Hotel Review • North America • United States • Rhode Island • Newport

The Chanler at Cliff Walk: The Only Newport Mansion That Will Let You Spend the Night

Experience Gilded Age luxury at The Chanler at Cliff Walk in Newport, RI. Read our review of this 20-room oceanfront mansion with fine dining and direct Cliff Walk access.

Credit: Jason Varney

BY LULU CHANG

Why it works

Hotel Snapshot

Newport has no shortage of Gilded Age mansions, but almost all of them hand you a museum brochure on your way in and close at 5 p.m. The Chanler at Cliff Walk is the exception: an 1873 estate built for New York Congressman John Winthrop Chanler and his wife, Margaret Astor Ward, that has spent the last two decades operating as a 20-room hotel rather than a docent-led tour. It is also the only hotel sitting directly on the Cliff Walk itself, which means the Atlantic is not a view you drive to, but the majesty just outside your window.

Design & Character

The Chanler finished a reimagining of its lobby and public spaces this spring, a Studio Valerius project overseen by proprietress Lani Shufelt, and it is spectacular. The lobby now reads like the foyer of a very grand home, which is fitting, rather than a hotel check-in: a fire going, a glass of champagne pressed into your hand before you've given your name, and a palette of pinks, oranges, and sunset tones that has no business looking as elegant as it does. The scalloped white oak reception desk and illuminated brass display holding all 20 room keys make the arrival feel ceremonial without tipping into theater.

The staircase is the showpiece, so much so that you won’t mind, and may even relish, the absence of an elevator. Each landing has been given a cozy sitting nook, the kind of small architectural generosity most properties skip. I used them to catch my breath, drink coffee, and once to read for 20 minutes while everyone else got ready.

The Rooms

There are 20 rooms and no two are alike, each keyed to a period or place: Victorian, Louis XVI, Renaissance, English Tudor, and so on. My personal favorite is Moroccan, an Estate Room on the third floor. It may be the most transportive of the bunch, outfitted with deep Marrakesh reds, warm gold, Moorish arches, mother-of-pearl inlay, a colored-glass Ryad lamp overhead, and a stone fireplace anchoring an open layout that feels bigger than its category suggests.

The bathroom is the reason to book it. You step down into a skylit space in purple marble and black fixtures, with a shower offering fabulous water pressure. But the real draw is the tub, which sits as an entirely separate structure gated by warm mahogany wood just beyond the foot of the bed. Have a soak. You won’t regret it.

The Food & Drink

The Living Room is the sexiest thing on the property after dark: low, intimate, and running a cocktail program that outclasses the room count. Details like an Hermès pop-up book left on a table elevate an already memorable drink, like one inspired entirely by yellow Chartreuse.

Breakfast at Remy's Loose, the French-leaning restaurant that opened in 2025, is where the morning light does its work, both indoors and on the terrace. Order the frittata. Cara, the chef's-table fine-dining room with an open kitchen and a French Bonnet range, is the property's third act and requires reservations.

Amenities

The service is the amenity. Snacks appeared in the room unprompted, a high chair materialized at breakfast without our asking, and at turndown our son found a small stuffed bunny named Pebblefoot on the bed, along with a bedtime story. Traveling three generations deep through a Forbes Five-Star mansion could easily have felt like an imposition; it never did once.

The complimentary Cadillac house car is the sleeper amenity, and the fact that it's an EV feels appropriately of the moment. Seasonal Tokyobikes and e-bikes are available, in-room massages and aromatherapy bath draws can be arranged, and Adirondack chairs on the Cliff Lawn are reserved for guests. Sit in one. You'll understand why people are so insufferable about summer in Newport.

Location & Neighborhood Recs

The Cliff Walk starts at your door, and it's spectacular. We did the whole thing with a baby in tow. Walk it to the mansions, which the Preservation Society of Newport County maintains beautifully; The Breakers is the non-negotiable. For dinner, the sleeper hit and possibly the best food in Newport right now is Little Clam inside the Wayfinder, from chefs Antonio Wormley and Jake Rojas. Get the whole roasted fish.

Fast Facts

Address: 117 Memorial Boulevard, Newport, RI

Vibe: An 1873 Gilded Age mansion operating as an intimate, female-owned hotel

Rating: 5 stars

Starting Rate: From approximately $1,400/night

Room Count: 20 individually designed rooms

Our Favorite Thing About the Hotel: The Adirondack chairs on the front lawn are to die for

Dining: Cara, Remy's Loose, The Living Room, and the seasonal Summer Wine Garden

Amenities: Complimentary Cadillac EV house car, seasonal bikes and e-bikes, in-room massages, fireplaces and heated bathroom floors in every room, Cliff Lawn seating, fitness passes, and direct Cliff Walk access; no elevator and no pets

Nearby Attractions: The Cliff Walk, The Breakers and the Preservation Society mansions, Easton's Beach, and downtown Newport

Airport: Providence (PVD), about 45 minutes

Gallery

A closer look

Credit: Jason Varney

Credit: Jason Varney

Credit: Jason Varney

Credit: Jason Varney

Credit: Jason Varney

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