Things to Do in Narragansett, RI: Beaches, Surf, History

The Towers: What a 1900 Fire Could Not Take Down

The Towers were built between 1883 and 1886 as part of the Narragansett Pier Casino, designed by McKim, Mead & White -- the same tier of architectural firm behind Newport's Gilded Age mansions -- in a Victorian Shingle style that reads as a variation on Queen Anne. Despite the name, the Casino was never a gambling hall. It was a social and recreation hub: boating, tennis, billiards, bowling, cards, shooting, restaurants, shops, reading rooms, a theater, a bandstand, a ballroom, and its own private beach, all built to rival the social prestige of Newport's own casino.

On September 12, 1900, a fire that started at the neighboring Rockingham Hotel spread to the Casino complex and destroyed most of it. The granite walls of The Towers survived intact -- the sole remnant of the original complex left standing. Since then, The Towers have weathered additional fires, nor'easters, and hurricanes; Hurricane Sandy in 2012 exposed buried foundations and sections of the old boardwalk nearby. Today The Towers operate as an event venue for weddings, dances, dinners, plays, and fashion shows, and stand as one of thirteen buildings and districts on the National Register of Historic Places within Narragansett.

Real Beaches, Each With Its Own Character

Point Judith itself contains both Roger Wheeler State Beach and Salty Brine State Beach. Salty Brine State Beach was established in 1954 as Galilee State Beach and renamed in 1990 to honor Salty Brine, a real Rhode Island radio and television personality -- it is just over one acre of oceanfront in Galilee village, somewhat sheltered by the nearby breakwater. Narragansett Town Beach charges a parking fee of $10 to $15 plus a separate daily admission fee of $10, a real and specific cost structure worth budgeting for, though exact current-year rates should be confirmed directly with the town before a visit.

Scarborough State Beach has two distinct sections with their own facilities -- and, in the interest of an honest rather than glossy description, it sits near a sewage treatment plant, a real geographic detail worth knowing rather than discovering on arrival. Galilee is also home to Fishermen's Memorial State Park and Fort Greene. Full depth on Scarborough, and on Galilee's status as a working fishing village, is reserved for this site's dedicated Scarborough / Jerusalem / Galilee page.

Point Judith: A Named Surf Break, Not a Marketing Claim

Narragansett is a genuinely recognized East Coast surf destination thanks to frequent southerly Atlantic swells, and Point Judith specifically is a real, named surf break with its own dedicated forecast coverage on surf-forecasting sites -- the kind of independent, current recognition from the surf community itself rather than a claim a tourism brochure invented. Anyone planning to surf here should check current conditions and local surf reports directly, since wave height, break characteristics, and the best time of year to paddle out all change with the season and should be verified rather than assumed from a single visit.

Historic Sites Beyond The Towers

Narragansett has thirteen buildings and districts on the National Register of Historic Places, and beyond The Towers, three more stand out for anyone interested in the town's built history: the Narragansett Pier Life Saving Station, built in 1888; Point Judith Lighthouse, a real and still-standing lighthouse dating to 1857; and the Greene Inn, built in 1887. Together they trace a working coastline -- a lifesaving station built for real rescues, a lighthouse still marking the point, and an inn built for the travelers the coast has always attracted.

The Block Island Ferry Leaves From Right Here

The Block Island Ferry departs from Galilee, crossing just over 13 miles of open water to Block Island in under an hour -- a real, practical transportation option for anyone living in or visiting Narragansett who wants a day trip or a longer stay on the island without driving to a different port. Confirm current schedules, seasonal service, and fares directly with the ferry operator before planning a trip, since sailing times and pricing change with the season.

URI Narragansett Bay Campus

The University of Rhode Island maintains a real, named Narragansett Bay Campus in town -- a graduate and research-oriented marine sciences campus distinct from URI's main Kingston campus. From September through May, its student population meaningfully affects the local economy, and it is worth knowing that the campus also affects how the town's raw poverty statistics read on paper: a large share of the in-town population counted below the poverty line in Census data is made up of college students, which inflates the raw percentage without reflecting typical working-household economics in town. It is a genuine, useful nuance for anyone trying to understand Narragansett's numbers rather than just its name.

Galilee and Jerusalem: Worth a Visit, Covered in Full Elsewhere

Galilee and Jerusalem are real villages within Narragansett's town limits, sitting across the harbor from each other near Point Judith, and both are worth visiting on their own terms -- working docks, seafood restaurants, and the ferry terminal among them. This page mentions them here rather than exploring them in depth, since this site's dedicated Scarborough / Jerusalem / Galilee page goes deep on Galilee's status as Rhode Island's largest commercial fishing port and the two villages' own place-naming history -- read that page directly for the fuller story.