Words cannot describe this mansion, which is part of the Mansions of Newport group. I copied this from the website ... "visit the largest and most spectacular of the Newport Mansions and learn about the extraordinary Vanderbilt family who lived there, from the extravagant society dinners they hosted to the games their children played in these gilded halls." We took the self-guided tour for $20, and it was well worth the cost. You won't be disappointed, and you'll want to visit other mansions in the area! read more

The Breakers - A beautiful mansion / attraction - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Newport, Rhode Island

Loved visiting here. What a beautiful property. Standard admission is $29 a person which is pretty pricey considering this only gets you access to the main house. Each other house is extra along with the gardens. You could easily spend a lot of money here if you wanted to see everything. But I had my 3 and 1 year old with me (who were luckily free) so I knew even the main house would be pushing it with them. Loved going through the house. It was beautiful. I downloaded the app and loved listening to the narrated tour and learning about the history of the place. They even gave us a little scavenger hunt for the kids with things to find in each room. Defintley worth visiting here. Free parking lot across the street. You can also walk to the Cliff Walk from here if you are looking to do that too. read more

The Breakers - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Newport, Rhode Island

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I don't necessarily think of myself as the type of person who is super excited about mansion tours, but I had a friend visiting from out of state and the breakers seemed like a perfect rainy Rhode Island activity. It was a bit expensive ($26/person) but I enjoyed it much more than I expected! When we went masks were still required but no one checked our vaccine cards (not sure if that's changed recently) and social distancing signs were around but not enforced. All the staff we talked to were friendly and eager to answer questions or give background information. I highly recommend listening to the audio tour as you go. The "cottage" is obviously huge and decadently decorated so it is fun to walk through either way but the tour provided context and interesting history of the family and the house itself. It was also the perfect length. A quick introduction to each room with optional more in depth segments if you wanted more information. It was the perfect balance of information and speed. I would definitely visit again, especially with future guests. read more

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Finally had the chance to tour the Breakers w/ our 2 daughters and 3 of their friends, and we all really enjoyed it. Just stunningly beautiful and extravagant. We downloaded the audio tour and brought our headphones, and was interesting to hear about the history and family. Walked down to the Cliff Walk after, the more "rustic side," which was great. Totally recommend. read more

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What a breathtaking Estate. The self guided tour is educational yet easy to understand. This location is by far one of the best kept Estates. read more

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Dope crib, Cornelius and Alice Vanderbilt. Trippy painted ceilings, snazzy sitz bathtubs, epic party patio........it's got it all! read more

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Awe-inspiring, inside look into Newport and Vanderbiltian (I know that's not a real adjective) history.. go go go there if you appreciate the excess of the Gilded Age. This was our second visit and this time you were able to purchase tix online, download an app and walk through this not so humble abode through a self guided (bring your ear buds) tour. It's interesting to be transported to that time and realize how tiny everything and everyone was (this coming from a 5'1 female) but the amount of detail and decor is endless! Take your time and take it in!! read more

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Among the most popular attractions in Newport. We were part of tour group and this attraction was part of our tour. It's among the more lavish Newport mansions and there is definitely a lot to see. You can download an app for an audio tour, or just follow along the tour path. In many ways, this reminded us of the Biltmore House in Asheville, NC (closer to our home). After you tour the building, don't forget to step outside to the back area where you can overlook the cliffs. If you think you missed something, the gift shop has plenty of books and souvenirs to catch you up. read more

The Breakers - Music room - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Newport, Rhode Island

A big old house overlooking the ocean. Despite being ultra rich.... They dumped sewage directly into the ocean as evident from the now old crushed pipes from these mansions to the sea. A long past era of American royalty once lived and partied here. Now a preservation museum to save the past. read more

The Breakers - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Newport, Rhode Island

Must see. Yes it's popular. Yes it cost $20-$30 but it is a must see when it comes to visiting Newport and observing/witnessing the lavish lifestyles and reasons for these homes being built. I recommend the 3-5 house tour as they are all relatively close together and you can spread the tickets out over numerous days/trips. Breakers wasn't our favorite of the houses but wow was it essential to our visit and put the entire "guilded age" period into context. Note: do the audio tour (free with admission) and the wife and I both shared AirPods so we can listen together. Made for an experience of shared glances and wow moments as we were at the same spot in the tour throughout the duration. read more

The Breakers - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Newport, Rhode Island

What an incredible experience. So beautiful and peaceful. Make sure you download the app to listen to the audio tour. I recommend listening to it before you go and again while you're there. Bring headphones. When we went, there were so many people listening to their cell phones loudly, and it was hard to concentrate. The flow of the tour was perfect, and while it was bustling, there was organization. There were some very large groups, and we got stuck behind them a few times, but eventually just let them go ahead so we could enjoy each room a little more. The butler's kitchen was my favorite, and the gift shop was neat. The grand staircase is not open to walk on, but it sure was beautiful. The cliff walk was also fun to do. It was a clear sunny day so that you could see for miles. We purchased the family membership and plan on taking our time visiting all the mansions. If you buy the membership, you get 10% off retail and food purchases. You don't need a reservation, and you have it for a year! read more

So, my sister and I decided to see the US having lived here our whole lives. I loved most of the people and the states we've visited with very few exceptions. Rhode Island and Connecticut were by far the most beautiful. The homes of America's richest and most powerful people are here. The Breakers has the most spectacular view of the oceanfront. I think this was just a summer home! Holy s***. It is grand. The tolls to get to Rhode Island are the most expensive and abundant. read more

This "summer cottage" is dripping with history. Highly recommend downloading the app so you can listen to the audio as you walk through the home. They have done a wonderful job telling the stories of the Vanderbilt's. Must see if you're in Newport read more

The Breakers - Outside - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Newport, Rhode Island

Beautiful place to visit. Free to just visit the outdoor I believe, but the security guard convinced us to get a ticket to go inside. Nice to go if you're visiting for the first time, comes with either self guided audio tour (access on phone), or in person guided. We just walked around. Nice architecture, definitely recommend as a staple of Rhode Island. read more

The Breakers - Front - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Newport, Rhode Island

Incredible. I mean, what can you say. This house is just beyond and you really need to see it to believe it. No picture would do it justice. The app is definitely handy to listen to the background on all the rooms and I loved the extra tidbits on the Gilded Age show. We visited several houses and this one was my favorite because it's so extra. I think it's definitely possible to visit and appreciate the architecture, history, and the over the top opulence without having a political oration of economic and social status in America. read more

The mansion and grounds are fabulous. However, there are a few problems. We went there in late October excepting there to be no crowds. In fact, there was a large crowd. The Breakers parking lot across the street was filled and cars were driving around trying to find a space. We finally found a space on the street 3 or 4 blocks away. Although we did not make a survey, we saw only two handicapped spaces and both were filled. We saw a bus outfitted to look like a trolley that appeared to be driving around picking people up and letting others off that may have started somewhere where parking was available. However, the Breakers website does not indicate such a trolley. We did not go to the Discover Newport tourist office on Long Wharf Mall, but we ordered their brochure several weeks in advance. Their brochure lists has a free Bellevue Trolley from May to October. What is a Bellevue Trolley? If you look carefully, Bellevue Avenue runs along most of the mansions. The route seems to be highlighted in fairly faint yellow. However, where do you pick it up? Probably at the Newport Transportation Center /RIPTA at 23 America's Cup Avenue? But where do you park? Only three parking areas are listed on their map, all with a P inside a circle; these are all in parks. There is no P in a circle at either the Newport Transportation Center of the Discover Newport office indicated by an I. Where do you go to pick up the bus/trolley for the mansions? No idea. None of this is clear from their brochure. The Breakers has no information on the mansion or the Gilded age that we could find such as a panel display or even a video. UTube does have a few videos on the Breakers, but the Beakers website (newportmansions.org) has no link to any of them. We took the standard tour which is self-directed with the aid of a mufti-page handout in multiple languages. The type is small and the contrast only so-so. It is not easy to read in the rooms that are dimly lit, probably to avoid light damage to the furniture, walls, and art. We did not see a large print version, but we also did not ask. We did not use the use the audio tour available on a smartphone. My companion only has a flip phone. The tours are not cheap, and offer no seniors discount, at least on their website. read more

Wow, this mansion is absolutely stunning! I was looking forward to visiting but really had no idea the magnitude to how exciting this would be! As a Rhode Island newby, I will definitely be bringing all my visitors here as a vacation stop! read more

The Breakers - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Newport, Rhode Island

Loved the self-guided tour of this Vanderbilt mansion. Such a great idea to have both an audio and written guide with a designated tour direction so it can be both enjoyable and informational. Free parking and it took about an hour to do the entire thing. Truly had a blast! read more

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We visited in the summer. We purchased our tickets ahead of time online. Strongly suggest you do that. We arrived right before opening, so we were able to find parking in the lot across the street. It looked like the lot fills up quickly though. The line for the gate before opening was a bit sloppy but not too bad. Maybe they should have clearer signs and markers to separate the people with prepaid tickets and those who don't. Once we got through, we headed for the bathrooms, and it looked like everyone else had the same idea, so there was an instant line. Luckily we dodged the ticket line. The mansion itself was gorgeous. Definitely recommend the free audio tour available on their app. Very informative. The place is quite popular and crowded if you're hoping for people-free pictures. The upper loggia, kitchen, and butler's pantry are my favorite spaces. Gorgeous. The view from the upper loggia is stunning. The tour ends in the gift shop. You can proceed outside to check out the grounds after. If you need a bite to eat, there is a cafe in the same building where the tickets are sold which is located near the gates, separate from the house. read more

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Great casual activity for a big group. Loved walking around and taking photos. Gift shop also had such cute items! read more

The Breakers - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Newport, Rhode Island

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If you are in Newport, the Breakers is a must see. Perfectly preserved....we did not download the app, but took one of the printed tour guide. I will say on the day I went it was crowded due to an event and parking was horrendous, but the mansion was worth the parking hastle. read more

A nice visit; wonderful architecture. They allow photography but keep extension poles and sticks away as the staff are quite militant and will yell at you. read more

It's definitely a really cool place to stop by if you're in the area. Not too busy in the fall, which is a perfect time to visit as you get to take some time to explore and read about the different rooms. Beautiful house and definitely something to see! read more

Beautiful mansion- a must see - what an architectural masterpiece. The workmanship and details of each room and the grand staircase. This time period really displayed the over the top way of life for the ultra wealthy. I visited the breakers hotel and Flagstaff house in Palm beach. All good examples of the gilded Age. read more

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Really expensive. But definitely worth it for us. The house is beautiful. We bought a Christmas ornament to remember it by.

When you've heard about a place your whole life, and built it up to such a degree, I suppose it may be inevitable that it cannot equal the imagined. It is indeed big and beautiful, ostentatious, over-the-top, filled with Rococo flourishes, and huge spaces, grand in every way. The placement of the property in relation to the water, and the view from the veranda, are of course, awesome. I love Victorian era architecture, and flourishes, but on just one walk through of a place like this, I find myself overwhelmed, feeling like my senses have been swamped, that there is too much flooding into my senses, to be able to really discern much. I just kept thinking that before air conditioning, if there were scorching temperatures, how miserable this beautiful place would be. I find myself thinking of house staff living up in the attic, where it's always hottest, and how grueling. The app didn't work well at all, very glitchy, so I also missed a lot of narration. I was interested in what they might have pointed out. read more

Took the self guided tour of the Vanderbilt summer "cottage" and was not disappointed! So much history and opulence in one 90 minute experience. Learned so much about the family and the gorgeous "family retreat". The app was simple to download and use. Highly recommend doing when in Newport! read more

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We had the opportunity to take a self-guided audio tour of this stately mansion back in September 2020 so this is admittedly a past-due review. It was a memorable visit though -- great care has been taken to uphold the preservation and grandeur of the estate that was once owned by the Vanderbilts. Definitely worthwhile if you have a fascination toward Gilded Age history (especially that of the Vanderbilt dynasty) and architecture. read more

If you're only going to see one mansion in Newport... See this one... You will not be disappointed... Get the app for the self-guided tour and just relax and see how people of the gilded age lived and enjoyed themselves. read more

The Breakers - The Breakers - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Newport, Rhode Island

Beautiful mansion with audio tour. Great for a couple hour visit with friends or family.

This is definitely a must see when in Newport, and my boyfriend and I wanted to experience one of the mansions since we were here. Being from Long Island, we have seen a handful of similar homes with antiques and decorum throughout, but this one definitely has gorgeous murals and architecture. I will say $30 seems a bit pricey just to walk through the house, thus the 3 star rating. It's fascinating to see how people lived at the time, but I wish there were people in the rooms telling us rather than hearing a bunch of phone tours going off. This would allow it to feel more personal and add to the historic atmosphere. You also don't get access to every part of the home, just most of the 2 main floors. There is a children's play house but it seems they turned it into storage. The gift store was lacking, and didn't seem to reflect what we saw in the home. Many of these items can be found in the other shops in town. Also, the cafe was more like a college cafeteria than a grand coffee shop that you might expect. Worth the experience, but if the price goes up I'd recommend to just come to long island to see the Westbury Gardens or Sands Point, among others. read more

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So opulent, only Versailles beats it. That said, this is only the "summer cottage" believe it or not - the "real" mansion is in Asheville, the Biltmore. I wish we'd seen that when we were there a few months ago. I don't know how it was before Covid, but for $50 we got the self-guided tour that gave a ton of information and let us go at our own pace. They "recommend" social distancing inside, but no one enforces it, so you could walk as close to people as you wanted to. I'm not sure, but they may limit the number of people entering, though. We saw people waiting outside to get in, but when we got closer, we realized they were not waiting to get in, they were standing around downloading the self-guided tour app. So we just walked right by all of them and went in. This was Labor Day weekend so there were about a hundred people scattered all around, it did not seem crowded, we had plenty of space to stay from others. They were strict about everyone wearing masks, though, so that was really nice. We avoided the cafe so as not to be near others, and we did our own social distancing in the ticket line. We didn't have the time to spend all day here, we had about 1.5 hours, and luckily we could see enough of the house and grounds just in that time. So it's a bit pricey if you don't have the time to examine everything you want to, and this is a place that you could certainly examine tons of luxurious things, but I still would say it's worth the price to see how people lived way back when if you had all the money in the world. It really makes you see history in a new light. You realize they didn't really know what to do with their money then. Philanthropy perhaps existed, but not like it does today. Think of how much good they could have done with all that freakin' money instead of wasting it on decorations. But then we wouldn't have this time capsule and history lesson, would we? We would be destined to repeat this mistake. Wait, wasn't there a documentary on Michael Jackson's home and wasn't it crazy elaborate, too? I guess I really don't know how celebrities today live and I shouldn't talk about their choices until I become one. Put that on my to-do list. read more

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Very beautiful grounds and museum. We got the duel membership so we could visit the other homes and can't wait to see more. Wish we could've gotten to see the entire house as some areas were closed off. read more

I love visiting old homes, mansions, etc. I like to imagine how people lived, what they did and how they interacted with the space they called home. This is by far one of the grandest homes I've ever visited. I was told if my time was limited in Newport, then go visit this one. It's incredible this was only a summer home. They have a water fountain under the enormous staircase in the foyer. The views of the water, the gardens and the interior are incredibly beautiful. There was an orange trumpet bush winding it's way up the side of the house. It was funny to see a piece of what I consider home on such a magnificent home. There is an Easter egg in one of the reliefs over the entrance way of one of the rooms in the lobby. It has a train with steam coming out of it. There is a free downloadable app to listen to a tour with headphones. However, we forgot ours and had wished the gift shop sold them. Many people were listening to it without headphones. There is a cafe and restrooms at the entrance way and another gift shop and restrooms in the basement. read more

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I lived in Rhode Island most of my life. I've been to Newport many, many times. I can't believe I have never been to the Breakers. This was an incredible experience. I downloaded the audio tour app which is self guided at your own pace. I highly recommend doing this. It points out the history and details that you will surely miss without it. The place was absolutely incredible! A sensory overload of no expense spared and a true marvel of craftsmanship and the finest quality you could find. This was not built by common builders. This was sourced to expert craftsman for every detail. I honestly do not think this could be built today. The downstairs was very extravagant and the upstairs living areas and bedrooms were surprisingly spare. It was awesome to see so much of the original furniture preserved and it really took you back in time to how the Vanderbilts lived back then. Almost impossible to imagine what it was like. I highly recommend visiting here. I can't wait to tour a few of the other mansions as well. They have a parking lot and you can take a free trolley car from downtown Newport or Bellevue Ave. If you walk from Thanes St. it will take about 30 minutes. read more

Horrible docents and security guards. They let us in at 4:45p and said the place will close at 6p. They were unfriendly and rushed us out with bad attitude the whole time we were there. We were pressured to be off of the property at 5:30p. We paid $88 for 45 mins. of a self guided tour. What an expensive and disappointing tour. We will not come back and will warn our friends and families. read more

Didn't actually get to see the property. Visiting from out of state and website wasn't clear about Covid vaccination requirements. Our whole family is vaccinated but my teenage son didn't have his card with him and our state doesn't offer online access of verification so we were denied entry even with masks. read more