Newport, Nantucket, and Halifax, Nova Scotia, share roots as historic harbors and embody the essence of a coastal summer experience. We visit all three to discover what’s new (and old) in these ancient seaside destinations.
GILDED AGE GRANDEUR
Newport, Rhode Island, once the summer haven for the Gilded Age’s wealthiest, continues to be a thriving vacation destination. Surrounded by saltwater on all sides, with a walkable Colonial-era downtown, excellent shopping and dining options, and a 20-foot-deep channel and bustling waterfront, it is a favorite spot for yachters and landlubbers alike.
My friend Sarah and I traveled to Newport to join Classical Excursions, a travel company that runs tours across the globe to places of antiquity and elegance. On this occasion, the travel company has cultivated private tours of some of the city’s oldest houses as well as exclusive sneak peeks into rooms typically off limits in the famed Newport Mansions.
We chose to stay on the waterfront at the Brenton Hotel. Opened in 2020, this boutique accommodation redefines a luxury stay in this historic port city. Spacious rooms, with interiors that conjure the feeling
