If you enjoy history, art and beautiful gardens, you’re in luck. You’ll find all of these at the exquisite Bonnet House, a 1920s plantation-style home set on 14 hectares (35 acres) of gardens between the Atlantic Ocean and the Intracoastal Waterway. Bonnet House was once the winter retreat of artists Frederic and Evelyn Bartlett, and their eclectic artwork, furnishings and décor can be seen at every turn. A greenhouse on the grounds holds the largest collection of orchids in the Southeast. There’s also a shell museum and a tiki bridge on a lake where swans glide through the lily pads. Keep an eye out for the Costa Rican squirrel monkeys playing in the trees—even if you don’t see them, you’re sure to hear them.
