8 reasons New Bedford is a better destination than Newport

I love spending time in Newport. It's an amazing city with beautiful mansions, entertainment and sailing. This article is not a slam on Newport, but rather an attempt to point out why you should consider spending a day in New Bedford this spring/summer instead of Newport. 1. New Bedford has better sunsets and sunrises - New Bedford was listed on Expedia's '20 places to find America’s best sunsets' - Newport wasn't. New Bedford made the list with Hawaii, the Grand Canyon, Miami and Seattle. Fort Taber is probably the best place to catch a sunrise or sunset and it has an amazing military museum. The south end New Bedford beaches are also great spots and just a minute away from Fort Taber. Anywhere on the New Bedford waterfront and the Elm Street parking garage are also excellent places for a sunrise. Here's a sunset I captured in the south end during a vigil: 2. New Bedford has a better art scene - There are countless articles over the past few years recognizing New Bedford as a top art city in the United States. Bustle listed New Bedford at #6 for The Best Cities For Young Artists: If You Live Here, You Don't Have To Starve. Most large cities have a great art scene, but that's how you get the term starving artist. New Bedford is a very affordably place to live. New Bedford was listed on Expedia's travel blog as one of America’s most artistic towns. New Bedford was also featured on Matadoe Networks 'The 10 most artistic towns in America' and listed on Complex's '10 Cities That Creatives Should Move to That Are Not NYC or L.A.' Movoto also listed New Bedford in their 'The 5 Best Cities in Massachusetts for the Arts' article. When it comes to art, very few places compare to New Bedford in America. This video shows art activity during a typical AHA! New Bedford. 3. New Bedford is a shorter drive with less traffic and better parking - If you live in Massachusetts, New Bedford is easy to get to. Driving into or out of Newport on a summer day can be as bad as the Boston rush hour. Why start off a great summer day with stress? Not only can it be an hour drive to get to Newport, traffic congestion driving into Newport is the norm in the summer. Driving into New Bedford through Route 6 or Route 18 is rarely congested. The worst part of Newport during the summer is the parking. Not only is it tough to find parking in Newport that isn't reserved for residents, the free parking is rare and the paid parking is expensive. New Bedford has lots of street parking and two large parking garages (on Elm Street and at the Zeiterion Theatre). Good luck finding parking in Newport during the busy season even if you are willing to pay. Want to stay overnight? You need to be a resident for most parking or pay a big fee to park in the tiny public parking spot. There are also no parking garages and no overnight parking in the metered spots in Newport. 4. New Bedford has better food, especially seafood - I enjoy eating in Newport and the food is not overly priced considering you are in a major tourist city. But the food is much better in New Bedford and you won't have to wait long to get a seat. There is no better place on earth to get scallops than in New Bedford. The scallops are larger and fresher in New Bedford restaurants. Most of the scallops I've eaten in Newport were the smaller bay scallops - I've rarely seen them served in New Bedford restaurants. Even if seafood weren't an option, New Bedford just has better food. Give me the rotisserie chicken at Novo Mundo, the Best Bacon burger at DNB Burgers, or a Portuguese steak at one of the many Portuguese restaurants in New Bedford over anything served in Newport. Here's some New Bedford food porn for you: 5. New Bedford has better year-round entertainment - The Zeiterion Theatre brings first class entertainment from around the world and Greasy Luck now provides amazing live entertainment. Head downtown and most nights you'll find fantastic live music. Just like Newport, the entertainment scene in New Bedford picks up in the summer. I'll put up bands and musicians like the Neal McCarthy Problem, The J.Kelley Band, Marcus Monteiro, The Pourmen and James Gangne up against what Newport can produce. In the summertime you'll find Jazz in the Custom House Park, live concerts on the State Pier and other seasonal entertainment that is comparable to Newport. One of things I most enjoy about New Bedford is the street music. Spend anytime downtown and you'll likely bump into a street musician. Here's a time I bumped into a singing pirate on Purchase Street. 6. New Bedford has a more interesting history - Newport is historic, but mostly for being a vacation spot for the wealthy to spend summers in their mansions. While New Bedford was once one of the richest cities in the world, it's history is based on hard working families building America through whaling, textiles and fishing. Check out our history articles to learn about New Bedford's past. New Bedford has museums dedicated to whaling, the fishing industry, glass and fire departments to name a few. Here's a look inside the New Bedford Glass Museum: Head over to one of the many antique centers in New Bedford and they offer more history than most museums. Here's a look inside the Antique Center at Wamsutta Place: 7. New Bedford has better parks - Fort Adams is a great spot, but Fort Taber is better. Both offer amazing views, but Fort Taber offers more activities. Fort Taber has a first-class military museum showcasing local veterans. Downtown New Bedford offers a historic park with cobblestone roads and visitors center. A walk on the cobblestone roads and viewing the amazing, historic architecture will bring you back to the era of whaling and underground railroads. Buttonwood Park is a very large park with lots of activities and monuments. You'll be able to enjoy some wildlife at the pond or learn about animals at the zoo. 8. New Bedford has more affordable, world class festivals - I love going to some of the Newport festivals, but they are not cheap. Spending more than a $100 on tickets seems to be the norm. New Bedford has a folk festival, jazz festival, Taste of South Coast, The Feast of the Blessed Sacrament, Oktober Festival and a host of other events that are very affordable. Check out our event calendar for things to do. Here's the Gin Blossoms playing at the Feast of the Blessed Sacrament a few years ago. Did I miss something? Have a counter point? Post a comment ...