Choose Your Own Adventure at Vermont’s Hill Farm Inn

Southern Vermont is truly multifaceted — an all-seasons escape that offers hiking, skiing, snowboarding, fishing, water sports, cycling, mountain views, exceptional local cuisine and small towns with big character. There is something for everyone in this part of New England, and one of the most welcoming, authentic places to take it all in is Hill Farm Inn.

Located on a 230-year-old historic dairy farm in southern Vermont, Hill Farm has been welcoming guests for 150-plus years. Nestled between the Taconic and Green Mountain ranges, the property boasts more than 70 acres of land perfect for disconnecting from life’s daily interruptions, exploring and leaning into the beauty of nature. The magnificently restored inn is inviting and cozy, and the Hill Farm staff is wonderful with guests and highly knowledgeable about the local area.

Best Kid-Friendly Inns in Southern Vermont: Review of Hill Farm Inn

Experiencing southern Vermont is like “being at a Broadway play with different acts. When one act ends, the next one begins,” Hill Farm Inn General Manager Joanne Szibat so eloquently explained to me during a tour of the farm. And this is the truly wonderful and magical thing about this part of the United States: As soon as one season ends, the next appears with full force, ushering in with it a new landscape and a whole new set of adventures.

Our family was fortunate enough to visit Hill Farm at its snowiest in mid-February. We made good use of the sled provided in our cottage to test out the onsite downhills, hiked the snowy route along the Battenkill River (spotting animal tracks along the way), snowshoed our way through farm terrain, fed the farm’s alpacas and spoiled the barn cats with attention. We delighted in the incredible farm-fresh breakfasts, shredded the slopes at nearby Bromley Mountain, visited beautiful covered bridges, browsed three-level indie bookstores and chocolate emporiums, tasted cheese and maple syrup delicacies to our hearts’ content, and treated ourselves to a special family dinner at the Restaurant at Hill Farm. No matter the season, Hill Farm Inn provides families with the perfect takeoff and landing spot for the multitude of activities possible within this magical mountainous area of Vermont.

Accommodations

As far as properties go, Hill Farm Inn is incredibly unique. While the main inn has been welcoming guests since it opened in the 19th century, it was tastefully and beautifully restored in 2012. The renovation preserved the farm’s most important historical characteristics while also imbuing it with luxury and New England charm. Hill Farm’s boutique nature makes it feel as though you have a generous amount of space to yourself in this refreshingly open and tranquil landscape. You’ll meet the handful of other guests during breakfast each morning, where kids will quickly make fast friends and begin to discover the farm together while adults trade information about the local area and their favorite nearby activities.

Hill Farm Inn offers several different accommodations to suit families of different sizes. The Dorset Suite (located in the 1790 House a stone’s throw from the main inn), with a queen bedroom and adjoining room with twin daybeds, is perfect for families with younger children. The two individual cottages (three bedrooms/two baths) are a good choice for families of four to six, and the River House is perfect for extended families or groups wanting to have their own space but stay in one large home. The Dorset Suite and cottages are a very short walk from the main inn. The River House sits on its own campus a quick drive away, in a private setting with firepits and peaceful walking trails along the river. It consists of three separate home rentals: two four-bedroom/four-bath units with full kitchens, living rooms and gas fireplaces, and a two-bedroom/two-bath townhouse with a full kitchen and living space. The three units can be rented separately or all together for larger groups.

Our family stayed in the Madeline, a.k.a. Maddie, Cottage. Maddie Cottage provided plenty of room for our family of six plus our golden retriever (yes, the cottages and the River House are dog-friendly!) to spread out and relax. It delivered on that oh-so-fine line between “proximity because it’s a family vacation, but privacy because you have teens.” A renovated 1930s two-story home, the Maddie Cottage features a king bedroom and full bathroom upstairs with skylights to take in the night stars and a panel of windows to soak in the mountain views, and two bedrooms (one with twin beds, the other with a twin trundle bed and a queen) plus a full bath downstairs. The downstairs also includes a full contemporary kitchen, a large dining table, a washer and dryer and a spacious living room with a fireplace and incredible mountain views. Other amenities include a private fire pit, a back deck with gas grill, a mudroom and a spacious yard.

TIP: Hill Farm Inn’s website has fantastic videos showing the outlay and furnishings of all rooms, suites, cottages and the River House.

Dining

Food is an essential component of the experience at Hill Farm. It is yet another way that the property connects its guests to their surroundings.

Our family found the food aspect to be very special. The inn indulges guests by cooking up the most phenomenal breakfast each day. Between 8 and 10 am, guests are treated to a breakfast bar at the main inn with biscuits, cakes and scones (some are even alpaca-shaped — a lovely homage to the farm’s three alpacas), a selection of fresh fruit, yogurt, granola, jams, honey and more. Additionally, guests may order one of two or three daily breakfast items straight from the chef, such as a stack of buttermilk pancakes with spiced apples and Vermont maple syrup or a breakfast sandwich with melted cheddar cheese, sausage, egg and a side salad. Because of the boutique nature of the inn, the breakfast experience feels very much like you are staying in a B&B while taking in the explosion of flavors you get from locally sourced ingredients. Sharing these breakfasts together every morning as a family, being invited into the kitchen by the chef to see what she was preparing, and talking to other guests and the wait staff was truly one of the highlights of our time at Hill Farm Inn.

Dinner is just as special as breakfast in its own unique way. The Restaurant at Hill Farm, a standalone building next to the main inn, opened in 2022 and sources its farm-to-table cuisine from the inn’s market garden and other local farms. Housed in a beautiful lofted barn, it offers a contemporary rustic chic vibe. Seasonal menus are created around the highest-quality meat and produce that southern Vermont has to offer. During our stay, the choices included organic mushroom risotto with black garlic, buckwheat and pine nuts; striped bass with chimichurri; oven-roasted chicken with herbs, roasted apples and sweet potato puree; winter root vegetables with Parmesan and roasted garlic; baked Brie with pomegranate and herbs; farm carrots with shawarma goat cheese and pistachio harissa; and more. As for the kids? The restaurant has a wood-fired pizza oven that is sure to make every little belly happy.

We found the wait staff to be incredibly well-versed in the local ingredients featured in the cuisine. Our server went out of her way to show our kids cool things about the property, including helping them spot owls in the nearby landscape.

The restaurant offers table seating for small and large groups and has a large wraparound deck that allows outdoor seating when the weather permits. It’s open for dinner four nights a week, so plan accordingly.

Amenities

While there is an enormous amount of opportunity for adventure in the surrounding area, Hill Farm Inn has several amenities that allow guests to unwind and connect with their surroundings: a heated saline pool (open seasonally), an onsite walking trail along the Battenkill River, lawn games on the three acres adjacent to the inn, and seasonal firepits throughout the property that are perfect for complimentary s’mores with family and friends. Guests can also visit the farm’s three lady alpacas in the historic barn or spend some time with the friendly barn cats, Tiger and Maple.

During the season, guests can take tours of the market garden and participate in cooking and gardening classes. Hill Farm has also teamed up with a local provider to offer onsite fly-fishing lessons and guided days on the river. The main inn is home to a fitness room, a game room with pool, darts and board games, and a pub.

TIP: Kids can ask for sliced apples at the front desk to feed the alpacas. This is a must!

Local Area

Hill Farm Inn sits 5 miles outside Manchester, Vermont. There is a broad and diverse range of nearby activities, from hiking and biking the Taconic Mountain trails to skiing at nearby peaks to fly fishing on the Battenkill River. Our family found skiing at Bromley Mountain to be very family-friendly; Stratton Mountain is also close by. For those who prefer to relax, the area offers a wide array of great shopping, arts, history and dining.

When to Go

Hill Farm Inn’s busiest months are August and October. Book early to secure your ideal accommodations, especially if you intend on visiting during the most popular times.

Relevant Links:

Browse all accommodations and activities in Vermont on Ciao Bambino

5 cozy resorts in New England for wintertime fun

8 fabulous fall family getaways in the Northeast

Skiing east to west with the Epic Pass: Okemo and Park City

Loren was hosted by Hill Farm Inn in order to review the property. As always, our opinions are our own on Ciao Bambino. Photos by Loren Braunohler.

Editor’s note: This post was accurate when published. We advise checking independently for the latest information and updates. Ciao Bambino does not accept responsibility or liability for any errors or omissions in, or for any actions taken based on, the information presented.