Long known as a stopover on the way to Rhode Island’s posh coastal playgrounds, Providence has quietly transformed into New England’s hippest city. Thanks to its diverse population of about 180,000, its college community, and a blossoming arts-and-culture scene, Providence is the lively urban travel experience—without the constant crush of crowds—we’ve been craving after a prolonged shutdown.
At about 18.5 square miles, the city is easily navigable. It’s divided into 15 distinctive neighborhoods, most of which feel small in the best possible way. You can visit all in a single trip, or else focus on the communities that offer the best options for dining, shopping, entertainment, history and architecture, and outdoor recreation. To get you started, here’s our guide to what to do in Providence.
Getting to and around Providence
Rhode Island T. F. Green International Airport (PVD), in nearby Warwick, has flights to and from all major U.S. cities. Head to InterLink, the transportation hub connected to the airport, to hail a taxi or ride share, or travel into Providence by commuter train or bus. Inside the capital, Spin offers citywide e-bike and scooter rentals.
If you opt to rent a car, you’ll have a wealth of on-street metered and unmetered parking options. There are also several parking garages; the best bargain downtown is the garage at Providence Place Mall, where you can park for free for up to two hours, or $2 for up to five hours.
Best things to do in Providence
Once an eyesore, Providence’s waterfront has been reimagined into a scenic park and Riverwalk. WaterFire, an award-winning art installation, rings the Providence River in flames during the summer.
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A newer pedestrian bridge connects the historic architecture of the city’s East Side with the buzzy Innovation District. Meanwhile, guided kayaking tours and historic walking tours spotlight the city’s development. Or pedal along Providence Foodie Bike Routes, a GPS-guided sampling of doughnuts, craft beer, and vegan food.
Stop in the Valley neighborhood at Industrious Spirit Co. The state’s first distillery since Prohibition, Industrious Spirit crafts small-batch, sustainably sourced vodka, gin, and bourbon. The outdoor patio hosts live music on weekends. Next door, watch a live art demonstration or take a class at the Steel Yard. Explore a contemporary exhibit at the WaterFire Art Center, followed by a cocktail on its new rooftop deck (Thursdays, April through August). Or visit to the Rhode Island School of Design Museum, which houses a collection of 100,000 works, from ancient to modern.
For boutique shopping, head to Hope, Wickenden, and Westminster streets. Some of the best include Stock Culinary Goods for kitchenware, spices, and foods; LORE, which sells an eclectic range of handcrafted local and fair-trade jewelry, stationery, and clothing; and Bloom Collective, a quirky popup, currently housed in the Federal Hill neighborhood, that features locally made home goods and gifts. Every Sunday during warm weather, Providence Flea takes over South Water Street; it moves inside innovative local-foods hub Farm Fresh RI in fall and winter.
Best restaurants in Providence
It’s hard to find a neighborhood in Providence that doesn’t have at least one top-tier restaurant. Vegans: make a beeline for Plant City, which has seven vegan dine-in and takeout options, plus a small grocery. Downtown, Kin Southern Table + Bar serves a colorful selection of drinks alongside comfort foods like fried green tomatoes and pulled pork sandwiches. Are the hand-cut fries made with especially flavorful oil or some form of kitchen witchery? You be the judge. Don’t miss the fried plantains, fritay fish dinner, or curried chickpeas at Garden of Eve, a family-run Haitian outpost dedicated to bright, bold Caribbean flavors.
Bayberry Garden offers fresh interpretations of classic New England ingredients; they also have a sustainable raw bar and a well-edited wine, beer, and cocktail list. Call ahead to reserve a seat on the laid-back patio. In the Elmhurst neighborhood, Los Andes serves Bolivian and Peruvian specialties in epic portions. The lobster paella, which serves up to four, is a marvel of buttery, tender crustacean and socarrat, the deliciously crispy crust of rice on the bottom of the paella pan.
Rhode Island’s clam shack tradition gets an urban twist at Dune Brothers. This unassuming red hut serves generous helpings of New England classics like fish and chips, lobster rolls, and clam chowder. The spicy-crunchy clam cakes, one of Rhode Island’s unforgettable food oddities, are a must. Prefer to sample several different cuisines? Hit the food truck village at Innovation District Park on Friday nights.
Satisfy your sweet tooth in Providence’s many bakeries. PVDonuts makes cake-style treats, brioche, and crullers in flavors like matcha Oreo, caramel cheesecake, and chipwich, a throwback to a favorite Rhode Island dessert. Or go old-school at Madrid European Bakery, which crafts ganache-filled opera cakes, éclairs, palmiers, and almond croissants so decadent, you’ll be tempted to forgo meals just for another taste.
Best hotels in Providence
The city’s legendary Biltmore Hotel, once a magnet for silent film–era celebrities, has gotten a makeover as a Graduate hotel (from $224); this spring, it opened the on-premise Norwich Spa. For a quirkier experience, stay at the Dye House (from $206), a design-minded luxury hotel inspired by the historic textile mill in which it’s located, and surrounded by a lively fringe arts scene. And in the heart of the downtown, The Beatrice (from $319) will open this fall. This 47-room boutique property aimed at the tech-savvy traveler—including contactless concierge service and a dedicated Zoom room—will feature Mascioni linens, BeeKind bath amenities, in-room Fit Kits, and a rotating selection of books, plus a new upscale Italian restaurant and a rooftop bar and club with memorable views of the city.
