Stunning & majestic grandeur at 360 degrees for these historic mansions. Amazed and grateful that…read morethese have been restored for us to view this piece of lavish history. We joined the Historic society for the well worth is discount and toured 3 homes in a day, which is just the right amount. A must in the self guided audio tour via the mansions phone app. It really adds to the history of the mansion and gives great insight to the families and their world. Please explore these fabulous gems when in the area. Can't wait to see the rest!

Visited the Newport Mansions for the first time during the holidays to see all the beautiful lights…read moreand decorations!!! I visited The Breakers and The Marble House (third mansion is The Elms). Each house was lit up with Christmas lights, as well as a Christmas tree in each room. Also bought tickets to see "The Sparkling Lights" outside on the lawn. The mansions are absolutely grand, elegant, and filled with history!! They all cost money to enter, but there is a free audio tour for each one (bring a headset). I loved learning about each one! Short and sweet summaries of each room as you walk through the houses, with the option to listen to extended versions (for you history lovers). Each mansion has parking close-by (although the website claims you can easily walk from one mansion to the next, they are quite far, especially in the winter). I stopped in for a simple day trip, but lots to see and eat in Newport if you have more time! Another tip would be if you're there to see the Sparkling Lights, earliest admission is 4:30 pm, make sure you're in line by 4:15 pm (it gets long FAST)!

The Breakers is the most famous Newport Mansion so it is the most visited one…read more I took my niece here, instead of a audio guide, now you get a written tour that you can follow at your leisure around the property. The mansion is well kept and the docents are usually available fairly easily for questions. The furniture and the decor is grand and the property is very well taken care of. They have a visitor center on the left hand side of the main gate where you can get your ticket, have a snack at their cafe, go use the restroom or read more about the history of the Vanderbilts.

If you only have time to visit one Newport Mansion, this is the one you must see…read more Gold everywhere? Check. Platinum adorning the walls in one of the rooms? Also check. Sprawling ocean views? Check. Check. Check. (For every floor) And I could keep going! It's so outrageous, so beautiful, so gaudy, so unbelievably unforgettable, you must see it.

Chateau-sur-Mer is a different style of Newport mansion. It's beautiful but not in the traditional…read moresense of gilded age mansions. It's more Addams Family gilded age castle, if that makes sense. It's filled with treasures including the beautiful silk wall paper. It's a must see.

Château-sur-Mer was built in 1852, much earlier than the other Newport mansions one can tour. It…read morebegan as an Italianate style year-round home, but was later renovated in the French Second Empire style. The arts and crafts interior is ornate, featuring many natural scenes. The tree of life mural, in particular, weaves its way not only up three flights of stairs, but also through the ceilings in the great hall. It's worth the time to download the audio tour and listen to it throughout the house. We visited in early April right after it re-opened for the season. Château-sur-Mer is not open year-round. Because it was off season, there were few people touring while we were there. The home is gorgeous and can be seen in about an hour or so--more if you walk the grounds. It was raining when we visited, so we skipped the outside.

Ahh, the City by the Sea…read more Did you know that Newport now contains among the highest number of surviving colonial buildings of any city in the United States? Me either but it's true. Did you know that Newport is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War College, the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, and a major United States Navy training center? Now you do. Did you know the Tennis Hall of Fame is located in Newport? How about that the Newport Country Club hosted the first US Open and the first US Amateur? Or that Newport is known as the sailing capitol of the United States? Or that John Fitzgerald Kennedy and Jacqueline Bouvier were married in St. Mary's Church in Newport? Or that the movie "The Great Gatsby" (1974 edition) was filmed in Newport? Or that on Bellevue Avenue is home to some of the most opulent, amazing mansions in the world? Or that The Whitehorse Tavern, the oldest pub in continuous service in the United States, can be found here? All of this and I have not even begun to mention the beaches, the great restaurants, the Newport Jazz Festival, the fun - and there is a lot of fun to be had in Newport. A great place to visit if you get a chance.

Everyone that I have encountered at this City Hall has been decent. While they aren't personable or…read morefriendly, they do complete their job in a timely manner. My major gripe with this city hall is that they have a misleading sign that points to a a wheelchair accessible entrance under the grand staircase outside. The lift you are lead to is the oldest, scariest, and SMALLEST elevator I have ever seen. There is absolutely 100% no way a wheelchair could fit inside it. Truly despicable! Government buildings need to be accessible to all individuals.

Very old church and it's very nice inside you can have parties and weddings in there it's a church…read moretoo

Excellent crew accommodations paired with this awesome cold brew and breakfast sandwich I just got…read morefrom Empire Tea and Coffee, located inside Seamen's Institute!! Well priced and yummy. Portuguese English Muffin?!?! Thanks SCI!

The hydrangeas at Marble House during the summer! Make your plans now. The flowers are gorgeous. A…read morememory you and your loved ones will definitely cherish forever!

I chose Marble House as my first mansion to tour on our most recent visit to Newport. On the Cliff…read moreWalk, you pass by all these historic mansions from the Gilded Age and my interest was piqued. Vanderbilt lore and how beautiful the house looked from the water and on the Cliff Walk path were why I went with Marble House. I bought tickets online from newportmansions.org and was able to print out my QR code at the hotel where we were staying. When you're on the website, you'll have different options. You can go to The Breakers and then add one (or more) of the other properties. With our timing, I bought the ticket where you can visit just one of the mansions. You can download the self-guided audio tour ahead of time (I recommend doing this). It app has a lot of content to select based on your interests - more history, more about the architecture, etc. I enjoyed listening to it even after our actual visit. Highlights for me were the Gothic Room, the Mrs. Vanderbilt's bedroom, and the kitchen. There's a gift shop inside with lots of Marble House, Breaker, and Newport items for gifts, etc. Also, don't forget to go out on the green and check out the Tea House.

We stopped by to see the mill in Touro Park though finding a nearby parking spot is hit or miss…read morethough worth the effort.

The Old Stone Mill (also known as the Newport Tower, Round Tower, Touro Tower and Viking Tower) is…read morethe centerpiece of Touro Park. It's nearly circular at 22 - 23 feet in diameter and it is 28 feet high. The tower is supported by eight cylindrical columns that form the stone arches. The tower dates back to at least 1741 and there remains debate that it could even be a church build between the 11th and 14th centuries or maybe even was built by Chinese who discovered America in 1421. My favorite is the theory that it was built by medieval Scottish templars a hundred years before Columbus. But all of those stories have been debunked by carbon dating and other methods. Still, fun to imagine. The tower is surrounded by a fence so you can't actually touch it or go inside one of the oldest structures in the town. [Review 18649 overall - 69 in Rhode Island - 2171 of 2022.]

The Preservation Society of Newport County is a non-profit organization based in Newport, Rhode…read moreIsland and its top priority is the preservation and conservation of its historic houses and their collections. This work includes restoration of roofs and windows, conservation of fragile textiles, cleaning and restoration of valuable paintings and much more. At any given time, dozens of projects are underway. A visit to the Newport Mansions is a donation to The Preservation Society of Newport County. During the holiday season, The Breakers, Marble House, and The Elms welcome visitors with spectacular holiday displays so it was a great opportunity to visit. In addition to the house holiday display, there is an outdoor holiday display called Sparkling Lights at The Breakers from November 22 to December 29, 2024 on select evenings. Admission is only at 4 pm, 4:30 pm, 5 pm, 5:30 pm and 6 pm. Gates close at 6:30 pm and the house and grounds close at 8 pm. Timed admissions tickets can be purchased online at https://www.newportmansions.org/. Tickets include access to the lavishly decorated rooms inside the house during the same visit. About a week prior, I bought 2 tickets for December 20, 2024 at 6:00PM ($40.00 each) and I was really looking forward to it. However, there was a winter advisory and it was snowing on the day of. Driving conditions were unsafe. I was worried I was going to lose my money since the website indicated tickets may not be resold, non-transferrable, non-refundable, and cannot be used for a different date. I tried calling the Preservation Society of Newport County, but there were just prompts and I couldn't talk to a live person. I sent a direct message to @newport.mansions through Instagram and they responded promptly that I could receive a refund by emailing info@newportmansions.org. Gary Ruff, Associate Communications Manager, responded and instructed me with what information he needed to provide the refund. I was so appreciative. Thankfully, the snow cleared and temperature warmed up a bit so I bought 2 tickets for December 29, 2024 at 4:00PM ($40.00 each). All the decorated Christmas trees, the 15-foot-tall poinsettia tree, poinsettias, garlands, wreaths and fresh floral in the interior of The Breakers were beautiful and then walking through the lights and illuminated displays of the outdoor 13-acre landscape was just a cherry on the top. The Preservation Society of Newport County also partnered with Stoneacre Brasserie to offer holiday treats and adult beverages. Thank you to The Preservation Society of Newport County for everything you are doing to protect, preserve, and present an exceptional collection of house museums and landscapes.

The family (wife, 10 y/o son, 2 y/o daughter) were visiting Newport and looking fo some activities…read moreto do. I noticed that the Newport mansions were on every to-do list, with the Breakers being the top choice of many. I looked at their website as well as other reviews and saw that this may not be the best place for younger ones. I saw that no strollers were allowed and I didn't think a tour of an old mansion is something my 10 y/o would be interested in. So I decided to take a solo trip on a nice Friday morning while the rest of the family slept in late at the hotel. The Breakers opens at 10 AM. The visitors parking lot is on the corner of Ochre Point Avenue and Victoria Avenue. There are other lots nearby but read the signs as they are for other buildings...The parking lot had adequate space when I arrived at 10:15 or so, but by the time I was leaving at about 11:45 is was pretty packed with visitors having to park in the rear overflow lot. Once you reach the front gate of the Breakers mansion, there are COVID restriction and general rule signs. As you proceed you can go to the left to buy tickets, use the bathroom or enter their cafe. Tickets are about $26 for adults and $8 for children 6-17 years old. The cafe has a bunch of premade food items, drinks, snacks, premade sandwiches... and few seats with tables. There are some more seats and table just outside of the cafe. Before you enter the mansion, there are signs showing you how to use their self tour audio app. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND DOING THIS...AND BRING HEADPHONES. You download the Newport Mansions app from the App Store onto your Apple or Google device, select the mansion you are visiting and begin the tour. The audio tour was excellent and follows you through the tour route of the mansion. I enjoyed listening to all the interesting facts about each room via bluetooth earbuds while my hands were free to take photos with my camera. You only thing you will need to do is to advance (click the play button) the tour to the next room before entering. There are some interesting facts about the mansion as a whole and each individual room. You can also stay around longer in each area for additional facts, essentially lengthening the tour. Without the audio tour, you will have to fread the printed information sheet. You go through the main floor, upper floor and back down into the service area where the kitchen is. You then exit through the gift shop. The gift shop has lots of interesting items, which includes typical magnets, mugs and prints, but they also have some luxury items like platters and wine stoppers as well as a small jewelry section. You finally exit out onto the side of the mansion and are able to walk back around outside to the front where you entered. Before sure to walk through the opened gate to the right of the mansion which takes you through a small garden to the back. Here you can see the Cliff Walk path and the ocean. Overall, I had a great time...It was a lot more interesting than I thought it would be. The entire tour took just over an hour without listening to the extra information about each room. (During the tour, there are a few instances where you have to ascend/descend steps - I did NOT see any elevators - so you may want to call ahead to check if you cannot climb steps) Again, I highly recommend downloading the app and listening to the audio tour via headphones. It allows your eyes to focus on the beauty of the mansion instead of reading. Lastly, the mansion is right off of the Cliff Walk path...so be sure to make the short ride (or walk) north to Narragansett Avenue and visit the Forty Steps.

Beautiful example of Shingle Style architecture. Built in 1881-1883 by the firm of McKim, Mead &…read moreWhite, it was the summer residence for Isaac Bell, Jr. Bell's brother-in-law was James Gordon Bennett, Jr., the publisher of the New York Herald. The house is a blend of English Queen Anne, New England colonial and Oriental design. The name Shingle Style is due to the white cedar shingles that cover the exterior. The firm McKim, Mead and White influenced the work of Fran Lloyd Wright. The open floor plan is perfect for the current use to display art exhibits. This current exhibition, Pictus Porrectus, shows contemporary art based on classic paintings. Parking is available on site. No furniture is displayed in this historic Newport Mansion. A very unique property, but not as elaborate as the other Gilded Newport Mansions.

This was one of the smaller homes of the "Newport Mansions" in Rhode Island, but is one not to be…read moremissed. It was an architectural tour and it didn't contain most of the furnishings as most of them were sold off years ago. They chose not to buy period pieces though instead focused on many of the interesting features. For one, the outside roof is covered in wood shingles in all types of interesting designs which is why the style of the house is classified as shingle style architecture and is one of the few in the country. Because the owners traveled quite extensively, they incorporated many design details from France, Japan and China mostly, but also from other areas of the world. One that that surprised me is that the main floor has a fairly open floor plan with wasn't standard for that time period. This concept was borrowed from Japan. I had also not seen pocket windows before - they disappear into the walls completely to bring in lots of fresh air! Much of the wallpaper was custom designed for them. The designer also was very creative. He framed bed warmers and used them as a feature in the dining room. I now realize that if all the period pieces were in the house, it would almost overshadow all the design features of the house itself.