At the close of its 100th year, the iconic South Florida private Club and resort
makes a strong case for a short-haul escape from Orlando.
Drive south on Florida’s Turnpike for about three hours, or board the Brightline train and step off at Boca Raton Station two and a half hours later. Either way, the destination is the same: a pink Mediterranean Revival landmark that has anchored the South Florida coast since 1926. The Boca Raton is an iconic South Florida private Club and resort spanning 200 waterfront acres, with five hotels, a private beach, seven pools, and more than 18 restaurants and lounges.
The resort was originally built by socialite and architect Addison Mizner and opened on February 6, 1926 as the Ritz-Carlton Cloister Inn. A hundred years later, it is the only resort in The Americas, and one of just seven worldwide, to earn quadruple Five-Star status from Forbes Travel Guide. Four distinct properties on the grounds carry the rating for 2026: Beach Club, Yacht Club, Spa Palmera, and Flybridge restaurant. The same organization named The Boca Raton its, “Best Family Resort in Florida for Activities,” which is the relevant credential when you are loading the car with kids, tweens, grandparents, or all three.
Getting Here Without the Headache
Get to The Boca Raton from Orlando with Brightline, and enjoy an elevated travel experience from station to destination. Upon arrival, you will be picked up from the Boca Raton station in style with a BMW (ask for a Ferrari or Maserati for that indulgent plus-up). Either way ends at valet with bags off your shoulders.
Where to Stay
Five distinct hotels share the property, each drawing a different kind of traveler. Tower, the resort’s tallest building, leans family. Suites can be configured to suit extended families, and younger guests can summon Johnnie, the in-house robot butler named after Addison Mizner’s prized pet monkey —and almost-Mayor of Palm Beach – to regale you with terrible dad jokes.
For couples or grandparents in search of a quieter hour, Yacht Club is the all-suite, adults-only retreat. Every suite opens onto a balcony overlooking the Intracoastal Waterway, and floor-level butler service is standard.
Three more hotels round out the property. Cloister is the original 1926 hotel where it all began. Beach Club is oceanfront and also Forbes Five-Star. Bungalows is the intimate residential-style enclave. Multigenerational groups often book across more than one – as should you.
What the kids will remember. What the teens will adore.
Harborside Pool Club is the family epicenter. Its 450-foot lazy river, two five-story water slides, and FlowRider wave simulator share grounds with the S.S. Johnnie Brown, a pirate ship splash zone named, like Tower’s robot concierge, for one of Mizner’s pet monkeys. The FlowRider is staffed so that first-timers, regardless of age, can get one-on-one instruction while taking their turn on the surf.
Drop-off programming runs year-round. Banyan Bunch, the resort’s kids’ club, hosts children ages 4 to 12 with games, crafts, and supervised pool time. The Break, the tween and teen lounge, welcomes ages 11 to 15 with VR gaming, a music recording booth, and a candy wall. The Game Room, open to all ages, divides between a neon arcade and a family lounge with shuffleboard, checkers & chess, Connect Four, and a popcorn machine. Across age groups, no one in the family runs out of things to do.
The Beach and the Water
Half a mile of private Atlantic beach is reserved for resort guests, with a second half-mile for Club members. By November, loggerhead nesting season has wrapped, the beach has been cleared, and the sand returns to open use. Cabanas come outfitted by swimwear house Vilebrequin and include flat-screen televisions, mini-fridges, and private showers; attendants deliver food and drinks chairside. On the Intracoastal side, calm water makes for ideal paddleboarding on Lake Boca, with kayaks also available from the marina.
For the Grown-Ups
The 18-hole Golf Club, is being completely transformed under architect Brian Silva to honor its Donald Ross roots. It will reopen in late Fall. The Racquet Club operates 14 tennis and 12 pickleball courts. And Spa Palmera, the resort’s 50,000-square-foot Forbes Five-Star sanctuary inspired by Spain’s Alhambra Palace, sits at the heart of the property. Forty-four treatment rooms surround a courtyard of waterfall whirlpools, mosaics, and a private spa pool. The centennial year introduced the Gilded Waters Bath Ritual, a multi-stage hydrotherapy treatment exclusive to the anniversary calendar to pad out an already expansive list of signature treatments.
The Tables
The Boca Raton operates more than 18 restaurants and lounges, including signature concepts in partnership with Major Food Group. Flybridge atop Yacht Club, led by Executive Chef Peter Annewanter, offers three- and five-course tasting menus built around local seafood and seasonal vegetables. Marisol at Beach Club draws from the Mediterranean and coastal South Florida, with views of the Atlantic from every seat; signature plates include the Marisol Chips, lightly fried eggplant with lemon tzatziki, and Tagine Lemon Chicken over Greek rice. The Flamingo Grill, watched over by its namesake mascot Gregarious Greg, is a love letter to the mid-century Gold Coast steakhouse, with pink-blazered servers, sole meunière, and baked Alaska finished tableside.
Closing the Centennial
The year wraps with seasonal programming worth catching: the Christmas Tree and Menorah lightings at Cloister, and the annual Frozen Princess Tea. The Cloister Inn Museum, a permanent two-story gallery created in partnership with the Boca Raton Historical Society, sits in the original reception hall and anchors the property’s first century. The Assouline coffee table book The Boca Raton: A Century of Being Iconic is available exclusively in the Assouline boutique inside Boca Chica and paired with the resort’s Capsule Collection inside Curated retail shop are ideal gifts to take home your own bit of iconic legacy.
The Endless Summer offer includes 25% savings on stays of four nights or longer, 50% off a second room reservation, kids stay and eat free, daily access to Banyan Bunch kids club, and discounted Brightline rides from Orlando for stays through October 31, 2026.
To book, call (561) 447-3000 or visit TheBocaRaton.com/EndlessSummer.
