The Chanler at Cliff Walk
An 1873 mansion at Cliff Walk's north end — 20 themed rooms, Cara Restaurant, the original Newport boutique.
An 1873 Newport mansion at the north end of the Cliff Walk — twenty themed rooms, a serious restaurant, and a setting most Newport hotels can't match. The Chanler is, debatably, the original Newport boutique hotel: a Gilded Age mansion converted to a small luxury inn, perched on the cliff edge directly above Easton's Beach where the Cliff Walk begins.
The aesthetic is unapologetically Neo-Victorian — twenty rooms each themed to a historical period or culture (English Tudor, French Provincial, Renaissance Italy, etc.). Whether that reads charming or kitsch is taste-dependent, but the property has been doing this consistently for long enough that the regulars know exactly what they're booking.
The setting
The Chanler sits at the northern terminus of the Cliff Walk — the three-and-a-half-mile public path along the Atlantic that connects the Newport mansions to the city. From the property's lawn, the Cliff Walk runs south past The Breakers, Marble House, and the rest of the Bellevue Avenue cottages. Easton's Beach is immediately below.
Bellevue Avenue itself, with The Breakers and the other Gilded Age cottages, is a five-minute drive south. Newport Harbor and Thames Street are five minutes west. Fort Adams is fifteen minutes.
The building
An 1873 mansion built for John Winthrop Chanler — Beaux-Arts on a cliff edge, three stories of carved stone and brick, with a wraparound terrace facing the Atlantic. The conversion to a hotel kept the public-room scale and added a restaurant wing on the cliff side. Materials are stone and brick outside, plaster, walnut, and brass inside.
Public spaces — the main parlor, the library, the dining room — are elaborately period. The Cara restaurant occupies a glass-fronted addition with one of the better Atlantic views in Rhode Island.
The rooms
Twenty rooms, each themed to a period or culture. English-, French-, Italian-, Greek Revival-, and similar concepts are executed at the level of full-room commitment — period furniture, fabrics, art, sometimes ceiling murals. Bathrooms are contemporary luxury (marble, deep tubs, heated floors). Beds are king or queen. Several rooms have private terraces facing the ocean; some are inland-facing and quieter.
Rates start around $695 in shoulder; peak summer and festival weeks climb significantly.
Food & drink
Cara is the on-site restaurant — modern American, regional ingredient-driven, dinner most nights, open to non-guests. The cliff-edge dining room with the ocean view is the property's main draw beyond the rooms themselves. Breakfast is included for guests, served on the terrace in fair weather.
On the property
The cliff-edge terrace and the lawn directly above Easton's Beach are the program. Cliff Walk access is essentially from the property line. There's no pool, no spa on site (they arrange in-room treatments), and a small fitness room. Beach access via stairs to Easton's.
- Cara restaurant with cliff-edge dining
- Cliff Walk access from the property
- Easton's Beach access below
- Breakfast included
- Open year-round
Who it's for
- Couples doing a milestone Newport weekend
- Travelers who like commitment to theme and period
- Anyone who'd rather be on the Cliff Walk than in the harbor
- Festival-week visitors (Folk, Jazz)
Who it's not for
- Travelers who prefer minimalist or contemporary design — the themed rooms are the point
- Families with young kids — twenty rooms, adult rhythm
- Budget travelers — the floor is $695 and climbs
Nearby
The Cliff Walk runs from the property south past the Bellevue Avenue mansions — The Breakers is a fifteen-minute walk along the cliff, Marble House and Rosecliff are farther on. Easton's Beach is below. Newport Harbor and Thames Street are five minutes west. Fort Adams (Folk Fest, Jazz Fest) is fifteen minutes. The International Tennis Hall of Fame is ten minutes. Bowen's and Bannister's wharves are ten minutes for harbor dining.
