The Elms

Great house and history– rescued last minute from bulldozers in the early 1960s. Style is important representation of the time. The engineering was ahead of its time. Taking the «Servants Tour.» Is a must. I’m not sure how you get a true sense of the mansions without seeing how the servants (staff) worked and lived. The house and history are well preserved. I preferred it over the Breakers because of the thoughtfulness and engineering that went into the house, the layout, the décor and the living quarters of the staff.

I went on a quick walk through today with my daughter. Compared to some of the other Newport mansions, it may not be as impressive but it’s worth checking out. Amazing how this place was once lived in by a man named Mr. Bertrand. Guess he made a fortune with coal.
Kind of cool how you can go at your own pace. you’ll get a set of headphones with audio history lessons.
The place has tons of amazing bronze and marble statues, venetian paintings, jade and other fine works.
You cannot take pictures inside of the mansion for some reason… found this out after a dozen flicks when a woman started yelling at me and giving no explanation.
If on vacation I would recommend going to the Breakers first but this is within walking distance and they have package deals for multiple mansion tours.

We visited the Elms on a visit to two other Newport Mansions. My dad, husband and I visited in the summer and enjoyed a great self-​guided tour through a wonderful historical building that is open to the public.
The history that is told on the audio really gives you an understanding a bygone age. The beautiful gardens are not to missed and the sculptures are right there to admire and enjoy.

The Elms was the first on our 5-​property tour. It was so amazing, but if I’m being honest, it was possibly super impressive because it was our first property. I love the go-​at-​your-​own-​pace of the self-​guided tours. Definitely worth the time to explore some of the extra information available on the extra tracks. The yard is AMAZING and the «giant» tree (I know… not truly one tree) in the yard is gorgeous! It truly brings you back to the gilded age and you can imagine spending evenings in that ballroom looking out over that amazing yard!
If you have the time, do the 5-​property pass. It’s actually the best deal. I just wouldn’t suggest trying to fit them all in one day… it’s exhausting.

Of all the Newport mansions, the Elms is always my favorite. The family story shines through the audio tours and you feel like it’s a more intimate space despite its impressive size. The grounds are also a treat, it’s best to visit during nice weather so you can tour the grounds and explore everywhere!

«One of the most spectacular homes in Newport! They have done an excellent job of restoration at this mansion, and it’s a good audio tour. The standard tour lasts 30 minutes, plus however much time you want to spend listening to the optional features; also allow time to explore the beautiful grounds. The Elms’ conservatory, ballroom, and kitchen are especially memorable. If you have the time, the separate servant tour is worth taking for a behind-​the-​scenes look at how The Elms was run.

How can you not give most of the mansions a five star review? The Elms is absolutely stunning for not having an ocean front location. The standard audio tour was a bit shorter than the others, but if you listen to the extras (so worth it) it’s about the same. My only complaint is the audio tour is not as seamless here as the Breakers and Marble House. We found ourselves having to type in numbers a lot, as well as long pauses.

Another gorgeous mansion. The space is beautiful. The rooms are huge. The backyard was a highlight for my kids. We didn’t do the audio tour as we had our young children with us.

Enjoyed the self guided tour. Not as opulent as The Breakers but very worthwhile seeing and enjoyable. Beautifully decorated and lots of history and interesting facts along the way. Visiting the Newport Mansions is a must if visiting Newport. I don’t think you can go wrong with any of them.

Here’s the short of it…
It’s worth $ 15 just to step in to these palatial masterpieces for an hour and a half. We did the servants tour, which sounded even more unique than the place itself!
We got to see the top floor (servants quarters) which is hidden by the architecture on purpose. The best part is the basement, with the coal tunnel.
Overall, I wasn’t impressed with the tour. I’d give it a B-​, my fiancé gave it a solid B. The servant rooms had nothing in them but a bed. I would have liked to have seen some time-​period furniture. We were able to go on to the roof which was amazing! You could walk all around the roof and see how the servants would sneak into one another’s rooms at night, fascinating!
I’d go just because of what it is, but don’t expect to see all of the items you’d see on a regular house tour.
*There’s no coat rack, so leave your coats in the car if possible!

The Elms is one of my favorite homes in Newport. This was my 4^th visit and I still find items I haven’t noticed before. This was the first time we visited at Christmas, which is ironic as these were Summer «cottage» and the original owners were never here at Christmas.
We also took the only Servants tour offered in Newport and it’s worth the price of admission. Seeing the behind the scenes to the home added another dynamic to that period of time.

This may just be my new favorite Newport mansion. Although I was born and raised in RI, I’ve only been to a couple of the mansions over the years (until recently). The Breakers is where my family always takes out of towners to visit and get the Newport Mansions experience. Although The Breakers is exquisite, after a recently visit to The Elms, I’m blown away.
The mansion itself is gorgeous. From the conservatory to the dining room and beyond. It’s really quite stunning. The gardens are incredible. They are reason enough to add the Elms to your list of mansions to visit. I could the gardens being an incredible location for wedding portraits too.
On top of the standard tour, there is an additional tour you can opt to take at the Elms. It takes you behind the scenes to where the servants lived and worked. Although it’s an added cost, it’s a one-​of-​a-​kind experience at the Newport mansions, as the other facilities do not offer a comparable experience.
I really loved seeing each and every part of the Elms on a recent visit, from the mansion itself, to it’s beautiful grounds, and the secret world behind the scenes. I would definitely recommend visiting the Elms for visitors and locals as well.

The servant life tour at The Elms was a great way to see what life was like for the mansion workers. The guided tour lasted about an hour and you get to see the living quarters, boiler room, laundry room etc. These parts of the house are more interesting to me than the giant ornate features in the main house.
The price of admission to the tour doesn’t include asmission to the main house which was the only downside to the tour.

Love it! My group was able to free roam this place after hours (cause we’re special like that… lol) Place is absolutely gorgeous. Walking in, you approach the foyer with nice marble pilars. Go upstairs to all the rooms… OMG, are they HUGE! The beds are full size beds, but they look so ity bity in them. Each room also had a bathroom. Again, i can’t believe how big it is. I also can’t imagine living in a place this big. It’s too creepy. Lol. Way too quiet…
Now, this isn’t the largest mansion, but it’s still very nice. Has tons of history to this place. Make sure you go out back and check out the sunken garden. It’s beautiful. And all the landscaping/​trees are gorgeous as well. I got in some nice shots here! :-)
Our dinner was held in the ballroom. Gorgeous!!! Nice chandelier and just amazing in general. Go check out all the mansions! Crazy that these were just summer homes

We stopped by the Elms after the Breakers. It is another mansion in Bellevue but is not quite as extravagant as the Breakers. But don’t get me wrong-it’s not meager by any means.
The tour is also much shorter, about ½ an hour.
Worth the stop if you some free time.