Burton Island State Park covers all 253 acres of Burton Island, which sits off the southwestern tip of St. Albans Point in the northeast arm of Lake Champlain that locals call the Inland Sea. The Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation runs it as a car-free park with a campground, cabins, a 100-slip marina and about 3 miles of shoreline. The designated swimming area is on the island's east side, a short walk south of the ranger station and camp store near the marina and ferry dock.

There is no bridge or causeway. You either come by your own boat or ride the Island Runner, a state-run passenger ferry that leaves from Kill Kare State Park at 2714 Hathaway Point Road in St. Albans. From St. Albans Bay, drive about 3.5 miles southwest on Lake Road and Hathaway Point Road to the end of the point. Parking at Kill Kare is tight, and the park asks groups to bring no more than two cars. The crossing takes about 10 minutes. The posted schedule has boats leaving Kill Kare at 9:00, 10:30, 12:00, 2:00, 3:30, 5:00 and 6:30, with the last return from the island at 6:00 PM. Reservations are strongly recommended for day users, so call Kill Kare (802-524-6021) or Burton Island (802-524-6353) ahead of time. The ferry carries people and bikes, but not cars, canoes or kayaks.

The state lists Burton Island's swim spot as a rocky beach, so water shoes are a good idea. It's open Lake Champlain water with no lifeguards (the only guarded swimming in the Vermont park system is the pool at Button Bay). Lake Champlain is usually warm enough for comfortable swimming from midsummer into early September, but early-season water is cold and the bay can get choppy when the wind comes up the lake. Pets are not allowed in the designated swimming area or the marina, though they are welcome elsewhere in the park. Park staff test the water weekly during the season for E. coli and blue-green algae (cyanobacteria), and results and any beach closures are posted on the state's recreational water status page.

Burton Island is a fee area. State park day use is $5 for adults 14 and older, $2 for children 4 to 13, and free for kids 3 and under, and season passes are honored. The ferry is charged on top of that. The Island Runner schedule lists $8 per person round trip for day users, while the state fee page lists $8 each way, so confirm the fare when you book. Bikes are $2 each way, and children 3 and younger ride free. Boaters can tie up at the marina instead (day dockage fees apply, and Bistro customers get one free hour). Day use hours on the island are 10 AM to official sunset, and the season runs from the Friday of Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend.

Kill Kare also has its own south-facing swim area on the mainland, so if the ferry is full or the weather turns you can still swim at the launch. On the island there are mostly flat trails, including the North Shore and Island Farm nature trails and a Southern Tip Trail that's open to bikes, plus a nature center, disc golf, a store, and the Burton Island Bistro for breakfast and lunch. The park rents canoes, kayaks, stand-up paddleboards and bikes. Overnight options include 14 tent sites, 26 lean-tos, 3 cabins and 4 remote tent sites on the south end, all reserved through Vermont State Parks.