Visitors to Vermont looking to rent RVs generally search for travel trailers. The cost of renting a travel trailer usually depends on its size. For instance, a 16-foot trailer in Burlington that sleeps three will cost $80 per night while a 29-foot trailer from South Burlington that sleeps four rents for $195 per day.
Travelers also like to rent Class C motorhomes to explore Vermont. These units are self-contained with upgraded appliances such as televisions, microwaves, kitchen ranges, and showers. However, these units are more expensive to rent. A 24-foot Class C in South Burlington that sleeps five costs about $240 per night.
Vermont is compact but high-reward with the Green Mountains, Lake Champlain, covered bridge country, and some of the best fall foliage in North America making it a perennial Northeast favorite.
Vermont's secondary roads are narrow and often unpaved in rural areas. The scenic routes through the Northeast Kingdom, the Mad River Valley, and rural Orange County involve road surfaces and widths that favor smaller rigs. A Class C under 28 feet or a compact travel trailer handles Vermont's back roads cleanly. A 40-foot Class A works on US-2, US-4, and VT-100, but eliminates most scenic detours.
Smugglers' Notch has a hard 10-foot 10-inch clearance and no large vehicle access. VT-108 through Smugglers' Notch is closed to vehicles over 10 feet 10 inches tall, over 8 feet wide, or over 22 feet long. This is strictly enforced. If Smugglers' Notch is on your list, you need a Class B campervan or small tow vehicle — period.
Fall foliage season (late September–mid-October) is peak demand across the state. Vermont fall color is world-class and massively demanded. Every campground in the state fills for Columbus Day weekend months in advance. Book as soon as the reservation window opens — then book your RV.
A Class C or smaller is a good all-around choice for Vermont. Between the Notch restrictions, narrow forest campground loops, and secondary road widths, a mid-size Class C (under 28 feet) is the most capable rig for Vermont. You'll access more campgrounds, more scenic routes, and more covered bridge detours.
Vermont state park campgrounds use ReserveAmerica. Groton State Forest, Elmore State Park, and Branbury State Park are the most popular. Sites open in January and fill fast for summer and fall. Groton is the largest state forest campground in the Northeast and has full hookup sites.
Smugglers' Notch State Park campground is only accessible from the Jeffersonville side. Due to the VT-108 restrictions, the campground is accessible to appropriately sized vehicles from the north (Jeffersonville) only. Do not attempt the Notch approach from Stowe in a larger vehicle.
Groton State Forest has multiple campground areas — confirm which one you are booking. New Discovery, Ricker Pond, Seyon Ranch, and Stillwater are all distinct campgrounds within Groton. Each has different site configurations and hookup availability. Read the site descriptions carefully before booking.
Spring mud season (mid-March through May) can close or damage access roads. Vermont's clay-heavy soils and freeze-thaw cycle create significant mud on unpaved campground access roads in spring. Confirm campground opening dates before planning an early-season trip.
Situated 27 miles south of Burlington, Button Bay State Park sits on a bluff above Lake Champlain, providing impressive views of the lake and the forests that crowd its shores. A boat ramp allows access to the lake, and the small bay makes it safe for kayaks and canoes to paddle the waters along the beach.
Whether visiting Half Moon Pond State Park in the spring or the fall, the hardwood forests covering the surrounding hills provide a display far beyond those found elsewhere. Stretched along the pond's shores, the park offers immediate access to the water with a ramp where visitors launch rented boats, kayaks, or canoes to fish or enjoy the tranquil waters.
Located 53 miles east of South Burlington, Stillwater State Park reflects the brilliant backdrop of forested hillsides in its calm waters. The park sits beside Lake Groton, a fish-rich body of water with a boat ramp for easy access. Over 17 miles of hiking trails drift around the park and through the forests.
Located less than three miles north of Burlington, North Beach Campground sits on a 44-acre lot on the shores of Lake Champlain. An urban campground with a rustic character, this park provides 68 RV sites with gravel pads. Side-by-side hookups offer 29 sites with full service while the other 39 have water and 30-amp access. The campground offers a swimming beach, a playground, restrooms, and showers.
Located 19 miles north of Burlington, the big rig-friendly Apple Island Resort on South Hero Island is reached via a causeway. The resort provides majestic views of the Green Mountains towering over Lake Champlain. With 220 full-hookup sites, this park offers access to the lake for anyone wanting to swim or fish. A concessionaire rents kayaks, canoes, paddleboards, and boats, which guests can launch from one of three boat ramps. A nine-hole golf course sits next door, and hiking trails run up and down the lake and across the island.
Iroquois Land Family Camping lies three miles south of Rutland. The campground provides 30 RV sites with grass pads, of which 15 offer full hookups, and the other 15 campsites have water and electric access with a choice of 30-amp or 50-amp power. A swimming pool and large grass swathes where games like volleyball and horseshoes are played provide family fun. A dump station is readily available.
Most campgrounds offer a dump station for their guests. Other, more public dump stations are available at select locations throughout the state. One such station is at Lake Carmi State Park. The facility is open from 10 a.m. to sunset each day. Fees for the use of the dump station are $15.
To take advantage of national parks, RV travelers must venture outside the state where three are within a day’s drive. The nearest, Acadia National Park, is located near Portland, ME, less than a four-hour drive from Rutland. Acadia has the distinction of being the oldest national park east of the Mississippi. Inside its borders, visitors find ocean beaches, peaks, forests, lakes, and rivers. Cadillac Mountain, at 1,530 feet, is the highest peak on the East Coast of the United States, and six other mountains in the park stand over 1,000 feet. Most of the area is covered with dense hardwood forest that lights up the hillsides in the fall. Fishing, hiking, biking, and horseback riding are the favorite activities that draw over three million visitors per year.
Shenandoah National Park is an eight-hour drive southwest of Rutland. It is one of the most visited parks in the national park system. The park protects over 300 square miles of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Hiking, biking, and equestrian trails lead visitors to some of the most astonishing views of forest-covered mountains, deep valleys, and big sky found in the United States.
An eight-hour drive due west from Rutland gets visitors to Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Located south of Cleveland, OH, this park is one long gorge carved by the Cuyahoga River. The steep slopes hover above the river as it and its tributaries tumble down more than 100 waterfalls. Over 125 miles of hiking trails run through the valley, visiting the waterfalls, pools of water teeming with fish, and several whitewater rapids that lend their music to the breeze gently wafting through the trees overhead.
Amongst the top-ranking landmarks in Vermont, Mount Independence is the least disturbed major Revolutionary War structure in the nation. Built in 1776 to thwart an invasion of the American colonies from Canada, the fortifications still stand as a reminder of perilous times.
The Rock of Ages Quarry near Barre is the world's largest deep-hole dimension granite quarry. The granite from this site supplies the material for most of the gravestones and monuments in the United States. At over 600 feet deep, this quarry represents the efforts of granite workers since the discovery of the fine-grained granite rock in 1885.
Located 34 miles south of Rutland, Mount Equinox, with an elevation of over 3,000 feet, is one of the tallest mountains in Vermont. The views of the valley below from its peak are spectacular. A paved road, open from May through October, climbs the mountain at steep angles.
On average expect to pay $169 per night in Vermont.
Do you need to be a certain age to rent an RV in Vermont?Yes. The minimum age is 25 to be eligible to get an RV Rental in Vermont from RVshare.
Does RVshare have emergency roadside assistance?Yes. Every RV rental booked through RVshare receives 24/7 emergency roadside assistance.
Does RVshare offer one way RV rentals in Vermont?Yes. Prior to renting any RV, check with the owner since not all will offer this particular option.
Do you need a special license to drive an RV in Vermont?No. You don’t need a special license or CDL to drive an RV in Vermont.