West Palm Beach has been building toward a moment like this for years. The The Nora Hotel opened October 19 in the city’s new Nora District. It is the kind of opening that changes how people talk about a place.
The 201-room hotel is a new build from BD Hotels, the team behind New York’s Hotel Chelsea. This is their first hotel outside New York City. Rooms start at $395.
The team behind Hotel Chelsea
BD Hotels is led by Sean MacPherson, Richard Born and Ira Drukier. Their New York hotels include the Hotel Chelsea, the Mercer, the Marlton and the Ludlow. The group is known for hotels that act as a city’s living room, and the Nora follows that playbook.
MacPherson spent several months living in the area during the pandemic. He compared it to Santa Barbara and Montecito, with Mediterranean architecture and a low scale he connected with personally. The opportunity came when Wheelock Street Capital started developing the Nora District. The firm is one of those behind the Hotel Chelsea, and it asked his company to get involved.
A new build designed to feel old
The hotel is a new build designed to feel storied. Its facade takes inspiration from Addison Mizner, the 1920s architect who defined the Palm Beach area’s Mediterranean revival look. Expect stucco facades, castle-like turrets, red-tile roofs, arches and porticos. The entrance plaza has a covered outdoor lounge with two fountains, and one of them is for dogs.
Inside, rooms blend classic Palm Beach style with coral and sage tones, wicker furnishings and shell-inspired details. Vintage photos line the halls. Look for the old-fashioned tassel keys lined up at the front desk and brass-fitted bathrooms, signature BD Hotels touches.
Three spots worth the trip
The Nora aims to be the city’s living room, and three spots will likely draw locals as well as guests. Lilly’s is the rooftop pool bar, with pink-fringed umbrellas and views for miles.
Jack’s Bar sits on the ground floor with a cozy, eccentric-library feel. It recalls the Lobby Bar at the Hotel Chelsea. The hotel also has the first Florida location of Paris’s Sisley Spa. It is one of the few hotels in West Palm Beach with an on-site spa.
The neighborhood around it
The hotel sits in the Nora District, named for North Railroad Avenue. The district is a walkable strip set in reimagined century-old railway warehouses just north of downtown West Palm. Within a few blocks you will find NYC favorites like Pastis, H&H Bagels, Van Leeuwen ice cream and Del Mar. Community events like outdoor yoga are already part of the district’s rhythm.
What to do nearby
West Palm Beach rewards a weekend. The Norton Museum of Art is Florida’s largest art museum, with rotating exhibitions and a subtropical garden. The Kravis Center hosts theater, concerts and touring Broadway shows. The Ann Norton Sculpture Gardens pair monumental sculptures with 250 species of rare plants.
For the outdoors, MacArthur Beach State Park offers kayaks and paddleboards. Delray Beach Municipal Beach and Spanish River Beach in Boca are both Blue Flag certified for water quality and safety services. If you are pairing a Florida stay with a cruise, my PortMiami hotel guide covers where to stay before you sail.
The verdict
West Palm Beach is still becoming the destination its boosters believe it will be. It does not yet compete with Miami for long-distance travelers. But an opening like this helps. It is a stamp of approval from a team that knows hotels. The city finally has the bones to support one.
The Nora is open now, with rooms from $395. If boutique hotels are your thing, the adults-only Grand Velas Boutique Los Cabos is another recent opening worth a look. For a very different kind of trip, my American Ranger Hudson River debut season sailing is worth a look.
