Newport, Rhode Island Travel Guide

A few weeks ago Rob and I went to Connecticut for a wedding and decided to spend a couple days in Newport, Rhode Island as well. It was just as beautiful as I’d imagined—the coastal views were gorgeous and I loved the cute colonial homes. We enjoyed a lot of great seafood, walked around the harbor-side downtown area and saw the stunning mansions from the Cliff Walk. One of my favorite bloggers, Jess Ann Kirby, lives there so I searched her blog and Instagram for places to go and the most picturesque locations. I like getting travel ideas from locals because you’ll find more hidden gems rather than just the tourist traps. Below is my travel guide to Newport, Rhode Island and I would love to hear your suggestions in case we go back to visit again :)

WHERE TO STAY:

Marshall Slocum Inn. There are a lot of charming B&Bs in Newport and I’m so happy with where we stayed! First of all the inn is adorable from the outside and has that quaint, colonial style. Our room was exactly what we wanted since it had a comfortable bed, nice bathroom and a homey feel. The staff was so friendly and we loved chatting with the other guests, too. One evening we enjoyed a drink on the deck with an older couple from Arkansas who were so nice. Overall the atmosphere was really peaceful and relaxing—we literally woke up to the birds chirping! Then we would walk down to the deck for breakfast where they had a menu with quite a few delicious options (and it’s complimentary!). We tried the salted caramel French toast, Greek omelette and blueberry-stuffed French toast—all amazing! They also have homemade treats out in the afternoon, like gooey brownies and maple cookies.

WHERE TO EAT:

Revolving Door. This was our favorite meal of the trip! We started with the Conch Chowder, which is made with local Rhode Island conch, chorizo, red curry and coconut milk. It was really flavorful and had the perfect mix of spicy and sweet. The other appetizer I wish we had ordered was the cornbread. I love everything with corn and regretted not ordering it when I saw the table next to us get these thick, moist slices. For dinner I got the spicy shrimp served with creamy polenta, purple kale, jalapeños and Spanish chorizo. All of the flavors and textures worked so well together. I hate kale, but surprisingly I really liked it on this dish. Rob’s sausage-wrapped pork tenderloin was also really good. It’s served with sugar snap peas, Maitake mushrooms and pea purée. I was skeptical about the pea purée since I’m not much of a “green” person, but they were a great side!

Clarke Cooke House. We went here for dessert one night and ordered The Snowball In Hell. I’m not sure why they call it hell because it tasted like heaven to me—vanilla ice cream served in a chocolate-coated goblet with chocolate roulade, chocolate sauce and toasted coconut. It was exactly what I was craving! Their main menu looks really good too and has a lot of fresh seafood options. I also hear that there is a really cute porch bar on the top floor, but it was closed while we were there :(

Easton’s Beach Snack Bar. If you’re looking for a quick, casual meal this is the place to go. It’s right along the beach and has AMAZING lobster rolls! You can get twin 6″ lobster rolls with fries for only $17, which is a great deal.

Anthony’s Seafood. We wanted to take advantage of all of the amazing seafood in this area, so we stopped by Anthony’s for clam chowder and another lobster roll before we left. Rob and I shared the New England Clam Chowder, which is the classic, creamy style. We also ordered the Rhode Island Clam Chowder, which is a broth-style chowder that had some shrimp and scallops in it. This one was a little spicier, but both were great! And of course we had to split a lobster roll. This one was larger than the twin rolls at the snack bar and you could really taste the lobster since it wasn’t covered with too much butter. It’s hard to decide which one I liked best because they were kind of different styles, but I might give the edge to the snack bar.

Fluke. We went to this restaurant for dinner on our first night and it was pretty good. We started with the almond bacon-wrapped dates, which were delicious! And for dinner they were having a special where you got fish and chips or steak frites for only $15 (a good deal since everything seemed to be so expensive in the area!). Rob and I both got the fish, which wasn’t bad but not outstanding. The fries with garlic aoili were really good though! And it was pretty hard to beat the view. We ate next to the window in the third story dining room and had a gorgeous view of the sunset over the harbor.

WHERE TO DRINK

Coddington Brewing Company. Rob and I love trying local beers when we visit new cities, so this was our first stop after checking into our inn. We ordered the sample tray, which comes with 7 oz. pours of all of the beers they have on tap. My favorite was the blueberry blonde because it was so light and refreshing. They even garnished it with real blueberries!

Newport Storm Brewery. We also went to Newport Storm Brewery, which is more of a tasting room and makes rum, too. The beer tasting included four samples, a self-guided tour and a souvenir glass. I’m a fan of darker beers, so their selection was right up my alley. The High Test stout has a strong espresso flavor and some chocolate aromas—two things I LOVE. My other favorite was the smoked porter, which tastes and smells like bacon. It sounds weird, but it’s SO good. Even Rob liked it and he doesn’t usually like porters. After the tasting we bought a few bottles of their blueberry beer and enjoyed them on the patio of our inn.

The Lawn at Castle Hill Inn. This green hillside is the perfect place to watch the sunset and sip on a glass of wine in an Adirondack chair. There is also a restaurant where you can enjoy regional cuisine and fresh seafood.

Coffee Grinder. If you need a caffeine fix, I highly suggest Coffee Grinder. Their frozen cappuccino is delicious and it’s hard to beat the view! It’s located at the end of Bannister’s Wharf, so the outdoor patio overlooks the harbor.

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WHAT TO SEE & DO

Shop on Thames Street. I wish we had more time to stroll along Thames Street and do some shopping because it’s full of cute boutiques. We did stop into Shore Soap Company, which had a lot of handcrafted soaps and lotions. Everything smelled amazing and the packaging was really cute, so I picked up a few things for gifts! I was also able to peruse a few clothing stores and loved all of the unique finds.

Cliff Walk. This is a must when visiting Newport! It’s a great way to see the coast and get some exercise. We started at The 40 Steps and exited at Ledge Road, which took us about an hour to walk (if you do the entire thing it’s 3.5 miles and takes about 2.5 hours). From the path you see gorgeous views of the ocean and several of the famous mansions, like Rosecliff, Marble House and The Breakers. They are seriously STUNNING! And a few tips: wear sunscreen and tennis shoes, bring water and maybe wear a hat—it was pretty hot and sunny when we were there in the middle of May.

Tour a mansion. We didn’t have enough time to tour the mansions, but they look incredible from the outside! I especially wanted to see Rosecliff where The Great Gatsby was filmed. The Breakers, Marble House and The Elms are a few others I would love to tour.

Have a picnic by the lighthouse at Castle Hill Inn. We didn’t actually have a picnic here, but we ran into a local woman who was heading there to have lunch with her daughter. I wish I had thought of bringing lunch or some wine! The lighthouse is just a short walk from Castle Hill Inn and has a gorgeous view of the water.

See more from our Newport trip in my vlog on YouTube!