Scenic Newport, RI Self-Driving Audio Tour in Newport booking from $14.99

Scenic Newport, RI Self-Driving Audio Tour

Overview

Recommended: Purchase one tour per car, not per person. Everyone listens together!

Explore Newport, RI with a scenic self-guided driving tour! See everything this seaside town has to offer at your own pace. As you drive down Bellevue Avenue, the "most beautiful avenue in the world", see and learn about the gorgeous Gilded Age Mansions along the way - including The Breakers, Marble House, The Elms, Rosecliff, Château-sur-mer & more. Continue along Ocean Drive, featuring breathtaking vistas. This self-guided tour allows you to explore with maximum flexibility and value.

Within 30 min, we'll send you two things: a password & an app. Download the app, enter password, & download tour. When you arrive, go to the Discover Newport Visitor Center to start the tour. Stick to the tour route & speed limit for the best experience.

This is not an entrance ticket. Check covid rules & opening hours before your visit.

No expiration — The tour comes with lifetime validity!

City: Newport

Sun 22 Sep

Other dates

You can choose the date already on the booking website

Starting at $14.99

Make a reservation

Sun 22 Sep

Starting at $14.99

Make a reservation

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What's Included

Offline use: No cell signal or wifi required. Offline GPS Map & route. Stop-to-stop direction.

Private tour in your/rental car: No group. Take breaks for photos/ snacks/hikes. Go at your own pace

Don’t miss a thing: Full itinerary, travel tips, professionally narrated hidden stories, video, text

Flexible schedule: Use any day, any time. Travel over multiple days or on next trip. Never expires.

Good value: Buy just one per car. Don’t pay for each person. Save money compared to a bus tour.

App on your phone: A link to download the Action Guide app. Password for your tours. Preview at home

Easy to use: Stories play automatically by GPS. Hands-free. Get HELP all day: Call, Chat or Email.

Additional Info

Public transportation options are available nearby
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
How it works: Once you book a tour, you’ll get a text/email with instructions. Download the app (while in good wifi/signal) and use your unique password to access your tours. To begin touring, go to the Starting Point and launch the app. The audio starts automatically. Stick to the tour route & speed limit for the best experience. Please note that no one will meet you at the starting point.
Good value: Purchase only one tour for the entire vehicle instead of taking the bus and paying for each person. You will see a significant saving. Connect your phone to car speakers by a wire or bluetooth. Enjoy the tour by listening together as you drive.
Flexible Schedule: Once the app/tour is on your phone, you can use it any day and at any time. You can use it over multiple days. And, also use it on your next trip here. This tour never expires.
Preview the tour: You can use it before the trip at home (highly recommended), use it during the trip, and use it after you come back.
Don't miss a thing: You will get everything with the app - a complete itinerary, travel tips, professionally narrated audio stories, story script, images, videos, deep dives, hidden gems, exciting locations, recommendations for hikes, adventure, activities, treks, and stop-by-stop direction.
Private tour: You can use it in your car or rental car. No worries about groups or crowds. Start the tour app on your phone. And it will direct you step by step. You can stop for as many breaks as you like. Take a break for Instagram photos, and take a break for lunch/snacks. Go on a hike. The tour will wait for you and start when you start again. You can even do the tour over multiple days. Go at your own pace.
Easy to use: The stories play themselves as soon as the GPS is activated. It requires no use of your hands at all. You can get HELP by calling, chatting, or emailing any time of the day.
Offline: There is no need for a cell signal or Wi-Fi while touring. App’s GPS map works offline.
Expiration/go again: The tour will last for the rest of your life on your phone. It is available for use on any day of your next trip.
Use pictures for a photo book: Create a photo book using clean (no crowd) app images of each spot to make a memorable trip. All the photos and the correct sequence is ready in the app for you to use.
Social media: Share clean (no crowd) images with friends/family.
Devices supported include iPhones with iOS 13 & above, Android phones with version 9 & above and all cellular-enabled tablets & iPads.
Face masks required for travellers in public areas
Please refer to CDC guidelines while you are taking the tour. This is a private self guided tour so please take social distancing measures

What To Expect

Newport Visitors Information Center

Our journey begins in downtown Newport, just by the Newport Visitor Center. As we set off into the heart of Newport, we'll dive into the past to learn about Newport's hey-day: the Gilded Age. This era of nouveau-riche American elites like the Vanderbilts and Astors has been marked by gorgeous mansions. We'll explore the architecture and architects behind these designs as drive.

International Tennis Hall of Fame

At the International Tennis Hall of Fame intersection, we'll turn onto the famed Bellevue Avenue -- the most expensive avenue in America. We're about to see the most magnificent homes ever built in this country... facetiously known as "summer cottages". You can choose to pause here to check ou the Hall of Fame, which features tennis greats.

The Elms

Finally, we'll see the Elms. This masterpiece was designed for the coal baron Edward Julius Berwind, and inspired by France's Château d'Asnières. Here we'll want to slow down as much as possible to hear about the Berwinds -- and maybe pull inside for a tour!

Bellevue Avenue

When we spot Mr. Belmont's statue, we'll turn off Bellevue. We're now heading towards some of the largest and finest mansions in Newport -- and they're technically not even on this famously expensive avenue! As we drive, we'll learn a bit about Belmont -- whose fascinating story we'll pick back up when we see another grand house later on the tour.

Ochre Court

Ochre Court will immediately arrest our eyes! This châteauesque mansion cost of $4.5 million... in 1892. And it certainly shows! Now the centerpiece of the Salve Regina University, this mansion isn't open for tours... but that won't stop us from learning all about it's rich and fascinating history!

Chateau-sur-Mer

As we head back towards Bellevue Avenue, we'll pause to check out the delicate beautfy of Chateau-sur-Mer. Not only is the first Gilded Age mansion in Newport, it also boasts one of the most beautiful, green, sprawling gardens. Both the house and the gardens are open for an optional tour.

National Museum of American Illustration

Right on the corner of Bellevue, we'll pause once again for a glimpse of Vernon Court. This mansion holds a different type of treasure inside: the National Museum of American Illustrations. Norman Rockwell fans simply can't skip this hidden gem.

Hammersmith Farm

Our journey brings us to Hammersmith Farm, the childhood home of Jackie Kennedy. Jackie and JFK would later return to summer here, enjoying the same scenery, views, and breeze that you feel today!

Fort Adams State Park

We'll continue both our history lesson and journey into Fort Adams, as we explore this historic site and it's significance to Newport's independence.

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Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Traveler Photos

Reviews (169)

jc18holes

Jun 2022

Very informative. I like to call it a quick look and learn. A lot of fun for a quick family sightseeing tour.

Response from Host

Jun 2022

Sounds like it was a great family experience! You guys may also enjoy my Cliff Walk tour (or other tours in RI, Cape Cod, and beyond). Thanks again!

Stacey_M

Jun 2022

The guided tour was pretty much useless. It’s impossible to drive slowly enough in that area to hear the info without getting to the next point and it cutting off. There’s traffic and pedestrians and no place to pull over on a busy road. We were also so busy toggling back to the directions and worrying about getting into an accident to be able to pay attention to what was being said. Sometimes it told you to stop to look at a building when we already passed it. If it wants you to do that then it should tell you before you get to it. We found this drive very frustrating and stressful instead of relaxing.

Response from Host

Jun 2022

Thanks for your feedback Stacey! The tour is timed to the speed limit (and summer traffic usually forces everyone to go even slower). Stories will seem to cut off if speeding though! A lot of folks worry about viewing the map instead of following the audio directions — I always encourage giving the app the benefit of the doubt and doing what it asks without manually playing with it. Since you didn’t have a great experience, I’m more than happy to exchange this tour for you! Please contact me!

Ronald_A

Jun 2022

The blue dot on the map never moved from close to the starting point. Your request to drive less than 20 mph was met with horns blaring and nasty gestures. What we heard sounded great but nothing jibed with where we were.

Response from Host

Jun 2022

Thanks for the feedback! The tour is timed with the speed limit and I’m sorry that other drivers wanted you to break that limit! Newport is a summer town full of tourists and tour buses slowly cruising Bellevue Ave to look at the mansions — it's very unusual for anyone to have a problem with that. If the blue dot wasn’t moving, it’s possible that location tracking permissions were denied to the app (they’re necessary for the tour to work). Please contact me for help!

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Scenic Newport, RI Self-Driving Audio Tour

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