new-england

A Weekend in Newport, Rhode Island

Published on September 12, 2025 by Skylar M. BeckLeave a comment

To end the summer and celebrate my birthday, Patrick and I went on a little getaway weekend trip to Newport, Rhode Island. We had so much fun exploring this charming beach town, it’s a place I can’t wait to go back to in the future! Here’s my quick guide of things to do and see during a weekend trip.

Things to Know About Newport

🌊 The public beaches require a fee for entry. It seems like the rates are typically $25 weekdays and $35 weekends which is valid for the whole day. We were a bit surprised by this but the beaches were very clean and monitored so the money seems well worth it! Also something to note is there are a couple “residents only” beaches so keep an eye out for those too.

⚓️ There are several areas to stay at surrounding Newport. We found an airbnb in Portsmouth/Middletown, RI and we loved this area! It felt quieter and more residential which gave us space from the downtown area. It was also close to the beaches and only a 15 minute drive to downtown Newport. If you want to be close to the excitement, I’d recommend finding a hotel in the downtown area.

Things to Do

Throughout the weekend, we did a little bit of everything and it made for the perfect way to spend time here + celebrate my birthday! Newport is fairly small so doing a lot in a couple days is definitely manageable without having to drive or walk far which was so ideal for a weekend trip.

Activities

Shop! Newport has great local and well known name brand shops. Most shops can be found along Thames Street or America Cup Ave.
Stroll along the Cliff Walk. This is a popular thing to do in town if you’re looking for some light exercise and want stunning views of the ocean. We didn’t complete the entire walk but had fun doing parts of it in the morning. Parking can be found on the street leading up to the start of the walk or you can park at Easton’s beach parking lot.
Walk around in the Bowen’s Wharf area. Here you’ll find views of docked boats and amazing shops and restaurants.
Go to the Beach! We spent time at ‘Second beach’ and really enjoyed our time there. Another popular public beach is Easton’s beach.
Spend time at the Lawn at Castle Hill Inn. This has become a well known activity to do while visiting Newport in the summer months. On the lawn of this stunning hotel, you’ll find iconic Adirondack chairs to sit in while you view the coast while enjoying a drink. We attempted to go here for afternoon drinks but we were turned away on a Saturday due to too many people so keep that in mind.
Drive along Ocean drive. This is a beautiful road that goes right near the coast for more stunning New England coast views.
Go to a winery! We saw so many wineries closer to the beaches and the Portsmouth area which looked so fun. The Newport Vineyard was very close to our airbnb and we wish we would’ve had time to sit and explore this winery.
Explore the International Tennis Hall of Fame. We did not do this but it seems like a popular activity in the Newport area!

Restaurants

Nitro Bar. A very well known coffee shop that is worth the wait for delicious coffee & breakfast sandwiches.
Springline Coffee. This cute coffee shop is in the Bowen’s wharf area and right near the water. There’s a nice patio seating area right along the harbor.
Flora Cafe. This restaurant is inside the Gardiner house hotel, we went here for my birthday dinner and were very impressed with the food, drinks, and atmosphere of the place! They also serve breakfast and have a rooftop bar.
The Lobster Bar. We stopped here for a quick lunch break while strolling around and it was delicious with great lobster rolls.
Dell’s lemonade. This is a Newport staple and a must try for visitors! There’s a shop in the downtown area or you can usually find a truck at the beaches.
Mother’s Pizzeria. We grabbed a pizza here to go when we first arrived and it was incredible! It looks like a really great place to sit down and eat too.
Seaside Scoops. Delicious ice cream and unique flavors!

A Guide to Woodstock, Vermont

Published on January 15, 2025 by Skylar M. Beck2 Comments

Woodstock, Vermont seems like a town right out of a hallmark movie! It’s one of the coziest places I’ve ever visited, especially during the fall season. Patrick and I had the opportunity to visit this past fall while traveling through Vermont and we had such a fun time strolling around this area for an afternoon. Here are some of my tips and favorite spots:

How to Plan a Trip to Woodstock

Woodstock, Vermont is a small town that offers local shops, restaurants, covered bridges, and the perfect place to soak in the fall foliage. That being said, I would recommend combining a trip to Woodstock with another nearby Vermont town. We visited Woodstock and Stowe within the same trip which was ideal and gave us more site seeing and activities to enjoy.

Best Things to do in Woodstock

Stroll the shops! We had so much fun going in and out of the local shops within the town. Some of our favorites:

Woody’s Mercantile
Vermont Flannel Co.
Yankee bookshop
F.H. Gillingham & Sons
Encore Designer consignment
Clover gift shop

Enjoy delicious food. Woodstock has a few great food and coffee options! Here were some of our favorites:

Mon Vert Cafe– the best breakfast & coffee!
Woodstock scoops- be sure to try a maple creemee!
Soulfully good cafe- this was closed when we visited but we’ve heard great things about it!
Village Butcher shop- delicious deli sandwiches and quick to go meals

Visit a covered bridge. Woodstock is known for some of their covered bridges! You can drive under the bridges or walk along the side.

Middle covered bridge
Taftsville covered bridge
Lincoln covered bridge

Check out the Woodstock Inn. This is a famous hotel right in the heart of Woodstock. The public is welcome to their restaurant and to walk around the grounds. If you’re able to stay here, I imagine it would be a wonderful experience!

Walk to Pleasant Street. This street captures so much charm Woodstock offers and it feels like you’re walking on the set of a hallmark movie. The homes are also so fun to look at and imagine what life here would be like. Keep your eye out for one house on Pleasant street that has become well known during the fall for simply placing little pumpkins along the fence line. It makes for a really sweet view and picture!

Enjoy a maple creemee! Woodstock scoops has amazing ice cream and they are famous for maple creemees. A creemee is essentially soft serve and is a popular treat in this area. I would highly recommend trying while passing through!

Stop by a maple syrup farm. Sugarbush farms has become a famous spot in Woodstock for their tours of maple syrup and cheese making. We didn’t have a chance to do this but I’ve heard such great things about this farm it seems worth recommending!

Selecting some maple syrup goods from F.H. Gillingham & Sons general store

Quick Guide to Coastal Maine Towns: Portland, Kennebuckport, Ogunquit, & York

Published on January 5, 2025January 8, 2025 by Skylar M. Beck2 Comments

This past fall, Patrick and I went on a two week road trip through various areas of New England. The trip ended with some time in Maine where we first explored Acadia national park and then made our way down the coast to visit various coastal towns. The best part about this area of Maine is that these small coastal towns are all within a short drive from each other so it’s possible to pick a home base and make some day trips. Patrick and I fell in love with this area of Maine and enjoyed about three days exploring various little towns, eating amazing lobster, enjoying sunsets at gorgeous lighthouses, and to top off our time in Maine, we left engaged! Here’s a quick guide to a few of our favorite towns along the coast of Maine.

Portland, ME

Portland is a major stop when traveling through this area of Maine. We had a half day here and mostly strolled around the main areas of downtown going in and out of shops and enjoying some of the best lobster we’ve ever had! Some of our favorite stops:

Food

Portland Lobster Co. Hands down the best lobster roll we tried the entire trip! We liked it so much we went twice! If lobster isn’t your thing, they also have some other menu items but I’d recommend at least trying some of their lobster to say you did in Maine!
Holy Donut. This is an iconic spot in Portland! They are famous for their potato style donuts and typically have a line of people waiting throughout the day to try a donut. We were skeptical of a potato style donut but it was AMAZING! Definitely worth a stop! We went to the main location downtown on Commercial street but they have a couple locations scattered throughout the city. They close once donuts for the day are sold out so be sure to get there early if possible!

Shops

Soleil. This is a french inspired store with sweet decor and home gifts. Inside there’s also one of Portland’s “mini print vending machines” where you can put in some quarters and receive a small print created by a local artist.
There’s too many souvenir shops along commercial street in Portland but I’d recommend walking along and going in and out of some unique shops.

Activities

Portland Head lighthouse. A must see while visiting Portland! This is about 25-30 minutes outside of the downtown area but worth the drive, especially at sunset! This was definitely the most beautiful lighthouse we saw during the trip. Keep in mind, when we visited there was a gate in place that blocked access to the rocks around the lighthouse. While researching this spot, on social media it appeared that visitors could sit on the rocks and take photos with a closer view but this was not the case when we visited October 2024. This may be a temporary thing in the colder months but wanted to share.
Stroll around downtown! Portland seemed like a typical busy city with lots to do and see. We enjoyed walking down commercial and wharf street.
Take a walk down Wharf street. This is a popular street in the heart of downtown with lots of amazing restaurants. The street is well known for it’s cobblestone and moss covered buildings.
Take a boating tour. We didn’t do this, but we saw lots of signs about boating tours which may have been fun if we had more time.

Kennebuckport, ME

When we were planning this road trip, we weren’t planning to stay in Kennebuckport or pass through it. However, we had a last minute change to our itinerary because we decided we’d rather have an airbnb instead of camp the last few nights of the trip so I quickly found us a cute spot to stay and it ended up being in Kennebuckport. We were so happy this came to be! Kennebuckport is such a charming coastal town. It gives that small town feel where all the locals know each other, everyone walks to work, and there’s only small businesses in town. I’d definitely recommended stopping or staying in Kennebuckport if you’re driving down the coast. Some of our favorite stops:

Food

Dock Square coffee house. We started our morning here one day and loved the coffee! It’s also just a sweet little coffee shop right in the heart of town.
Mornings in Paris. This is another popular coffee shop in town, we didn’t stop here but our airbnb host left us some coffee to use from this shop and it was really good as well!
H.B. Provisions. This is a great stop for anything you may need while passing through. There’s food, groceries, drinks, souvenirs, etc. We stopped here one morning for a breakfast sandwich before exploring and it was great!
Roma Pizza. We picked up a pizza from here quickly after our drive in from Acadia and it was delicious!
Alisson’s restaurant. We had dinner here after getting engaged and it was so tasty! They have a little bit of everything on the menu.

Shops

Scalawags Pet Boutique. This was such a cute pet shop! We found so many great souvineers to bring home to our fur babies.
Too Cool t shirt store. A great place to find souvenirs for yourself or loved ones.
Mountain Tops. Another great souvenir shop.
Any shops along dock square or ocean ave are worth stopping by!

Ogunquit, ME

Ogunquit was a stop along the road trip I was excited about because I had seen some many other blog posts and photos highlighting the town’s beauty. It’s another charming coastal town with such a special feeling. We enjoyed spending an afternoon here walking around and soaking in more incredible Maine views. In the future, I’d love to visit this area again and stay overnight. If you’re visiting as a day trip like we did, keep in mind, parking can be a bit pricey. Our favorite stops:

Food

Foot Bridge Lobster. This was the only place we tried while visiting and we weren’t too impressed with their lobster rolls. There was several other little restaurants in town though so it seems like there are plenty of options!

Shops

Maine Originals. This was a cute souvenir and apparel store!
Nothing Better than Doing Nothing. Another great souvenir shop.
Dock Square Clothiers. A nice place to find a t-shirt or sweatshirt souvenir to bring home.
Perkins Cove Pottery shop. This was a sweet shop with handmade pottery done by a local artist.

Activities

Marginal Way. This is one of the top things to do in Ogunquit! Marginal way is a paved trail that goes along the coast line providing stunning views of the ocean and town.
Perkins Cove. This is a charming area in Ogunquit where most stores are located. It’s also a very picturesque area in town. You are able to drive through here but it seems mostly for foot traffic.
Walk along the Perkins Cove drawbridge. This is right near Perkins cove and visitors can actually push a button to open the bridge for taller boats to pass through.

York, ME

York was another last minute stop. We had some down time and we saw York was only 20 minutes away from Ogunquit and we decided to make the drive there for sunset. York ended up being one of my favorite stops because of the memories made here. One of the main things do to in York in visit Nubble lighthouse, it’s the heart of the town. We decided to spend sunset here and it was one of the most beautiful sunsets I’d ever seen. As the sun was setting, Patrick and I set up our tripod to take some videos and photos together, as we always do when traveling together, and to my surprise Patrick ended up proposing! It was such a beautiful moment and I couldn’t have asked for a better sunset and evening. York is a place I’ll cherish forever because of this incredible moment.

Since we were only in York for a couple of hours, the only thing I can really recommend is going to Nubble lighthouse for sunset! There is a sweet gift shop right near the lighthouse with bathrooms, souvenirs, and information about the town. While driving through the town, it seems like a sweet area with lots of activities especially available during the warmer months of the year.

Activities

Watch sunset at Nubble light house. Since we were only here for a brief amount of time, this is my only recommendation! It was a stunning place to view the sun setting.