Travel Destination: Providence, Rhode Island

Roger Williams Park - Providence, RI

Many people don’t think of Providence as a vacation spot, but historically, it’s as important a place to visit as many others.  Not only that, but it has other things to do that some people who enjoy being on the water or just looking at it will enjoy.

Providence is one of the oldest cities in the United States, settled in 1636 by Roger Williams.  Though it was never occupied by foreign troops during the Revolutionary War, it was a staging area for many colony incursions, and once was the gateway for French troops passing through on their way to fight the British at a different location.  It also has had a historical presence as far as slavery, the Civil War, and the two World Wars.  Most of the exhibits concerning these areas, including the John Brown House Museum, are managed by the Rhode Island Historical Society.

For everyone else, there are plenty of things to do and see.  We can start with the Providence Children’s Museum, which has all sorts of science exhibits that kids can play with.  There’s the Heritage Harbor Museum, one of 145 organizations that’s a part of the Smithsonian Institution Affiliations Program.  There’s the Culinary Arts Museum, which highlights gastronomical experiences and experiments from all over the words.  And then there’s the Rhode Island School of Design Museum, which has one of the largest art collections in the country, and is affiliated with one of the top art colleges in the nation with the same name.  And let’s not forget the Museum of Natural History and Planetarium.

There are other things to do in Providence as well.  Something really interesting is the Ghost Tour, where they run you through areas that are considered as being haunted while telling you many ghost stories.  There’s Roger Williams Park and Botanical Center, which has over 12,000 square feet of indoor gardens displayed.  If you’ve never seen a Russian submarine, there’s a decommissioned one near the city’s southern waterfront.  Providence also is home to the fourth oldest library in the country that’s still in use, the Providence Athenaeum.  One last thing to see if Westminster Arcade, the oldest enclosed shopping mall in the U.S., built in 1828; the stores are new.

Providence is also home to three rivers:  Providence River, which runs into Narragansett Bay; the Moshassuck River; and the Woonasquatucket River; notice the native American names?  In its past, Providence was a major port city, and it still does a lot of trade through the city.

There are also beaches in the Providence area, though located in Warwick, a few minutes away.  There’s Conimicut Point Beach, which also has fishing and boating, and is a saltwater beach; Gorton Pond, a public freshwater beach; and Oakland Beach, which is an inlet beach.  And if you want something a little more involved, there’s Buttonwoods Beach and City Park, which also has fields set up for baseball, softball, and other outdoor sports.

Providence is also basically a hop, skip and jump from locations in Massachusetts and Connecticut, so pretty much anything you’d want is within the area.  Providence would be a nice vacation spot for you and your family.

Hotels in Providence, RI

Hotel Dolce Villa

Renaissance Providence Hotel

Westin Providence

See also:

About: Providence, Rhode Island

Heritage Harbor Museum

Roger Williams Park Zoo