Christmas in Newport

December 7th & 8th, 2006





The Newport Mansions are an attraction for all to see.  There is no better time to tour them than at Christmas when they are decorated to the nines!  Join us on this two day tour to get into the Christmas spirit!



Join the Federated Garden Clubs of Connecticut for our 3rd annual holiday excursion.   The Newport Mansions will be decked out for Christmas and the town festively aglitter and warmly illuminated at night. On our two day tour we visit four historic homes which will be simply spectacular when dressed in Christmas finery, and have time to search for that special gift in the town’s distinctive shops.






1.  Thursday, December 7     Departure/Tours
Our deluxe motor coach departs at 8:00am from the Hartford train station, at 9:00am from the New Haven train station, and 9:30am from the Guilford train station. We arrive in Newport in time for a holiday lunch. Today we enjoy the spirit of Christmas at two opulent summer cottages of the Gilded Age which are transformed into a winter wonderland. We travel down fabled Bellevue Avenue to The Breakers, the grandest of Newport’s “cottages”, designed for Cornelius Vanderbilt II.  An international team of craftsmen and artisans created a 70 room Italian Renaissance style palazzo inspired by the 16th century palaces of Genoa and Turin. Next, holiday warmth awaits you at Beechwood, the Astor’s summer retreat, which is transformed into a winter wonderland where you are invited to celebrate Victorian Christmas traditions. The "living history" Christmas tour invites visitors to interact with the "characters" while touring the mansion and its fabulous Christmas decorations. At the end of each tour, the cast invites visitors to join in caroling and vintage dances and to partake of a warm cup of wassail.  
In the evening we have dinner and enjoy the festive illumination of the scenic harbor and wharves, the restored colonials of the Point and Historic Hill sections, and the Victorian splendor of Bellevue Avenue, recapturing the candlelit holidays of bygone days. We spend the night at the Hotel Viking which is celebrating its 80th Anniversary. The Hotel has played host to celebrity guests such as Will Rogers, Ella Fitzgerald, Thornton Wilder, and John and Jackie Kennedy.



2.  Friday, December 8     Famous Home Tours
This morning we visit Marble House, the Petit Trianon inspired palace designed by Richard Morris for Mr. and Mrs. William K. Vanderbilt. Marble House was built between 1888 and 1892 as a summer house, or "cottage", as Newporters called them in remembrance of the modest houses of the early 19th century. But Marble House was much more; it was a social and architectural landmark that set the pace for Newport's subsequent transformation from a quiet summer colony of wooden houses to the legendary resort of opulent stone palaces. Next, we visit The Elms, the summer residence of Mr. and Mrs. Edward Julius Berwind of Philadelphia and New York. In 1898, the Berwinds engaged Philadelphia architect Horace Trumbauer to design a house modeled after the mid-18th century French chateau d'Asnieres (c.1750) outside Paris. After lunch we explore Newport shops.  Most are individually owned and have items that can only be found in Newport. As with other New England seaside communities, there are many local artists whose shops offer one-of-a-kind pieces made here in Newport.  Our coach returns to Guilford, New Haven and Hartford stations in the late afternoon.





This engaging experience includes:

  • Round-trip motor coach transportation
  • One night hotel
  • 1 breakfast, 2 lunches, and 1 dinner
  • Entrances per intinerary
PROGRAM PRICES  
Per person (double occupancy) from New York: $399.00 per person  
Single Supplement: $65.00