Weekend Guide: Jupiter/North Palm Beach, Florida
A weekend in Jupiter and North Palm Beach, Florida, shows how nicely scuba and golf can pair with grilled grouper and rum cocktails.
Advertised by its matte-red lighthouse that protrudes from the banks of the Loxahatchee River, North Palm Beach is the quiet retreat where turtles come ashore to lay their eggs, celebrities mingle in luxury compounds of pink, cream, and baby-aspirin orange, and where the most overstated attraction is the theater of Atlantic clouds moving across a cobalt blue sky.
Friday
Check-In
At the Jupiter Beach Resort & Spa, white sandy beaches are just outside the back door. After putting down your bags in your island-inspired suite, take in the sea breezes from the private ocean view balcony or take an afternoon stroll along the water. Come nighttime, The Sandbar’s waterfront bar or the cozy outdoor fire pit are prime locales to take in the sunset, creating a premier beach resort atmosphere.
Dinner
Tim Lipman, a native culinary wiz, will serve-up the weekend the right way at his Coolinary Café. This slick, minimalist eatery brings locally sourced food in a cabaret of culinary styles, such as the pan-roasted wild mushrooms or the coriander-crusted shrimp.
Saturday
Under Water
With Jupiter Dive Center, you can explore fantastic coral reefs and wrecks. The center’s experienced captain, guides, and dive masters take tours three miles out to a handful of wreck sites to see goliath grouper. The breeding season for these gargantuan fish – many weighing 350 to 450 pounds – starts in August and goes on into October.
Golf
It wouldn’t be a trip here without tackling 18 holes to the green. That’s because the area is home to half a dozen pro-golfers, award-winning courses, and year-round warm weather. Start with the Jupiter Dunes Golf Club’s shorter fairways; it has been a training ground for some of the best PGA Tour winners for years with its par-3 holes. The course, resting just near the ocean, runs along mangrove-lined saltwater estuaries and still offers up obstacles, while letting you perfect your swing.
Novelty
Car enthusiast? Or someone with a penchant for the unusual? Jack Miller, owner of Miller’s Ale House in Jupiter has something for both. His Miller’s Mustang Barn is filled to the gills with not horses but horsepower – more than 80 one-of-a-kind and collectors’ Ford Mustangs. His personal collection features a Shelby Super Snake 500GT, the closest an automobile can come to a Pro Stock drag-racing car, along with an array of other gas-driven pinups.
Sunday
Shopping
Robert Graham puts the “dashing” in haberdashery with men’s clothing at The Gardens Mall in Palm Beach Gardens. It’s the perfect stop for his signature Pico corduroy sport coat paired with a vibrantly patterned shirt. The Gardens Mall also has plenty for the ladies, like the latest in Florida footwear at Marmi Shoes or classic platinum creations at Tiffany & Co.
Where to Stay Jupiter Beach Resort & Spa
