Rutland

A view of the Rutland Downtown Historic District on an overcast day

Rutland is a city of about 17,000 people in Southern Vermont. It is the third largest city in the state. It is a good starting point for exploring the Green Mountains, and is very close to several major ski areas. The town has over one hundred houses on the National Register of Historic Places. This article also covers the nearby village of Chittenden.

Understand

Rutland has many pretty historic houses in its Historic District. A bit further south on Route 7, there is a fairly large area of modern shopping malls, car dealerships, chain stores, and restaurants.

Get in

By car

Route 4 runs east-west through town and Route 7 runs north-south. Business Route 4 runs along the southern edge of the downtown. Generally, it is a 5-hour drive from New York City, a 3-hour drive from Boston and a 4-hour drive from Montreal.

By bus

There is a Greyhound bus terminal at 102 West St, downtown.

Vermont Translines route 7 connects Rutland with Burlington.

By train

See also: Rail travel in the United States

• 1 Rutland station (James M Jeffords Station), 25 Evelyn St. In downtown. (updated Oct 2023)
  • Amtrak, ☏ +1 215-856-7924, toll-free: +1-800-872-7245. Operates trains throughout the United States of America. (updated Dec 2020) Route stopping at Rutland:
    • Ethan Allen Express operating daily between Burlington and New York City including in Middlebury, Rutland, Saratoga Springs, Schenectady, Albany (Rensselaer), Hudson, Rhinecliff, Poughkeepsie, Croton-on-Hudson, and Yonkers.

By plane

• 2 Rutland–Southern Vermont Regional Airport (RUT  ^IATA). Cape Air runs a few flights daily from Boston Logan aboard their Cessna 402 and Tecnam P2012 Traveller propeller-driven airplanes. This is a very small airport somewhat distant from town, so be sure to arrange transportation ahead of time. It's about 2 hours by car to Burlington. (updated Apr 2024)

Get around

Downtown Rutland is easily walkable, but to go anywhere else you'll either need a car or take public transit. There is a local bus service called The Bus. The Bus also runs to Killington for $2.

See

Center Street lit up at night during a festival, with the historic and still-operating Paramount Theatre on the left

• Mead's Falls. A nice waterfall just west of town on Otter Creek. It is crossed by a gargantuan railroad bridge and littered with huge slabs of authentic Vermont marble. It is accessible from Old Falls Rd, opposite the junction between Rt 3 and Business Rt 4. (updated Apr 2024)
• 1 Vermont State Fair. Held at the racetrack on South Main Street every September.  
• 2 Chaffee Art Center, 16 S. Main St, ☏ +1 802-775-0356. Art gallery with changing exhibits and art classes and workshops (updated Jun 2017)
• 3 New England Maple Museum, 4578 US-7, ☏ +1 802-483-9414. Museum with the history of maple syrup (updated Jun 2017)

Do

• 1 Paramount Theater, 30 Center St, ☏ +1 802-775-0903. Historic performance theater with many events and touring shows visiting every year (updated May 2017)
• 2 Pine Hill Park, 2 Oak St Ext. Park with large well-maintained trail system for mountain biking and hiking (updated Jun 2017)
• Green Mountain Rock Climbing Center, 223 Woodstock Ave., ☏ +1 802-773-3343. Indoor climbing gym suitable for both beginner and advanced climbers. Guided outdoor rock and ice climbing trips are available as well. 
• Hathaway Farm & Corn Maze, 741 Prospect Hill Rd., ☏ +1 802-775-2624. Large themed corn maze open late summer through late fall. (updated Jun 2017)

Buy

• Rutland Farmers Market, Downtown - Depot Park (Summer), 251 West St (Winter). Market for local produce and goods every Saturday morning. Held indoors during the winter months (updated May 2017)

Eat

• West Street Grill (Was Little Harry's), 121 West St (off route 7), ☏ +1 802-747-4848. An unexpected gem; a warm and friendly restaurant with an imaginative menu. (updated Apr 2024)
• Sugar and Spice, 43 US Rt 4 (Drive east on 4 out of town, the restaurant is located between Park Ln. and Meadow Lake Dr.), ☏ +1 802-773-7832. 7AM-2PM. Vermont-themed restaurant built around a working sugarhouse. Also has a gift shop with many Vermont products for sale. (updated Jun 2017)
• The Sandwich Shoppe, 56 1/2 Merchants Row, ☏ +1 802-773-2580. A great little lunch spot with a huge menu (updated Jun 2017)
• The Village Snack Bar, 389 West Street, ☏ +1 802-775-2717. A summer favorite of locals, features typical snack bar fare made to order. Indoor and outdoor seating. Open April through September (updated Jun 2017)
• Gill's Delicatseen, 68 Strongs Ave., ☏ +1 802-773-7414. Classic deli options (updated Jun 2017)
• Roots the Restaurant, 51 Wales St., ☏ +1 802-747-7414. Localvore-focused cuisine in a nice atmosphere. Seating is limited. (updated Jun 2017)

Drink

• Hop'n Moose Brewing Company, 41 Center St, ☏ +1 802-775-7063. Brewpub with a large selection of unique drinks and wood-fired pizza. (updated May 2017)
• Vermont Tap House, 120 S Main St., ☏ +1 802-775-0000. 28 regional brews on tap and wood-fired pizza 

Sleep

Longfellow School

• Hampton Inn, 47 Farrell Rd., ☏ +1 802-773-9066. 
• Best Western, 5 Best Western Pl, ☏ +1 802-773-3200, toll-free: +1-866-229-6188, bwrutlandsales@gmail.com. (updated Nov 2017)
• Rodeway Inn Rutland, 138 North Main St, ☏ +1 802-775-2575. Comfortable, moderately priced accommodations, pet friendly lodging options, complimentary breakfast, discount vacation packages. 
• Quality Inn, 253 South Main Street, Rt. 4 & Rt. 7, ☏ +1 802-773-3361. 
• 1 Fox Creek Inn, 49 Dam Rd, Chittenden, ☏ +1 802-483-6213, toll-free: +1-800-707-0017. Check-in: 11AM, check-out: 3PM. $237-406, including breakfast and dinner, higher in Sep-Oct. (updated Feb 2023)

Connect

• The Rutland Herald is the major local paper. It won a Pulitzer Prize in 2001.

Go next

• Nearby Proctor, an old marble cutting town, is home to the Vermont Marble Exhibit. The town is pretty and also a little quirky because just about everything is made out of marble. Even the sidewalks.
• Killington, the largest ski resort in the Northeast, is only a 20-minute drive to the east. They offer skiing in the winter and various recreational activities (mountain biking, hiking) in the other months of the year.

Routes through Rutland

Troy ← Whitehall ←	W  E	→ Killington → White River Junction
Burlington ← Brandon ←	N  S	→ Manchester → Pittsfield