Palm Beach Travel Diary + The Brazilian Court Hotel Review

Click any image below to shop this look:

Hi friends! Today on the blog I am excited to share my Palm Beach travel diary with you. In this post you’ll find links to all the outfits I wore during the trip as well as a complete review on the historic Brazilian Court Hotel that I had an opportunity to stay at while I was there. Palm Beach, FL has always been at the top of my bucket list because I am always envious of other’s photos of Worth Avenue, the beautiful homes throughout the city, and of course the beaches and crystal blue water. I’ve always thought of Palm Beach as somewhat of a stuffy city simply because there is a large wealthy retirement community there, but to be honest, I was pleasantly surprised that this was not the case during my trip there. Sure there are huge homes and lots of designer stores, but the people are very kind and incredibly helpful with travel suggestions. Palm Beach Island also a lot smaller than I was expecting. It’s only a couple streets avenues wide on each side, but if you venture into downtown Palm Beach you’ll find much more modern buildings, less of a resort feel and more of a metropolitan vibe.

We flew into West Palm Beach airport (PBI), and it was only about a 15 minute ride to The Brazilian Court Hotel where we stayed. I personally do not recommend renting a car and think you can get along just fine with the use of Ubers and the hotel transportation. The hotel is very centrally located, and only a couple blocks away from Worth Avenue, the famous street known for designer and boutique shopping. I’ll share more on what to do and where to eat in a moment, but first I’ll start with the review of The Brazilian Court Hotel.

Click any image below to shop this look:

Click any image below to shop this look:

Click any image below to shop this look:

Click any image below to shop this look:

Click any image below to shop this look:

The Brazilian Court Hotel Review

Vanessa (@thecheekybeen), Jordan (@jordanunderwood) and I had the pleasure of staying at The Brazilian Court Hotel during our trip to Palm Beach. I absolutely loved this hotel because it very much has a luxury, vintage feel about it. During our grounds tour, we learned that the hotel first opened in 1926, and first operated as apartment style lodging with small kitchenettes. The Kennedy’s used to vacation at the hotel because they liked the feel of privacy the hotel offered. In 2003, the hotel was renovated to reflect more of a cosmopolitan style design, and the kitchenette apartments were replaced with 80 total rooms across the property. The hotel has a smaller, boutique feel and is only 2 floors across two courtyards. I personally prefer boutique hotels because they feel less crowded and generally offer more high-end amenities. They feel much more romantic and secluded than a larger hotel would.

I thought the history was so interesting that I had to share, but also wanted to provide my personal thoughts regarding our stay. Overall, we had an amazing time. Our rooms were very spacious, included a king bedroom with a separate kitchen and living area, as well as a very large bathroom with a jet tub. I especially enjoyed how the property was laid out because it presented more of a ‘home’ atmosphere rather than a rental or resort property. All rooms are centered around 2 courtyards and there are various corridors and seating areas where you can hang out and watch tv, read a book, or play a game. The pool was my absolute favorite area to relax. It’s a quaint pool, and it’s centered between large gorgeous palm trees. The scene was like a photo out of a magazine, and has been used as the setting for many swimsuit catalogs including Lily Pulitzer. We loved eating lunch by the pool taking in the view, and ordering one of their amazing cocktails off the poolside menu.

When you stay at The Brazilian Court make sure to visit the hotel restaurant on site, Cafe Boulud. We had the opportunity to eat here for lunch and the food was absolutely amazing. They offer a martini bar where they pull a bar cart up to your table and you get to customize your martini including type of liquor and flavored aroma sprays. I was disappointed we didn’t get the opportunity to do brunch at the restaurant because their bar cart turns into a custom Bloody Mary bar, which you all know is my favorite!

The staff at the resort were fantastic and I was highly impressed by the level of service. The concierge service had lots of great suggestions of where to eat and what to do while in Palm Beach since we hadn’t done a lot of research prior to our trip. The bellmen also went out of their way to ensure we were comfortable during our stay. We unfortunately visited the resort right after a large storm had rolled through so there were a lot of bugs and mosquitos in Palm Beach. The bellmen kept offering us bug spray wipes and even offered their own spray at dusk when the mosquitos were at the worst. They also offered to drive us around via the hotel transport if needed. Speaking of hotel transport, don’t forget to use the beach service the hotel offers at least once during your stay. They pack up towels, water bottles and chairs and lay everything out for you at the local beach. Whenever you are ready, simply give them a call and they’ll come pick you up. I’m a beach girl, so this was one of my favorite things we did!

Click any image below to shop this look:

Click any image below to shop this look:

Click any image below to shop this look:

Click any image below to shop this look:

What to Do in Palm Beach

I know I’ve already mentioned several of the things we did during out stay, but wanted to summarize everything so you’d have a full list of activities during your stay:

1. Spend some time relaxing at the beautiful Brazilian Court Hotel pool, make sure to order a white cosmopolitan cocktail (If you order at the restaurant, the drink comes with a beautiful flower ice cube!)
2. Enjoy a variety of different cuisines. Palm Beach is a very diverse area because people visit and settle from all over the world. More on what restaurants we enjoyed later.
3. Spend a day at the beach. I mentioned this earlier, but The Brazilian Court offers a beach service where they set up your chairs and provide towels/water bottles for your day. We loved this!
4. Take a stroll down Worth Avenue. This street is famous for it’s shopping, especially high-end designer shops. If you’ve had your eye on that special bag, you’re sure to find it here.
5. Check out the nightlife in downtown Palm Beach. Our uber driver said there is a long street street full of bars and great restaurants where the locals hang out. It’s only about a 10-minute drive from the hotel, so worth having a girl’s night out if that’s your style.
6. Go for a bike ride throughout the city and check out all the beautiful homes and architecture. The hotel offers vintage bikes for your use. Simply check them out at the front desk.

Click any image below to shop this look:

Click any image below to shop this look:

Click any image below to shop this look:

Click any image below to shop this look:

Where to Eat in Palm Beach

Cafe Boulud is the hotel’s restaurant run by award-winning chef, Daniel Boulud. We had the opportunity to do lunch at the hotel and it did not disappoint. All the food was delicious, and the cocktails were to die for. I ate French Onion Soup and their famous fish special, and it practically melted in my mouth. It’s prepared table side, and they remove the bones right in front of you, it’s that fresh. Don’t forget to order the delicious White Cosmopolitan cocktail as well. I may have had one or two during the lunch. 🙂

Renato’s – this is a delicious Italian restaurant near Worth Avenue. We ate lunch here and it was verrryyy nice. Almost too nice, and we weren’t expecting it for how we were dressed, lol! This would be a great dinner spot for a special occasion. The food was delicious, with handmade varieties of pasta and yummy salads. It would be amazing to sit out on the gorgeous patio at night when it isn’t too hot.. Highly recommend.

Taboo – Vanessa and I ate here for brunch right before we left for the airport. We had a hard time finding brunch on Palm Beach Island, but Taboo did not disappoint. I had the quiche of the day with their house Bloody Mary. The decor of this restaurant felt very Palm Beach, bamboo stalks and pink and green palm print throughout the building. You’ll definitely want to get a photo in front with the gorgeous bougainvillea tree.

Buccan – this was out favorite restaurant for dinner in Palm Beach. It’s a small plates restaurant with the most delicious cocktails. Vanessa and I indulged in almost everything on the menu, and it was out of this world. Definitely a must do. If it’s on the menu, make sure and order a watermelon martini!

Table 427 – this Mexican restaurant was recommended to us by the hotel. We were here on a first night and enjoyed some authentic Mexican. I could see it having a great party atmosphere on a weekend night.

Echo Palm Beach – This was recommended by all of you and was absolutely delicious. It’s a sushi restaurant that is part of the Breakers Resort hotel collection. I loved everything I ordered here, so if you’re a sushi aficionado you’ve definitely got to check it out.

The Rooftop at Restoration – we did not get an opportunity to eat here, but it was highly recommended to us. It is on the rooftop of Restoration Hardware and a great lunch spot.

As always if you have any questions regarding my review or feel I did not cover something, please do not hesitate to leave a comment below or e-mail me: bailey@dailywithbailey.com!

Click any image below to shop this look: