Explore Essex Junction through its events, culture, and recreation. The Champlain Valley Exposition hosts outdoor and indoor events; other highlights include the long-running Champlain Valley Fair, a craft and antique show, and programs at the Brownell Library. The area’s sports offerings also have distinct profiles: a bike park, skate park, pool, and soccer fields appeal to different interests. When planning your trip, it’s worth first deciding what you’re looking for and sorting the options by occasion and activity.
Events and Culture
The Champlain Valley Fair is one of New England’s oldest and largest traditional agricultural fairs. It stands out alongside the diverse event formats at the Champlain Valley Exposition. The Exposition hosts outdoor and indoor events, including entertainment events, concerts, festivals, and conventions. Event planners can also choose turnkey options for consumer and trade shows, banquets, conventions, board meetings, concerts, RV rallies, and conferences. The Exposition thus offers both a wide-ranging event program and formats for organizing different kinds of occasions.
For more than 40 years, the Champlain Valley Craft Show & Antique Expo has brought handcrafted work and rare antiques to Essex Junction. The event includes live craft demonstrations and opportunities to meet the exhibiting artisans. Specific program details may change from one edition to the next, so check the event information before visiting. The Brownell Library regularly offers cultural and educational programs as well as art exhibitions. Together, these experiences range from a fair featuring crafts and antiques to recurring programs and exhibitions.
Get Active: Cycling, Swimming, and Soccer
Maple Street Bike Park offers jumps, berms, pump tracks, and wooden features for freestyle riding on mountain bikes or BMX bikes. Maple Street Skate Park has a different focus: this free, publicly accessible outdoor skate park is designed for skateboards, scooters, bicycles, and other wheeled devices. When comparing the two, the main difference is how they’re used: freestyle mountain biking or BMX at the bike park, and a range of wheeled devices at the skate park.
Maple Street Pool has a water slide, three water features, lap lanes, and diving boards at one- and three-meter heights. It also has a beach-like area with step-free access. Its facilities combine water attractions with lap swimming and diving, while the separate beach-like area offers step-free access.
Another sports venue is Tree Farm Soccer Facility. Essex Junction shares ownership of the facility, whose well-maintained soccer fields are used for local, statewide, and regional tournaments. The fields are therefore used not only for local play, but also for tournaments at the state and regional levels.
Cycling Orientation and Getting Here
The 2025 Essex Junction Bicycle Map helps residents and visitors discover and navigate cycling routes in the city and surrounding area. If you’re interested in routes rather than a single facility, you can use the map to find your way around. The Maple Street Bike Park and the Bicycle Map serve different cycling interests: freestyle features at a dedicated facility and route guidance around the city and surrounding area.
Essex Junction station also serves the nearby city of Burlington. If Burlington is part of your trip, this station is a useful point of reference for getting there. Check the specific train service for your travel date.
Discover more destinations: Colchester, Williston, Burlington, South Burlington, Shelburne, Underhill
Return to the regional travel overview: Chittenden.
