Visitor Info
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Tours, Groups, Exclusive Experiences
Explore our various tour types to find what’s best for you and your group.
Explore the Gilded Age
The Gilded Age was a period of unprecedented change in America. Fortunes were spent on luxuries such as the lavish "summer cottages" of Newport.
Episode Deep Dive
Learn about the people, places and events depicted in Julian Fellowes' popular historical drama series.
Current Members
Current members can see a full list of benefits and any information regarding Members Events.
Become a Member
We invite you to become a member of the Preservation Society today. In addition to joining an active community of preservation supporters and advocates, members are offered unlimited access to all open houses.
About Us
Our mission is to protect, preserve, and present the best of Newport County's architectural heritage. Learn more about us and our work.
Museum Rentals & Weddings
Host your wedding, rehearsal dinner, corporate event, or other celebration at our historic museums.
Fans of HBO’s “The Gilded Age” will love this guided tour of locations in the Newport Mansions where the series was filmed – from the ballroom where Gladys Russell made her society debut to the kitchen where the household staff works and gossips. Your guide will share stories about the real-life people who lived in the mansions and inspired many of the characters in “The Gilded Age,” as well as give you the inside scoop on what it takes to host a major television production.
You’ll visit The Elms, location of Gladys Russell’s bedroom and the Russell family’s kitchen and pantry in their New York mansion. Then it’s on to Marble House to see Mr. Russell’s bedroom, as well as the grand bedroom that was the inspiration for Bertha Russell’s room, the backstairs and Mrs. Astor’s kitchen.
During your stop at Chateau-sur-Mer, the exterior of which was used as Mrs. Astor’s cottage, you’ll visit multiple settings shown in many scenes, including the distinctive stair hall with its “Tree of Life” mural and the dining room and ballroom used during Mrs. Fish’s doll tea party. You’ll also see Agnes van Rhijn’s bedroom, Oscar’s bedroom, Mrs. Morris’s bedroom and Mr. Morris’s office. After such a whirlwind, you’ll enjoy lemonade and cookies on the porch. Finally, you’ll visit The Breakers to see the billiard room, where Mr. Russell conducted ruthless business dealings, and the Russells’ ballroom where Gladys made her society debut and mother Bertha had her first social triumph in the Season 1 finale.
“Downton Abbey” creator Julian Fellowes chose the Newport Mansions to provide authentic scenery for his historical drama “The Gilded Age”. Explore the episodes with our Episode Deep Dive.
Explore the underground systems that made this great house a marvel of technology for its time.
See and hear how the other half lived. This tour will highlight the stories of some of the men and women who worked to service the social whirl of Newport during the Gilded Age.
Change can be exciting. It can also be unsettling. During the Gilded Age, change was happening at a pace unmatched in American history.
This award-winning and record-breaking exhibition uses beautiful works of art made from simple toys to explore animal endangerment, the balance of ecosystems, and mankind’s relationship with nature.
Newport County residents and employees of the hospitality industry are invited to visit 16 participating attractions in Newport and Bristol Counties as our guests!
Who were the everyday people in this period of industrialization and urbanization? What were their struggles and triumphs? Speaker: Nancy C. Unger
The Newport Flower Show will celebrate the early 19th-century custom of a trip abroad as a means of gaining both exposure and association with the sophistication of Europe.
See you at the Newport Flower Show Opening Night Reception, the start of Newport’s Summer Season. The place to sip, shop and see old friends and new!
Tuesdays in the Garden provides families a fun and creative way to connect with The Preservation Society’s Green Animals Topiary Garden through Sean Kenney’s Nature Connects sculptures.
Plan to join us for a fun and elegant evening of dinner and dancing at our annual black-tie fundraising event.
Plan now to put together a foursome and join us at our annual Golf Outing at Newport National Golf Course in Middletown, R.I., a challenging, 7,244-yard links-style course offering a dramatic setting with views of the Atlantic Ocean and Sakonnet Passage.
The 2023 festival will continue with the successful format of daily seminars held at Rosecliff that provide our guests with an intimate, educational wine, spirits or food experience.
It is never too early to start planning for your next holiday to remember! Mark your calendar to join us for the annual Holiday Dinner Dance at The Breakers.
Download our tour app before your visit and bring your earbuds.
Parking is free onsite at all properties except for Hunter House and The Breakers Stable & Carriage House, where street parking is available.
Answers to some of our most frequently asked questions.
Explore the 11 properties under the stewardship of the Preservation Society and open as historic house museums.
Partners in Preservation
