Grafton: Just a few decades ago, Grafton was a down-at-the-heels mountain town slowly being reclaimed by termites and the elements. A wealthy family took the town on as a pet project, lovingly restoring it to the way it once was -- even burying electric lines to reclaim the landscape. It doesn't feel like a living history museum; it just feels right.
Woodstock: Woodstock has a stunning village green, a whole range of 19th-century homes, woodland walks just out of town, and a settled, old-money air. This is a good place to explore by foot or bike, or to just sit on a porch and watch summer unfold.
Montpelier: This is the way all state capitals should be -- slow-paced, small enough that you can walk everywhere, and featuring lots of shops that sell wrenches and strapping tape. Montpelier also shows a more sophisticated edge, with its culinary institute, a theater showing art-house films, and several fine book shops; but at heart it's a small town, where you just might run into the governor buying duct tape at the corner store.
