Newport Bellevue Avenue Historic District - Mobile GPS Self-Guided Audio Walk

Newport Bellevue Avenue Historic District - Mobile GPS Self-Guided Audio Walk

Home to some of the country's best-known mansions, Bellevue Avenue Historic District represents part of Newport, which is designated as a National Historic Landmark. Almost exclusively residential, this neighborhood contains lavish mansions built by affluent summer vacationers, including the Astor and Vanderbilt families.

After you book the tour, we will email you the link to the APP and the TOUR PASSWORD.

FULLY-AUTOMATIC & OFFLINE: Each point of interest along the tour has a narrated story, narrated directions, and helpful images. As you walk along the path and approach a pin, it’s story will automatically pop up and start playing.

FASCINATING STORIES: Engaging, and entertaining story about each point.

FREEDOM TO TRAVEL: No scheduled tour timings, no crowded groups, and no rush to move along past stops that interest you.

PRE-TRAVEL PREPARATION
We recommend that you download the app & the tour while you have a good internet connection.

Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product

Stop At: Audrain Automobile Museum, 222 Bellevue Ave, Newport, RI 02840-3515

At the intersection, you’ll notice a beautiful red-brick, white-arched building on the left. That’s the historic Audrain building, which has been converted into a luxury car museum.


Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Edward King House, 35 King St, Newport, RI 02840, USA

Directly across as you turn is the red brick Edward King House.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Kingscote, 253 Bellevue Ave, Newport, RI 02840-3571

George Noble Jones, a man made rich by southern plantations, commissioned the house in 1839. When the Civil War broke out, Jones suddenly found himself in hostile territory. He fled Newport and sold the property to William Henry King.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: The Bellevue House, 14 Catherine St, Newport, RI 02840, USA

Look for the white, pillared building on the left. That’s Bellevue House. It mixes classic American styles with European architecture

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Isaac Bell House, Bellevue Avenue, Newport, RI 02840

Today, Bell House is also open to visitors, so feel free to come back later for a tour.


Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: The Elms, 367 Bellevue Ave, Newport, RI 02840-6915

Built in 1901, The Elms cost $1.4 million. This was probably just a drop in the bucket for Edward, a coal magnate and one of the 58 most important men in America at the time.


Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Chepstow, 120 Narragansett Avenue, Ward Ave, Newport, RI 02840, USA

Try to spot a bit of the white Italianate-style mansion behind the trees. Built in 1860, Chepstow first belonged to Edmond Schermerhorn. Edmond was a reclusive cousin of the famous Mrs. Caroline Astor.


Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Ochre Court, Newport, RI

It’s the second largest of Newport’s mansions, and one of its most expensive. It was built in 1892 for banker and real estate mogul Ogden Goelet. The cost of construction was roughly $4.5 million. That’s almost $125 million in today’s money!


Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: The Breakers, 44 Ochre Point Ave, Newport, RI 02840-6906

The Breakers is the largest, and most famous of Newport’s “summer cottages.” It measures at a staggering 125,339 square feet. The mansion’s name is taken from the waves breaking against the rocks at the base of the cliffs to your left.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Chateau-sur-Mer, Bellevue Avenue, Newport, RI 02840

Let’s start with Chateau first. Built in 1852, the mansion’s name literally means “castle on the sea”. But it’s not on the sea, is it? The sea is actually several streets behind us!

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: National Museum of American Illustration, 492 Bellevue Ave, Newport, RI 02840-4127

Today, Vernon Court is the National Museum of American Illustration. The museum features classic artworks by Norman Rockwell, JC Leyendecker, and more. Even if you don’t know those names, you’ve almost definitely seen some of their work.


Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Rosecliff, 584 Bellevue Ave, Newport, RI 02840-4265

Continue looking to the left as we continue down Bellevue. Coming up soon, you’ll see a white mansion set far back from the road. That’s Rosecliff, the mansion built for Theresa and Hermann Oelrichs in 1902.


Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Rough Point, 680 Bellevue Ave, Newport, RI 02840-4283

Coming up on your left is the sprawling mansion Rough Point, home to the Duke family. The English-style manor was originally commissioned by Frederick Vanderbilt in 1887.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Belcourt of Newport, 657 Bellevue Ave, Newport, RI 02840-4280

Coming up on the right is Belcourt Castle, the white-and-grey summer cottage of Oliver Belmont. Oliver was a wealthy bachelor with a fondness for horses when he commissioned Belcourt in 1891.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Marble House, 596 Bellevue Ave, Newport, RI 02840-4265

Marble House, the immense, pillared estate to your left, was by far the most expensive of any of the Newport mansions. That was mainly thanks to the 500,000 cubic feet of marble used to build the structure. In 1892, it cost William Vanderbilt $11 million. Today that would be over $300 million!

Duration: 5 minutes