Updated April, 2023

Looking for things to do in Palm Beach? In the past few years I’ve been to Palm Beach 10 times, the latest visit lasting four days. Sometimes the visit includes beach time but usually not, and I have always found new discoveries like bike and walking tours, lots of eye candy, manage to do damage shopping, and fine dining. Plus, visits to  the Norton Museum and Society of The Four Arts are on my “must do” list  along with leading art galleries. Then there’s the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts, top cultural offerings too. 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.

My newest find  has one of the largest collections of designer vintage costume jewelry in the country. D Brett Benson Inc Vintage Jewelry in West Palm Beach has 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. Neaby 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.

The highly regarded Norton Museum of Art boasts an impressive permanent collection of more than 8,200 works in five curatorial departments: European, American, Chinese, Contemporary and Photography along with rotating exhibits. As Mr. W, an artist, said, the quality of the collection is such that even if you’ve seen it before, it’s well worth seeing again and again.  Plus, the architecture alone is worth a visit, by starchitect Lord Norman Foster. Other features include an indoor and outdoor café, sculpture garden,  and top notch shop filled with well curated items for the home, fashion accessories, and of course art books.

Nearby is the newly 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 new 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, Lehmann Maupin, Ben Brown Fine Arts, Paula Cooper.  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, Une Belle Trouvaille 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 bike tour of Palm Beach. She entertains and educates on the history, architecture and skinny on residents, famous and infamous, in her bike and driving tours.  We took the Estate Section/Historic vias on Worth Avenue. In the hour and a half, 6 mile ride, 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. Newest offering is an architecture tour, Strictly Architecture. She also offers a walking tour and gives talks for groups. Cost of the driving tours depend on the group size. For more information and to book, click here.

Flagler Museum, the not to be missed attraction, was formerly the winter home of Henry Morrison Flagler, a leading figure in America’s Gilded Age. The antique filled, frescoed, sumptuous mansion is well worth a visit just in itself, though it also offers appealing exhibits and has a large, very good shop.

 

Crave a spa treatment? Both The Breakers hotel and the Eau Palm Beach have top ranked spas. My favorite is the one at the Eau Palm Beach. Click here for my review of the spa and hotel.

An interesting information tidbit, I discovered that Palm Beach is an ideal place to look for a pre-owned luxury car. Makes sense with the HNW (high net worth individuals) snowbirds who buy a car for tooling around PB, racking up few miles, and then turn it in after the lease expires with very few miles.

Interested in checking out consignment shops for men and women? Check out this earlier post:

Consignment Shops: Palm Beach County

If you drove up from Miami or other points south, stop on the way home at The Boys Market in Delray Beach, a South Florida Experience and stock up on top produce, meats and gourmet items . Find out more:

The Boys Market, a South Florida Experience