Newport Travel Diary

Happy Friday — it’s beautiful here in CT this week and it’s the perfect time to recap my week in Newport, Rhode Island here for a little GLAM Travel Diary!  I’ve seriously never had 7 straight days of sun in Newport so there are quite a lot of photos here — we totally took advantage!  I’m sharing what we went for, what we did, where we ate, and what I packed — including links to everything I wore (so many of you were asking about these striped numbers)!  Let’s start with the basics…

We initially booked a hotel for the weekend in Newport for my best friend’s wedding over a year ago.  When more details were being finalized, we realized that there was a sailing kickoff party for close friends and family the Thursday prior to the weekend and a finale brunch the following Sunday — no complaints here, more time in one of my favorite places with my favorite people.  Instead of jamming Raja into a hotel for 4 days (you know girls always have WAY more to do in the weddings than guys), we decided to rented our friend’s house (where we’ve stayed plenty of times before) and ended up having it to ourselves for the entire week.  We brought Mischa (the himalayan cat) along and planned to do a little work and a lot of play.

We kicked off one of our first nights in Newport at the new Gurney’s on Goat Island for sunset cocktails and a little raw bar… okay, a lot of raw bar.  The hotel is new (it used to be the Hyatt) and has the most incredible view EVER of the Newport Bridge that everyone crosses to get onto the island.  Since our house was inland, we used every opportunity to come here and experience the view — we ended up on the property 3 separate times!  A huge thanks to Gurney’s for being so accommodating and letting us be one of the first to check out the property — we watched a deck and fireplace go up in a matter of days and I can’t wait to see what the finished results are… we will be back!

On to the main reason we were in Newport — my best friend’s wedding wedding.  I was so excited that Dana and her husband chose Newport for their destination wedding — they have a special bond with it just like us (we actually mini-mooned there right after our wedding, got our engagement photos done there, and I had my bachelorette weekend there), so I was PUMPED.  She had her rehearsal dinner at The Lobster Bar (um, YUM) with the most gorgeous view ever of the marina and harbor where I wore this striped dress you ALL were asking about.  When I saw this dress from my friends over at Parker New York, I knew it would be PERFECT to wear for this rehearsal dinner — it’s also perfect for 4th of July!  I love stripes but am by no means preppy, so I love that the contrasting patterns add a bit more to this dress and an unexpected touch.

For the beautiful wedding, we actually woke up to rain — pouring rain.  But, I had a sneaky feeling it would clear by their ceremony later that night.  Dana is the most chill person I’ve ever met in my life — we were all getting ready watching the rain POUR down on the docks below, and you would think the sun was shining with her energy (and lack of complaining).  I swear her positive vibes made the skies clear, because, by noon — the sun came out, dried every little raindrop, and we were left with the most beautiful day (and cotton candy sunset).  For those asking, she got married at Belle Mer on Goat Island — one of the most gorgeous venues I’ve ever seen!  It was a black tie wedding and the bridesmaids got to pick their own black gowns (they had to be fitted, but the neckline could be whatever).  I had picked up this off-the-shoulder black gown as a backup option over a year ago since I had known what she wanted to do and couldn’t find anything else I liked better.  It’s very old and unfortunately sold out, but I found several similar options for you (and included Raja’s tux since a few of you were asking).

REHEARSAL DINNER

BLACK TIE WEDDING

For activities, we made sure to keep busy.  We’ve been to Newport together probably 20 times and are always finding new things to do.  New to our lives this year is my husband’s drone.  He’s been wanting one for years and finally took the plunge — and Newport was the best place for an official test spin.  We walked the famous Newport Cliff Walk for the first time together in years and got some beautiful shots and videos (you may have seen a little sneak peek of his video last week if you follow along with me on Instagram Stories).  We biked over to Easton Beach a few times for a little sun and sand and another gorgeous sunset.  We sailed with Newport-Sail for a beautiful sunset cruise and a little rosé.  We found a cute little new juice bar called Juice Café which was perfect for a little detox before and after the wedding weekend.  We shopped along Thames street and discovered a few new shops from last summer!  We also finally got to try sunset cocktails at the Grace Vanderbilt hotel — thanks to so many of you who recommended this to us!  We couldn’t believe it took us so long to get up there, but it was sort of nice to do something new this trip!

Are you sensing theme here?!  Our entire nightly routine revolved around sunsets every single night… #wheninnewport!

CLIFF WALK

BEACH OUTFITS

VANDERBILT DRINKS

JUICE CAFE

Speaking of new… we were also SO excited when we saw that the Newport Flower Show was the same weekend we were in town!  I’ve done the Newport Mansion Tours before (and if you’re heading to Newport, add that to your list), and Rosecliff is definitely one of my favorite properties!  I also just like the name and would name my mansion “rosecliff” if I ever get the opportunity!  The property feels very European and is stunning — add a few thousand flowers to the mix and you could imagine how gorgeous this day was.  To top it off — a little Del’s cart was there to make all my Newport dreams come true.  Del’s is a Rhode Island staple, and having just one sip of frozen lemonade made my entire summer!

I had a lot of you asking about this exact dress — it’s sold out (sorry!), so I included a few similar styles below!

I also had a lot of you asking through Instagram and email if I could round up some of my restaurant recommendations for you!  I’m including some of my favorites (including a few new ones we went to last week)!

Gurney’s Pineapple Club — we ate here twice this weekend and it was delicious!  If you’re looking for something a bit more formal, they have another resturant inside, but we are much more casual eaters and love eating with a view (which you can’t beat)!  We loved the raw bar and fish tacos!

Mid-Town Oyster Bar — we try to hit this every time we come to town!  They have delicious apps and amazing oysters!  They also have live music downstairs and an incredible marble chef’s table that’s so fun to sit at!

Perro Salado — A little hidden gem we were told about from some locals!  This is the most amazing Mexican restaurant in all of Newport!  The resturant was actually an old house converted and has the most intimate, cozy feel.  It also has incredible cocktails, and a really cool seafood-fusion menu!

Fluke — we sat up in the bar this time around which had a gorgeous view and felt a little more casual.  We love sharing small plates and trying a bunch of items and this place lets you do just that!

Franklin Spa — another little hidden gem!  This is a super casual place for breakfast with the best pancakes ever!  They also have a lobster omelette which I dream about…

Rosemary & Tyme Cafe — one of my husband’s favorite cafes!  Perfect little spot to grab a sandwich and head to the beach!

Diego’s — another fun breakfast spot with fun outdoor dining!

The Mooring — there are a TON of seafood places right in downtown Newport with high price tags.  We’ve tried a bunch and really love this spot — probably because it was one of the first real fancy meals we ate together coming to Newport 10+ years ago.  It’s a special little date night spot for fancy occasions for us!

Let me know if you have any questions about Newport — I always love when you reach out and ask for recommendations and am happy to help!  You can also check out the new travel category here on Oh So Glam (head over to the NAVIGATION and hover over TRAVEL to see the list of places where I’ve shot content).  I’ll be adding a TON more there over the next few months!

HAPPY 4th of JULY WEEKEND, LOVES!