Travel Guide: Newport, Rhode Island 

Aside from the pretty scenery and charming shops, my favorite part of Newport was the food options. I covered all my favorite spots for lunch, dinner, snacks, and drinks in this post.

There’s so much to do in Newport, and most of it involves walking around — so bring some comfortable shoes! I covered some of the popular activities to do, places to visit, and sights to see in this post, including a guide to touring the Newport Mansions.

There are so many local shops (and even some larger chain stores) in the Newport area to explore, whether you’re an outdoorsman or a fashionista. I covered a few of my favorites in this post.

The main areas for shopping are:

• Shops at Long Wharf
• Bellevue Avenue
• Bowen’s Wharf
• Thames Street
• Spring Street
• Bannister’s Wharf

Parking

Parking sucks in Newport. And is expensive. Lots of hotels offer low-cost shuttles to and from downtown Newport, so ask your hotel about this. Ours was $3 per person each way (so $12 total each night). We parked ourselves the first night and it was difficult to find open spots (even though we went before the dinner rush) and most lots were anywhere from $8 an hour to $30 for 3 hours. When you’re just going to an hour-long dinner, it’s simply not worth the hassle. Ubers and Lyfts are available, but not as prevalent as you would think. We looked into it and it said it would take up to 20 minutes for one to come get us, and this was peak hours (6-9 pm).

Hotel vs. Bed and Breakfast

I tend to prefer hotels (although to be fair, I’ve never stayed at a BNB, I just don’t think I’d enjoy it as much), so we chose a hotel near the area. Hotels directly in Newport book up fast and are overpriced during the summer, so we chose a more affordable option in Middletown, which is about 10-15 minutes from Newport. We stayed at the Hilton Homewood Suites and enjoyed our stay. Our site was huge and had a built-in mini kitchen, which is great for families or if you plan on making your own meals. The hotel also offered free breakfast and a happy hour with complimentary drinks and snacks at 5 pm each night.

Traffic

The downtown of Newport is a few streets (many are cobblestone) with lots of people and lots of stoplights. Because of this, it can take you longer to get places than anticipated. Leave 5-10 minutes earlier than you planned on just to be safe.

Visit off-peak

We went from Monday-Thursday and beat some of the typical weekender traffic and overcrowding. While it was still super busy because it’s summer and people are on vacation, I do think going during the week helped the crowds.