The town of Jupiter Island, located on a 17-mile-long barrier island a half hour north of Palm Beach, provides a unique combination of beauty and privacy that has proven irresistable to the rich and famous.

Most of the luxury homes that make up this secluded sanctuary (there are fewer than 500 homes) are built on one-to-two acres of land, and are hidden from the road and each other by dense tropical landscaping.

Strict low density zoning has preserved Jupiter Island's natural beauty probably better than any other populated barrier island in Florida.

The town has its own government, including a police force with probably the highest ratio of police to residents in the United States.

Residents and visitors flying into Jupiter Island can either land their private jet at Witham Field Airport in Stuart a half-hour to the north, or at Palm Beach International Airport -- where commercial flights are also available a 35-minute drive to the south.

Hobe Sound

Earlier in the century, the winter residents of Jupiter Island came by train to Hobe Sound, which was the center of commercial activity (there are no stores of any kind in Jupiter Island).

The two communities developed together, somewhat like Palm Beach and West Palm Beach albeit on a far smaller scale. While Hobe Sound has retained its small-town charm, it also is the site today of new luxury country-club communities.

Jupiter

Since the 1800's, Jupiter's most identifiable landmark has been the Jupiter Lighthouse -- a 105-foot-tall structure atop a 46-foot hill on the north shore of the Jupiter Inlet. Today, it presides over a community of premier properties located along the Loxahatcheee River and Intracoastal Waterfront, as well as a growing number of luxury estates in such exclusive country club enclaves as the Loxahatchee Club, the Bear's Club, and the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club and Spa of Jupiter. The town also enjoys a vibrant cultural life as the home of the Florida History Center & Museum, and several annual arts and entertainment festivals.

Tequesta

The village of Tequesta, located at the northeastern tip of Palm Beach County, features miles of breathtaking waterfront property along the Loxahatchee River and the Atlantic . The village is a mix of single family estates and condominiums, and is also home to the Lighthouse Gallery and School of Arts.

Jupiter Inlet Colony

Jupiter Inlet Colony is a small community located at the southern tip of Jupiter Island bordered by the Jupiter Inlet, Intracoastal Waterway and the Atlantic Ocean. Residents, many of whom are on either the ocean or the Inlet, enjoy a peaceful secure community with their own police department.