If like me you didn't know that Rhode Island was a state then shame on you although in our defence it is pretty small at just 48 miles long. Despite the name, Rhode Island is actually made up of around thirty separate islands but with almost 400 miles of coastline it was a prime location in the past for whalers, smugglers and the thriving 'triangle trade' that swapped rum for African slaves and West Indian molasses. Nowadays it's very much the province of the yachting and tennis set. In the state capital, Providence, take a wander along the historic Benefit Street where the city's history seems to have been compressed into one mile-long tree-lined stretch with pristine elegant colonial houses and mansions many of which are open to the public during the spring Festival of Historic Homes. The town's name was founder Roger Willianm's tribute to God for his "merciful providence unto me in my distress".

Thirty miles further south Newport is home to the summer 'cottages' of the rich and famous. You'll find the most extravagant examples in and around Bellevue Avenue, Ocean Drive and Harrison Avenue. The choicest include the childhood home of Jackie Kennedy, Hammersmith Farm, which she later shared with husband John, 'The Breakers' built by the industrialist and philanthropist Cornelius Vanderbilt and the Astor's 19th century Beechwood Mansion.