Inside Mar-a-Lago: See what President Trump’s Palm Beach mansion looks like
by
Miami Herald
February 22, 2026
38 min read
Mar-a-Lago exterior.Miami Herald File
President Donald Trump’s Palm Beach estate is a combo deal: social center, resort — and a second White House
During his first term from 2017-21, Trump not only used Mar-Lago for some R&R while golfing at his nearby course, he also hosted world leaders and U.S. officials at the mansion. That has continued the past year of his new term in office.
Trump bought the mansion and a neighboring oceanfront parcel, formerly owned by cereal heiress Marjorie Merriweather Post, in 1985 for $10 million.
The mansion had been the subject of three failed sales in three years. The Marriott hotel chain, two friends of country singer Tammy Wynette and a Houston land developer all had negotiated to buy the mansion.
The mansion, often considered a monument to Roaring ‘20s ostentation, stretches from the Intracoastal to the Atlantic Ocean. When Trump bought it in 1985, it had 58 bedrooms, 33 bathrooms, three bomb shelters, a theater, a ballroom and a nine-hole golf course.
Mar-a-Lago is an eclectic mix of Italian, Spanish, Dutch and Portuguese architectural sytles. Post, heiress to the cereal maker’s fortune, entertained ambassadors and dignitaries at the mansion. For nearly 30 years, she and her several husbands, including E.F. Hutton, were Palm Beach’s social forces.
After Post died in 1973, her family willed Mar-a-Lago to the U.S. Department of the Interior as a retreat for presidents and heads of state. Seven years later, the federal government returned Mar-a-Lago to the Post Foundation because of the $1 million yearly maintenance bill.
Let’s take a look through the Miami Herald photo archives at what has happened inside Mar-a-Lago during the Trump years:
An interior of the opulent Club Mar-a-Lago on Palm Beach Miami Herald File
Mar-a-Lago’s former owner, Marjorie Merriweather Post, center, greets guests at the mansion for a 1968 party benefit. Miami Herald File
In March 2016, the White and Gold Ballroom at Mar-A-Lago is set up for Donald J. Trump’s Super Tuesday press conference, Palm Beach, Florida. Miami Herald File via Palm Beach Post
Photographers set up for a Donald J. Trump Super Tuesday press conference at Mar-A-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida on March 1, 2016. Miami Herald File via Palm Beach Post
A 2005 fashion show the Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach. Marsha Halper Miami Herald File
The Venetian room at Mar-a-Lago shown before an auction of furniture and decorative items. Miami Herald File
Singer Tony Bennett performs for about 400 Club Mar-a-Lago members in 1999. Pete Stachiw Miami Herald File
At a preview of the Club Mar-a-Lago for club members, Donald Trump, Marla and daughters (L) Ivanka (13) and Tiffany (1 1/2) pose for photos. Miami Herald File
The White and Gold Ballroom at Mar-A-Lago is setup for Donald J. Trump's Super Tuesday press conference at Mar-A-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida on Tues., March 1, 2016. Allen Eyestone The Palm Beach Post
These classified documents were found in Mar-a-Lago, along with several thousand misappropriated packets of White House ketchup. Miami Herald File
Outside the mansion
After restoration, the lantern gate boy was back in its position in 1999 at the entrance to Club Mar-a-Lago. Pictured with lantern boy is Richard Haynes who did the restoration. Pete Stachiw photo Pete Stachiw Miami Herlad File
A Palm Beach police unit guards the roads around former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach in September 2024. Pedro Portal [email protected]
A U.S. Coast Guard vessel patrols the waters around former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach after an assassination attempt at his nearby Trump International Gulf Club, on Sept. 16, 2024. Pedro Portal [email protected]
Mar-a-Lago’s exterior in 1993. Miami Herald File
President Trump at Mar-a-Lago
In 2019, the prime minister of St. Lucia, Allen Chastanet, left, greets members of the media before the start of an official meeting. President Donald Trump met with leaders from the Bahamas, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica and St. Lucia at Mar-A-Lago in Palm Beach. Jose A. Iglesias Miami Herald File
Donald Trump and Jorge Perez of the Related Group speaking to the media at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach. Miami Herald File
Donald Trump arrives before a news conference where he discussed his campaign status on Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2024, at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach. Alie Skowronski [email protected]
President Trump on the steps of his private club and retreat, Mar-a-lago. Miami Herald File
U.S. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna posted this image to Twitter, hours after a group of Republican members of Congress from Florida met with former President Trump at Mar-a-Lago. Miami Herald File
Former President Donald Trump with Digital World Acquisition Corp. CEO Patrick Orlando at Mar-a-Lago. Miami Herald File
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump waves as he exits after a news conference on Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2024, at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla. Alie Skowronski [email protected]
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