Long eclipsed by its more glamorous neighbor across the Lake Worth Lagoon, West Palm Beach has pulled off a full-blown identity shift. This isn’t the old Protestant money that built Palm Beach. It’s startup money, crypto money and New York exodus money. They came for the taxes and stayed for something they didn’t expect: a real city. Historically, West Palm was always where, for lack of a better phrase, the help lived. Henry Flagler designed Palm Beach County that way during the Gilded Age: paradise for millionaires on the island, worker housing on the mainland. That dynamic held for a century. Then, developers noticed the underutilized waterfront. Artists discovered neighborhoods full of 1920s Mediterranean Revival houses selling for nothing. Chefs realized you could open without waiting three generations for a permit.
Now, Goldman Sachs has offices here. So does J.P. Morgan. Vanderbilt is building a graduate campus, and the Norton Museum of Art got a Norman Foster expansion. The upshot of all this bigwig migration—and a 60 percent jump in home prices over four years—is a South Florida city in full bloom. Nothing captures the shift quite like the buzziest openings, from Mr. C’s Bellini Rooftop Lounge to Biba Social, a Riviera-chic members-only club debuting this winter in the historic Hotel Biba. With high-end boutique suites and a club-owned boat, it’s bottling the kind of discretion and decadence Palm Beach once monopolized.
So skip the bridge and Mar-a-Lago tourist traffic and stay in West Palm—it’s only 10 minutes from the Palm Beach International Airport, anyway. Palm Beach still has the beach and the pedigree. West Palm has everything else, including the restaurants that close at 2 a.m., the galleries that show artists under 80 years old and the shops you can afford. This guide shows you where the new Florida money actually spends its time.
The West Palm Beach Travel Guide for Your Next Getaway
Where to Stay
The Ben, Autograph Collection
- 251 N Narcissus Ave, West Palm Beach, FL 33401
While Palm Beach’s grand hotels command nightly rates of $800 or more with century-old formality, The Ben delivers modern luxury at half the price. This Autograph Collection property occupies prime waterfront real estate across from Palm Harbor Marina. Eight floors, 208 rooms and genuinely pet-friendly. The Ben also hosts downtown West Palm Beach’s improbable winter ice rink—its 30,000 skaters last season proved Floridians will queue for anything frozen. Junior suites offer legitimate Intracoastal views with more square footage than the Brazilian Court and the Colony Hotel’s standards, while Spruzzo rooftop owns the eighth floor entirely, including a pool, bar and incredible sunset views. New for the year is The Ben’s exclusive partnership with PorterYachts, which provides fully crewed yacht charters, something even The Breakers and the White Elephant can’t match. When you’re not sailing, the hotel’s location puts you within walking distance of everything that matters after dark.
The Ben
The Belgrove Resort and Spa
- 2020 Banyan Resort Way, West Palm Beach, FL 33401
For those sidestepping the downtown frenzy, West Palm’s splashiest debut landed in March 2025, with 150 rooms and the city’s only official resort designation. Twenty-two for-sale villas are slated to arrive by year’s end—ideal for anyone looking to justify their winter escape. Every suite comes with butler service. Developed by Access Real Estate (of Four Seasons Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat fame) and Witkoff, the property marks their Florida flagship, purposefully set back from the waterfront scrum. The real draw is exclusive guest access to Dutchman’s Pipe, Jack Nicklaus’ ultra-private golf course next door (green fees start around $400, plus a caddie). Five on-site restaurants round it out, including Society 48’s all-day brasserie and Deep End’s casual poolside setup.
The Belgrove Resort and Spa
Where to Eat
Proper Grit
- 251 N Narcissus Ave, West Palm Beach, FL 33401
Chef Daniel Pundik runs The Ben hotel’s ground-floor operation, pulling from local farms and boats docked across the street. Weekend brunch stretches until 3 p.m.—the lobster Benedict with key lime hollandaise justifies the wait. Their Proper Weekend Tea service ($65) delivers finger sandwiches and bottomless champagne, proving high tea works even when it’s 85 degrees outside. The exceptional wagyu steak au poivre comes with potato pavé and truffle frites that cost more than your Uber here, and are so worth it.
Proper Grit
Lamarina
- 4050 N Flagler Dr, West Palm Beach, FL 33407
Tucked within Safe Harbor Rybovich Marina, Lamarina is where yacht crews and in-the-know locals refuel between runs to Bimini and back. Equal parts polished and laid-back, the waterfront restaurant moves easily from crudo to ribeyes. The signature Lamarina Roll—king crab and salmon, torched tableside with truffle miso—leans indulgent without tipping over. Island Creek oysters arrive with a pineapple-jalapeño relish that strikes the perfect balance between sweet and heat. A butterflied branzino headlines mains, generous enough for two—or one with conviction.
Lamarina
Estiatorio Milos
- 170 Lakeview Ave One Flagler, 180 Lakeview Ave, West Palm Beach, FL 33401
Inside the landmark One Flagler building, Milos, which already operates a Miami outpost, as well, brings its signature Greek seafood ritual to West Palm’s waterfront, complete with a market-style fish display iced to perfection. You choose your catch and it’s grilled simply, finished with olive oil and lemon. The Milos Special, a towering stack of crisp-fried zucchini and eggplant with molten saganaki, is a must-order. Astakomakaronada—a decadent linguine laced with lobster and bisque—anchors the mains. A second-floor bar overlooks the Intracoastal Waterway, and the 200-bottle Greek wine list is deep in assyrtiko and xinomavro.
Estiatorio Milos
Mary Lou’s
- 250 Southern Blvd, West Palm Beach, FL 33405
Housed in a former tackle shop on Southern Boulevard, this velvet-drenched supper club channels namesake Mary Lou Curtis, the 1960s Palm Beach socialite behind Gatsby-grade soirées. Opened in January 2025, the nightlife vibe is a blend of dinner theater and local legend. Expect oysters Rockefeller, filet mignon and the already-iconic fried chicken and waffles at this hot spot. Order The Back Zip—a vodka, elderflower and champagne cocktail that winks at party dresses. Cabaret and jazz trios take the stage Thursday through Saturday, and the kitchen stays open until 1 a.m. on weekends.
Mary Lou’s
Where to Drink
Bar Capri
- 185 Banyan Blvd Rooftop, West Palm Beach, FL 33401
Tucked above Elisabetta’s on Banyan, this Riviera-minded perch attracts Negroni loyalists and marina voyeurs in equal measure. Think Amalfi by way of West Palm: house limoncello spritzes, arancini straight from the fryer and burrata draped in prosciutto. The 80-seat terrace transforms from chill to shoulder-to-shoulder by 6 p.m. on weekends, so aim for golden hour when the skyline softens and the aperitivo plates begin to arrive.
Bar Capri
The Blind Monk
- 655 S Olive Ave, West Palm Beach, FL 33401
No sign, just a black door and the feeling you’re in the right place. Inside, there are 45 seats, a playlist that slides from Bill Evans to Björk, and expert bartenders who nod to legendary records with their cocktail names, like the Yellow Submarine, which blends gin, Chartreuse and butterfly pea. Meanwhile, the wine list features small growers and curious regions.
The Blind Monk
Cove Club
- 4444 N Flagler Dr, West Palm Beach, FL 33407
If Soho House and the Eden Roc had a Floridian child, it would look like Cove Club. A private waterfront escape with its own stretch of sand and an unlisted restaurant helmed by a Noma alum, this is West Palm’s most guarded hideaway. Poolside service runs on martinis and discretion, and the guest list reads like a cap table. Good luck getting in—membership is by referral, and they’re not taking walk-ins.
Cove Club
Where to Shop
CityPlace
- 700 S Rosemary Ave, Suite 200, West Palm Beach, FL 33401
Downtown West Palm’s reinvention in one walkable block. CityPlace blends Mediterranean‑Venetian architecture with palm‑lined promenades full of boutiques, cafés and rooftop lounges. Anchored by the 1926 Harriet Himmel building, the downtown area plaza becomes even more culinary‑centric when Eataly opens later in 2025. It might not be Worth Avenue, but design lovers roam Restoration Hardware, Design Within Reach and sleek home stores; locals grab cappuccinos at sidewalk cafés and page through real‑estate listings while the fountains are choreographed to music. At night it’s lively, by day it’s relaxed. And it’s always connected—it’s also next door to Brightline, the high-speed train that connects West Palm, Miami and Fort Lauderdale.
CityPlace
Antique Row Art and Design District
- 6910 S Dixie Hwy, West Palm Beach, FL 33405
Art and history lovers will adore Antique Row, a world-renowned stretch of over 40 antique shops and art galleries along South Dixie Highway. Estate sale Fridays bring vultures in Hermès scarves, fighting over Kennedy-adjacent silverware, while that mid-century credenza you’re eyeing? It probably hosted cocaine parties in the ’80s. Best finds surface when snowbirds’ heirs need quick liquidation. One dealer specializes in objects with “provenance”—code for “someone famous touched this.”
Antique Row Art and Design District
Northwood Village
A few miles north of the Clematis Street core, this emerging arts district keeps the chains out and the character in. Northwood is almost like Wynwood’s weird younger cousin, but with fewer crypto bros, more artisans, and hand-thrown ceramics. Vintage shops sling rare vinyl and mid-century tchotchkes, while local galleries sell art you don’t need to “get.” The Spanish-Mediterranean bones remain, splashed with murals and anchored by coffee shops that know your alt milk.
Northwood Village
What to Do
Norton Museum of Art
- 1450 S Dixie Hwy, West Palm Beach, FL 33401
One of the Southeast’s most prestigious art institutions, the Norton Museum anchors West Palm’s cultural scene with a formidable collection of American, Chinese, European and contemporary art. Following a $100 million Norman Foster-designed expansion in 2019, the must-visit museum now features a lush sculpture garden and airy spaces that rival those of any major-city museum. Don’t miss the rotating exhibitions that draw works from MoMA, the Met and beyond.
Norton Museum of Art
Ann Norton Sculpture Gardens
- 253 Barcelona Rd, West Palm Beach, FL 33401
Tucked into the El Cid neighborhood, this hidden gem was once the private home of sculptor Ann Weaver Norton (yes, the same Norton whose name is on the museum). Her monumental brick and granite sculptures, some towering 15 feet, are scattered throughout the two-acre garden filled with rare palms and cycads. The house itself, a 1920s-era bungalow, remains largely intact, giving visitors a glimpse into the artist’s studio and life.
Courtesy of Visit Florida
