Audubon Society of Rhode Island Nature Center and Aquarium — Attraction in Bristol

We held our wedding at Audubon recently and we are so happy we did. The staff at Audubon, especially Sarah the events coordinator, are so friendly, welcoming, and easy to work with. Sarah was very responsive and was always ready to answer our many questions in the year leading up to the wedding, and she and the Audubon staff were so accommodating to all of our requests. She was willing to accompany us through several walkthroughs to iron out the details of the event, and she gave us access to different areas of the venue for staging and setup which was so generous and so helpful! Audubon even offered to rent their event audio equipment to us, which was a life saver, and all of the equipment worked flawlessly for both our ceremony and reception. We were so grateful to find a wedding venue that let us put money towards supporting Audubon's work and a cause we care about. And, the wedding was so personal and customizable compared to standard wedding venues in the area: it was affordable to have a 7 hour event vs. the standard 5 hours of most venues, no mandatory caterer or required vendors meant we could order catering from one of our favorite restaurants in town for a much more reasonable price. Given we had to bring in all our vendors: tent rental, bartending, food, waitstaff, venue fee, musicians, photography, etc. the overall cost of our wedding was over $30k. This was still around $7k lower than the lowest quotes we saw for more standard wedding venues in Bristol RI and required a lot more planning effort on our part, but we are so happy with the result: a memorable, personal, meaningful wedding day! We would absolutely recommend Audubon for anyone hosting an event or wedding - the staff are amazing and the location is unbeatable. We will be returning often to reminisce and enjoy...

I like to visit the Audubon Society early in the morning when the birds are active and the fields are alive with their songs. The paths through the center are well maintained and easy to walk. The boardwalk over the swamp is creatively designed and a delight to walk. I would also suggest walking north of the nature center on the East Bay Bike Path for about 300 yards and taking the path out to Jacob's Point. The path is narrow and almost overgrown, but you see more birds and feel closer to nature. This is a great place to take kids--but don't be in a hurry because nature is revealed to those who take their time. Also, put on bug spray before you venture down to the swampy areas. When I visited last spring I saw three HUGE...

Update Summer 2023 - still a great place to spend several hours and don't forget to walk to the end of the boardwalk to see the bay and the Osprey nests! This is a multifaceted nature center where you can spend an entire day, or just take time for a beautiful walk down to the bay. The Nature center itself has great exhibits that explain the natural ecology of this area near the bay. There is even an aquarium! An of course, if you like the birds -- this is the place to be! A great advantage they have here is that this center is connected with people from the Roger Williams university nearby, which helps keep exhibits fresh...