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The Breakers, Newport, RI

Photo: Itub, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped and resized.

SightseeingIconicHistory BuffRainy-Day Pick

The Breakers

44 Ochre Point Ave · Newport, RI

Why you should go…

The Breakers was built from 1893 to 1895 as the summer residence of Cornelius Vanderbilt II, designed by Richard Morris Hunt in the Renaissance Revival style. A self-guided audio tour shares first-person accounts of life in the house from family members, servants and their children. Guide-led tours go Beneath The Breakers to the underground systems and up to the private third-floor family space, opened to the public for the first time. The 14-acre estate sits on cliffs above Easton Bay.

  • #gilded age mansion
  • #historic house
  • #newport mansions
  • #vanderbilt
  • #audio tour

Good to know

General sightseeing guidance

Habits that pay off across this whole category, not rules for this one venue. Always check the official site for the specifics.

  • The forecast is part of the ticket

    Haze, low cloud, and rain flatten a view. Clear-day visits are worth rearranging your plans for.

  • Golden hour sells out first

    Sunset slots at observation decks and cruises are the first to go, so book those further ahead.

  • Dress a layer warmer

    It is always breezier up high and out on the water than it feels at street level.

  • Timed entry is common

    Plenty of landmarks release tickets in windows rather than at the door, so check before you walk over.

What's around here?

The closest stops to The Breakers, ordered by straight-line distance. A few more like it, plus some different kinds of fun so you can build a full day.

  • Sport & Outdoor
    Iconic

    Cliff Walk

    Free

    Walk a 3.5-mile shoreline path with the Atlantic on one side and Newport's Gilded Age mansions on the other.

    0.3 mi awaySwitch it up: Sport & Outdoor

  • Sightseeing
    Iconic

    Bellevue Avenue Historic District

    Free

    Stroll or drive past Newport's Gilded Age mansions, several open for tours, along a landmark avenue of summer cottages.

    0.4 mi awayMore like this

  • Sightseeing
    History Buff

    Rosecliff

    $25–$50

    Walk through a Gilded Age mansion with Newport's largest ballroom and a heart-shaped grand staircase.

    0.5 mi awayMore like this

  • Sightseeing
    History Buff

    Marble House

    $25–$50

    Tour the Vanderbilts' 50-room marble summer house and its Chinese Tea House above the Atlantic.

    0.6 mi awayMore like this

  • Museums
    Iconic

    International Tennis Hall of Fame

    Under $25

    A Newport mansion turned museum honoring tennis's greatest champions with interactive and immersive exhibits.

    1.0 mi awaySwitch it up: Museums

  • Tours
    Date Night

    Sightsailing of Newport

    $25–$50

    Newport Harbor sailing charters and sunset cruises from Bowen's Wharf.

    1.5 mi awaySwitch it up: Tours