NEWPORT – If you visited one of the historic Newport mansions in 2016, you were one of 1,019,983 people to receive a tour that year, according to an announcement made by The Preservation Society of Newport County Tuesday.
The mansions are the first New England-based museum outside of Boston to reach 1 million tours in a year and was the most visited museum in New England in September and October.
Visitors to the mansions in 2016 hailed from all 50 U.S. states and 114 countries, according to the statement. These statistics reflect a 25 percent jump since 2008. In addition, 40 percent of last year’s tourists were repeat visitors.
Trudy Coxe, CEO and executive director of the Preservation Society, said in a statement that the number of visitors to the mansions has steadily grown over the past 10 years, “even as some other historic house museums nationally have struggled.”
She added that the Preservation Society achieved this growth through “strategic decision-making” which included lengthening its season and opening some houses year round, offering new tours, featuring a new exhibition space at Rosecliff and investing in digital technology.
Lara Salamano, chief marketing officer for the state of Rhode Island, said in prepared remarks that the milestone was “evidence of the tremendous growth potential for tourism” here.