Discover 11 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in Newport (United States). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: Yaquina Head Light, Oregon Coast Aquarium, and Devils Punch Bowl State Natural Area. Also, be sure to include Yaquina Bay Light in your itinerary.
Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in Newport (Oregon).
Table of Contents
Yaquina Head Light
Historic beacon with ranger-led tours. The Yaquina Head Light, also known early in its existence as the Cape Foulweather Lighthouse, is a lighthouse on the Oregon Coast of the United States. It is located in Lincoln County, near the mouth of the Yaquina River near Newport at Yaquina Head. The tower stands 93 feet tall, and is the tallest lighthouse in Oregon.[1]
Address: NW Lighthouse Dr, 97365 Newport
Oregon Coast Aquarium
Aquarium in Newport, Oregon. The Oregon Coast Aquarium is an aquarium in Newport in the U.S. state of Oregon. Opened in 1992, the facility sits on 23 acres along Yaquina Bay near the Pacific Ocean. The aquarium was home to Keiko, the orca who starred in the movie Free Willy, from January 7, 1996 until September 9, 1998, when he was shipped to Vestmannaeyjar, Iceland. USA Today considers the Oregon Coast Aquarium world-class and Coastal Living magazine ranks it among the top ten aquariums in North America.[2]
Address: 2820 SE Ferry Slip Rd, 97365-5269 Newport
Devils Punch Bowl State Natural Area
State park in Otter Rock, Oregon. Devils Punch Bowl State Natural Area is a state day use park on the central Oregon Coast in the United States. It is centered on a large bowl naturally carved in a rock headland which is partially open to the Pacific Ocean. Waves enter the bowl and often violently churn, swirl, and foam. Outside the bowl, ocean conditions are attractive to surfers near a large offshore rock pinnacle named Gull Rock, located about 1⁄2 mile west-northwest of Devils Punch Bowl, which funnels and concentrates waves easily seen from the park. There are at least seventeen large rocks, part of Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge, which provide interesting wave viewing, and attract and provide a home for wildlife.
Devils Punch Bowl is located about 5 miles (8.0 km) south of Depoe Bay, and about 8 miles (13 km) north of Newport in the community of Otter Rock, and about 1⁄4 mile (400 m) west of U.S. Route 101. The park encompasses 5.34 acres (2 ha), which includes picnic grounds. There is a trail for access to the beach, and tide pools.
The bowl is thought to have been created when two caves carved by the ocean collapsed.
Whales migrate past the park, in season, and the park, which projects into the Pacific, provides panoramic views of the ocean and good whale watching.[3]
Address: 851 1st St, Newport
Yaquina Bay Light
Lighthouse in the Lincoln County, Oregon. The Yaquina Bay Light is a lighthouse that was built in 1871, soon after the founding of the city of Newport, Oregon, in the United States. It is located on the north side of Yaquina Bay. In 1871–1874, it was the busiest and most populated of the many coastal ports between Washington and California.[4]
Address: Yaquina Bay State Park, 97365 Newport
Yaquina Bay Bridge
Arch bridge in Newport, Oregon. The Yaquina Bay Bridge is an arch bridge that spans Yaquina Bay south of Newport, Oregon. It is one of the most recognizable of the U.S. Route 101 bridges designed by Conde McCullough and one of eleven major bridges on the Oregon Coast Highway designed by him. It superseded the last ferry crossing on the highway.[5]
Address: Oregon Coast Hwy, Newport
Nye Beach
Beach in Newport, Oregon. Nye Beach is a central district in Newport in the U.S. state of Oregon. The Nye Beach historic overlay district is bounded on the north and south sides by Northwest Twelfth Street and Southwest Second Street respectively; on the east side by Hurbert Street and on the west side by the Pacific Ocean. Situated on a sea cliff, the district has been a popular vacation spot since the late 19th century. Cultural and literary groups such as Oregon Coast Council for the Arts, Yaquina Art Association, and Writers on the Edge are based in Nye Beach, as are Newport's Performing Arts and Visual Arts Centers. The beach attracts tide-pool enthusiasts and beachcombers as well as surfers, sail-boarders, crabbers, clam diggers, kite flyers, photographers, and artists and has also been the site of marine and geological research projects.[6]
Moolack Beach
Beach in Lincoln County, Oregon. Moolack Beach is an undeveloped sandy beach on the Oregon Coast about 4 miles north of Newport in Lincoln County, United States. It is almost 8 km in length with the south end at Yaquina Head and the north end at Otter Rock, the site of Devils Punch Bowl State Natural Area. The northern beach is the site of Beverly Beach State Park and the community of Beverly Beach. The beach has no obvious break delineating what would seem to be Beverly Beach, though Wade Creek is a likely candidate. The nearly ten foot tidal range and seasonally-varying slope of the beach can cause the sandy beach to completely disappear at times; at other times it can be hundreds of feet wide. The beach is bounded by U.S. Route 101.
The name is from a Chinook Jargon word for "elk". The area is rich with geologic history.[7]
Newport Performing Arts Center
Concerts and shows, Concert hall, Performing arts, Theater
Address: 777 W Olive St, 97365 Newport
Newport Visual Arts Center
Museum, Shopping, Art gallery
Address: 777 NW Beach Dr, 97365-3565 Newport
Hatfield Marine Science Center
Research institute in Newport, Oregon. The Hatfield Marine Science Center is a marine science research and education center next to Yaquina Bay of the Pacific Ocean in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is operated by Oregon State University in cooperation with five state and federal agencies co-located on site. Named after Mark Hatfield, a former U.S. Senator from Oregon, the HMSC occupies a 49-acre site in Newport.[8]
Roger Yost Bay Street Gallery
Art gallery, Museum, Shopping
Address: 859 SW Bay Blvd # 1, 97365 Newport