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Downton Abbey Lifestyle

Had the Crawleys of Downton Abbey been American, they would have undoubtedly summered in Newport.  Immerse yourself in the opulence of this Gilded Age in which magnificent mansions were "summer cottages" and the "summer season" was synonymous with Newport.  

Formal dining room
The Breakers

The Breakers

Designed by Richard Morris Hunt for Cornelius Vanderbilt II, The Breakers, a 70 room Italian Renaissance-style palazzo cemented the Vanderbilt family's preeminent position in American society at the turn of the century.  Today the grandest of Newport's summer "cottages" is designated a National Historic Landmark.  Approximately half-mile west of the mansion is The Breakers Stable and Carriage House, which offers fascinating tours on the logistics and maintenance of the various carriages and horses required by the great house.   

The Elms

Summer residence of Philadelphia coal magnate Edward Julius Berwind and his family, The Elms was designed by Horace Trumbauer and modeled after the 18th-century French chateau d'Asnieres. Featuring recently restored Classical Revival gardens with terraces, sculptures, specimen trees, fountains and more, The Elms is more than just a grand "summer cottage." Unique among the Newport Mansions, The Elms offers a Servant Life Tour that highlights the behind-the-scenes stories of the men and women who staffed the great houses of the Gilded Age. 

Blithewold 

Enjoy high tea at Blithewold Mansion, Gardens & Arboretum, the country home of Augustus and Bessie Van Wickle in Bristol.  This charming forty-five-room turn-of-the-century mansion and thirty-three acre arboretum and gardens overlook Narragansett Bay and historic Bristol Harbor and are an example of both the Country Place Era and Arts and Crafts movement in the United States.  Old English for "happy woodland," the beautiful grounds of Blithewold include approximately 2,000 trees and shrubs representing roughly 500 different native and exotic species.    

Play aboard an America’s Cup yacht swept along by the wind -- you’ll feel like a Vanderbilt.

The sport of kings is truly best learned at the International Tennis Hall of Fame, followed by a game of croquet. Savor an authentic Gilded Age dinner prepared and served to you, the world’s most distinguished guest. 

Venture on a tour of Newport’s famed Ocean Drive or the Cliff Walk, a designated National Recreation Trail, where castles and palaces are perched along the rugged New England coast.

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