Florida Go Guide is arriving. A refined, immersive showcase of the Florida lifestyle, built with intention and launching soon. Founding partner inquiries are welcome.
Florida Go Guide is arriving. A refined, immersive showcase of the Florida lifestyle, built with intention and launching soon. Founding partner inquiries are welcome.
Luxe – Where Florida Dresses Up
There is Florida - and then there is Florida at its most exquisite. Luxe is where the state reveals its finer side: waterfront resorts with impeccable service, restaurants where every detail is intentional, and experiences designed not merely to fill a day but to elevate it. Here, sunset arrives with a champagne toast, reservations are worth dressing for, and even the simplest moments feel curated. This is not about excess - it is about refinement. About choosing beautifully. About savoring places that understand that luxury is less about spectacle and more about how something makes you feel.
THE DON CESAR – The Pink Palace, Forever
Some hotels are admired. The Don CeSar is adored. Rising like a storybook palace along the sands of St. Pete Beach, its blush towers catch the Gulf light in a way that feels almost cinematic. There is romance here - real romance - woven into the arches, the breeze off the water, the hush that settles in just before sunset.
Where The Vinoy is stately and composed, The Don is barefoot glamour. Mornings begin with sea air and horizon views, afternoons drift between pool and shore, and evenings feel made for champagne and slow walks along the sand. It is grand without being distant, luxurious without losing its warmth.
For those who know, there is simply nothing like it. And once it becomes your favorite, every other beachfront stay is quietly compared.
St. Pete Beach
BERN'S STEAK HOUSE
A Legend, Perfectly Aged
Some restaurants are trendy. Bern’s is eternal. Stepping inside feels like entering a ritual of indulgence - red velvet, dark wood, candlelight, and the quiet confidence of a place that knows exactly who it is. The steaks are aged with meticulous care, the wine cellar is legendary, and the service moves with a precision that borders on choreography. And then, of course, there is the dessert room - intimate, theatrical, unforgettable. An evening at Bern’s is not just dinner. It is ceremony. It is anticipation. It is the rare experience that manages to feel both grand and deeply personal at once. In the world of Luxe, Bern’s does not compete. It reigns.
Tampa
Where the Gulf Becomes Your Private World Kokomo Charters
A curated fleet of privately owned yachts, available for charter across Sarasota, St. Petersburg, Anna Maria Island, and Tampa Bay - each one USCG-compliant and paired with a licensed captain so the only thing on your itinerary is pleasure. Multi-day voyages can take you south to Naples, Boca Grande, Key West, or the Dry Tortugas, with fully customizable itineraries, private staterooms, and a crew that handles everything. Half-day, full-day, or a week on the water -- Kokomo makes it effortless.
Sarasota · St. Petersburg · Anna Maria Island · Tampa Bay
COSTALE TAVERNA
Chef Fabio Viviani’s Coastal Celebration
Costale Taverna feels like the kind of place you would hope to find but never quite expect — where casually refined Italian coastal cuisine meets Tampa’s vibrant waterfront energy. Led by Top Chef standout Chef Fabio Viviani, the menu serves up bold Mediterranean flavors with flair: handcrafted pastas, wood-fire grilled seafood, and bright, seasonal ingredients that sing together beautifully. The setting is warm and welcoming yet effortlessly elevated, making it perfect for a special evening that still feels relaxed — cocktail in hand, sunset in view, and every dish crafted with unmistakable confidence. If Italian food could embody both joy and finesse, this is where it would land. Costale Taverna is not just dinner — it is an occasion worth lingering over.
St. Petersburg
THE VINOY RESORT & GOLF CLUB
The Grande Dame of the BAY
There are beautiful hotels - and then there are icons. The Vinoy rises along the St. Petersburg waterfront in its signature blush facade, a vision of Mediterranean elegance that has defined refined Florida living for generations. From the moment you step beneath its archways, everything feels intentional - the marina glittering just beyond, the palms swaying softly, the hush of polished marble underfoot. Rooms are serene and impeccably styled, dining is worthy of celebration, and the atmosphere carries that rare blend of heritage and modern indulgence. Days unfold beside the pool or on the water, evenings arrive dressed in linen and candlelight. Staying at The Vinoy is not simply booking a room - it is entering a legacy. And in the world of Luxe, it remains the standard by which all others are quietly measured.
St. Petersburg
LILAC
A Michelin-Starred Masterpiece
Lilac is not simply dinner - it is artistry in motion. Tucked within The Tampa EDITION, this Michelin-starred restaurant delivers a tasting experience that feels both intimate and extraordinary. Each course arrives like a quiet revelation - refined, precise, and beautifully restrained. The room itself hums with understated elegance, allowing the cuisine to take center stage. Flavors unfold thoughtfully, presentation is deliberate, and the pacing feels almost poetic. This is the kind of place where conversation softens, time slows, and every detail matters. In Luxe company, Lilac represents the pinnacle - modern, confident, and exquisitely composed.
Tampa
Where Design Becomes the Destination THE TAMPA EDITION
There are hotels that provide a place to sleep, and then there are hotels that provide a reason to stay. The Tampa EDITION is firmly, gloriously, in the second category.
Situated within the new 56-acre Water Street Tampa neighborhood, the property brings together 172 guest rooms and suites, seven dining and entertainment venues, an expansive spa, and a rooftop bar and terrace -- all shaped by the creative vision of Ian Schrager, with interiors by the celebrated Roman & Williams studio.
The architecture alone is worth the visit.
The dining program is the kind that inspires itineraries. Lilac, the Michelin-starred Mediterranean restaurant helmed by Chef John Fraser, draws on Greek, Turkish, and French influences filtered through fresh Floridian ingredients -- served in a dining room centered around an eight-seat chef's counter and a lively open kitchen. Beyond Lilac, the property offers Azure, the Punch Room, a Pool Bar, the Arts Club, and a Lobby Bar -- enough variety to keep guests happily anchored for an entire evening without ever stepping outside.
The Spa, celebrated with a Forbes four-star rating, is inspired by the healing powers of the ocean and offers wellness experiences designed around relaxation, rejuvenation, and personal wellbeing -- with complimentary access to the rooftop pool included with each spa experience. A penthouse suite, flexible event spaces, and a Channelside address that puts the waterfront at your doorstep. Tampa has never looked quite like this.
Where Italy Comes to Life in Tampa Heights - ROCCA
Rocca is the kind of restaurant that makes you slow down. Tucked into Tampa Heights, this Michelin-starred gem is the domain of chef Bryce Bonsack, a Tampa native who spent years absorbing the old ways in the kitchens of Monforte d'Alba before honing his technique in New York. The result is Italian cooking that is at once deeply rooted and quietly dazzling. Pasta is made in house, mozzarella is pulled tableside, and the room hums with the particular pleasure of a meal that knows exactly what it is. A James Beard Award finalist for Best Chef: South, Bonsack has given Tampa something it will long deserve to boast about.
OPAL SANDS RESORT
Contemporary Gulf front Glamour
Opal Sands feels like Florida rewritten in glass and light. Perched directly on Clearwater Beach, its sweeping, curved design ensures that nearly every room greets the Gulf head-on - sunrise, sunset, and every shimmering moment in between. The atmosphere is sleek yet relaxed, where private balconies become front-row seats to the horizon and the infinity-edge pool seems to spill straight into the sea. Interiors are fresh and modern, softened by the rhythm of the waves just beyond the glass. It is beachfront living elevated - contemporary, confident, and undeniably luminous.
Clearwater
THE RITZ-CARLTON, SARASOTA Pinnacle of Coastal Luxury
If you’re charting the course for the most elevated stay in Sarasota, this is the address. The Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota stands as the city’s definitive luxury retreat — refined, spacious, and breathtakingly placed along Sarasota Bay. Expansive guest rooms and suites open to sweeping water views and private balconies that make every sunrise feel like a celebration. Beyond the elegant interiors lies a world of premium experiences: an onsite spa that whispers serenity, championship golf for those who take leisure seriously, and access to a private Beach Club on Lido Key where soft white sand and Gulf breezes become part of your daily rhythm. It is the kind of hotel where details are thoughtful, service is intuitive, and every moment feels less like a stay and more like an occasion — the true quintessence of Sarasota’s high-end hospitality.
STIRRUPS
Equestrian Elegance, Perfectly Plated
Set within the grandeur of the World Equestrian Center, Stirrups is refined without ever feeling rigid - a restaurant that mirrors the grace and discipline of the sport just outside its doors. The setting is polished and serene, the service attentive, and the menu thoughtfully composed with prime cuts, pristine seafood, and beautifully balanced seasonal dishes. Dining here feels elevated yet unhurried - the kind of evening where crystal catches the light, conversation lingers, and every detail is considered. It is classic, confident, and quietly luxurious - exactly what one hopes for in the heart of horse country.
Ocala
Where the Horse Capital of the World Lives in Grand Style
THE EQUESTRIAN HOTEL
There is nowhere quite like The Equestrian Hotel, and there is nowhere quite like Ocala. The only AAA Four Diamond resort in the region and one of TIME Magazine's 2024 World's Greatest Places, this extraordinary property sits at the heart of the World Equestrian Center, the largest equestrian complex in the United States. The grand lobby announces itself immediately, anchored by a soaring 20-foot fireplace beneath glittering crystal chandeliers, the European influence unmistakable and entirely at ease. The 248 rooms and suites are appointed with rich mahogany furnishings and fine European linens, many offering private arena views for guests who wish to watch world-class competition from the quiet comfort of their own room. The Calluna Spa, zero-entry pool, and three distinct dining venues complete the picture. Whether you are here for the horses or simply for the pleasure of a stay done beautifully, The Equestrian Hotel delivers something genuinely rare: a sense of place as grand as the landscape surrounding it.
Ocala
A Ray of Light in Tampa Heights
KOSEN
Kōsen means "ray of light," and the name earns its keep. Tucked into Tampa Heights at the same address as its neighbor Rocca, this Michelin-starred omakase counter is one of the most transportive dining experiences on the Gulf Coast. Executive Chef Andrew Huang, whose background spans Japan, Taiwan, and the kitchens of Uchiko, brings 23 years of craft to an intimate 20-course journey that moves from delicate small plates through a traditional nigiri program of quiet, exacting beauty. The room is dark and spare, the pace unhurried, the fish impeccably sourced. A sustainability ethos runs through every detail, from in-house fermentation to the elimination of single-use plastics. This is serious dining, delivered with warmth.
Seven Seas Mariner| Regent Seven Seas Cruises
The world's first all-suite, all-balcony ship, the Mariner operates on a simple premise: fewer guests, more attention, better everything. With no more than 700 aboard and a staff-to-guest ratio of 1 to 1.6, Regentcruises the proportions are as considered as the appointments. Fares cover virtually everything -- airfare, dining, drinks, gratuities, Wi-Fi, and shore excursions. Cruise Critic Itineraries range from the Caribbean and Mediterranean to world voyages of uncommon ambition. The 2029 "Eras of Exploration" sailing spans 150 nights, 70 ports, and all seven continents. CruiseMapper For the traveler who has learned the difference between a trip and an experience.
Sailing fromTampa
Luxury at its best is not a price point. It is a feeling, unhurried, considered, and quietly extraordinary. Florida has always known how to deliver it to those paying attention. These are the places that prove it, every single time.
There are hotels that happen to float. And then there is Four Seasons I.
Carrying just 222 guests across 95 all-suite accommodations, with a one-to-one staff to guest ratio, AFAR the experience is less cruise ship than private residence at sea. Suites range from 500 to nearly 10,000 square feet, all with floor-to-ceiling windows and private balconies. AFAR Dining, watersports, and shore excursions are priced à la carte -- the hotel model, not the cruise model -- for guests who prefer to compose their own days.
Miami is the nearest departure point, with Bahamas sailings planned for late 2026 into 2027, alongside Caribbean and Mediterranean itineraries for the season ahead.
Four Seasons I is exactly what it sounds like. The only surprise is that it took this long.