Top 10 Best Cities for Families

2. Burlington, Vermont

You don't have to be a skier to appreciate what Burlington has to offer: there is outdoor fun all year-round with summer activities by Lake Champlain and plenty of snow in the winter. "If you want your kids to have the autonomy and health benefits that come with growing up outside, that's one of the reasons to live here," says Sascha Mayer, a mother of two kids age 6 and 8, who works for JDK, a marketing company in Burlington. Home of the University of Vermont, Burlington attracts college students who initially come for school and return to the city when they are ready to settle down. "A lot of people head off to the big cities after graduation," says Mayer, a UVM alum. "But they come back here to raise kids because of how easy it is to find a healthy balance between work and family." The school district's Farm 2 School program provides students with locally grown veggies in the cafeteria, kids take field trips to the local farms and farmers visit their classrooms to help kids create a connection to the food they eat. With afterschool ski programs (often free), fresh veggies at school, parks at every turn, farmers’ markets and plenty of snow, Burlington offers an idyllic place to raise a kid.