15 Prettiest Places in Rhode Island (Beaches, Mansions, and Coastal Towns)

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Rhode Island knocked my socks off, and I’m not even exaggerating. I’m a Boston guy, so I’ve driven down more than a dozen times for quick weekend escapes to Newport, Providence, Narragansett and Westerly. Every trip, I leave wondering how this much beauty fits into a state you can cross in under an hour!

For this list of the most beautiful places in Rhode Island, I chose spots that wow in person, like the Cliff Walk’s crashing waves and Block Island’s wild bluffs. I’ve updated every listing for 2027 with current prices, hours and tips. You could speed-run this tiny state, but these are the places I’d send a friend to first.

• 💡 My #1 tip: If it’s your first time in Newport, I highly recommend booking this Newport Gilded Age mansions trolley tour. You get a narrated loop past Ocean Drive and the Bellevue Avenue mansions, then 90 minutes inside The Breakers with your ticket included, and you never have to hunt for parking!

Most Beautiful Places in Rhode Island at a Glance

If you only remember five places from this guide, make it these. I’ve visited every spot on this list, but these are the ones I brag about to friends back in Boston. Consider it my cheat sheet to the beautiful places in Rhode Island!

1. The Cliff Walk: A free 3.5-mile path with crashing waves on one side and Gilded Age mansions on the other
2. Block Island: A short ferry ride to 150-foot clay bluffs, two lighthouses and 17 miles of free beaches
3. The Breakers Mansion: The Vanderbilts’ 70-room summer “cottage,” with a 50-foot Great Hall and ocean views out back
4. Beavertail State Park: Big surf, tide pools and an 1856 lighthouse you can climb on select summer days
5. WaterFire Providence: Over eighty bonfires lit on the downtown rivers on select evenings, and it’s free to watch

I’ve pinned all 15 spots on the map below, which makes it easy to see just how tiny this state is. Save it to your phone and you can fit a Newport mansion morning and a Beavertail sunset into the same day. Your future self will thank you when you’re not zigzagging across Narragansett Bay twice!

1. The Newport Bridge

• 📍 Location: Between Newport and Jamestown on Route 138, crossing Narragansett Bay
• 📸 Best Views: The Bay Walk at Fort Adams State Park or the Jamestown Newport Ferry
• 💵 Tolls: $4 per crossing with an out-of-state E-ZPass or $6 billed by mail, with no cash accepted
• 🚫 On Foot or Bike: Not allowed, apart from the Citizens Pell Bridge Run
• 📅 Best Time to Visit: Around sunset on a clear evening, or October for fall foliage
• 🏨 Where to Stay: Newport Marriott Hotel & Spa, a renovated harbor hotel in downtown Newport

The Newport Bridge, also called the Claiborne Pell Bridge, is the long suspension bridge you cross to reach Newport from Jamestown. It stretches 2.1 miles over Narragansett Bay and holds the record for the longest suspension span in New England at 1,600 feet. The towers rise 400 feet, and the roadway sits about 200 feet above the water, which gives you epic views on a clear day.

Tolls are all-electronic at $4 per crossing with an out-of-state E-ZPass and $6 billed by mail without one. Cash isn’t accepted, and I’d check how your rental car company handles tolls before you drive away. Walking and biking aren’t allowed on the bridge.

For photos of the bridge itself, I recommend the Bay Walk at Fort Adams State Park in Newport. It’s a 2.5-mile loop with free parking, and the bridge looks great around sunset. The Jamestown Newport Ferry also shows you the bridge from the water, and it operates from spring through fall.

Check the Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Authority travel alerts before you go. Maintenance closures and high-wind restrictions do occur. The Citizens Pell Bridge Run is the one day a year pedestrians can cross the Newport Bridge, on a 4-mile course from Jamestown to downtown Newport. It’s traditionally held on a Sunday in mid-October, with registration expected to open in May 2027.

• Read next: My Favorite Things to Do in Newport, RI

2. The Breakers Mansion

• 📍 Location: 44 Ochre Point Avenue in Newport, along the Cliff Walk overlooking the Atlantic
• 🎟️ Tickets: Adults $32, ages 6 to 12 $14, under 6 free, with a timed entry slot to book in advance
• 🕘 Hours: Daily 9 am to 5 pm, with last admission at 4 pm
• ⏱️ Time Needed: About 2 hours for the house, plus time on the grounds
• 📅 Best Time to Visit: Weekday mornings for smaller crowds, or late November for the holiday lights
• 🏨 Where to Stay: Vanderbilt Hotel, a boutique luxury hotel in a historic downtown Newport mansion, about a mile from the Breakers

Want to see how the 1% lived before Instagram? The Breakers is a 70-room Gilded Age mansion in Newport, and it belongs on any list of beautiful places in Rhode Island. Cornelius Vanderbilt II built it in the 1890s as a summer “cottage,” and architect Richard Morris Hunt designed it like an Italian palace. The Atlantic views from the grounds are stunning!

Tickets cost $32 for adults and $14 for ages 6 to 12, and I recommend booking your timed entry slot before you go. The house is open daily from 9 am to 5 pm, parking is free, and a weekday morning means smaller crowds. Download the free Newport Mansions app for the audio tour, bring earbuds and plan on about two hours.

For a closer look, I recommend the Third Floor Preservation in Progress Tour, which opens the Vanderbilts’ private family rooms for $25. Beneath the Breakers costs the same and takes you through the boiler room and tunnels. I expect the ocean-facing terraces to be open in 2027, and Sparkling Lights holiday evenings usually return in late November.

• 🚌 Easy option: I highly recommend this Newport Gilded Age mansions trolley tour, which bundles your Breakers ticket with a narrated ride past the other mansions.

3. Colt State Park

• 📍 Location: Route 114 in Bristol, Rhode Island, on Narragansett Bay (30 minutes from Providence)
• 💵 Cost: Free entry and free parking
• 🚲 Bike Path: Connects to the 14.5-mile East Bay Bike Path to Providence
• 🧺 Best For: Cyclists and picnickers
• 📅 Best Time to Visit: Late afternoon for sunset over the bay, from spring through fall
• 🏨 Where to Stay: Bristol Harbor Inn, a charming inn in downtown Bristol, a short drive from the park

Looking for a free day out in Rhode Island with big bay views? Colt State Park is a 464-acre park on Narragansett Bay in Bristol, Rhode Island, and both entry and parking are free. Samuel P. Colt once ran a showcase farm here, and the bay shoreline and old stone walls make it one of the prettiest places in Rhode Island. Come in late afternoon, when the sun sets over the bay.

I recommend bringing a bike, because the park connects to the 14.5-mile East Bay Bike Path to Providence. Picnic sites have three or four tables each, and many face the water. You can also fish from the accessible pier or fly a kite in the open fields.

Coggeshall Farm Museum next door recreates 1790s farm life with costumed staff, and I recommend checking its limited hours first. You reach it from Poppasquash Road, and adult tickets cost $10. A new visitor center is under construction through late 2027, and the park and bike path stay open.

• Read next: My Ultimate New England Road Trip Itinerary

4. Narragansett Beach

• 📍 Location: Narragansett, Rhode Island, about 30 miles south of Providence
• 💵 Cost: $12 per person in summer (children 11 and under free), plus parking at $10 on weekdays and $15 on weekends
• 🅿️ Parking: Nonresidents park in the West Lot across from the South Pavilion
• 🏄 Best For: Surfers and families
• 📅 Best Time to Visit: June through August for lifeguards and full facilities, or September for free entry and smaller crowds
• 🏨 Where to Stay: The Shore House, an inn on Ocean Road across from the water, a short walk from the beach

Narragansett Town Beach is a public saltwater beach in the center of Narragansett, a town on Rhode Island’s Atlantic coast about 30 miles south of Providence. Lifeguards are on duty in summer, and two pavilions have restrooms and concessions. The stone arch beside it is the Towers, all that remains of the 1880s Narragansett Pier Casino.

I recommend booking a surf lesson with Narragansett Surf and Skate at least two days ahead. The shop teaches on the beach year-round and rents boards, and waves are small and gentle in summer and bigger from September. The Coast Guard House, a short walk south, was built in 1888 as a life-saving station and now serves seafood with ocean views.

Summer admission is $12 per person, and children 11 and under are free. Parking is $10 on weekdays and $15 on weekends, and nonresidents use the West Lot across from the South Pavilion. Expect a Memorial Day opening in 2027 and free entry after Labor Day, though lifeguards are off duty then.

• For more reading: Unique Things to Do in Rhode Island for Young Adults

5. Charlestown

• 📍 Location: Charlestown, a small coastal town in South County on Rhode Island’s south coast
• 🏖️ Beach: East Beach is a three-mile undeveloped barrier beach with lifeguards in summer
• 🐦 Wildlife: Ninigret National Wildlife Refuge has over 250 recorded bird species
• 🎶 Events: The Narragansett Indian Tribe’s powwow in August and Rhythm & Roots on Labor Day weekend
• 📅 Best Time to Visit: Summer for the beach and events, or spring and fall for migrating birds
• 🏨 Where to Stay: General Stanton Inn, a renovated 1740 inn about 2 miles from the beach

Set on Rhode Island’s south coast, Charlestown is a small town in South County and home to the Narragansett Indian Tribe’s reservation. Its main beach, East Beach, is a three-mile barrier beach, a narrow strip of sand between the ocean and Ninigret Pond. Plan to arrive early, since the lot fills on summer days, and buy your state beach parking pass online first.

Ninigret National Wildlife Refuge has more than four miles of trails and over 250 recorded bird species, which makes binoculars a must. Trails are open from sunrise to sunset, and I suggest blaze orange in fall and winter when hunting is allowed. The Narragansett Indian Tribe holds the oldest recorded powwow in North America here each August, with traditional dancing and food, and visitors are welcome.

Rhythm & Roots fills Ninigret Park with three days of roots music and camping every Labor Day weekend. I expect it and the powwow to return in 2027, with the powwow on the second weekend of August. The General Stanton Inn, a renovated 1740 inn about 2 miles from the beach, is a good place to stay.

• Read next: My Bucket List Things to Do in Rhode Island

6. WaterFire Providence

• 📍 Location: Downtown Providence, along the rivers from Waterplace Park to Memorial Park
• 🔥 When: Full lightings on select evenings, usually Saturdays, from late spring to early November, plus smaller lightings in between and in December
• 💵 Cost: Free to watch, though boat rides cost extra
• ⏰ Timing: Fires light at sunset, and vendors and live programming open about an hour earlier
• 📅 Best Time to Visit: A full lighting on a Saturday evening
• 🏨 Where to Stay: Renaissance Providence Downtown Hotel, a restored 1929 Masonic temple near the WaterFire basin

At sunset in downtown Providence, crews in black boats light more than eighty floating fires on the rivers for WaterFire Providence. It’s a free public art installation that artist Barnaby Evans created in 1994. Live music plays along the riverwalk, and food vendors set up before the lighting.

Full lightings happen on select evenings, usually Saturdays, from late spring to early November, with smaller ones in between. My tip is to arrive about an hour before sunset, when vendors and programming open, to claim a spot along the river. For a closer look, La Gondola gives 30-minute rides through the fires for $299 per gondola, which seats up to six.

Book a gondola at least a month ahead, since slots sell out. Storms can cancel a lighting, and the WaterFire schedule page posts updates on the day. I expect the 2027 schedule around March, with about eight full lightings again.

7. Westerly

• 📍 Location: Westerly, in the southwest corner of Rhode Island next to Connecticut
• 🏖️ Beach Parking: Misquamicut costs $20 on weekdays and $30 on weekends for out-of-state visitors
• 🎠 Watch Hill: Flying Horse Carousel rides cost $4 on the outer horses, and the lighthouse grounds and Napatree Point walk are free
• 🥕 Farmers Market: Thursdays from June through September in downtown Westerly
• 📅 Best Time to Visit: June through August for lifeguards, or September for smaller crowds
• 🏨 Where to Stay: Ocean House, a five-star, Victorian-style resort rebuilt on the Watch Hill bluffs

Two very different beach days are waiting in Westerly, a small town in the southwest corner of Rhode Island on the Connecticut border. Misquamicut is the lively strip of sand and summer fun, while Watch Hill is a polished old seaside village a few miles south. Both are easy to love on a sunny day!

Misquamicut State Beach has lifeguards in summer, food stands and a playground, which makes it a hit with families. Out-of-state visitors pay $20 to park on weekdays and $30 on weekends. I’d get there early, because the big lot fills on hot days.

In Watch Hill, children ride the Flying Horse Carousel, a National Historic Landmark where the horses swing out on chains and riders reach for a golden ring. Next, stroll out to Napatree Point, a free conservation area with beaches and nesting shorebirds, and the Watch Hill Lighthouse grounds nearby. Parking fills by mid-morning in summer, and the carousel should open again from June to Labor Day in 2027.

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8. Block Island

• 📍 Location: About 12 miles off Rhode Island’s south coast
• ⛴️ Ferry: The traditional ferry from Point Judith takes about 55 minutes and costs $12.30 each way for adults, and the high-speed ferry takes about 30 minutes for $29
• 🚲 Getting Around: Rent a bike or e-bike near the ferry dock in Old Harbor
• 🏖️ Beaches and Trails: About 17 miles of free public beaches and 28 miles of free Greenway trails
• 📅 Best Time to Visit: June or September for warm weather and thinner crowds
• 🏨 Where to Stay: The 1661 Inn, a year-round inn on a hill above Old Harbor with ocean views

Less than an hour on the ferry from Point Judith brings you to Block Island, a 7-mile island off Rhode Island’s south coast with rolling hills, freshwater ponds and ocean views. Around 47% of it is protected open space, which keeps much of the island wild and green. It feels a world away from the mainland!

Head to the south shore for the Mohegan Bluffs, clay cliffs about 150 feet above the Atlantic, with the Southeast Lighthouse perched beside them. Guided tower tours take place in summer, and North Light at the island’s northern tip has a small maritime museum. My tip is to check whether the bottom of the bluffs staircase is open, since erosion has closed it before.

The island has about 17 miles of free beaches and roughly 28 miles of Greenway trails, and a rented bike or e-bike from Old Harbor is the easiest way to see them. The Block Island Ferry sails from Point Judith all year, with high-speed boats from Point Judith and Newport in the warmer months. Book summer weekends early.

• Read next: 35 Hidden and Underrated Vacation Spots in the US

9. Providence

• 📍Location: Rhode Island’s capital city, reachable by Amtrak and MBTA commuter rail from Boston and New York
• 🎨 Art: The RISD Museum is $22 for adults and free on Sundays and Thursday evenings
• 🏛️ History: Benefit Street, the “Mile of History,” runs along College Hill
• 🍝 Food: Federal Hill, the city’s Italian neighborhood, centers on Atwells Avenue
• 📅 Best Time to Visit: Fall for foliage on College Hill, or a WaterFire evening from late spring to early November
• 🏨 Where to Stay: Neptune, an Ash Hotel, a boutique hotel in a restored 1912 building downtown

Italian bakeries, colonial streets and a world-class art museum all fit inside Providence, Rhode Island’s lively capital city. It’s small and walkable, with Brown University and the Rhode Island School of Design on College Hill above downtown. Few cities mix art, history and food this well, and it makes a great base for all of the beautiful places in Rhode Island on this list.

Walk cobblestoned Benefit Street, the “Mile of History,” to see 18th- and 19th-century homes and churches, and I’d go in fall when the trees change color. The RISD Museum sits at the foot of the hill, with more than 100,000 works from ancient to modern. Regular admission is $22 for adults, but Sundays and Thursday evenings are free.

Save your appetite for Federal Hill, where Atwells Avenue is packed with Italian restaurants and bakeries and DePasquale Square fills with outdoor tables on warm nights. Come in October and Roger Williams Park adds an extra treat, the zoo’s Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular, which should be back for 2027. Year-round, the park’s botanical center and natural history museum keep kids busy on rainy days.

• Read next: 12 Awesome Things to Do in Providence

10. Wickford Village

• 📍 Location: North Kingstown, on the west side of Narragansett Bay
• 🏘️ Highlights: Streets of 18th-century homes, the 1707 Old Narragansett Church and a harbor
• 🏛️ Smith’s Castle: Guided tours at noon, 1, 2 and 3 pm on weekends from May to October
• 🎨 Events: The Wickford Art Festival on the second weekend of July and the Festival of Lights in early December
• 📅 Best Time to Visit: July for the art festival, or early December for the holiday lights
• 🏨 Where to Stay: Hamilton Village Inn, an affordable motel on Route 1A, about a mile from the village

John Updike based the fictional town in The Witches of Eastwick on Wickford Village, and one stroll here shows you why. This tiny harbor village in North Kingstown, on the west side of Narragansett Bay, has one of the largest collections of 18th-century homes in the Northeast. Sailboats fill the harbor, and many of the houses are older than the United States!

Wander Main Street and the side streets around Pleasant and Fowler, where the oldest homes cluster. Make time for the Old Narragansett Church, built in 1707 and the oldest Episcopal church in the Northeast. A few minutes north, Smith’s Castle is a 1678 plantation house where costumed guides lead tours on weekends from May to October and share the stories of the colonial family and the enslaved people who lived there.

Timing makes a big difference in Wickford. The Wickford Art Festival brings over 200 artists to Wilson Park, a short walk from the village, on the second weekend of July, and 2027 should follow the same pattern. Come back in early December for the Festival of Lights, when Santa arrives by boat, an elf parade marches through town and the shops stay open late.

• Read next: 15 Hidden Gems in Rhode Island

11. The Marble House

• 📍 Location: 596 Bellevue Avenue in Newport, a short trip down Bellevue Avenue from The Breakers
• 🎟️ Tickets: $25 for adults and $10 for ages 6 to 12, or $45 for a Breakers + 1 ticket that covers both mansions
• 🕘 Hours: Usually 9 am to 5 pm, with last admission at 4 pm
• 🫖 Don’t Miss: Afternoon tea at the Chinese Tea House on the lawn above the Atlantic
• 📅 Best Time to Visit: November to early January, when the mansion is decorated for the holidays
• 🏨 Where to Stay: The Chanler at Cliff Walk, a 20-room Forbes Five-Star hotel in an 1870s mansion at the start of the Cliff Walk

Five hundred thousand cubic feet of marble went into Marble House, and you feel every bit of it when you walk through the front doors. This Gilded Age mansion on Bellevue Avenue in Newport was built from 1888 to 1892 as William K. Vanderbilt’s 39th birthday present to his wife, Alva. Architect Richard Morris Hunt modeled it on the Petit Trianon at Versailles, and it cost a reported $11 million.

The Gold Ballroom glows with gold leaf, and the Gothic Room shows off Alva’s collection of medieval and Renaissance art. Download the free Newport Mansions app before you go, since the audio tour is narrated through Alva’s own story. Adult tickets cost $25, and ages 6 to 12 pay $10.

Save time for the Chinese Tea House on the lawn behind the mansion, where Alva hosted women’s suffrage rallies after 1914. It serves afternoon tea through much of the year, and its perch above the Atlantic makes it one of the most beautiful places in Rhode Island to linger over a cup. Visit between late November and early January 2027 to see the whole house dressed for the holidays.

12. Prospect Terrace Park

• 📍 Location: Congdon Street on College Hill in Providence
• 💵 Cost: Free, with no tickets or reservations needed
• 🗿 Don’t Miss: The 1939 granite statue of Roger Williams, Rhode Island’s founder, who is buried beneath it
• 🍎 Fun Side Trip: The “Williams Root” on display at the John Brown House Museum nearby
• 📅 Best Time to Visit: Late afternoon into sunset, or fall when the trees on College Hill change color
• 🏨 Where to Stay: Christopher Dodge House, a 14-room B&B in an 1858 Italianate mansion on Smith Hill, with free parking and a hot breakfast

Grab a coffee, climb College Hill and follow Congdon Street to Prospect Terrace Park, a pocket-sized park with a big view over Providence. Locals have come here to look out over the city since the 1860s. From the railing you can see downtown, the State House dome and the First Baptist Church steeple.

The park’s centerpiece is a granite statue of Roger Williams, who founded Providence in 1636, and he’s buried right beneath it. His remains were moved here in 1939, after an apple tree’s roots grew through his original grave. See the root for yourself at the John Brown House Museum, a short walk away.

Late afternoon is my favorite time to visit, when the sun sets behind downtown. In fall, the trees around the terrace glow red and gold. Entry is free and you only need about 20 minutes, and its central spot on College Hill makes it an easy add-on to any Providence itinerary, especially a walk down Benefit Street.

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13. Beavertail State Park

• 📍 Location: The southern tip of Jamestown on Conanicut Island, just across the Newport Bridge
• 💵 Cost: Free to enter and park, and open from sunrise to sunset year-round
• 🗼 Lighthouse Museum: Open weekends from mid-May, daily from late June through Labor Day, then weekends until Columbus Day
• 🪜 Tower Climbs: Select summer Saturdays and holiday Mondays from 1:30 to 4 pm
• 📅 Best Time to Visit: Summer for tide pools and the museum, or a windy fall day for big surf
• 🏨 Where to Stay: Bay Voyage Inn, a Victorian-era inn on the Jamestown waterfront

Every time I drive to Newport, I try to make a detour to Beavertail State Park. It sits at the southern tip of Jamestown, the island town between Newport and the mainland, and it’s where Narragansett Bay opens up to the Atlantic. You get crashing surf, rocky ledges and wide ocean views, and it’s free to visit from sunrise to sunset.

Start at Beavertail Lighthouse, which has guided ships into the bay since 1856 and stands on the site of the third-oldest lighthouse in North America. The museum beside it is fascinating, with exhibits on the keepers and local shipwrecks, and it’s open daily from late June through Labor Day. If your visit lands on a tower climb day, usually a summer Saturday or holiday Monday, it’s 49 steps and a short ladder to the top for a $5 donation.

At low tide in summer, the tide pools are a hit with kids, and the seasonal Beavertail Aquarium offers hands-on programs with park naturalists. Bring a jacket, since the wind picks up fast on this exposed point. The Newport Bridge is only minutes away, which makes Beavertail an easy add-on to a Newport weekend.

• Read next: The Prettiest Lighthouses in Massachusetts

14. Sakonnet Point & Little Compton

• 📍 Location: The southeastern corner of Rhode Island, on the peninsula east of the Sakonnet River
• 🍷 Sakonnet Vineyard: Tastings are first come, first served, and the café takes reservations
• 🏛️ History: The Wilbor House Museum, parts of which date to 1690, and the 1832 church on the town Commons
• 🌅 Sakonnet Point: An 1884 lighthouse on a rock offshore and a small working harbor
• 📅 Best Time to Visit: Late summer and early fall, for harvest season and farm stands in full swing
• 🏨 Where to Stay: The Stone House, an 1854 fieldstone inn near Sakonnet Point with water views, beach access and breakfast included

Little Compton feels like New England before the crowds arrived, and it’s one of the prettiest places in Rhode Island for a country drive. Little Compton is a small farming town in the state’s southeastern corner, on the peninsula east of the Sakonnet River. Sakonnet Point sits at its southern tip, with a lighthouse from 1884 perched on a rock offshore.

Sakonnet Vineyard is the main attraction. It’s been making wine since 1975, which makes it New England’s oldest vineyard by its own count. Tastings are walk-up, and I’d take a glass and a cheese board out to the rocking chairs on the lawn. Check the hours before you go, since the fall schedule runs Friday to Sunday from noon, plus Monday and Thursday afternoons.

Save time for the Commons, the town center, with its 1832 church and old burial ground, where Elizabeth Pabodie, daughter of Mayflower passengers John and Priscilla Alden, is buried. Close by, the Wilbor House Museum shows farm life going back to 1690 and opens a new exhibit each summer around the Fourth of July. Stop at a farm stand on West Main Road on your way out for fresh corn or berries in season.

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15. The Cliff Walk

• 📍 Location: Newport’s eastern shore, starting at Memorial Boulevard by Easton’s Beach and heading south toward Bailey’s Beach
• 🥾 Distance: 3.5 miles one way, with an easy, mostly paved northern half and a rocky southern end
• 🚧 Detour: The section between Narragansett Avenue and Webster Street has been closed since a 2022 collapse
• 💵 Cost: Free, with several access points along the way
• 📅 Best Time to Visit: Early morning from spring through fall, for soft light and thinner crowds
• 🏨 Where to Stay: Castle Hill Inn, an oceanfront resort on Ocean Drive with its own lighthouse

For the classic Newport experience, walk the Cliff Walk, a free 3.5-mile path that traces the city’s rocky eastern shore. On one side you get the Atlantic, and on the other you get a parade of Gilded Age mansions, including The Breakers and Marble House. It’s a National Recreation Trail and one of the best free things to do in Newport.

Most of the walk is open, but one stretch between Narragansett Avenue and Webster Street has been closed since a 2022 collapse. A signed detour takes you around it on nearby streets, and it takes just a few minutes. Repairs have state and federal funding, but approval is still pending, and the detour looks likely to stay in place into 2027.

I’d start at Memorial Boulevard by Easton’s Beach, where the path is flat and paved, and head south as far as you like. The southern end gets rocky, with scrambles and short tunnels, and good sneakers help a lot. Plan on two to three hours for the whole thing, and go early in the morning to beat the crowds.

• 🚌 Prefer to ride? This Gilded Age mansions trolley tour shows you the same mansions from a comfy seat, with a stop inside The Breakers.