This winter season 2026 is the best that I can remember in recent years for things to do in Palm Beach. You’ve recently read here about the Rembrandt exhibit at the Norton Museum and the Degas prints at the Society of the Four Arts but here are some new “finds” you won’t want to miss. And then there are the “tried and true”  which I just updated in case you want to check them out while you’re there.  Here are my  finds, places to put on your list of things to do. Wondering about the best restaurants in Palm Beach? Check out my updated list by clicking here.

Remember the incredible windows at Barney’s New York? They were decorated by the legendary Simon Doonan for decades, the man hailed by Women’s Wear Daily as “the diminutive doyenne of display”. He has a display installation titled ‘Flagler à La Mode’ In Palm Beach at the current exhibition at The Flagler Museum’s May I Help You, Madame?  The Making of the Modern Department Store. On  view from now through May 24, 2026, the  exhibition explores the rise of the department store as one of the most influential, and transformative, institutions of modern urban life. Emerging in 19th-century Paris with innovations like Le Bon Marché, the department store quickly became a global phenomenon, reshaping the landscape of commerce, architecture, gender roles, and public space. American interpretations, from Lord & Taylor and Bergdorf Goodman to regional powerhouses like Wanamaker’s, adapted the model to suit a rapidly modernizing society, blending luxury, mass consumption, and spectacle.

At the heart of this transformation was the female figure, both behind and in front of the counter. The “shopgirl” became a new symbol of working-class aspiration, navigating structured employment in elegant surroundings while carving out pathways toward economic independence. Simultaneously, department stores courted the female consumer with unprecedented sophistication, constructing new ideals of femininity through fashion, leisure, and consumption.

And while  you’re there, check out the wonderful shop. They also have an intriguing lecture series.

The Flagler Museum, 1 Whitehall Way, Palm Beach, FL.

A jewel of a museum and now with one of their best exhibits is the Morikami Museum and Japanese Garden. It’s in Delray Beach, Palm Beach County, an easy stop on the way to or from Palm Beach. The current exhibit is “Light as Air:  the Buoyant Sculptures by Mariko Kusumoto. Kusumoto has an impressive pedigree that includes works in many of the world’s leading museums as well as having created pieces for Parisian fashion designer John Paul Gaultier for his spring/summer collection 2019. The exhibit features works made by pinching and folding fabric, a traditional Japanese art form, that is designed to look like marine life and flowers. It is fashioned into everything from necklaces and earrings to sculptures. Accompanying that exhibit is another showing bamboo as light fixtures. If you haven’t been to the Morikami, besides the art space, there’s an exhibit of a tea house, a wonderful shop and gardens with a mile long walk through rock gardens, a house with bonsai, streams, ponds, waterfalls and of course lush vegetation. The exhibit runs until April 5.

Thanks to my membership in Partners for Art + Design, I  found out about the Bunker Artspace, a private art space in West Palm Beach, presenting rotating exhibitions of the Beth Rudin DeWoody Collection. The Art Deco Bunker showcases a vast range of contemporary art, iconic pieces of furniture, and other curiosities in a 1920s toy factory and utilized as a munitions armory during World War II. A visit is by invitation and scheduled private tours.

The Collection includes works by leading contemporary artists, “while always pushing beyond ‘the greatest hits’ to deliver a more complete view of contemporary art today”.

This season, the 2025/2026 Guest Curator, Marie Watt  presents Companion Species (Witness), an exhibition that highlights the interconnectedness between humans, other species, and the land, while presenting an incredible range of Indigenous artists in conversation with artists across all backgrounds.

In addition, the 2025/2026 Bunker Installation includes an expansive, multi-space exhibition titled Beyond the Rainbow, which honors the LGBTQ+ community and its impact at this pivotal moment and in this crucial place, Florida.

For more information, click here.

From now through April 26 is  Palm Beach International Polo Season.The world’s premier polo players, and polo enthusiasts head to The Palm Beaches for top-level competition . Located in Wellington, the National Polo Center presents weekly and often daily events.  For more information including a schedule of events, click here

If you haven’t seen it yet, there’s still time to see the exhibits of the 17 Rembrandts,  and works by Frans Hals and Vermeer at the Norton Museum. For more information, click here. A great shop too.

D Brett Benson Inc Vintage Jewelry in West Palm Beach has one of the largest collections of designer vintage costume jewelry in the country. This includes the biggest names from the turn of the century to the mid to late 1980’s. We’re talking thousands of pieces from the likes of Karl Lagerfeld, Chanel, Kenneth J Lane, YSL, Robert Lee Morris, Trifari and more. Also notable are their lucite handbags from the 50’s, not just in the usual transparent models, but also, mother of pearl, black and light blue. Jewelry prices range from $395 to $9500. Nearby is antiques row with plenty to shops for the home.

The Society of The Four Arts is a gem with its reliably very good exhibits, lovely garden with 20 sculptures by world renowned artists, and a notable lecture series. As I wrote earlier, it now has an exhibit of Degas prints.

Nearby is the expanded Ann Norton Sculpture Gardens, well worth a visit. Besides the delightful sculpture filled tropical gardens and orchid house, there are art and craft exhibits, and a shop with gift items and books related to the exhibits.

Prestigious international art galleries, some here year round and others that  set up shop for from a few months in winter season to the spring. We’re talking Sotheby’s,  Pace, Acquavella.  And they have serious exhibits with big name artists. They join permanent galleries such as Gavlak, Brintz and others. The galleries are at Royal Poinciana Plaza , Royal Poinciana Way neighborhood, Worth Avenue.

Of course, you’ve heard about Worth Avenue, the original fine shopping and eating destination in Palm Beach.Besides luxury brands, art and antique galleries, and the traditional high end clothing and jewelry stores, there’s a fresh new collection of stores, branches of popular shops hailing from Cannes to Nantucket and Greece. .

The  high end shopping competition for Worth Avenue, and a stop I never miss when in Palm Beach is The Royal Poinciana Plaza designed by John Volk, architect to America’s royal families like the Vanderbilts, DuPonts, Fords and Pulitzers. It’s built around a handsome garden courtyard with plenty of seating plus there’s plenty of parking. Find 50 brands in everything from fashion and beauty/wellness, to home furnishings and both casual eateries including a deli and a fine dining restaurant. There are both traditional brands like Hermes and Yves St Laurent, but also, less usual designers including Australian label Zimmermann (love their clothes) and Kirna Zabete who began in New York’s SoHo, to Cremieux from St. Tropez and Israeli designer Nili Lotan. Completing the lineup is a shop for bike rentals.

The Kravis Center for the Performing Arts is offering live performances with social distancing and a lecture series.

Another select shopping street, more casual than Worth Avenue, is Royal Poinciana Way with some wonderful fashion boutiques that dress the town’s most elegant ladies — Diane Firsten (think Brunello Cucinelli but for my taste, better), Couture & More,   and eating spots. Check out the passageways and neighborhood for more “finds”, and don’t miss Main Street, a shop with oh so stylish items for home and kitchen as well as gifts. Owned by The Breakers Hotel, it also includes a coffee shop with tempting baked goods.

One of my most valued “finds”  was Leslie Diver of Island Living Tours and her drive, walk, bike or talk tours of Palm Beach. She entertains and educates on the history, architecture and skinny on residents, famous and infamous, in her tours.  We took the Estate Section/Historic  Worth Avenue vias tour. You go down private roads you’d never know existed, with gorgeous homes you can actually see (unlike in other places where they’re hidden behind hedges). Then there’s the story behind the people and architecture in the passageways off of Worth Avenue.

Diver, whose background includes 10 years on the Architectural Review Commission and Landmarks Preservation Commission,  as well as working as a personal assistant to big monied residents, has a unique perspective and amazing stories. In fact, her commentary on Henry Flagler includes juicy details you won’t hear in the Flagler Museum! You can rent a bike at the Palm Beach Bicycle Trail Shop located in the Royal Poinciana Plaza, the meeting place, or bring your own, as the tour doesn’t include bikes. Other offerings include the Best of Palm Beach walking tour, Island Tour, drive or bike architecture tour and a Worth Avenue and Antique Row tour. She also gives talks for groups. Cost of the driving tours depend on the group size. For more information and to book, click here.