Florida’s Hidden Gems: John D. MacArthur Beach State Park is a quiet oasis in an urban area
Palm Beach County’s only state park has a beach, walking trails, a boardwalk and an island.
Maya WashburnPublished Feb. 11, 2025
NORTH PALM BEACH — John D. MacArthur Beach State Park gets so quiet that people forget how close it is to a city.
The hideaway between the Atlantic Ocean and the Lake Worth Lagoon has 438 acres with nature trails, tree canopies and even an island; it’s all only 8 miles north of busy West Palm Beach, a city of more than 100,000 residents. MacArthur is the only state park in Palm Beach County.
Visitors can sunbathe on its unspoiled beach, ride a tram along its boardwalk over a mangrove-lined estuary or rent a kayak for a 20-minute paddle out to Munyon Island. They can also snorkel to an Anastasia limestone rock reef that teems with colorful fish.
“Everything is in balance here,” said Veronica Frehm, CEO of the Friends of MacArthur Beach State Park, the nonprofit that oversees the site. “We don’t do anything that Mother Nature wouldn’t want us to do. We remove exotic plants and exotic animals, but everything else is just nature doing what she wants to do.”
The park, established in 1989, got its name from billionaire developer John D. MacArthur, who owned the land with his wife. MacArthur donated it as a public park after discovering its lush habitats.
What makes John D. MacArthur Beach State Park special?
Extending more than 1.6 miles along the Atlantic, MacArthur’s beach is among the cleanest in South Florida. Trash pickers and buckets are kept at the wooden stairways that lead to the sand to encourage beachgoers to pick up any trash they see. Most do.
Rangers teach school field trip groups about the park’s ecosystems nearly every day. The park also hosts moonlight concerts, birdwatching tours and turtle walks on June and July nights, when people can see nestings on the beach.
More than 3,000 sea turtles on average lay eggs on the beach each year. A lively four-month-old loggerhead sea turtle named Olive temporarily lives at the park’s nature center as part of a Florida Atlantic University research program.
The park also has exhibits for kids and a playground. Jill Kohlbecker first visited 10 years ago when her son was an infant. She kept bringing him back.
“There are so many things for families to do here,” said Kohlbecker, the communications director for Friends of MacArthur Beach State Park. “You can spend the whole day outside learning about nature, away from screens, just connecting as a family.”
John D. MacArthur Beach State Park also is committed to accessibility.
It has four special wheelchairs that easily glide over sand — some can even wade in water — and a tram with room to take wheelchairs along.
“We want everyone to explore in whatever way they are comfortable,” Frehm said. “It’s everybody’s park.”
Know before you go
Cost: $2 for pedestrians and bicyclists; $4 for a vehicle with one person; $5 for a vehicle with two to eight people.
Address: 10900 Jack Nicklaus Drive, North Palm Beach.
Hours: The park is open 8 a.m. until sunset every day.
Food, shopping nearby: There are plenty of nearby restaurants, including Sara’s Kitchen, Stage Kitchen and Bar, The River House, Seasons 52, Cod & Capers Seafood, Zeera Indian Cuisine, Stormhouse Brewing, Thai Lotus and Paris in Town. The Gardens Mall is a short drive away.
More information: (561) 624-6950; macarthurbeach.org
