Florida Getaway: The Breakers (Madhouse)

February 24, 2006 at 8:50 AM | by juliana | Comment (1)

To be fair, it's President Week. This is when most kids are out of school and families like to go on vacation. And families from the Northeast like to go to Florida during this break.

But we really didn't think they would all end up at the The Breakers Hotel in Palm Beach.

At least that's what it felt like to us when we stopped by yesterday.

The Breakers Hotel is without a doubt a spectacular property facing the beach and the intracoastal waterway. You can always tell the where the Breakers are by the hotel's two famous towers. As soon as you walk into the lobby you know this isn't your average resort.

First off it is more than 100 years old. Second, it's beautiful inside and out. In 1926, during a second renovation, 75 artisans were brought from Italy to complete the paintings on the ceilings of the 200-foot long main lobby. In fact, most of the hotel was inspired by the Villa Medici in Rome.

But this isn't a stuffy hotel. It's practically a mega-resort that includes not only beach activities, but at least four pools, tennis courts and golf. Which is why so many families end up there. There's something for everyone.

More on the Breakers with photos post-click.

The pool area is enormous at The Breakers Hotel. It felt like a water park at times. Despite the presence of the beach, the poolside is the place to be.

There's two restaurants, cabanas and even something called beach bungalows which you can rent for the day and are like mini-villas complete with a full bathrooms, living room, internet access, a 32" LCD flat screen TV, a refrigerator (stocked in advance upon request) filled with chilled water and a beach concierge to assist you with whatever you need. Yes, you only rent during the day, and no you can't sleep overnight.

The rest of the hotel has amazing architecture. More than 100 years old, its undergone some renovations and nothing looks old but everything looks historic. We loved the long grand hallways, the beautiful courtyard outside and we recommend taking a peek into the famous Ponce de Leon ballroom if possible. The staff was totally friendly and very professional in dealing with hordes of guests.

But we did have a bit of a problem with the parking situation.We should have known something was up when we asked the security guard at the front of the long road to the hotel if there was self-parking. He said "No, only valet." Hmmph. We hate valet. We especially hate valet that costs $20 bucks. The parking attendant tried to make us feel better by saying that if you make a minimum purchase of $20 at the hotel, valet is "free." What he was really trying to say is if you step on the Breakers property, they automatically take $20 out of your pocket.

Boo.

Related Stories:
· The Breakers Reviews [TripAdvisor]

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