The Breakers, Palm Beach, Florida

The Breakers is a very family-minded resort, highly regarded for maintaining a lush and luxurious atmosphere while providing children-friendly activities.

The beautiful, Italian Renaissance-style hotel is situated on 140 acres on the island of Palm Beach, Florida. The landscaped complex has two 18-hole championship golf courses, a beautiful luxury spa, fitness center, Mediterranean-style beach club overlooking one-half mile of private beach, five swimming pools, 10 tennis courts, a variety of water sports, eight restaurants, and numerous high-end boutiques.

Luxury Rooms for Traveling Families

A classic resort hotel, The Breakers has long been well-regarded for its quality service and has enjoyed repeat business from a senior crowd. In the past decade, however, a younger generation of families has discovered it and made it their own.  After the completion of its 10-year, $250 million renovation, the 540-room resort continues to offer exceptional facilities, which now extend to even its tiniest guests.

Many of the rooms at the Breakers have balconies with a full or partial view of the Atlantic Ocean. Each room has high-speed internet access, in-room movies, and CD players, as well as all of your basic amenities. (For those traveling on business, there is also a “business center” open 24/7 that has laser printers, photocopiers, receiving, shipping, and courier services; you can also rent computers, modems and laser printers). Though luxurious, the rooms feel more comfortable rather than hotel-like and the concierge will readily provide anything that can make your stay more enjoyable and relaxing.

When families book, the resort prepares the guestroom according to children’s ages and parent preferences. Because of my assignment, our guestroom was equipped with a crib with bedding, a three-tiered changing table with extra towels, a diaper disposal, a bottle warmer, highchair, and baby seat. Our bathroom also had a footstool, a training-potty, a bath-seat (to prevent drowning), and a protective cushion over the bath spout. That’s what I call preparation!

Breakers’ Children’s Play Area and Camp 

The Coconut Crewis the name of the fee-based Breakers’ flexible day camp. Children ages 3-12 can attend for a full day (9am to 3pm, or morning or afternoon half-day sessions with all options including lunch. The camp program features fun activities and also gives the parents the option to stay or to leave. There also is a 6,100 square foot Family Entertainment Center, classic family activities and water sports for all ages, among other activities.

On the day that I visited, the four counselors divided the 18 Coconut Crew children into two groups according to age. My group played hot potato and duck-duck goose on the lawn while the other children played on the Coconut Crew’s playground on the beach. Afterwards, we played a game in the secret garden. The secret garden was designed especially for children: it has butterfly-attracting flowers, animal shaped bushes, and even a hedge-rimmed maze. The maze leads to a gazebo if done properly, and to other surprising (yet safe) dead ends if not. I was told the garden and its surrounding grounds are monitored by security guards 24/7, but I didn’t see them during either of my visits there, so I suppose they are secret too.

Counselors are fully trained in CPR and first aid and there are lifeguards on duty daily until the evening hours.

Even if children don’t participate in the camp, there are still plenty of ways for them to have fun in the children’s activity center which contains a playroom with plenty of toys and a crafts area. The hotel keeps its youngest guests happy with Wikki Stix, made of colorful yarn strips that are bonded with nontoxic, food-grade patented wax. Exclusive to the resort, Wikki Stix are reusable and can be bent, twisted and assembled to create two- or three-dimensional artworks; connect-the-dots; or to craft rings, bracelets, necklaces and figures.

Across the hall from the center is the TV/computer room where there are flat-screened computers offering plenty of child-friendly games and large flat-screened TVs. There is also a small movie theatre in this room, for casual viewing or for one of the movie nights the center holds.

Dining and Entertainment For All Ages at The Breakers

An Italian restaurant overlooks children's area, so adults can enjoy a relaxing meal while kids play within your view. The Italian restaurant offers a reasonably priced children’s menu offering simple kid-friendly fare as well as delicious brick-oven pizzas. The staff provides fast service on the kids’ meals, because your children probably won’t want to sit at the table too long. Down the hallway from these rooms is the state-of-the-art arcade with a nice mix of contemporary as well as classic games, such as air hockey, Skeeball, and Super Hoops.

Your older kids probably won’t want to leave this room once they start playing. Even if you’re not dining here but would prefer to be near your children (rather than pay an hourly fee for someone to watch them while they play), there is also a cozy lounge/bar area in the children’s center where adults can savor a glass of wine while children safely explore the other rooms.

If you would rather have some time away from the kids, the concierge will also arrange private babysitting for you (prices vary), so you can enjoy a pleasant round of golf, a relaxing day at the spa, or a romantic evening at one of the resort's many restaurants.

We dined at the Seafood Bar one night, where we had excellent tuna tartare, fresh crabcakes, and mouthwatering seabass. The long bar at the entrance of the restaurant is a spectacular aquarium, with colorful saltwater fish swimming around in it, so do have the kids check this out!  The Beach Club offers lunch daily from 11am to 4pm and you can sit indoors or outdoors overlooking the beach. The Breakers also has two more upscale restaurants: The Flagler Steakhouse, which features USDA Prime Grade meat, and L’Escalier, which features modern French cuisine. The Breakers has provided Wikki Stix in several of its restaurants-The Italian Restaurant, the hotel’s most family-minded concept located inside the Family Entertainment Center; The Circle dining room for breakfast, The Ocean Grill, The Beach Club and The Seafood Bar.

The best thing about a family stay at The Breakers is that you have the freedom to spend as much or as little time with your children as you want.

For more information and reservations, visit the The Breakers website.