Can You Keep a Secret?

Society staples like the Sailfish Club, Everglades Club, and Bath & Tennis Club will never go out of style, but their solitary reign is over as additional private clubs pop up all over Palm Beach and West Palm Beach. Access will cost you — if you can get in — but the (selective, sophisticated) crowd waiting on the other side of these unmarked doors is worth the price.

Carriage House
The newest private establishment to hit the Palm Beach social scene, Carriage House opened in 2022 in renovated landmarked buildings on South County Road, in the heart of town but a stratosphere of its own. Rumors say membership began at $250,000 but is now somewhere between $400,000 and $500,000. Interiors are closely held — the club has a strict no-photos rule and will cover your iPhone camera with a chic sticker upon arrival — but provide a stylish wonderland for members to gather, drink, and dine.

Cove Club
With the only “beach” in West Palm Beach, Cove Club brings European beach-club vibes to northern West Palm Beach at the base of the new Icon Marina Village luxury apartment complex. For an initiation fee plus annual dues that will set you back about twenty grand upon acceptance, members can arrive by boat or car and enjoy a restaurant and bar that’s poolside, beachfront, and waterfront — the only space of its kind in the city — as well as regular parties and programming.

Bellini Rooftop Club
Coming in 2026, Bellini Rooftop Club at the soon-to-be-built 25-story Mr. C Hotel & Residences — a Coconut Grove transplant in the heart of downtown West Palm Beach — promises an elevated space for dining, live music, and entertainment, plus access to the hotel’s fitness facilities and resort-style pool. (The building will also house luxury condominium units and a hotel.) Membership fees are expected to be about $6,000, a much more affordable alternative to the area’s other clubs, but the application and approval process is expected to be arduous.

Social Club at Nora
With no name announced yet, the social club coming to the under-construction $1 billion Nora dining and entertainment district will further elevate the long-awaited revitalization of the northern end of downtown West Palm Beach. The membership fee likely will cost around $5,000, an accessible price point for the intended patrons of the neighborhood’s trendy boutique gyms, office space, hotel, and apartments.

Skye Sherman is a freelance travel writer. She is a regular contributor to numerous publications including Travel + Leisure and Palm Beach Illustrated.