What to see and do in Palm Beach and West Palm Beach—and where to stay
by Irene Daria
NOTE: This page is still under construction
Getting oriented
Palm Beach is an extraordinarily upscale island bordered by the Atlantic Ocean on the east and the pretty Intracoastal Waterway—with its lovely yachts and marinas—on the west. The island runs parallel to West Palm Beach, which is directly across the Intracoastal Waterway. Four bridges connect the two Palm Beaches. To help you get oriented, here is a map of some points of interest.
MAP IMAGE IS IS BEING WORKED ON!!! BUT THE LINK TO THE MAP IS GOOD. (YOU WILL FIND LINK LOWER DOWN.)
You can plot any sights or restaurants you want to visit into the above map at this link. Here is the map key starting at the top right on Palm Beach Island.
1. The Breakers Hotel.
2. Worth Avenue.
3. Mar-a-Lago. President Trump’s club and Florida residence.
4. Four Seasons Resort.
5. Lake Worth Beach.
6. The Southside neighborhood. If you want a quiet area with easy access to everything, I would highly recommend getting an Airbnb here.
7. City Place.
8. Clematis Street is the heart of downtown West Palm. Check out the rooftop bar and restaurant at The Ben hotel for a great view of the marina. Then take a walk in the waterfront park. This is the location of the Palm Beach boat show and the art and music festivals.
Best places to stay in Palm Beach or West Palm Beach
Best oceanfront resorts
If you want to be on the ocean (and are up for the splurge), The Four Seasons or The Breakers are your best bets. I have been lucky enough to stay at both places several times. Check out my post on this first-world question: Is it better to stay at the Four Seasons or The Breakers?
Best location for an Airbnb in West Palm Beach
Be VERY careful when choosing your Airbnb location. West Palm Beach is very large and has some less desirable areas. Choose a place east of Dixie Highway/US-1 for optimal safety and convenience. The first Airbnb I reserved (and, fortunately, canceled) was near Riviera Beach on Singer Island. Parts of Singer Island are very pretty, and parts are pretty iffy. We checked out the Airbnb we canceled to see if it was a possibility for future visits, and its outdoor area was like something from a third-world country. And Riviera Beach, although quite pretty, was too crowded and had too many radios playing for us.
This is where we almost stayed!
This is where we ended up staying. And the price was about the same as the place in Riviera Beach!
The Airbnb we stayed in was a private suite attached to the owner’s home in the Southside neighborhood. We had exclusive use of the pool and backyard. The homes in our immediate area were small, but very pretty and well-maintained. The Intracoastal was a short walk away, and as we approached the water, the houses became more and more beautiful. We loved strolling past the gorgeous homes landscaped with bougainvillea north of Hunter Street and East of South Olive Avenue and along the wide pedestrian walkway paralleling the Intracoastal. Click here to see our Airbnb listing online.
Which neighborhood is best for an Airbnb rental in West Palm Beach:
Click here for an article that will help you decide which neighborhood is best for you in West Palm Beach.
The side streets in Southside were practically devoid of traffic, so it was very quiet. We were so grateful for our little oasis. It was peaceful and perfectly located for exploring all of the below…
Best things to see and do in Palm Beach and West Palm Beach
Explore the charming alleys and courtyards along Worth Avenue
Worth Avenue is a luxury shopping street lined with exclusive stores and with more parked Bentleys and Maybachs than you’ll ever seen in one place! But that’s not what makes it special. What gives Worth Avenue its charm are the European-feeling alleys and courtyards you’ll discover behind the stores. The alleys are called “vias” (Italian for “street” or “road”) and they were created by visionary—and quite eccentric—architect Addison Mizner. Each via is unique in how it blends different Mediterranean architectural styles, and each is home to various shops, cafes, or restaurants with outdoor seating. They are truly a pleasure to walk through. For wandering, I recommend going during the day so you can fully see the vias’ charms.
Make sure to check out #1 Via Mizner. The arch in the photo is the entrance to Via Mizner and the building on the left was his home.
The entrance to #1 Via Mizner is the first door on the left in the alley. Peek inside and you will see a pet pig happily sleeping on a pet bed.
At the end of the courtyard, you will find Pizza Al Fresco’s charming outdoor patio which houses the grave of Mizner’s pet monkey. If you want to eat here, come at night when it is at its prettiest and temper your expectations about the food, which is OK but not exactly stellar.
Take a historic walking tour along Worth Avenue.
This well-regarded walking tour is given every Wednesday at 10:30 AM from November to April. You’ll learn about Worth Avenue’s origins, architecture, and landmarks, and hear stories about some of its famous residents. If you can’t make the tour, click here for an excellent history of Worth Avenue.
Best walk to see the Worth Avenue neighborhood:
Start your walk at the Clock Tower at the eastern end of the street in front of Municipal Beach. (This is a pretty public beach that is free and open to all.)
Follow Worth Avenue—making sure to check out the vias as you go—until it ends at the Intracoastal Waterway.
Turn right, and look for the paved walking path along the Intracoastal.
Yachts along the walking path along the Intracoastal.
The lovely walking path continues.
Follow the walking path to the end and check out the banyan trees.
Walk back along the street (as opposed to on the paved walking path) and turn left onto Australian Avenue.
Take Australian Avenue to the Brazilian Court Hotel. Admire the pretty houses along the way and check out the hotel’s well-regarded restaurant, Café Boulud. Its outdoor patio is the prettiest in Palm Beach.
Turn left as you exit the hotel, then turn right and follow that street back to Worth Avenue.
Visit the best beaches in Palm Beach and West Palm Beach
Here are our picks for…
The most beautiful beach in the Palm Beach area: It’s a tie between…
1. The beach at the Four Seasons Resort (which you can access by parking at Lake Worth Beach, see below) and
2. John D. MacArthur Beach State Park at the north end of Singer Island. At the latter, you walk along a long and lovely boardwalk to get to the ocean. The beach is beautiful and lined with nature as opposed to high-rises. (You hear a lot of “Oh wows” when people first see it.)
Note: The restrooms at John MacArthur Beach are a long walk from the beach itself.
TIP: While you are on Singer Island, check out Sailfish Marina.
They have a very nice outdoor restaurant overlooking a lovely marina, and their beach shop is very well curated with nice dresses and home goods. They also offer a “now and then” cruise by water taxi that talks about the yachts and homes of the wealthy. The cruise sounds like fun and is on my list of things to do if we return.
Best local beach in Palm Beach: Lake Worth Beach.
This is a lovely, wide, ocean beach located just south of the Four Seasons Resort on Palm Beach. It gets busy, but all you have to do is turn left and walk towards the Four Seasons for a quieter experience. The beach has restrooms, paid parking, and a pavilion with a pizzeria, a sit-down restaurant, and a Kilwin’s. There is also a long pier that is home to a popular bar-food type restaurant called Benny’s on the Beach.
Best beach for a quick fix of the ocean: Municipal Beach.
400 S. Ocean Blvd. (Where Worth Avenue begins at the Clocktower.)
This is a narrow, city beach fronted by high-rise apartment buildings, but if you face the ocean, you’ll never know that.
Note: There is one public access point and, if you go for a walk here, you will need to return to that point to exit since the rest of the beach has access only to private homes.
Have brunch at Café Boulud.
The outdoor courtyard at Cafe Bouloud.
I am not usually a brunch person, but eating brunch OUTSIDE here is so delightful that I would put it on your list of must-dos.
A word of warning: As with most of the restaurants in Palm Beach (where I have found the spicing to have been tamped down to meet the needs of a salt and spice-avoiding older population), you are coming for the experience and not necessarily the food. But brunch here is SO pretty and the staff is so nice that it is worth it.
I am a scone lover and was REALLY looking forward to having them here. (They were the main reason we came.) Sadly, I sent them back to the kitchen because they were raw inside. The waiter reported that the chef said that’s what they were supposed to be like because they were just baked. (??????) Even if they had not been raw, I would not have been a fan beause the outsides (which were fully baked) tasted more like biscuits than scones.
The good news: They looked very pretty and the kitchen was kind enough to remove them from the bill. We did not ask them to do that.
I also ordered the lemon ricotta pancakes. Most impressive was how piping hot they were when they came out and how perfectly cooked. But again, almost no flavor. If they had upped the lemon flavor, they would have been great.
My husband ordered a Reuben sandwich, and he enjoyed it.
Another great brunch option: The Four Seasons.
Make sure you sit outside by the pool. They have a very nice buffet, and I love their mango yogurt with banana bread.