Newport in 6 hours

[jmwg49]

Help me with ideas!    We arrive at 6 am til 2 pm.   With tendering it doesn’t leave much time.   Ideas are welcome.   Doesn’t seem enough time to do an excursion with having to tender back probably by 1

[princeton123211]

3 hours ago, jmwg49 said:

Doesn’t seem enough time to do an excursion with having to tender back probably by 1

I'd walk around, grab breakfast, go for a stroll on the Cliff Walk, and take a tour or two of the mansions on Bellevue. You could do The Breakers and Marble House in a couple hours if you kept moving. 

[GTJ]

Newport itself is an historic place and the original seat of government of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. A nice place to walk around and explore on foot. Alas, Newport made a colossal urban planning error in the 1960s with its building of America's Cup Avenue, a wide boulevard that was cut through the wharf area, and now separates the water from Thames Street and the heart of Newport with an auto-choked way. (And the errors may continue in Newport: see "Saving Newport by Destroying It? –– Architecture Critic Morgan.") Do your best to ignore the modern intrusion, and the panoply of t-shirt, ice cream, and beer deck establishments, and explore the real place. If time does allow, you might go to the Newport Gateway, on America's Cup Avenue just north of Perrotti Park where the tenders leave cruise vessel passengers, where you can find the RIPTA route 67 motorized trolleys that traverse Bellevue Avenue free of charge. Get the route 67 map and schedule here. Or board the RIPTA route 60 bus to Providence, only $2.00 exact fare for a 75-minute journey (twice each hour, more frequently during rush hours). Get the route 60 map and schedule here.

[princeton123211]

3 hours ago, GTJ said:

Or board the RIPTA route 60 bus to Providence, only $2.00 exact fare for a 75-minute journey (twice each hour, more frequently during rush hours).

I'm just sort of curious why someone with about 5-6 usable hours on a port stop in Newport would want to spend 3 hours of it taking a public bus round trip to Providence? 

[GTJ]

2 hours ago, princeton123211 said:

I'm just sort of curious why someone with about 5-6 usable hours on a port stop in Newport would want to spend 3 hours of it taking a public bus round trip to Providence? 

Providence is the capital of the state, and is home to Brown University, and as a result it has much more, as a "big city," to see and do compared to smaller Newport. The population of Newport is seven times larger than Newport, so it is much more likely to find family or friends in Providence to visit than in Newport.  Zumper ranked Providence among the top ten places in the entire United States for "foodies"; Newport did not make the list. As well, some people consider Newport as either a tourist trap or a home to obnoxious rich and/or sailing people, and in either case want to escape. Everyone has their own preferences, so some will be intrigued by Newport whilst others will want to go elsewhere.

 

Finally, I note that a small number of people are transport enthusiasts--myself including--and so the opportunity to ride the RIPTA bus service may be an end in and of itself. (Some people like to ride in sports cars, some others like to ride trains or buses.) Whenever I travel by cruise vessel, I always make an effort to visit the local public transportation system, certainly seeking the main transit center (in Rhode Island, it is Kennedy Plaza in downtown Providence), and hopefully taking a few rides and perhaps heading out to the bus garage. The last time I was in Providence, I was on a bus tour, and our group visited the headquarters and garage for the Bonanza bus division of Peter Pan Bus Lines, which also is in Providence.

 

Obviously, I have a specialized interest, one that might not be shared by many others. But it reinforces the general idea that what to so all depends on one's individual interests. For those people who select cruise itineraries randomly, or who do not otherwise have any particular interests, then it may be that the standard Newport tourist circuit is for them. I travel by cruise vessel because I have a particular interest in the destination of the vessel, so I typically know what it is that I want to see or do because that's the reason for having selected the itinerary. And for those who also do have particular interests, it may require taking the bus from Newport to someplace else, be it Providence or otherwise. Hopefully this explanation provides the answer why someone would want to take the bus from Newport to Providence.

[njhorseman]

There are other places to visit in Newport besides  the mansions that some may be interested in, including:

 The International Tennis Hall of Fame

The (new) Sailing Museum

The Audrain Auto Museum

 

For anyone interested in the history of religious freedom and Judaism in particular, the Touro Synagogue is the oldest synagogue in the United States and a National Historic Site.

[Tura Lura]

26 minutes ago, njhorseman said:

There are other places to visit in Newport besides  the mansions that some may be interested in, including:

 The International Tennis Hall of Fame

The (new) Sailing Museum

The Audrain Auto Museum

 

For anyone interested in the history of religious freedom and Judaism in particular, the Touro Synagogue is the oldest synagogue in the United States and a National Historic Site.

Is the synagogue walking distance from the ship?  

[jmwg49]

Can you visit the mansions without pre purchased tickets.  Or is a “drive by” excursion enough.    Is there a tour company website anyone can recommend.  I haven’t really seen one

[njhorseman]

49 minutes ago, Tura Lura said:

Is the synagogue walking distance from the ship?  

Newport is a tender port, so the ship will be anchored in the harbor. I forget exactly where the tender pier is located but yes, it's definitely within walking distance of the synagogue. Perhaps a half to three quarters of a mile ?

[njhorseman]

8 minutes ago, jmwg49 said:

Can you visit the mansions without pre purchased tickets.  Or is a “drive by” excursion enough.    Is there a tour company website anyone can recommend.  I haven’t really seen one

You can familiarize yourself with the mansions at https://www.newportmansions.org/ .

You don't need to purchase tickets in advance, they can be purchased on site.

A drive by is a waste of time. You need to go inside one or two of the mansions .

 

Edited July 31, 2022 by njhorseman

[nancygp]

10 hours ago, Tura Lura said:

Is the synagogue walking distance from the ship?  

Yes…about a 10 to 15 minute walk

 

Nancy

[1025cruise]

Need to agree. For a cruise ship passenger, the suggestion to go to Providence should be a non-starter.

[GTJ]

3 hours ago, 1025cruise said:

For a cruise ship passenger, the suggestion to go to Providence should be a non-starter.

It really depends on one's interests. I remember several years ago being on a cruise vessel that stopped for several hours in Progreso, Yucatán. This port is about one hour distant, by bus, from the state capital, Mérida, a much larger city with more to do. Many cruise line passengers remain in Progreso, but a substantial number make the trip to Mérida and back because there is much to see and do there. (We traveled on the regular Autoprogreso bus from Progreso into Mérida and back, while others booked substantially more expensive tours for the same journey.) For those who are not adventurous, leaving Newport would be "non-starter." Others might be inclined to travel beyond Newport . . . it is an individual decision without a single "best" answer.

[milolii]

On 7/30/2022 at 8:22 PM, jmwg49 said:

Can you visit the mansions without pre purchased tickets.  Or is a “drive by” excursion enough.    Is there a tour company website anyone can recommend.  I haven’t really seen one

We are using this company. https://vikingtoursnewport.com
 

 

[1025cruise]

18 hours ago, GTJ said:

It really depends on one's interests. I remember several years ago being on a cruise vessel that stopped for several hours in Progreso, Yucatán. This port is about one hour distant, by bus, from the state capital, Mérida, a much larger city with more to do. Many cruise line passengers remain in Progreso, but a substantial number make the trip to Mérida and back because there is much to see and do there. (We traveled on the regular Autoprogreso bus from Progreso into Mérida and back, while others booked substantially more expensive tours for the same journey.) For those who are not adventurous, leaving Newport would be "non-starter." Others might be inclined to travel beyond Newport . . . it is an individual decision without a single "best" answer.

You probably had more time in Progesso then the OP does in Newport. With a port time of 6am-2pm, a trip to Providence would be a waste. 

Said as someone who grew up in Rhode Island.

[GTJ]

16 hours ago, 1025cruise said:

You probably had more time in Progeso then the OP does in Newport.

I don't remember precisely the amount of time we had there, but it was not as long as we would have wanted. I recall that, after having arrived in Mérida, we had time to have lunch, do a single circuit on the "hop on hop off" double decked tourist bus, and a very brief walk through the center city. But we would have gone to Mérida in any case, even if only for one hour, rather than remaining in Progreso. In part that is because I have a much greater interest in large cities than in small coastal villages . . . and no interest whatsoever as to beaches.

 

Fortunately for me, Newport is not so much a beach community (!), and it has itself great historical relevance, and so for me there are equities on both sides as to whether I would head into Providence or remain in Newport. But I would certainly be prepared, prior to setting sail, to have the bus timetable with me, possibly deciding upon arrival (observing Newport crowds, weather, etc.) on remaining in Newport or going into Providence.

[steveknj]

On 7/30/2022 at 10:02 PM, njhorseman said:

There are other places to visit in Newport besides  the mansions that some may be interested in, including:

 The International Tennis Hall of Fame

The (new) Sailing Museum

The Audrain Auto Museum

 

For anyone interested in the history of religious freedom and Judaism in particular, the Touro Synagogue is the oldest synagogue in the United States and a National Historic Site.

 

How far is that from the pier?  We are taking a cruise excursion, but if we have time, I'd like to see that.

 

[njhorseman]

41 minutes ago, steveknj said:

How far is that from the pier?  We are taking a cruise excursion, but if we have time, I'd like to see that.

About a 15 minute walk.

[NetworkGuy]

Check out https://www.discovernewport.org/

[Nashna]

Native Rhode Island here...Do not go to Providence.  Especially if you have never been to Newport, it simply isn't worth it.  Keep in mind that most of the shops and museums do not open until 10:00am.  You might want to hire a driver to take you around town to see the charming Newport area.  Go by the White Horse Tavern and through the narrow picturesque streets to get a feel for historic Newport, then pass the Tennis Hall of Fame and slowly go by the amazing mansions, keep on going on Ocean Drive to see where Jacqueline Kennedy lived, stop along the waterfront to take photos and continue on past Castle Hill.  Perhaps, you might wish to drop in for coffee to sip outside on their beautiful lawn.  Return by 1st Beach to see the beginnings of the Cliff Walk and dip your toe in the sand.  By now, the shops and museums will have opened so may have your driver bring you back to the mansions or wharf area.  If you decide to visit one of the mansions there is a trolley to take you back to the wharf area.   The mansions are absolutely amazing...inside and out!