Reviews of ECHO, Leahy Center for Lake Champlain (Tourist Attraction)

Noah Dion

Awesome! Lots of info to learn on VT's watershed conservation, waterways, and the animals living in our environment especially aquatic life. There's native fish such as Pike, Sturgeons, and trout. Frogs, turtles, toads, and more. Tons of displays and cool kiosks for children. Overall a great place to go for a few hours and cruise through. You get a discount on admission for being a VT resident as well. Only thing is I wish Echo was a little bigger. Hard to spend a full day here due to it's smaller size but that also makes the experience more personable. Definitely worth checking out!

Elizabeth McLean

Awesome science and nature museum. Great aquariums and lots of activities for toddlers to 12 year olds. Loved the 3D movie

George Elliott

My kids loved the guest dinosaur exhibit and the play area. This is a great place to take your kids

Aslam Ramzanali

If you are in Burlington, it’s a must see. Small building but elegant architecture.

Cameron Gover

Great place to take kids, view the lake, and kill an hour looking at some native species! Live feedings are a special treat

Terry Parkinson

Lovely museum to garner interest in conservation in minds of our youth. Hands-on activities and information for all ages. The 3-d movie of the pacific was nicely done!

Charlie Zumpano

This was a lot of fun for all of us.

Nikki's picks

The place was boring, tiny, and has false advertising. For example, it shows pictures on its page about a dinosaur room and a butterfly room. I went there and it was all just about lakes.

Katherine R. MacLauchlan

So much fun! The dinosaur exhibit was cool, great play areas for all ages.

James Batchelder

Great for kids to learn and alot of hands on activities

Katie M

Some of the new stuff was already broken unfortunately, but over all it was good. Things looked cleaner than the last time we visited too.

Jane Day

My grand kids are 11 and 8 and have come here for years. It is a small aquarium but they continue to enjoy it. We have an annual membership, it is worth it for us.

sarah cox

Very fun my kids love it. Gift shop not overly expensive great membership price

John Cribb

my fiance and I went here to kill some time and learn some of the history of lake champlaign. this is geared more towards kids. so I would recommend visiting this interactive center to learn some of the history in the area and especially about the lake.

Leslie Terwilliger

A must go for the kiddos. Very interactive and informative, staff was very friendly!

Christopher Jones

Always a great time, no matter the exhibits

Kiley Briggs

I love this place. As far as I can tell, people from all ages and backgrounds seem to love it as well. It's a great spot to spend a couple hours learning about the fascinating natural history of the Champlain Basin and younger minds are provided with creative ways to engage them in the learning process. The live animal displays are above anything else in Vermont.

Bruce Allard

I read one review and have to agree. The aquariums for some of these fish/ reptiles are much too small. For example you have several large fish together in a small tank. The big lake sturgeons have to spend their lives swimming around in a circle. Can never generate any speed. Really is kinda sad.

Cindy Pebler

Awesome place workers are very friendly

Julie Lake

Small interesting museum, showcasing local marine animals, geology, and history of the area.

Juneal Green

Our grandchildren enjoyed this all kinds of hands on

Mike Russell

Great for tweens and younger. Lots of decent displays. We were there for a couple hours without watching moves. Price is a little high in my mind. But still a fun stop

Patrick Kimball

Outstanding Freshwater Aquarium and Science Center.

Christina p

So many people said my 10-year-old son would love this, and being big museum fans, we were very excited about visiting. This place is really better for small children. We had trouble killing time until our 20-minute movie started, and there were kids crying during the entire movie.

Nathan Capen

Always a great time with children! We went when the dinosaurs were there, it was a grand time.

Carolyn Pereira

Expensive and small... It did have a couple cool frogs, one tank of lake fish and some star fish. But everything else was very underwhelming, most of the games and hands on activities were broken too. :(

Tim Dartt

It's a great place for kids

Douglas Littlefield

It is overpriced in my opinion and many of the kids run wild, parents not exercising any control at all. This was the third time we took our grandson but I hope he ignores it from now on.

Doug McLaughlin

This was a great museum for kids. They really enjoyed all the animals.

jeremy Gray

Very nice place with a very nice atmosphere is very nice people all doing very nice things to. Ice other people that are also very nice it all becomes maybe little bit too nice. But if you confuse now just know that I'm on the going on like this because I want to get one check closer to 3 reviews with over 200 characters so if you're still reading I apologize for wasting your time Because of my inability to actually type 200 characters About Eco Leehy center for Whatever the heck but I hope now if I keep talking to be over 200 because I just tried and it was under so Here I am rambling on about nothing And and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and hands and in hand in and to in the end So this was a valued this was a valued rug Yeah man it really tied the room together This Isn't a guy you built the railroads here

Sine Nomine

A smaller aquarium and science center along Lake Champlain. Permanent exhibits include fish from the lake, a touch tank, and local turtles. There's also an area for younger kids to climb around, pretend, and splash. The traveling exhibit room has had a variety of exhibits over the years, ranging from a butterfly room to dinosaurs. As of 6/19, it's a Trivial Pursuit exhibit about the 50 states. We get in free with out membership at our local science museum.

Wendell Joseph

Was a wonderful visit with the kids. The aquarium is amazing,and do not forget to check out th3 theatre very informative

Xavier Déry

This is a great museum. They strike a perfect balance between entertaining and teaching. There are big fish tanks in there! Freshwater fish like you find in Lake Champlain. There are also play spaces for kids of all ages that are both massively fun and offer manipulation of shapes, materials and forces of nature. The augmented reality sandbox is amazing, a serious geology/hydrology tool that's also a lot of fun. The staff is very friendly and knowledgeable.

Ryan Calvi

Great place to take kids. Always a fun time to explore, build and learn while you play. They have a great water table upstairs, where kids can adjust the flow of a river with tiles, go down slides, and play with boats. The innovations area downstairs is alway a treat as it changes every 4 months or so. and brings a new interactive area that kids and adults are able to partake in. The membership brings soo much more as you can use it at over 300+ different museums around the country. My membership has paid for itself over with this feature alone.

Douglas Levine

Amazing place for little kids to go, thanks for this.

Jennifer Weiler

LOVE Echo!! Cannot say this enough! We have a family pass for my husband and I and our two daughters and even if we show up 30 minutes before closing just to let the toddlers blow off some steam, we're always welcomed and encouraged to go play. Love the rotation of exhibits especially the current imagination play ground one!

John B

A great place to spend a couple of hours! We really enjoyed the starfish exhibit upstairs with the lovely lady who had great information and was really interactive with our family. The 3D experience was worth the extra couple of bucks too.

Cameron DeRose-Barden

Fantastic place for kids to play and learn and see a lot of marine life.

William Keller

What a great experience for kids and parents! This was the perfect destination for a rambunctious 16-month old on a rainy day.

Neal Brassard

Good place to bring children younger than teenagers.

Julie Newton

Fun and interactive place for adults and kids alike. I highly recommend coming here

Leeanne ChevyGirl

We made the best of our visit, but my daughter was 12 and bored quick, it's more for younger children in my opinion.

Katherine Wilson

Great place to take your kids for a couple hours. Lots of activities for kids of all ages. Little pricey though. Discount to VT residents which is good.

Al Smith

Great presentations of lake ecology.

Jessica Terry

Visited from Massachusetts. We loved the 50 States exhibit. Best for younger children but my daughter (10 yo) enjoyed the lecture on snakes. Weekends are packed and parking was tricky but not impossible. Nice hands-on museum.

Kathy Augustyniak

The kids had a great time ! Lots to do.

Thomas Straffi

Great place for kids and adults of all ages. There are aquariums and exhibits related to the flora and fauna that lives in Lake Champlain. A nice play area for infants, toddlers, and older toddlers. Limited food selection. Nice place to visit while in Burlington.

Sonya Brown

Dinosaur exhibit fun! Kids enjoyed the realistic dinosaurs

Margo Oakes

It's great for kids of all ages

Justin Bolio

we own a season pass, for our family of five. I just feel like they should try to mix it up and switch up the exhibits. We have gone about 7 times this year. Now our kids are starting to get a little bored with it

Jeremy Dean

Good visit with kids while in town. Movies are a little shorter than expected and it's not a proper theater which is surprising considering you pay extra.

Rick Valenta

A great place to bring the family! We love the Echo center. It a museum oriented towards kids; and they always have something interesting on display; no matter when you visit. Facilities, cafe, and a gift shop are present on site. Beautiful views of the lake out of the west side of the building. A good venue to hold an event at as well.

Melissa Langlois

It's a really nice museum, especially with kids. They have plenty of activities for them. The museum is a bit small but it's perfect for a visit with kids. On the second floor, there is a space where you can touch some sea animals. There is also a pretend play area as well as a small play area for babies. Overall, we really have enjoyed our time there and we'll be sure to come back

Tom Walsh

Wonderful place for children of all ages to explore and learn

L Brandon

Learned a lot!

Jenifer Cuozzo

Loved it! Exciting displays and activities that even young kids enjoy.

Chris P

This place is pretty neat. Definitely a place to bring kids. Interesting exhibits. Gift shops pretty nice, lots of good gifts. Make sure to step out on the deck. It's got a beautiful view of lake Champlain.

Rowan Mccurdy

I spent a lot of time her when I was a kid and it was absolutely fascinating. awesome place to bring your kids! super educational and even parents will learn and enjoy it

Nena D

Loved it. The dinosaur exhibit was so cool.

TsuPei Cheng

An educational place for children.

Kami Haunting

Don't be ashamed of being older and going to this place without a child. It is absolutely mind blowing how fun this place is even for adults. My favorite part of echo is the "make your own weather broadcast" station. Very cute!!

Laura Fram

Wonderful science center and aquarium. Great for children of all ages. They have a reasonably priced healthy cafe with a vegan ice cream sandwich that is also gluten free.

Timothy Schad

Excellent exhibits and knowledgeable staff. Much information about Lake Champlain ecology and many displays featuring local flora and fauna make this a treasured local museum. A little pricey for a single visit but membership options are good if you live locally. Generally better for younger visitors (up to maybe 10 or 12 yo). Many hands-on, interactive options to explore this unique biome. Pair this with one of several good nearby restaurants or some exploring in the neighboring waterfront park and you'll have a day of fun for the whole family.

Patty Crichton

Great place, but I need to read the event description a little better, lol. I went to hear a lecture on winter trees. Turned out to be preschool hour so I was by far the oldest person there. But wonderful displays of fish and other animals from the lake, really nice presentation.

Joshua Rider

So many hands on things to do here for kids! Friendly staff. Interesting things to learn for adults too including the ecosystem of the Lake Champlain Basin. Great deal on a memberships that gets you into so many places across the Eastern Seaboard. Excellent time here!

Christina Smith

Great place for the kids. My daughter liver the into the Lake and my son enjoyed using the microscope.

Matt Descoteau

my daughter loves to go here, very hands on, great exhibits!

Peter Urban

This is an excelleny science museum, integrating marine bilology, local history, anthropology, paleo-archeology, ecology, even crytozology, and more, in exhibits that lean heavily towards being oriented to children, but which easily retain an adults interest. Exceptionally well done.

Stephen Kluczkiewicz

Very nice place to take people, especially kids, that like lake animals. My teen girls love turtles and frogs and they really liked seeing those exhibits. Lots of fun activities for young kids and there's a nice outdoors area to eat or just look out over Lake Champlain's marina area.

Jason Murray

Great experience, if a little small. This is not an all day place. But good for a couple of hours of learning and fun with the family.

Zac Clark

This was a pretty cool place and the kids had a pretty good time. However, being from Baltimore and having access to the Science Center, Port Discovery, and Aquarium there, ECHO seemed a little lackluster by comparison. Add to that the fact that some of the exhibits were broken or badly worn (poorly maintained), and the price was on par with more robust attractions. It wasn't *lousy* and I don't regret going, but if money is tight you might be left feeling like you spent too much for what you get here.

Paula Niklasaon

Had a great time my daughter loved it very much

Kristina Safford

Brought my Kindergarten class for a field trip. Really great day! Awesome communication before the trip. Just a wonderful experience for my kids!

Jayden Kitai-Sangero

This place is mostly directed at kids. If you're not one, there isn't much to see. Tickets are quite pricey.

Matthew Beals

This is such a great museum and science center for kids of all ages. The friendly staff and hands on demos really make it extra special

Rose Allen

Aimed at a pretty young audiece, but a good time for the older set anyway

Jeremy Randall

Great for kids or anyone looking to learn more about the lakes Ecosystem

Amanda Bunker

Really great local educational place for families, students and children. Great view and friendly staff. Great place for a field trip. The Age of Dinosaurs exhibit fit so nicely with our unit.

Rebecca Smedy

We loved our visit with our 3 year old grandson!

Matthew Altman

My 2+ son loved this museum. I highly recommend it. Very interactive and educational. Also its on a beautiful spot right by the water.

Kathleen Clarke

Fun place for children. They rotate their exhibits. Today we learned about dinosaurs. Very interesting.

Roxanne Daniels

Great spot for kids and adults, lots of interesting history and information. Definitely see one of the film's, they are written, directed, edited, narrated, and scored perfectly. I was very impressed!

Kevin Henrichs

Had our 5 year old sons b'day there. He loved it!!! Highly recommend

Angela French

Loved the 3d dinosaur movie, worth the extra money to see! Great place to visit with kids on a rainy day.

Priscilla Brito

Great museum for kids and families with lovely views of Lake Champlain from the second floor balcony!

Philippe Baron

Nice museum with a lot of information regarding lake Champlain. The museum feels a lot more suited to young families with plenty to exhaust young children.

Jada Slayton

Very fun place to spend the day with the kiddos! My 18 month old and a blast.

Kristen Tassiello

Beautiful being on the water, a lot smaller than we expected

Nathan

It's not a huge place but it's very well done and they do a good job of rotating exhibits. Also there's stuff there from kids from infants up to early teens to play with and learn.

Brad Dates

Great place for kids to get all their senses met while learning.

Joel Slutzki

Beautiful place a must visit

nic lab

Had so much fun. Didn't 2ven realize we were there for almost 2 hours!!!!

richard pasqualetti

My 5 and 8 year old boys love it there. Got the membership and it's a great value. Gives you free entrance to other reciprocating museums. If you have kids and are in Burlington it's a must.

anne mo

Nice place for kids.

Eric Masson

Good place to take the family. Parking can be tricky.

Tina MacFaun

This place was such an adventure! Between the animals you dont often see and the tons of activities to do it was non stop fun!!

Dave Burnham

Great place for young minds to explore

Ran F

Great place for kids to learn about local ecology and animals! A must see!

Kathleen James

Wonderful place to take kids and adults of all ages. There are so many interactive stations from building sand castles to water tables and many many fish and amphibious species enclosures. The dinosaur exhibit was really fun, but definitely for kids who are a little bit older. Also LOVE that they have a nursing pod!! Way to go Echo Center!

Renae Alexandria

ECHO is an awesome place to spend an afternoon with children, and with all their interactive learning activities you could even learn a thing or two! My favorite thing ECHO does as an adult is doubling as an event venue in the evening. It is worth going to an event here, it’s beautiful year round and a fun space to dance at! (We attended their night of the living dead halloween party in partnership with Magic Hat & it was one of my favorite local events!)

Scott Whitehouse

A fun place to visit. We are semi local and visit one time a year with the kids. Not alot changes from visit to visit but it's a quality visit none the less. Everyone has to pay for parking now and it can be tight to find a spot.

Brian Markovitz

Great fun for kids near the water!

יפתח סנג'רו

It seems rather children oriented, but I didn't bring any. To adults, it's still interesting, but a bit overpriced: 15 dollars for less than an hour of content.

Justin DeAngelis

Fun and interactive learning center. Convinced immediately to get a membership and plan to go back this weekend! Great for kids and supports the local environment.

Rhonda DeFabritus

What a fabulous place for kids and grownup kids. So many activities. Gorgeous view of Lake Champlain.

Jim Warren

Small but informative center. Great for kids. On the waterfront that can also be explored.

Ryan W.

A fun and interesting place for kids and adults. A great indoor activity for a winter or rainy day.

Charles-Antoine Auger

Fun place to spend a couple of hours. We learned some cool facts about Champlain lake. Ideal place to go with your kid on a cloudy day.

Donna Sharp

We are so glad we visited the ECHO museum in Burlington! If my kids were young, this is where I would take them for interactive, fun learning. Their Trivial Pursuit display invites little kids to brush away rocks to reveal fossils, lay on a board as if they were snorkeling, and wear a vest or apron before sitting in a tiny covered wagon. I was mesmerized by the large tank of sturgeon, muskie, and drum. Families seemed to like the starfish touch tank. As non-members, we paid an extra $5 each to see the 3D shark movie and it was worth it.

Sarah Dispo

My kids had such a great time here, we're so lucky to have this nearby.

Jake Carcia

I went here while visiting Burlington and it was very cool!!! The prices are good and there's a lot to see! I'd like to recommend seeing one of the movies, I saw the coral reef one and it was really cool!! The aquarium was awesome especially because I've never seen a sturgeon before! I would totally revisit this museum again sometime!!

Stephen Sikora

Not the best maintained warf, but great inside with good staff

chris perry

Small but with lots to do for the young ones. They just need to repair a few of the exhibits. But overall the experience was positive. Would recommend and even visit again.

Annie Lajoie

Good effort to create a small kids museum in Vermont for kids. However the effort falls far short when considering the price. There were very few exhibit, and though the staff was very knowledgeable and eager to help there is just not enough to do. Cafe is also disgustingly overpriced, $8 for a simple premade sandwich?! Will not return or recommend.

MustafaSellsCars

Great place super clean , snack and bathrooms available. Great people , friendly and would recommend a place to enjoy night life.

Journey Zazzy

This place is amazing! It's a great place to take kids, young adults.... basically people of all ages that enjoy science and the environment. It's clean and the gift shop is nice...bathrooms were clean too!

Carrie Oliver

Kids have so much fun and always something new to discover

Tank O'Holic

Always a great place to visit when in Burlington. Excellent learning experience for the kids. Well maintained and clean. A couple of good hours spend here every time we go. Kids under 12 guaranteed to have a blast.

Steven Y

Excellent location and learning center for kids and families. Beautiful all around.

Eric&Jennifer Bone

Wonderful place to take children in VT! Thought-provoking displays, hands-on exhibits, excellent special events... but pricey.

John Suler

Was okay, nice staff and great location. Aquarium rather small/ limited.

david tabaruka

A very nice science center that will teach you or your kids about the lake Champlain and other interesting experiments

Chris O'Mara

Loved the center! Probably better for little kids than teenagers, but some of the simpler signs are nice for those not scientifically inclined :). Also, I reccommend getting a maple creemee at the nearby market after your visit. Very delicious, and nice views over the lake.

Tammy Schlesinger

We always enjoy bringing our son to Echo. There's so much to explore! Patient and knowledgeable staff.

Leviathan Xyzzy

I love this place, both as a child, a teenager, and a young adult. I've made trips here once a year and I always love to see the exhibits. It's a great place for all age groups. Not too smart for a child, nor too unintelligent for an adult. There's plenty of interactive exhibits, and a place where you can touch sea life. Highly recommend this place.

Jamie Hull

Really cool place! Great during the day as a musuem, but also fantastic at night when you can book them for events! Loved my visit.

Bruce Mitchell

Ok. But the Grandson enjoyed monshire museum much more

Hulet Askew

Nice for little kids

Brian Gay

Awesome center for the little ones. Worth whatever the price of admission is (I can't remember).

Holly Barnett

My kids (ages. 16 months and 3yrs) and myself LOVE this place. We have a membership here and go at least twice a month. It's a great place for a rainy day with lots of activities

Tanya Hall

Very educational and fun place to visit no matter what the age.

Merriaiin Moulton

More for older children around 7 and up but it was alot of fun

Justine Lombardi

Great spot for family's with elementary and preschool aged kids.

Vern & Amanda Bathrick

This place has a lot of great info and exhibits related to Vermont and it's history. It was a lot of fun and is right on the lake!

Richard Davis

Got to walk on the lake and a little run. If youbgo in the winter definitely something to stop and see and a little walk!

Francine Martel

Brought our Grandson. He had such a great time. Spent over 3 hours exploring.

Bill Bonsignore

It's okay but seems to leave me always wanting more. The views of Lake Champlain are awesome though!

Neil Marriott

LOVE it here!! So do my kids..always something interesting, fascinating and to learn here!! Bring the family any time of the year, you ALL will have a good time!

Sashi Qualitz

Such a nice place for kids. We bought our 11 month and he loved it so much. Wish the staff were a little nicer or welcoming when you got their station. One wouldn't even talk to our son or let him touch the toy sea animals, we had to ask for him to touch, and he is able to stand and touch things. Other than that we plan on going there again next time we are in VT.

Sandie Terenzi

Beautiful place for a conference!!

Chris Mandeen

Great! Our 17 month old loves the water and was really able to splash and play in the water area (didn't even get that wet!) This place has tons of fun things to look at and touch for kids. Definitely worth the money ($29 four two adults). Locals should get membership ($120 for four).

Michelle N

The kids enjoyed this education center. Frogs, turtles & fish, learning about lake Champlain. We saw a 3D movie on sharks. We paid extra for that but the ladies made sure we got the best admission pkg to be cost effective. They held our purchases from the gift shop behind the desk so we didn't have to carry it around the center.

Bert Munger

Great place for a family outing. Age appropriate stuff for all ages.

Tammy Bennett

We love it there, so much for the kids to do.

Thomas Dunbar

Great Museum for younger kids and those who are young at heart. Lots of fun, hands on science exhibits.

Dave Newcomer

Very nice. We did the dinner cruise and really enjoyed it

Heart Of the Village Inn

A fantastic museum for kids of all ages ;) Gorgeous views of Lake Champlain!

Elaine Mantinan

My one year old and almost 3 year old loved it here so much we went twice during our week stay in the area. The kid play area had lots of fun stuff for them to explore. My son loved the water play and my daughter was obsessed with the doctor area and pretending to care for the stuffed animals. We liked the hands on opportunities throughout the museum, and even though it is not a huge place, there's lots to see and do. We also ate some soup in the cafe and were very impressed with it. Usually the food options are pretty bad at these types of places and we were pleasantly surprised by the quality of food here. Highly recommend this place especially if you have young kids.

Jay I

It's about as good as it gets...for a small vermont learning center.

DEBRA BALLARD

Great place for kid's to visit!

Demose Aries

Always a fun experience for the kid. Educational, and visually stunning for all.

Renee Willard

Loved it as a kid. Enjoy the traveling exhibits as an adult

Jan Mead

There is so much for kids of all ages! Just to watch the little ones experience ideas, movements, and kinetic energy is amazing! Combine that with environmental learning is amazing! I can only recommend this highly!

john tansey

I loved it only thing is the cafe needs real food

tiffany bottisti

A fun and interesting place to go for a day! I will definitely be back!

josh langevin

Great place to bring the kids! So much to see, and touch and learn here! And they have handicap accessible bathrooms!

ashley Maskell

My children and I love ECHO. Especially champ lane the play area for kiddos. So many things to see and explore.

Debbe painting

The science museum had a dinosaur exhibit and it was amazing, better than I expected. Highly recommend you go.