Newport has a long history of attracting intrepid travelers to its shores, from George Washington to "The 400" in the late-19th century. Samuel Ward McAllister, friend and confidante to Mrs. William Astor, coined "the 400" in reference to the 400 wealthiest families in New York society. McAllister had just bought a summer home in Newport and successfully persuaded Mrs. Astor to build a "cottage" there as well. The others soon followed. These so-called cottages were no rustic cabins. They were 50- to 70-room mansions with large stables, spacious lawns, gardens, greenhouses and immense palaces of marble, limestone and granite. Some of these lofty 19th-century establishments, like Cornelius Vanderbilt's The Breakers and Oliver Hazard Perry Belmont's Belcourt, cost well over $5 million to build -- a princely sum at the time.

Thankfully, these days you don't have to be a Vanderbilt to live like one and experience the best of Newport. Families can hit the beach, go for a sail where the America's Cup races were staged for decades, meander along rugged shores, visit the mansions the Vanderbilts and Astors erected, go shopping on Thames Street, visit the oldest synagogue and one of the oldest churches in America, or simply relax at the hotel.

Families staying at the Newport Hyatt will have a hard time tearing the kids away from the outdoor pool. One of the resort's best features is its pool -- its refreshing saltwater swimming pool is the perfect salve for a humid day in New England. Swimmers can peer at Pell Bridge as it arcs over the ocean to neighboring Jamestown. In fact, the view is so rewarding that many locals come to the restaurant adjacent to the pool, Pineapples, to see sailboats cruising around Goat Island (where the hotel is located).

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