6 ways to celebrate the holidays in Newport, Rhode Island

Looking for a quick escape to celebrate the holidays? Newport, Rhode Island, has all the feels: jolly celebrations, evocative antique buildings, exuberant decorations, cheery shopping, convivial restaurants and bars, and cozy places to stay.

This seaside charmer, founded in 1639, enjoyed early prosperity as an important port before becoming home to a glittering summer colony for the fabulously wealthy in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

It enchants visitors with beautifully preserved Colonial structures and opulent Gilded Age mansions, along with picturesque streets, a broad harbor, and a lively scene. As the ocean breezes begin to tingle, the town embraces the holidays with a flourish of festivities. ’Tis the season to join the fun!

The full calendar, coordinated by Christmas in Newport, sparkles with choral and orchestral concerts, The Nutcracker performed in a mansion, art shows, craft and bake sales, silver teas, pageants, a candlelight tour of historic homes, and much more.

The grand rooms of Newport’s bejeweled mansions practically beg to be adorned in holiday splendor. While their original occupants departed at summer’s end, several mansions now get all gussied up for Holidays at the Newport Mansions.

At The Breakers, a Renaissance-style palace built in 1895 by railway baron Cornelius Vanderbilt II, a 15-foot tree fashioned from 130 live poinsettia plants soars toward the Great Hall’s 50-foot-high ceiling. Sixteen other rooms have their own trees, each lavished with ornaments appropriate to the room’s purpose. For example, the music room’s tree is laden with tiny harps and cherubs.

Outdoors, a quarter-mile garden path illuminated with tens of thousands of lights invites a walk in wonderland. (The Sparkling Lights display is offered Thursday through Sunday evenings beginning November 20; a ticket, which includes admission to the mansion, is required.)

For a taste of elegance, book a table at Castle Hill Inn, which occupies a refined, ocean-view “cottage” built in 1875.

So many restaurants, so little time? Squeeze three into one meal on a Winter Foodies Stroll, with each course served at a different Thames Street spot.

For a bracing run or walk, head to the broad sands of Easton’s Beach (known locally as First Beach), next to Memorial Boulevard. At the beach’s in-town end, look for the entrance to the 3.5-mile-long Cliff Walk, which parallels the water as it meanders past some of Newport’s most imposing mansions. The first part of the path is paved and flat, but there are also rough, rocky stretches; avoid these by exiting at Ruggles Avenue, just beyond The Breakers.

For wide ocean panoramas, take a short drive to Brenton Point State Park and fill your lungs with fresh salt air.

5. Shop for gifts

Holiday elves, rejoice! At Newport’s many enticing shops and boutiques, you’ll find everything on your gift list—plus plenty of treats for yourself. Even better, it’s a pleasant walk from one shopping hot spot to the next.

For unusual treasures, check out the Newport Historical Society Shop (don’t miss the great little Museum of Newport History upstairs).

Browse your way through the Shops at Long Wharf and Brick Market Place, and then walk along America’s Cup Avenue to Bowen’s Wharf, where favorite shops include Newport Scrimshanders and Anchor Toffee. On neighboring Bannister’s Wharf, check out the Newport Mansions Store and Onne van der Wal Gallery.

Then stroll down lower Thames Street, popping into a blocks-long lineup of shops and galleries tucked among numerous restaurants and cafés. At Thames Glass, you can even create your own one-of-a-kind, hand-blown ornament.

Newport’s abundance of lodging options means you can settle in for a long winter’s nap at everything from modern hotels to properties steeped in Newport history.

Choose a hip, waterfront hotel such as the year-old Brenton Hotel (November-December rates start at $399), offering boutique amenities amid nautically inspired decor, plus harbor views.

Slip into the past at AAA Three-Diamond Hotel Viking (November-December rates start at $149), an updated Gilded Age hotel. Channel Newport’s grand era at AAA Four Diamond The Cliffside Inn (November-December rates start at about $350) or AAA Four Diamond The Chanler at Cliff Walk (November–December rates start at $535), two 19th-century mansions transformed into pampering retreats. Or dream of Colonial times in one of many historic homes converted to inns and B&Bs, among them the gracious AAA Three Diamond Francis Malbone House (November–December rates start at $225), built in 1760 at the heart of Thames Street.

For a truly memorable experience, consider adding a stay at Rose Island Lighthouse to your time in Newport. Built in 1870 on its own island a mile offshore in Narragansett Bay, it offers a secluded getaway and a glimpse of the life of lighthouse keepers in centuries past. ($259-$449).

Seeking more budget-friendly options? You’ll find a good selection of motels in neighboring Middletown.

Mimi Bigelow Steadman writes about New England regularly for AAA’s publications. Her previous articles include Cozy up to winter in Ogunquit, Maine, and 6 romantic winter getaways in Northern New England.