Wayfinder Newport Gives Guests a Polaroid-Powered Way to Explore

Newport already gives visitors plenty to photograph, but Wayfinder Newport wants guests to pause before they start snapping. The boutique hotel has launched Going Analog, a new partnership with Polaroid that lets guests check out an instant film camera during their stay and explore the city with fewer retakes, fewer filters, and a more tangible kind of souvenir.

The idea fits a place where the best moments often happen between plans: a harbor walk that runs long, a beach picnic that stretches into golden hour, or a windy Cliff Walk photo that somehow becomes the favorite. Guests can use the camera at the hotel and around Newport, then leave one photo in the hotel’s guestbook at checkout as a small analog memento. 

Wayfinder has also created a Memory Menu to serve as a photography guide, giving guests a little inspiration without turning the day into an itinerary. The menu points travelers toward Newport scenes made for instant film, including sunset toasts at Newport Vineyards, vintage car cruises along coastal roads, afternoons at Bowen’s Wharf, shoreline picnics, walks along Cliff Walk and past the Gilded Age estates, and sails through Newport Harbor and Narragansett Bay.

The partnership arrives alongside Polaroid’s campaign, The Camera for an Analog Life, which nudges people to step away from screens and reconnect with the real world. Patricia Varella, brand and creative director at Polaroid, says, “We are analog creatures, built to connect through our senses but the more we lose ourselves in digital algorithms, the more we drift away from empathy and real connection.”

That sentiment makes sense in Newport, where the scenery doesn’t need much editing. A Polaroid asks for attention before the click, turning the crooked horizon, windblown hair, bright water, and imperfect timing into part of the keepsake instead of something to fix later.

Going Analog gives guests a low-pressure creative prompt: borrow the camera, wander with the Memory Menu, keep a few photos, and leave one small piece of the trip behind. The camera checkout is subject to availability. Visit Wayfinder Newport online for booking details, availability, and more information.