When the weather gets cold and the hiking is a little less inviting, I hit the map to see what kind of "alternative" adventures I can find on a chilly December day. I woke up with the intention of going hiking, but when the temperatures hovered in the low 20's, I decided to get creative and find something else to do on a chilly but sunny Sunday.
After spending some time on google maps, I decided a day trip to Newport was just the ticket to a well spent weekend. I have been to Newport many times but this trip was to see some of the Mansions decked for the Holidays. That many Christmas trees brought on the holiday spirit and a tour of two mansions I had not been in before, The Elms and The Marble House. With so many mansions decorating Bellevue Avenue, it takes several trips to Newport to see them all. My first stop on the Mansion tour was to The Elms, one of the first mansions on your tour towards the water down Bellevue Avenue.
Source: NewportMansions.org
This was a tour of a beautiful mansion and one that actually felt "lived in". Great audio tour throughout the mansion. Parking is on-site which made it easier for us, especially because we had our dog in the car. The grounds were beautiful with a stable, expansive lawns and gardens and amazing crazy sculptures. We did not do this but you can go on the Servant Life tour to see how the servants lived and access the mansion (advanced reservations required). In the summer, you can have lunch at the cafe at the rear of the property at the Carriage House Cafe. This mansion did not abut the water and did not have the amazing ocean views that some of the mansions have. The back lawn is still one of the best things about the property (you have to see the crazy sculptures for yourself. Or scroll to the bottom of this post). Every time I walk into one of these mansions, I am so thankful for conservation and preservation societies that keep these pieces of American history alive, so we can all daydream about the Gatsby era. See aerial footage of the mansion here.
