Montpelier Winterfest

January 31st-February 1st 2026

Celebrate Winter Together in Montpelier, the heart of Vermont.

This free, family-friendly event is packed with activities for all ages.
Enjoy outdoor adventure, cozy indoor gatherings, downtown shopping, music, and seasonal traditions.

All Weekend

Ice Sculptures on the Kellogg-Hubbard Library lawn and in front of City Hall.
These sculptures are designed to be interactive, with kid-friendly photo-op designs.
The ice sculptures are made possible for the community due to a generous grant from AARP.

Downtown shopping & dining with outdoor gear sales all weekend

Live music & movies

Stroll the illuminated bridges, aglow in blues, teals, and whites

Nordic skiing & fat biking throughout Hubbard and North Branch Trails

Sledding in Hubbard Park & Country Club Road

Ice skating on the Greenway Skating Rink on College Street

Friday, January 30th

10:00 AM
Ice Sculpture Delivery!
Join us as we welcome the delivery of the Winterfest ice sculptures at City Hall Plaza
and the Kellogg-Hubbard Library lawn, starting at 10am Friday morning.

7:00 – 9:00 PM
Craft Night at the Bookstore – Bear Pond Books
Spending an evening relaxing & crafting a wide variety of projects including:
book flowers, felting, origami, stenciled book edges, and more.
There will be snacks and bring your own beverage.
THIS EVENT IS FULL

7:30 – 11:30 PM
Live music at local venues!

Saturday, January 31st

10:00 AM – 2:00 PM
Puzzle Swap – Kellogg-Hubbard Library
Bring a gently used puzzle to exchange for another at this community Puzzle Swap.
Open to all ages and running alongside the Puzzle Race on Saturday.

10:30 AM – 12:30 PM
Puzzle Race — Kellogg-Hubbard Library
Teams arrive by 10:15 AM • Registration FULL

12:00 – 3:00 PM
Horse-Drawn Wagon Rides — State Street & Elm Street
The horse drawn wagon rides are made possible for the community due to a generous grant from AARP.

1:00 – 3:00 PM
Live Music — Cafe Noa
the Beekeeper & the Honeyman: Franklin Heyburn & Ray Lewis

1:30 - 3:00 PM
The Princess Bride — The Savoy Theater
Part of a monthly film series that celebrates the movies we love most, this endlessly quotable, joy-filled classic captures the magic of storytelling, the power of love, and the simple joy of a movie that makes everyone feel like a kid again.

2:00 – 3:30 pm
Animal Tracking Walk – New Shelter, Hubbard Park
Join Naturalist Gail Johnson for a close-up look at tracks and the stories
they tell. You will use Tom Brown Jr.'s (the Tracker) examples of 4 basic
animal track patterns and learn how animals' motions make the patterns
(handouts available). Easy walk. All ages and free!

2:30 – 4:00 PM
Sledding Party — Country Club Road Sledding Hill
Hot chocolate & treats provided — bring your sled!

3:30 – 4:30 PM
Skate Skiing Lesson for adults – Country Club Road
Join Brian Carlson for a class on how to skate ski, with a focus on
proper techniques for enjoying this fun and fast way to nordic ski.
No pre-registration required! BYO equipment.

5:00 – 8:00 PM
Snowshoe Romp — Country Club Road
Join us for the 2026 Onion River Outdoors Snowshoe Romp,
with support from the Montpelier Area Mountain Bike Association.
Enjoy a winter evening snowshoe loop at Country Club Road, featuring glowing luminaries
and a festive Winterfest atmosphere. A fun, family-friendly way to get outside and enjoy winter under the lights. Free demo adult and junior snowshoes from Tubbs, Atlas, and MSR expertly fitted by Onion River Outdoors staff and MAMBA volunteers!

6-10pm
Central Vermont Queer Line Dancing — The Chapel in College Hall
35 College St
Space Rodeo Line Dance, costumes encouraged! Sober, all-ages event featuring mocktails and line dance lessons followed by dancing all night!

7:30-11:30pm
Live music at local venues

Sunday, February 1st

12:30 – 2:00 PM
Public Skating – Central Vermont Memorial Civic Center
Enjoy public skate hours at CVMCC for $5 and limited $5 skate rentals.

2:00 – 5:00 PM
Ice on Fire — Hosted by AllTogetherNow!
Montpelier Country Club, 203 Country Club Road
Hot drinks and snacks, storytelling, games, performances, a bonfire, and activities for all!
Please bring mugs for hot drinks.
Admission/suggested donation: $10/person, no one turned away for lack of funds.
Please bring your friends and family, but kindly leave your dogs at home.
Parking is limited, please carpool if possible.

3:00 – 6:00 PM
Monteverdi Winter Youth Open Mic — Montpelier Performing Arts Hub
A laid back, fun opportunity for youth to play music with friends, solo, or with D. Davis and Jolynda.
BYO instrument or borrow one. Please RSVP even if you're just thinking about attending.

Get Cozy At the Movies!

The Savoy

Capitol Theater

Winterfest Night Life

Friday:

Langdon Street Tavern: Karaoke with John's Jukebox 8pm
Hugos: Jerome Monachino, Gabe Jarrett & Clyde Stats 7:30pm
Charlie O’s: Kilgore Trout 8:30-11pm

Saturday:

Hugos: Blackwolf 7:30pm
Charlie O’s: Soaking Wet Wratchit 8:30-11:30pm

Sales & Deals Around Town

Slopestyle
92 River Street
Offering 20% off on select skis, boots, and outerwear Winterfest weekend
*some exlusions apply due to vendor guidlines*

Onion River Outdoors
89 Main Street
All in-stock snowshoes will be 20% off at ORO for the entirety of WinterFest weekend!
Tons of winter gear and apparel are now marked down to 20-50% off, so swing by the store to shop the discounts.
Available Rentals Include: XC and BC ski packages, snowshoes, and fat bike rentals all weekend long...and every day!