For seventy-five years, the stretch of beach at the north end of Coquina Sands operated on a single rhythm. The old Naples Beach Hotel opened at breakfast, HB's filled at sunset, and the neighborhood went quiet by ten. Between May and October, quieter still. That rhythm is gone.
The 125-acre parcel between Mooring Line Drive and the Golf Drive corridor now functions as an active, year-round social anchor rather than a seasonal one. If you live on Rum Row, Ridge Drive, or anywhere along the interior streets, the practical consequence is that your neighborhood has more happening in July than it used to have in February. Here is what is actually different this summer, and what to do with it.
What Reopened At 851 Gulf Shore
The Naples Beach Club, A Four Seasons Resort held a ribbon-cutting on November 18, 2025, and the property has been rolling out amenities in waves since. The scale matters for context: it sits on 1,000 feet of white-sand beach stretching across 125 lushly landscaped acres, brought to life through the shared vision of BDT & MSD, The Athens Group, and Four Seasons.
The design brief deliberately protected what locals cared about. Architect Tim McCarthy of Hart Howerton studied the preserved cottages in the Naples Historic District before drawing a seven-story resort, and to those who know this shoreline, the shellcrete foundation registers first, a distinctly Floridian cue and a vivid reminder of the wave-like coquina sign that announced the beloved hotel that stood here for 75 years. The blue-and-green striped awning at HB's is back where it was. That continuity is why so many longtime residents have kept walking to the same corner they always walked to.
Sunset Bar Is A Summer Routine Again
The clearest signal that the property is programming for locals, not only hotel guests, is the summer live music calendar. Live music runs every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday starting at 6:00 pm through the summer at Sunset Bar, with sunset views, something cold in hand, and an evening shaped by live music and the Gulf. A nightly ceremonial conch blowing marks the sundown, a small piece of theater that the pre-teardown property never had.
The menu approach is new too. Sunset Bar leans Latin now:
- Sunset Bar returns as an iconic golden hour gathering spot where guests and locals come to mingle, with tropical cocktails and a menu that focuses on the vibrant flavours of Mexico, including ceviche, tostadas and tacos, and signature guacamole
- HB's next door keeps a seafood-forward identity under Executive Chef Fabio Quarta, Chef de Cuisine Maru Cacho, and Beverage Manager Christian Favier
- The HB's cocktail list includes the citrus-forward Sunshine with St. George Citrus Vodka, Florida Orange, Cointreau, Orange Blossom, and Blanc de Blancs; the nutty Captain Watkins with Sazerac Rye, Toasted Almond, Earl Grey, Lemon, and Bitters; and the 5th Ave with Lalo Tequila Blanco, Strawberry, Balsamic, Lemon, and Basil
- HB's Sunday Beachside Brunch begins with a glass of Champagne, warm Southern biscuits with house-made jams, and HB's iconic crudo platter for the table
If you have lived here long enough to remember the last decade of the old HB's, the practical change is that you can now walk over on a random Tuesday in July and find the room full. The old rhythm treated summer as a lull. The new one does not.
The Boulevard Finally Works For Walking
Underneath the resort story is a quieter civic story. Gulf Shore Boulevard North has been under some form of construction for years. It is finally done, and the change is significant for anyone who bikes to Lowdermilk or walks to dinner.
After the City completed its water line along Gulf Shore Boulevard North and its north outfall pump station on 8th Avenue North, the new Gulf Shore Boulevard North fully opened with landscaped medians, upgraded sidewalks with pavers, safer crosswalks featuring a new pedestrian warning light system, new bike lanes on both sides of the boulevard, and lush landscaping with shade trees on GSBN and Oleander Drive to further improve the pedestrian experience. The pedestrian warning-light system is the detail worth noticing. Crossing GSBN at 8th Avenue North to reach the beach used to require a leap of faith at speed. It no longer does.
For homeowners on the interior streets, the practical implication is that the neighborhood is now genuinely walkable end-to-end for the first time in a long stretch. Kids on bikes, dogs on leashes, and evening strollers have a real corridor.
The Second Wave Is Landing Before Season
The property opened with restaurants and rooms. The rest of it is dropping through 2026 in a schedule worth putting on your calendar because most of it is open to the public, not resort-guest-only.
| Amenity | Opens | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Naples Trading Co. grab-and-go café | Q1 2026 | Casual coffee and pantry stop |
| Fin's Club & Teen Centre | Q1 2026 | Family programming just off Market Square |
| The Sanctuary spa | 2026 | 30,000 square feet, full-service spa and salon |
| The Wager gastropub | 2026 | Sports-centric gastropub with elevated pub fare and Four Seasons' first regulation four-lane bowling alley, professional putting green, and curated game room |
| The Picture House | 2026 | 22-seat state-of-the-art theatre showing first-run movies |
| The Merchant Room | 2026 | Two-time James Beard Award winner Chef Gavin Kaysen debuts a New American Brasserie inspired by the elegance of Old Florida |
| The Gardens golf course | Fall 2026 | The new Tom Fazio 18-hole course opens fall 2026, with completion limited by the construction access road that ensures no construction traffic in Coquina Sands |
The last row is the one that reads differently to residents than to visitors. The developer intentionally routed construction traffic away from the Coquina Sands street grid, which is why the course finish is pinned to fall rather than earlier. Anyone who lived through the demolition years knows what that trade-off is worth.
Lowdermilk Hasn't Changed, And That Matters
While the north end of the neighborhood was being rebuilt, the south anchor stayed exactly what it was. Lowdermilk Park at 1301 Gulf Shore Boulevard N is open daily from 5:00 AM to 11:00 PM as a premier beachfront destination park featuring sand volleyball courts, a playground for children, picnic tables, gazebos available for rent, restroom facilities, and a concessions area offering snacks and refreshments. The City of Naples has activated newly installed gate arms at the entrance and exit; when the park is open, the gate arms remain raised and display a green status.
The Beach Café at Lowdermilk still runs the same play. Made-to-order food, homemade sorbets and yogurt, chair and umbrella rentals, paddle boards and kayaks, open every day from 9am to sunset weather permitting.
For residents, the contrast is the point. You now have a choice between a fully programmed resort at one end of the boulevard and a fifteen-dollar afternoon at Lowdermilk at the other, both within walking distance of the same block. Very few beach neighborhoods in Florida offer that pairing at that walking radius.
The Pier Detour Reroutes Your Sunset Walk
One thing that has changed south of the neighborhood: the Naples Pier sunset walk is on hold. In January 2026, a groundbreaking ceremony marked the official start of reconstruction on the Naples Pier, and the project is expected to take approximately 18 months to complete. The historic pier was heavily damaged during Hurricane Ian in 2022, and the city has approved a $26.3 million project to rebuild the structure stronger and more resilient. Reopening is targeted for roughly mid-2027.
For anyone whose habit was a walk down to the pier and back, the practical routing this summer runs north instead of south. The City has established pedestrian bypasses at the Broad Avenue South and 13th Avenue South beach ends, which will remain open throughout the project, and restrooms are available at both locations. If you want the water without the construction fencing, though, the two-mile stretch north from Lowdermilk to the Doctors Pass jetty is quieter than it has been in a decade, and the new Sunset Bar programming gives it a destination.
What This Means For A Coquina Sands Summer
Pull the threads together and the shape of the season is different. The old neighborhood pattern treated May through October as a hold-your-breath stretch. Most of the good restaurants ran short menus, foot traffic thinned, and locals stopped bumping into each other. The new pattern has a functional Friday-through-Sunday music program a block off the sand, a working sidewalk system that makes it easy to get there, a spa and cinema landing before high season, and a golf course opening on the shoulder in the fall.
The people it changes the most are the ones who already live here. Second-home owners who fly in for season will encounter the property polished and staffed at capacity. Residents get the version that is quieter, less crowded, and more forgiving with a reservation.
If your summer routine has drifted into the same three restaurants and the same two beach chairs for a few years running, this is the season to reset it. Walk the new sidewalk one evening, book Sunday brunch at HB's, and see what the boulevard looks like when the pedestrian light is actually working.
When your own plans for this neighborhood eventually extend past dinner reservations to something that requires a discreet market read, the Laurel McGarel Group knows Coquina Sands street by street. Schedule a private consultation and we will build the rest of the conversation around what you actually want.