Florida tourist attractions

Palm Beach, Gold Coast

Sort of like the Hamptons but with less nightlife, this playground for the rich and famous is a society based on fundraisers, second homes (mansions), fine dining, and Beverly Hills-style shopping. If intervening is a bit out of your league, you’re certainly not alone. But you shouldn’t be scared either.

A walk on the beach is stunning, a slow stroll through the massive gated complexes (or a stroll through the Breakers Hotel) is the ultimate anthropology-based awe, and munching at one of the few affordable restaurants is a sobering reminder that you don’t everyone is a Rockefeller (note the real waitress and fast food cooks at Green’s Pharmacy). Love it or hate it, ‘the island,’ as it’s called, is a classic and inextricable part of Florida life.

The long, narrow island of Palm Beach lies between the Introcoastal Waterway, here called Lake Worth, and the Atlantic Ocean. It’s just east of West Palm Beach and those other communities that stretch out to the south. The main north-south artery is S County Rd (Hwy A1A), and two major bridges link downtown to the mainland, Flagler Memorial Bridge (Royal Poinciana Way). Further south, Southern Blvd and Atlantic Ave provide access to the island.

Downtown stretches from Royal Poinciana Way to Worth Ave, with most major sights scattered between. Prices tend to go up the further south you go. Ocean Blvd runs from the southern edge of Breakers to the tip of the island; most of the mansions worth looking at are below Worth Ave.

Fort Lauderdale, the Gold Coast

Once upon a time, Fort Lauderdale was known as a top destination for beer-drinking college students on raucous spring break. And, until the mid-’80s, it was this precise set of images—drunk 19-year-old girls in wet T-shirt contests, boy bands drinking beer on the streets, and constant partying in hapless beachside hotels—that dominated the media. most. knowledge of the people about the place. But boy, what a difference a couple of decades makes!

Today, after a concerted effort to clean itself up by banning activities laden with such alcohol-fueled bacchanalia, Fort Lauderdale has managed to attract more mature and sophisticated visitors with its myriad offerings (although there’s still plenty to do within the confines of many bars and discotheques). The city’s Port Everglades is even the winter home of the sleek new Queen Mary II cruise ship, for crying out loud.

Although much of the inner city consists of endless unattractive malls, look for the good stuff and you’ll be rewarded. You’ll find gorgeous beaches, a Venice-style waterway system, an international yachting scene, swanky new hotels, world-class restaurants, and gay hotspots—all just 40 minutes from the Miami shoreline.

Fort Lauderdale, 40 miles north of Miami, is laid out on a grid where it’s physically possible (it’s hard with water breaking things up). It is also divided into 3 parts: the beach, east of the Intracoastal Waterway, in the center of the mainland, and Port Everglades, the cruise port south of the city. US Hwy 1 runs through the center of the city, while Highway A1A runs along the ocean and is also called Atlantic Blvd or Ocean Blvd, depending on whether it is north or south of Sunrise Blvd. The main thoroughfares between downtown and the beach they are Sunrise Blvd to the north, Las Olas Blvd to the center, and 17th St to the south.

Castillo de San Marcos, Atlantic Coast

In 1672, after the British burned the city around them too many times, the Spanish began to build this coquina citadel. Completed 23 years later, it is the oldest masonry fort in the continental US. Rangers wearing Spanish colonial uniforms add to the medieval vibe of the place. The cannons are heard throughout the city when they are fired every Sunday. The fort is located between San Marcos avenue and the Matanzas river.