ECHO, Leahy Center for Lake Champlain

ECHO, Leahy Center for Lake Champlain

ECHO, Leahy Center for Lake Champlain
4
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
ECHO, Leahy Center for Lake Champlain, ECHO is Vermont's innovative science and nature museum on Lake Champlain waterfront. The museum's mission is to inspire and engage families in the joy of scientific discovery, the wonder of nature, and care of Lake Champlain. Discover over 100 interactive family experiences, 70 live species, seasonal changing exhibits, and our Northfield Savings Bank immersive 3D Theater. New in 2020, ECHO has been reinvented by all new permanent and highly interactive science exhibits, Awesome Forces and Engineer It. Visitors of all ages tackle daily engineering challenges at our tinkering bench and test zones as well as delight in discovering the amazing processes that have shaped the Lake Champlain Basin and our Earth.
Duration: 1-2 hours
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  • Brian B
    14 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Memories that ECHO
    A fascinating place to take small children, those around us were interacting with the exhibits and were probably learning facts without realizing it. A very well though out way to teach children through play and kids that were barely toddlers could enjoy being raised and lowered by pulleys. As adults we learned from a whale skeleton that Lake Champlain was once connected to the ocean. Many live examples of native turtles and fish add to the experience.
    Visited August 2024
    Travelled with family
    Written 29 August 2024
  • Go04318186391
    19 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    MY DAUGHTER HAD A BLAST!!
    Fun...especially for little kids. Lots to do. Staff is SUPER FRIENDLY AND HELPFUL!!! Can't wait to go back! They have onsight parking, and more parking close by the restrooms. The newt discussion was awesome too. Will have to catch a show there next time we come.
    Visited September 2024
    Travelled with family
    Written 7 September 2024
  • Holly @ LoveAtFirstSite.blog
    Newport, Vermont157 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great visit to the museum and Mo Williems exhibit
    We visited the science center this week after learning the Mo Williems exhibit was there. My children were great fans of the Elephant and Piggie books a few years back. Although they are now 10 and 14, they still had a great time exploring the exhibit as it really is for all ages. We were able to learn to draw some of the popular characters, transfer our voices to sound like Elephant and Piggie, put On a fashion show and more We paid an extra five dollars each to watch the 3D T-Rex show which was educational and fun to watch. The other exhibits we'd seen before at a prior visit but we always enjoy exploring them more and continuously learning. As a tip, our local library (two hours away) offered discount passes for us to go here, as do many libraries. Check yours if you want to visit!
    Visited September 2024
    Travelled with family
    Written 12 September 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

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4.0
4.0 of 5 bubbles581 reviews
Excellent
237
Very good
183
Average
121
Poor
28
Terrible
12

MK_in_VT
Burlington, VT370 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2019
The Roaring 20's dance at Echo was such a blast; with two bands, one of which was an 18 piece big band, several bars throughout the entire museum, passed hor d'oeurves (bacon and chocolate)! - all in and around the interestingly lit rooms and displays on two floors inside the museum. Lots of people - lot of dancing- lot's of fun. They should do this annually!
Written 7 January 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thanks so much for your review. The Roaring '20s party was part of the Highlight Event, Burlington's city wide New Year's celebration and the creation of Jaquline Rieke aka Nutty Steph. We plan to continue this partnership with Signal Kitchen and Burlington City Arts, hosting a party and other day time events annually. I am not sure what the theme of the party will be next year but I am sure it will be a blast!
Written 9 January 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Lee L
Valhalla, NY2,153 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2023 • Solo
To me I would say this doesn't have much of an appeal to adults who do not have children with them. They have a handful of exhibits on the 1st floor dealing with the fish and other creatures that live in Lake Champlain. The second floor has some other exhibits mainly the animals that live around the lake; turtles, snakes, frogs etc. The rest of the floor is a lot of interactive exhibits which seemed to appeal to the younger set. I probably spent less than an hour here.

They do have 3-d movies but they are an extra $5 and run about 20 minutes or so. Admission was $18. The parking nearby has 2 lots one I think was hourly but was full when I went there, I ended up in the train station lot which was a flat $10 to park.
Written 5 November 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Gregory M
Westchester, IL336 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2020 • Family
ECHO is a fantastic, hands on experience for kids from 2 to preteens. There are 3 floors of exhibits, many are hands on. There are periodic events like feedings which are announced and the staff does a good job explains what the various animals are and what is their habitat. Most of the fish, amphibians and reptiles are native to the Lake Champlain region. There are geologic exhibits describing the glaciers and rocks left behind as well as how the native population made use of them. There is even a television display explaining how a “green board” works and then lets you do your own newscast. There is currently a butterfly exhibit running through September, 2020 which includes a tropical butterfly house where you can wander and see butterflies close up and if you are lucky enough, one may even land on you. This is definitely a fun educational center especially for families with young children.
Written 9 March 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jacques C
Westfield, VT40 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
July 2019
If you have a couple hours to do something very interesting and fun, you must go visit the ECHO center. You will be impressed with the professionally created exhibits. There is plenty of interactive activities to do. Situated on the shore of beautiful Lake Champlain!
Written 8 March 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Holly @ LoveAtFirstSite.blog
Newport, VT157 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2024 • Family
We visited the science center this week after learning the Mo Williems exhibit was there. My children were great fans of the Elephant and Piggie books a few years back. Although they are now 10 and 14, they still had a great time exploring the exhibit as it really is for all ages.

We were able to learn to draw some of the popular characters, transfer our voices to sound like Elephant and Piggie, put On a fashion show and more

We paid an extra five dollars each to watch the 3D T-Rex show which was educational and fun to watch.

The other exhibits we'd seen before at a prior visit but we always enjoy exploring them more and continuously learning.

As a tip, our local library (two hours away) offered discount passes for us to go here, as do many libraries. Check yours if you want to visit!
Written 12 September 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

smg12657
Largo, FL25 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
June 2022
We took my 10 yr old grandson there. The adults had just as much fun as the kid!! There was exhibits of live aquarium animals and fish. Lots of interactive, fun exhibits. My favorite was the STEM center with staff to help the kids with a specific project of the day. That day's project was to build a "raft" from paper, plastic straws, paper clips and other items on a tray so it would slide down a rope angled downward without a little plastic turtle falling off. My grandson worked very hard and it took him 3 tries to make his design work but he did it! Great family place! The staff was amazing-friendly, helpful and all about the kids. We stayed all afternoon and only left because they were closing at 5 PM! Then we could walk the waterfront of Lake Champlain. Gorgeous!!
Written 18 June 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Lorenzo el Jefe
Ontario, Canada3,390 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2023 • Family
Our two under 4 grand boys loved the museum:
Perfect for this age group.
Tons of strollers proved the point. Strollers available on site too.
Our 4 year old loves to fish and is great at the sport (5 pound small mouth this past summer)
while at the museum every one was gob-smacked by the live sturgeons in the tank.

Q-Trip: We lasted a full hour … worth every minute.

Please check our my photos for the venue.
Written 9 January 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Brian B
14 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2024 • Family
A fascinating place to take small children, those around us were interacting with the exhibits and were probably learning facts without realizing it. A very well though out way to teach children through play and kids that were barely toddlers could enjoy being raised and lowered by pulleys.
As adults we learned from a whale skeleton that Lake Champlain was once connected to the ocean. Many live examples of native turtles and fish add to the experience.
Written 29 August 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Kathleen L
122 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
July 2021 • Family
We stopped here with three kids (14,11,1.5) and they had a great time. Lots to do and touch and play with- but educational too! There’s great views of the lake off the back as well. Military gets free admission, which was a pleasant surprise!
My daughter had a blast - I wish there were more places like this.
Written 10 July 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

mckenziec561
Jupiter, FL351 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2022
This was better than we'd hoped for when we brought our little family for a visit. My toddler was so excited and entertained and they even had interactions for our 8mos old baby! We spent two hours here then walked the beautiful waterfront.
I definitely recommend visiting if you're in Burlington and have little ones!
Written 5 October 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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