Things to Do in Newport, RI?

[ade06]

The family and I are heading to Newport, RI next Sunday for a 1 week holiday and I was wondering what are the must do activies in the area. We will be traveling with our 3 month old, so we will be somewhat limited in what activies we will be able to do. Thanks in advance!

[Bruins Fan]

You have to spend some time checking out the Mansions, see how the rich folks used to live before income taxes.

[gettysburgfreak]

Originally Posted by Bruins Fan

You have to spend some time checking out the Mansions, see how the rich folks used to live before income taxes.

Those things are awesome. I think the one my family toured was called the Breakers.

[Mugen910]

If you didn't have the 3mos old I woulda suggested renting the 3-wheeled scooter and riding around the place.

IIRC the last time I was there we did the scooter thing and lots of eating.

[ade06]

So... scooter riding and checking out old Mansions....

[Mugen910]

Originally Posted by ade06

So... scooter riding and checking out old Mansions....

scooter riding give you some great views of the shore!

I think there is a tennis museum there..idk if you're into that.

[BUCASmoker]

Come smoke a cigar with me

I am new to the area, so this is by no means an exhaustive list:

Cliff Walk:
If you are driving South on Bellevue Ave, take a left on Naragansett. At the end of the street you'll see parking for the Cliff Walk. Park and walk around. If you go left, it is a paved path all the way to Easton (First) Beach. If you go right, it will take you to a bit more scenic area (it's a little bit more rugged, but not too bad).

International Tennis Hall of Fame:
Located on Memorial Dr. and Bellevue Ave. I haven't been personally, but if you are into tennis, it's a good place to go.

Ocean Drive:
If you drive all the way down Bellevue Ave and take a right, there is a road that goes all the way around the bottom of the island. You will see Brenton State Park there, with some parking on the right side of the road. On the left side of the road, there will be a bunch of rocky type "piers" that allow you to walk out towards the water. It is really cool there.
Here's a website about it:
http://www.oceandrivenewport.com/

Shopping/Downtown Newport:
There is a large part of Downtown Newport located on Thames St. (Between Tuoro Rd and Narragansett). There is a large pedestrian area, with some wharfs leading off of it along the west side. I recommend just walking around there and seeing all the large sailboats around there.

Beaches:
First Beach is the closest to Newport... you can walk there if you just walk East from the Tennis Hall of Fame (Memorial Dr. and Bellevue Ave). It is about 3/4 of a mile. It isn't a very good swimming beach, because it gets a lot of red tide. The next beach over is Second Beach, which I have never been to, but I have been told it is a much better swimming beach, but not really walking distance.

3 Wheeled scooter thing:
That's located on Thames St, just south of Memorial Dr/America's Cup Ave. You will see a lot of them driving around. You may be OK renting one with your kid, and just having the passenger hold him/her.

Ice cream:
Pay a visit to Newport Creamery (there is one right on the border of Middletown and Newport on Broadway, and there is one across from the Tennis Hall of Fame). I prefer it much more than the chain ice cream stores (Ben and Jerry's and the like), and it's cheaper!

Cigar Stores:
The only B&M I have come across is on Thames St, right in the middle of it. I don't remember the name of it, but it is in the cobblestone section of it.

Restaurants:
I haven't eaten in many places around here yet, but:

Benjamin's - on Thames St. - good raw bar selection, and a nice homely feel to it.

Barking Crab - also very good seafood. It is more of a "chain" restaurant (there is one in Boston, but it's great). If you sit outside, you get to sit at a picnic table, which is a good and bad thing.

Obrien's Pub - very good lunch food and a huge outdoor patio if the weather is nice. It's located on Lower Thames St.

Scales - on Lower Thames - I haven't eaten here, but it comes very highly recommended. They catch whatever they can catch, and write up their menu on a chalkboard every day. It is the freshest sea food around. They also have a fixed menu upstairs, called UpScales (clever, huh?).


My recommendation is if you are here during the weekend, WALK. It takes 20 minutes to get a half mile in a car during the weekends.

If you have any questions... shoot me a PM. I don't know if I'll be able to answer everything, but hopefully I can help.

[ade06]

Awsome! Thanks for all of the recommendations so far.

[BUCASmoker]

there's also a ton of mansions turned into museums all around the bellevue ave area.

I've been there many times and what BUCAsmoker put out there is pretty good,,,once you get past the mansions take the drive around the cape area and see more of the houses,,,,

[ade06]

Jeff,

Thanks for the recommendations! Newport rocks! The cliff walk is breath taking, we enjoyed the lemonade and "lobsta". And the 4th fireworks were great! The mansions are crazy, it's kinda makes you sick to see that kind of wealth for some peoples "summer homes".

-Ade

[BUCASmoker]

Glad your trip was nice!