Ocean Reef Club vs Fisher Island: Choosing South Florida’s Most Private Lifestyle

Two of Florida’s most controlled-access enclaves deliver radically different versions of privacy: a 2,500-acre Keys campus built around boating, golf, and aviation, versus a ferry-served island minutes from Miami Beach. This MILLION Luxury guide compares access, amenities, membership economics that are publicly disclosed, and what today’s pricing signals can and cannot tell you.

Fisher Island’s Amenity Arms Race: Wellness, Service, and the New Standard of Privacy

On Fisher Island, luxury is less about spectacle and more about systems: private wellness, club-level sport, marina capability, and service that behaves like a five-star hotel without feeling like one. With The Residences at Six Fisher Island advancing a deeply programmed, amenity-forward vision and Palazzo del Sol representing a proven boutique benchmark, buyers are increasingly comparing what is exclusive to a building versus what is unlocked through Fisher Island Club membership. This MILLION Luxury editorial maps the ecosystem, highlights what is publicly disclosed, and frames the questions sophisticated purchasers should ask before committing to new construction or a completed residence.

Fisher Island vs. Ocean Reef Club: Two Florida Enclaves Where Ownership Is the Invitation

Fisher Island and Ocean Reef Club represent two of Florida’s most tightly held private club lifestyles, each built around controlled access, equity-style membership, and a daily rhythm designed for members first. One is a 216-acre island just offshore from Miami Beach, reached primarily by ferry and private boats. The other is a sprawling, member-owned Key Largo community with an on-site private airport, marina life, and multi-generational continuity baked into its membership framework. For buyers weighing privacy, convenience, and legacy, the distinction is less about amenities and more about how you want to arrive, live, and belong.

Miami vs. the Caribbean: The New Second-Home Equation for Ultra-Wealthy Buyers

Miami’s second-home story has shifted from lifestyle upgrade to strategic positioning. In recent residential real estate analysis, Miami was ranked as the global epicenter for ultra-wealthy second homes, with roughly 13,200 ultra-high-net-worth individuals reported to own second homes here. At the same time, tax policy headlines, including a proposed California “Billionaire Tax Act” framework described as a one-time 5% excise tax on worldwide net worth above $1 billion, have sharpened the contrast between U.S. metros and offshore alternatives. For South Florida buyers, the real comparison is not “Miami or an island.” It is “Miami plus an island,” or “Miami as the operational base with optionality elsewhere.” The Caribbean remains compelling for privacy, seclusion, and residency pathways in certain jurisdictions. Yet Miami’s advantage is institutional: depth of healthcare, market liquidity and transparency, aviation and marine services, and a year-round social and cultural calendar. This is why the conversation has become less about pure escape and more about building a second-home portfolio that performs under scrutiny, whether that scrutiny is financial, familial, or geopolitical.