- a guest article by Tony Conboy III
With an already well-established reputation as a winter ski resort, Smugglers’ Notch Resort is making a splash as one of the nation’s most exciting family summer resorts.
A short 50 minute drive from Burlington in Vermont’s Green Mountains, Smuggs, as the locals call it, features 8 pools and 4 water slides with splash pools – all heated. There is also an incredible amount of other activities to keep the fun rolling for kids as well as their parents.
Smuggler's Notch Resort: Lay of the Land
The Village Center is where you'll find restaurants, shopping, administrative offices and meeting places for all kinds of camps and activities.
Overlooking the Village are Madonna Mountain, Sterling Mountain and the pass from which the resort garners its name – Smugglers’ Notch. (Madonna provides the resort with excellent downhill snow skiing during the winter season.)
Where to Stay
Adjacent to the Village Center are the accommodations, which surround the Village in virtually all directions. Accommodations vary from apartment-like studios to three bedroom large condominiums - the size of some homes - complete with multiple fireplaces and full kitchens.
Where you are staying at Smuggs is not an issue – you can park your car and leave it after you arrive as an on demand resort shuttle whisks guests from individual accommodations to any point in the resort in a moments notice – we never waited more the five minutes for a shuttle after we placed a call. For extra fun, golf carts are also available for rental but are definitely not needed.
You’ll notice on the shuttle and as soon as you arrive that Smuggs is literally teeming with kids and families. With special activities for families throughout the day and into the evening, you can be as social as you and your kids want to be with the other guests of Smuggs.
Smuggler's Notch: Activities
Smuggs doesn’t try to fit all kids into one or two age categories for their activities or day camps; rather, there are very specialized activities/camps based upon the age of the child. For example: Discovery Dynamos, ages 3-4; Adventure Rangers, Ages 7-10; the Notch Squad, ages 11-15 and many more.
There is also much more than water activities for a family during their stay, which usually lasts between 5-7 days. Most guests check in on Sunday afternoon or Sunday night. Here are just some of the many non-water related activities available:
- Family fun zone – indoor slides, ping pong and a variety of other games.
- Tennis (10 courts)
- Hiking
- Bike rentals
- Golf programs
- Mini golf
- Disc golf
- Skateboard park
- Health & Wellness programs
- Geocaching Adventures
My 13-year old daughter loved the overall atmosphere and the abundance of kids at Smuggs. She loved the many pools and slides, but her favorite was Rum Runners’ Hideaway. Rum Runners’ is a reservoir accessible only by a short uphill walk. It features swimming, a fidget ladder climb and a 25 foot aqua jump.
A fidget ladder is a cargo-net like rope system where a swimmer tries to climb to the top and ring a bell without falling into the water – harder than it sounds. The Aqua jump is similar to a trampoline that is floating on the water. Swimmers can jump on it or be catapulted off of it into the water. Peddle boats and canoes are also available for rental Rum Runners’.
Tony Conboy III recently visited Smugglers’ Notch Resort as a guest of the resort.
