Florida’s southwest coast has never commanded the same attention as its Atlantic-facing neighbors—Miami, Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale—but perhaps that’s by design. After spending time in Naples this year, it became clear to me the Gulf Coast city is beloved by winter snowbirds in the know. It exudes the coastal polish and easy confidence of Florida from decades past, when the state’s barefoot ease and unstuffy charm was still largely under the radar to the masses.
So, what makes Naples interesting right now? A budding culinary scene, lively cultural calendar, and the opening of The Naples Beach Club, A Four Seasons Resort are quickly positioning Naples as one of the most compelling and sophisticated vacation destinations in the state.
Fifth Avenue in Naples.
Credit:
Courtesy Naples Marco Island Everglades CVB
Unique Cultural Standouts
There’s plenty more to Naples than just beaches and boats (although a glide through the canals of one of the most expensive zip codes in the country, Port Royal, is a must for architecture buffs). Add to your itinerary a visit to the Naples Botanical Garden. Search for treasures at Chesterdales Antiques, a must-stop for antique and vintage hunters, or browse boutiques on the walkable shopping streets—Fifth Avenue or Third Avenue.
Engage with the robust art community at Artis—Naples, a cultural campus home to two performance halls and the accredited Baker Museum. For history enthusiasts, the Naples Depot Museum is newly reopened, offering a deeper look at the city’s railroad-era roots and the people who connected the wild swamp of southwest Florida to the rest of the world.
Credit:
Courtesy Naples, Marco Island, Everglades Convention & Visitors Bureau
In the winter, hundreds of rare and exotic cars are on display for Cars on Fifth (think Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati). The annual luxury car show is free to attend. Car owners pay to enter the show and 100% of the proceeds benefit local nonprofits. The Naples Winter Wine Festival adds another occasion to the town’s winter glamour and philanthropy.
And if the thought of golf doesn’t get you excited (Naples is known as “The Golf Capital of the World”) then grab a ticket to see FC Naples, the city’s new soccer team, open the season in March.
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Courtesy Naples Beach Club, A Four Seasons Resort
A Brand-New Naples Stay
Four Seasons’ first-ever Gulf Coast property just debuted in late 2025. Set on more than 1,000 feet of beachfront in Old Naples, the property has been designed like a village rather than a single high-rise monolith. Guests enter into an airy ivory-toned lobby with lofted ceilings of native pecky cypress. A palette of seafoam green and pale sunset peach greets you warmly—a tasteful alternative to the typical teal color palette seen at most Florida beach hotels. Southern architectural details in the rooms integrate elements from Old Florida clapboard cottages, like deep porch-like balconies, and a board-and-batten cottage look.
A 30,000-square-foot spa, is a destination unto itself. The three-story spa features exclusive treatments to the Naples Four Seasons, plus a thermal contrast therapy circuit with steam rooms, ice rooms, a Finnish sauna, and vitality pools.
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Courtesy Naples Beach Club, A Four Seasons Resort
HB’s on the Gulf was a beloved local watering hole, previously located on the hotel’s footprint. So instead of wiping away evidence of the beachfront bar, it revived and revitalized it, even keeping the name. The design of the entire property was around preserving HB’s and the Sunset Bar to remain a locally-loved gathering place for Naples residents and visitors for many more years.
An onsite tennis club is now open, and a golf course is set to debut later this year. A curated Market Square with a robust retail store and coffee shop brings the property together into a complete, curated ecosystem.
HB’s on the Gulf.
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Courtesy Naples Beach Club, A Four Seasons Resort
Other Beachfront Resorts
Tulia Italian Steak.
Credit:
Courtesy Naples, Marco Island, Everglades Convention & Visitors Bureau
A Growing Culinary Scene
Once known primarily for classic steakhouses and mainstream dining, Naples’ food scene is rapidly developing into something much more bespoke and interesting. Bicyclette Cookshop, run by Chef Kayla Pfeiffer, a 2025 James Beard Emerging Chef semifinalist and “Chopped” champion, is the locally-loved creative mind behind the small-plates restaurant (recently voted one of USA Today’s Restaurants of the Year). Another dining concept by Pfeiffer and her team is slated to debut April 2026.
Thank You Kindly serves creative sandwiches that rival Palm Beach favorite, Buccan. Tulia Italian Steak combines Italian steakhouse classics with house-made pasta. And a new omakase concept hints at the city’s growing appetite for more global cuisine and dining experiences.
Chef Kayla Pfeiffer of Bicyclette Cookshop.
Credit:
Courtesy Naples, Marco Island, Everglades Convention & Visitors Bureau
Then there’s the kind of place you wouldn’t expect to find in a retirement town: Nat Nat, a discreet natural wine bar and fresh kitchen with a weekly rotating menu highlighting ingredients sourced from local farms and seafood from Naples’ shores.
Meanwhile at the Four Seasons’ another James Beard Award–winning chef, Gavin Kaysen, adds his creativity to the Naples culinary scene. The onsite restaurant, The Merchant Room, at Naples Beach Club is the chef’s first restaurant outside the Midwest. Given Naples’ high volume of Midwest visitors, many travelers may recognize the names of his popular Minneapolis brasseries—Spoon & Stable, Demi, and Mara Restaurant & Bar. Here in Florida, a place Kaysen himself used to vacation in his youth, he has created a menu of dry-aged steaks, house-made pasta, fresh Florida flavors, and regional Gulf seafood.