My wife and I are doing an East Coast trip starting in NYC this June. We love seeing new places, explore outdoor life and hanging out at fun bars. We were thinking of staying at least one night in either Providence, Newport or Mystic, CT before heading up to Boston. Any thoughts on which is better? Looking for ';New England'; experience and my concern is that Providence is another city (after New York and before Boston) and that it might be nice to stay some place else. I guess if we go to Newport we will have to drive - we really liked the idea of training to Providence or Mystic and then onto Boston. I appreciate your help!
Newport or Providence
In my opinion, providence and newport are a step above mystic. Mystic is more like a day trip kind of place.
If you want to go to newport, it is easy enough to get off of the train in providence (or north kingston although I know less about this stop) and walk over to rent a car. From there newport is about a 45 -1 hour drive away. It would be closer from north kingston (south of providence but in RI) but again, you would have to find out about renting a car from there. I know that RIPTA (Rhode Island Public Transit Agency) bus has trips to newport from both places, Providence and North Kingstown, you might check that out too.
Newport is a very beautiful place that is very new england-y. It has shops to walk around in, beautiful old mansions, sea side walks, and boats everywhere. It can be very crowded in the summer especially on the weekends though, i would say that was the only draw back. It does have nightlife too, with great restaurants and bars.
Providence is more of a city but not on a much smaller scale than nyc or boston. You can get off of the train and walk to either the westin or the biltmore hotel (the two places I would recommend staying if in providence). From there you can walk to Rhode Island School of Design and see their great museum, or if you are up for walking up the rest of the very steep hill, make your way a couple of more blocks to the top and see Brown University. (there are also buses that will take you up those streets).
Downtown Providence does a lot to put on a good time for people in the summer, you should do a little looking around and see what might be going on when you would be there, I think on most fridays they have outdoor concerts. They have something called Firewater that is really cool where they light fires in the middle of the river at night and people come out to walk around and enjoy the beautiful downtown.
Its hard to say of course withouth knowing you or what your preferences are but if you are going for a short stay and want to be next to the ocean, newport is your place. If you are more intersted in what is happening downtown with art and history, providence would be the place.
I hope this helps.
Newport or Providence
CityChicky, thanks a lot for your message - definitely helpful. I am starting to lean towards Newport even if it is a little more complicated to get to by train - I also know there is a ferry from Providence to Newport that might more fun than driving or taking a bus. Why Newport, at this point we are looking more for the outdoor -see the neighborhoods, the beach and the ';cute'; shops/bars/cafes than the muesuems. Any recommendations on places to stay in Newport?
Hi, I%26#39;m glad my information could help. And you are right about the ferry, I remember reading that reservations are recommended for the ferry though so once you make your arrangments you should be sure to make that reservation too - it would be much more fun than driving, you are right!
And I love your idea of the train from NYC to boston, I live in CT and often take the train to RI instead of driving on 95. It is such a beautiful ride. One side has an ocean view so maybe ask one of the conductors as you board which side to sit on.
As for Newport hotels, I dont have personal experience since my parents live near there but I know people love the castle hill inn and I also know over the years people have stayed at and liked the newport marriot. Maybe a search through other listings on this forum can give you a more personal opinion.
Dont miss the burgers at Brick Alley Pub, a personal favorite. As for mansions, people tend to flock to The Breakers but I always took guests to Marble House instead, it was a little less crowded and has the same effect. Rosecliff was where part of The Great Gatsby was filmed if that is of interest to you.
Have fun!
I would say try to get to both Providence and Newport. The ferry is a great way to travel between the two and its cheap, AND its a great way to see the RI coastlines. I grew up in Newport so it is obviously dear to my heart but Providence has its charms as well. If youre in Providence on a Friday or Saturday check online for the Waterfire schedule which is an amazing show that they do along the river. You can get a bite of takeout from one of the many great restaurants on Thayer street and easily walk down to the water to watch the show and eat.
Although, Newport is full of tourists, you cant fight the fact that you would be visiting the city as an outsider therefore you%26#39;d be playing the role of tourist. So, embrace that persona and just go for it. You have to see the Mansions, Cliff Walk and Ocean Drive. Johnny%26#39;s Atlantic Beach club is a great place to grab a bite to eat right at the beach.
So all in all, its definately possible to do both cities in one short weekend. That would be my suggestion.
Thanks for your insights BBB. As a follow-up question, is a car necessary in Newport? And how expensive would a taxi be from Kingston train station to Newport? Trying to still figure our whether to drive to Newport from NYC or train to Kingston. Thanks
Hi Again:
I found this great web site with all sorts of information about the Kingston, RI train station with numbers for cabs, buses, cars and all kinds of connecting service information.
http://www.trainweb.org/kin/
Whether you will need a car in newport depends on where you stay probably. Actually that might help you pick a hotel, if they have a shuttle to different things in town. I%26#39;m not sure how used to walking you are (some dont want to at all) but its not a large place so I would say a car isnt Necessary but you might find it convenient, although parking can get very hard and annoying around there in the summer. But you will probably have parking at the hotel.
As for driving from NYC to Newport, I would NOT recommend that in the summer anywhere near the weekend. Espcially on fridays the 95 corridor from NYC north to Cape Cod is packed with people (he same is true for 95 south on sundays) heading to the beaches and a 3 hour trip can end up being more like a 6 hour trip.
You can also see by this link to the RIPTA bus that there is bus service in newport right near the sights you would want to see like Cliff Walk, Marble House....http://www.ripta.com/schedules/view.php and this is only one of several bus routes within Newport.
I hope this helps. Let us know what you decide on, I%26#39;m anxious to hear a trip report.
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