Forty steps - Cliff walk — Attraction in Newport

We went on a Monday afternoon in July -- not even a holiday weekend -- and the bench entrance (not this one) was packed. So we thought we'd go a little further down and had better luck here. It's a great lookout if that's all you want, with lovely views across the water and the waves crashing on the cliff. You can't really see any of the big houses directly from this point.

There's on-street parking (metered from May to October) along the street that deadends into the steps, including some handicapped spots close by. There are public bathrooms and water fountains (plus a water bottle filling spot), and a few benches at the top of the steps. The Cliff Walk connects in both directions (though when we were there, the righthand side was closed and you had to detour around the block to go that way). The Walk itself is wheelchair / stroller accessible, paved and mostly flat with no big irregularities, but it's not terribly wide, and anyone sitting wouldn't have a great view of the sea because of the hedge along the cliff.

You can take the 40 steps down and access rocks along the shore, as well as the water itself, if you're adventurous (there were some people jumping into the water while we were there), but there are signs everywhere that doing so...

This is one entry point to the cliff walk that rounds the coastal point with all the gilded era Newport Mansions, The Vanderbilt Breakers included. There is a small private collage that strings this area, so public parking is clearly marked. There is an "off-season" when the bathrooms are locked and parking is free. I'm assuming that when the bathrooms are free you have to pay metered parking. We actually ended up parking at the breakers parking lot (free) and using the bathroom in the ticket office/cafe area which you can access without a ticket. From there we walked onto the cliffs walk. Parts of the cliff walk are better maintained. There are detailed "you are here" maps at each street access point that help you gauge the difficulty level (concrete, gravel, or boulder scramble). We loved the hike with our dog - we double backed to our car via the...

We parked at Narraganset Ave and paid for 2 hours ($2/hr) with the Passport app, which was quick and easy. There was plenty of street parking on a Tuesday morning. We ended the Cliff Walk at Ledge Rd, walked quickly back to our car through the town and made it back in slightly over our 2 hours and didn't have to pay for extra parking even though we were a couple minutes late. You could also take the Trolley but we didn't feel like waiting. My husband and I aren't really interested in old buildings/history, so we were more into the ocean views, but seeing all of the mansions/houses/university was pretty neat as well. There is some stench from the seaweed at points and there is hardly any shade, but overall it was a pleasant experience. We don't feel the need to do the walk again, but are glad we...