Southeastern Vermont, a scenic delight and haven for outdoor activity, is also a culturally sophisticated region. Windham County is blessed with a dynamic artistic community where art galleries thrive and abound. If your interest lies in museums and gallery walks, you can find it here in abundance.

Brattleboro’s Gallery Walk. Brattleboro, with its classic red-brick Victorian Main Street, was voted in the top five of the best small towns in America, and is Number 10
on John Villani's list of "The 100 Best Small Art Towns." It is the home of the Vermont Jazz Center, the Art Deco Latchis Theater, the New England Youth Theater, Nimble Arts and the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center.

On the first Friday of each month from 5:30 – 8:30 p.m. throughout the year historic Main Street turns into a moving party and celebration of the arts. The town's many art galleries open their new shows, street musicians fill Main Street with music, stores stay open late, and cafes and restaurants fill with art lovers. Visitors stroll from gallery openings to artists' studios. This lively mix of residents, visitors, retailers and professionals creates an atmosphere of vitality and diversity, which is both charming and exciting.

What started ten years ago as a quiet attempt to draw attention to the growing number of galleries in downtown Brattleboro has now grown into nearly 60 art galleries and stores showing and selling art, Vermont crafts, books, records, Oriental carpets, fine jewelry, clothing and shoes. A glossy magazine helps people find their way with reviews and listings. For visitors, it’s an easy way to drop in to a small town and have a great time with the locals.

Bellows Falls’ Art Walk. Twenty miles north of Brattleboro on the Connecticut River lies the Village of Bellows Falls that has earned a reputation throughout Vermont and the region as a model of downtown revitalization. With historic architecture, cohesive neighborhoods, the scenic Connecticut River, high-speed Internet connections, the arts are thriving with local galleries and an on the third Friday of each month an Art Walk from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

On Art Walk night, the stores stay open later and musicians take to the streets and cafes. The Spheris Gallery, which features fine art, The Framery of Vermont, which does picture framing and also houses an art gallery, and the unique Exner Block shops stay open late. The well-stocked Village Square Bookstore, which has a gallery and a cafe, draws up to 50 people eager to hear poets and authors talk about their work.

Wilmington’s Summer Nights Gallery Fest. Twenty miles to the West of Brattleboro, the Deerfield River bubbles happily through the festive little village of Wilmington, where historic wooden buildings, mostly built in the 1800s, line the two main streets. In the summer the streets are decorated with flowers and there's always a cool breeze.

For a small village of some 30 or 40 shops, Wilmington has impeccable taste. It has five art galleries, plus wonderful home design shops, clothing stores and restaurants. It has always been a friendly place to shop, and now, on Saturday nights in July and August, it has become even friendlier - the stores are staying open until 8:00 p.m. for Wilmington's
Summer Nights Gallery Fest, and the restaurants are featuring jazz and acoustic music.

This summer, the galleries will be featuring Bears in the Valley. The valley will be home to 39 new resident bears. But don’t worry – these bears don’t bite!! The 4 foot by 5 foot fiberglass bears will be hand painted by local artists and will be on display throughout the Mount Snow Valley along Routes 9 and 100 creating a summer-long arts event. This public, multi-artist outdoor event will run from Memorial Day through Columbus Day and acts as the centerpiece of an event-filled summer for the area.

In the center of town, professional music performances at the Memorial Hall Center for The Arts start at 8 p.m., so people can shop and eat.

Several fine museums are located in Windham County. The Brattleboro Museum & Art Center in Brattleboro (802-257-0124) (brattleboromuseum.org) has been repeatedly recognized by federal and state arts agencies for the outstanding quality of its exhibitions and programs. The museum is housed in Union Station, a landmark on the National Register of Historic Places.

For more information , call toll free: 1 877-887-2378 (VTS BEST).