Bristol, Rhode Island Harbor

Local Life

Helpful information about living in Bristol, RI and local life!

Roger Williams University's Main Campus is located in scenic Bristol, RI, nestled between Narragansett Bay to the West and Mount Hope Bay to the East.  

The Main Campus is only 20 miles from Providence, the Rhode Island state capital; 60 miles from Boston, MA; and 200 miles from New York City.  

RWU also has a metropolitan campus in downtown Providence, RI. This campus is home to our Master of Public Administration (M.P.A.), Leadership Graduate Certificate, and M.A. Biotechnology programs, along with the RWU Extension School.  

Vehicles 

Graduate students at RWU utilize personal vehicles or local bus service to access campus.  

Rideshare services are also available from Lyft and Uber. Personal Vehicles Graduate students can park personal vehicles in designated areas on campus.  

All graduate students attending courses during daytime hours at the Main Campus in Bristol are required to obtain a parking permit. 

Bus Service 

The RWU Bristol and Providence campuses are served by regional bus service provided by the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority(RIPTA). A public bus stop is located immediately in front of the Main Campus in Bristol and is served by the 60 and the 61x, bus routes. Students traveling from a distance will also utilize T.F. Green Airport in Warwick, RI, or Logan International Airport in Boston, MA.    

Airports 

RWU is served by two major airports. T.F.Green Airport (PVD) is located in Warwick, RI, and is approximately a 30-40 minute drive from the RWU Main Campus and 15 minutes from RWU Providence. Logan International Airport (BOS) is located in Boston, MA, and is approximately a one-hour drive from the RWU Main Campus. Both airports have regional, national, and international flight options.  

Rail Service 

Students who wish to travel to the area by train can utilize train services from Amtrak or the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA). Amtrak serves stations in Providence, RI, and Kingston, RI, on the Northeast Regional train with stops from Virginia Beach to Boston. Train stations in Providence and Wickford, RI, are served by the MBTA Providence/Stoughton line with service to southeastern Massachusetts and Boston. 

Use the map to explore things to do in the local area.  If you expand the map (use the [ ] button in the upper right), you can customize your view with things to do, restaurants, hotels, airports, and more. You can also select the arrow button in the upper left of the map window to view specific categories. 

  • Black Ice: clear ice, found on roads or paved surfaces
  • Booted: 1. To be removed from a building or event. 2. Have a lock placed on the wheel of one’s car due to not having paid parking tickets.
  • Breakdown Lane: Lane on the right side of the highway used for broken down vehicles. *Not for travel*
  • Bubbler: Water fountain or drinking fountain
  • Bureau: Dresser
  • Clicker: TV remote
  • Cumbys: shorthand for the convenience store Cumberland Farms
  • Blinker: car turning signal, also known as a directional
  • Dunks/Dunkin/Dunkies: shorthand for fast food/coffee shop Dunkin Donuts
  • Flurries: a small snow shower
  • Frappe: drink served with ice or frozen to a slush
  • Hamper: clothes/laundry basket
  • Hoodie: a hooded sweatshirt
  • Mad: synonym for very, i.e “mad cool”
  • Nor’easter: Strong winter storm/winter hurricane
  • Packie/Package Store: Liquor store
  • Pats: The New England Patriots (Football team)
  • Pockabook: Purse
  • “Regular” Coffee: Coffee made with milk and sugar
  • Rotary: traffic circle or roundabout
  • Slush: Partially melted snow or ice
  • Sox: Shorthand for the Boston Red Sox (Baseball team)
  • U-ie: a u-turn while driving, often used with the word bang or pop such as “Bang a uie/pop a u-ie”
  • Up/Down: a general direction one takes when going anywhere, i.e. “I’m going up to Maine” or “I’m headed down to the Cape.”
  • Wicked: very; or occasionally cool. Used indiscriminately, can modify anything. I.e. “Wicked pissa,“Wicked good, ”Wicked bad,” Wicked boring,” etc.
  1. Go for a walk at Colt State Park
  2. Attend an event sponsored by the Intercultural Center
  3. Cheer on an RWU team at a home game
  4. Take a walk on the Shell Path
  5. Take a picture with Swoop the mascot
  6. Have lunch at Baypoint
  7. Take a picture with the school sign
  8. Try a Del’s Lemonade
  9. Try coffee milk
  10. Take a walk through downtown Bristol
  11. Attend a Water Fire event in Providence
  12. Spend an afternoon at the Intercultural Center
  13. Visit Newport
  14. Try Sip-N-Dip
  15. Attend Global Fest
  16. Visit Providence Place Mall
  17. Spend a day in Newport
  18. Eat at a restaurant on Thayer Street
  19. Walk in downtown Bristol
  20. Take a picture of Mt. Hope Bridge