The boron forms of the zeolite Beta (B-Beta) and SSZ-33 (B-SSZ-33) are treated with vapors of ZrCl4 in an attempt to substitute the framework boron for zirconium. The resulting materials Zr-Beta and Zr-SSZ-33 are characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), solid state NMR, FTIR, pyridine adsorption and Raman spectroscopies. In the case of zeolite Beta, Zr substitutes the B present in the framework nearly in a one-to-one basis. No evidence is found in support of the tetrahedral Zr fully incorporated into the zeolite framework; Zr is only partially grafted to the zeolite framework giving rise to silanol groups adjacent to the Zr atom. No evidence of extra-framework zirconia is observed. For SSZ-33, the amount of zirconium incorporated is significantly less than the amount of boron present in the parent zeolite. Due to the size of ZrCl4, a multidimensional 12-ring pore system is required for our procedure of Zr incorporation to be effective. Zr-Beta is an acid catalyst superior in activity to B-Beta for the isomerization of 1-butene.