots within the neighborhood. Food lovers will find plenty of diverse cuisines, with restaurants such as Pho Hong, Taco Gordo, Bluebird Barbeque, and Volcano Asian Cuisine covering a broad range of cultures.
The Old North End is the city’s most affordable neighborhood, with a healthy blend of off-campus students, new families, retirees, and immigrants calling it home. That isn’t to say it isn’t a desirable area – proximity to the waterfront, downtown, and colleges in combination with its community, decadent food scene, and access to outdoors activities make it a tantalizing area for just about anyone.
View Old North End Condos For Sale.
South End
In the 19th and 20th centuries, Burlington’s South End stood as the city’s industrial zone, with mills and metal factories making up the complexion of the neighborhood. Flash forward to today and the warehouses and industrial buildings have been repurposed into art galleries, breweries, and other small businesses and startups. Pine Street, which previously hosted the city’s primary metal foundries, is now a beer lover’s oasis, with the largest concentration of breweries in the state. Nationally recognized companies like Zero Gravity, Citizen Cider, and Fiddlehead call this neighborhood their home.
While there is no shortage of residential areas, from single-family homes to townhouses to apartments and condominium complexes, the area is certainly more well-renowned for its creative outlets. The South End Arts District, home of the Fleming Museum of Art (among other cultural venues), is an imaginative hub chock-full of artists, makers, and artisan innovation. The Soda Plant, Conant Metal & Light, and the S.P.A.C.E Gallery stand out as exceptional places to visit in the name of art and creativity. Even local food harbors that creative energy, with the South End Get Down, a weekly food truck gathering where local foodmakers and live music take the show.
For those looking for an ever-growing community that embodies the artisan culture that Burlington is recognized for while maintaining the identity of a small-town community, the South End is the perfect haven. Artists and young professionals alike will certainly enjoy this low-key, trendy, constantly growing and developing neighborhood.
View Condos For Sale in Burlington's South End.
Five Sisters
Within the South End lies the historic Five Sisters neighborhood, with streets named after the developer’s five daughters: Caroline, Catherine, Charlotte, Margaret, and Marian. This small area, previously farmland, was built up as a result of the Roaring 1920s industrial boom. Tudor homes, bungalows, and cottages were built in very close proximity, and give this sub-neighborhood the character and historical presence that make it so appealing.
View All Condos For Sale In the Five Sisters Neighborhood
Downtown
Burlington’s downtown is the heart and soul of the city, most notable for its eclectic mix of shops, restaurants, entertainment, and energy. Its beautifully preserved 19th-century row housing, brick storefronts, and government buildings such as the City Hall provide a sense of architectural and historical beauty, without sacrificing any of the modern amenities that make a city great. Public transportation runs rampant throughout the downtown area, with a plethora of bus routes going to all other neighborhoods in the city and even bringing out-of-staters to Burlington via Greyhound interstate bus routes.
The life of Burlington’s downtown largely revolves around the Church Street Marketplace, a strip that most of the shops, restaurants, bars, boutiques, and street performers call home. An entirely pedestrian mall, Church Street is easily identified by the brick road that disallows vehicles from entering – with the exception of cyclists. Those with empty stomachs will be surrounded by a diverse array of dining options, capturing a healthy mix of farm-to-table, globally influenced, and New England cuisine. There, outside of the shopping and dining opportunities, you will find street musicians and local artists and makers selling their unique works.
For those seeking a bustling nightlife, close proximity to Burlington’s downtown is a must. The vast majority of bars, breweries, and pubs are in this neighborhood, and are frequented by the college students in the area. Artists and performers will also be comfortable in this area, with locales like the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts and Burlington City Arts Center showcasing theatrics and local artists.
Downtown is also host to a good amount of the city’s waterfront area along Lake Champlain, where residents and visitors can spend an afternoon picnicking or playing frisbee in the well-kept lawn of Waterfront Park or simply taking in the view from the pier benches. With the neighborhood’s extreme walkability, access to public transportation, diverse shopping and dining opportunities, art scene, and proximity to Lake Champlain, Burlington’s downtown is an extremely attractive place to live, work, or visit.
View Condos For Sale In Downtown Burlington
Connect