City of Portsmouth Bike Tour - Visit Historic Landmarks + Sites

15 Reviews |

Recommended by 100% of reviewers

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Badge of Excellence | Portsmouth, USA

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1 hour 45 minutes (approx.)

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Instant confirmation

Offered in: English

Overview

Great family-friendly tour. This bike tour experience seamlessly blends history, art, culture, and local Portsmouth stories. This tour is guaranteed to satisfy your love of culture, history, and preservation. You and your guide will ride 6-8 miles in Portsmouth, into quiet, tucked-away neighborhoods, stopping at historic landmarks.

Your guide will share fascinating stories about the maritime history, fishing, and the historic preservation that paved the way for historic House museums, and Strawbery Banke: a collection of preserved 18th-20th century homes during Urban Renewal.

-Pedal to the North End and hear the stories that bring this former neighborhood to life
-Visit The Hill, where 19th-century homes were saved and moved during Urban Renewal
-Explore the riverfront of Prescott Park a former run-down neighborhood turned into a performance hub
-Pedal to Little Harbor and hear stories about the royalty at the Wentworth‑Coolidge Mansion
-Visit the Washington’s slave Ona Judge mural

What's Included

Helmet
Use of bicycle

Tips and gratuity

Meeting Location

Meeting point

43 Middle Street
Portsmouth, NH 03801, USA

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Detailed check-in instructions, including the exact address, are provided with your booking confirmation.

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

What To Expect

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Our secure website provides real-time availability, instant confirmation, and free, no-hassle cancellations up to 24 hours before your tour begins.

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The Hill

Highlights of the Hidden Neighborhoods of Portsmouth City View Bike Tour:Former North End / Italian "Little Italy" The Hill South End and Prescott Park Strawbery Banke Wentworth Coolidge Mansion Frank Jones Brewery - West End Creek Neighborhood - Christian Shore

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Portsmouth

The destruction and preservation hits Little Italy. There are over a dozen colorful wooden houses are squeezed up against the towering Marriot and the Hilton Hotels. The concept, in the early 1970s, was that dilapidated buildings bred ragged people. After World War II, most cities demolish thousands of "blighted" urban areas across the nation. Most were replaced by high-rise apartments, shopping malls, and hotels. In Portsmouth, we lost much of historic Vaughan Street and replaced it with a parking garage and open lots. We will pass by a collection of preserved historic homes saved by urban renewal and move into this area for preservation.

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Strawbery Banke Museum

Strawbery Banke Museum began as a “save our history” effort by the citizens of Portsmouth. In the late 1950s, Puddle Dock, an area of dilapidated homes near the Piscataqua River was targeted for urban renewal. All the “substandard” homes in Puddle Dock — some of which dated back to the 1600s — were to torn down and replaced with modern buildings. That was until city librarian Dorothy Vaughn addressed the Portsmouth Rotary Club one day in 1957.That day Vaughn “laid it on the line” for the Rotary Club, telling them that every time one of the old houses was torn or an antique piece of Portsmouth furniture shipped out of town, the city was losing its past. The Rotary Club was galvanized into action, and while Puddle Dock did undergo urban renewal, much of it has been saved as a historic museum.

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Wentworth-Coolidge Mansion

Explore the beautiful Little HARBOR

7 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Wentworth-Gardner House

The Wentworth Lear Historic Houses are a pair of adjacent historic houses on the south waterfront in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Both buildings and an 18th-century warehouse were owned by the Wentworth Lear Historic Houses and were operated as a house museum. Only the Wentworth-Gardner house is a museum.

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Prescott Park

Prescott Park is a ten-plus acre waterfront park in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, United States. The land was purchased in the 1930s by two sisters, Josie and Sarah Prescott. The sisters, public school teachers, had used an inheritance to systematically purchase and clear properties along the Piscataqua River.

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Strawbery Banke Museum

Strawbery Banke is an outdoor history museum located in the South End historic district of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. It is the oldest neighborhood in New Hampshire to be settled by Europeans, and the earliest neighborhood remaining in the present-day city of Portsmouth.

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Major General Fitz John Porter Statue

Porter was a prominent UnionBrevet Major General during the American Civil War, celebrated for his role in the Peninsula Campaign but infamously court-martialed and cashiered for his actions at the Second Battle of Bull Run in 1862. A highly regarded officer in the pre-war army, he was eventually exonerated and reinstated to the army in 1886 after a long campaign to clear his name. During the Second Battle of Manassas (Second Bull Run) in August 1862, Porter's V Corps was transferred to Maj. Gen. John Pope's Army of Virginia. Porter, who held a low opinion of Pope, was accused of disobeying orders to attack on August 29, 1862, arguing that the attack would have been futile against strong Confederate positions. Following the Union defeat, a court-martial found Porter guilty of disobedience and misconduct, resulting in his dismissal from the Army on January 21, 1863.

8 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

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Additional Info

Confirmation is instant and will be received at time of booking
Public transportation options are available nearby
Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
Suitable for all physical fitness levels

Specialized infant seats are available
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 12 travelers
Operated by a business

Frequently Asked Questions

(7)

Q: What is the cancellation policy for the City of Portsmouth Bike Tour – Visit Historic Landmarks + Sites?

A: You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the tour for a full refund. For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the tour start time.If you cancel less than 24 hours before the tour start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.Any changes made less than 24 hours before the tour start time will not be accepted.Cut-off times are based on the tour local time (EDT).This tour requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund. Read more Apr 2025

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the tour for a full refund.

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Activity code: C-172200P5

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Reviews

5.00

15 reviews

Average 5.00 out of 5 stars based on 15 traveler reviews collected by Cool Destinations and partner sites such as Trustpilot, Viator, and TripAdvisor

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The answers provided below were previously given in response to questions from Cool Destinations customers.

Q: What is the cancellation policy for the City of Portsmouth Bike Tour – Visit Historic Landmarks + Sites?

A:

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the tour for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the tour start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the tour start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the tour start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the tour local time (EDT).
This tour requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund.

Apr 2025

Q: What's included in the price?

A:

The following is included:

Helmet.
Use of bicycle.

The following is NOT included:

Tips and gratuity.

Apr 2025

Q: What is the weather cancellation policy?

A:

This tour requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.

Apr 2025

Q: What is the minimum age for this tour?

A:

The minimum age to participate is 2. This tour requires at least one adult to accompany children..

Apr 2025

Q: My date is not available in the calendar, I am just checking to see if it is available?

A:

If a date or time is not listed on the calendar, it’s sold out or unavailable for another reason. Support cannot assist further if a date or time is not on the calendar.

If you find a date and time that works for you, book it NOW because things always sell out at this time of year.

Apr 2025

Q: Is this an accessible tour?

A:

Accessibility information for the City of Portsmouth Bike Tour - Visit Historic Landmarks + Sites is as follows:

Public transportation options are available nearby
Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
Suitable for all physical fitness levels

Apr 2025

Q: Where is the meeting point for this activity?

A:

Detailed check-in instructions – including meeting point address, Google map, and parking information – for City of Portsmouth Bike Tour – Visit Historic Landmarks + Sites will be included in your confirmation email from Cool Destinations. Please be sure to double and triple check your email address is correct at checkout so this important email makes its way to you!

Mar 2024