Looking for a luxury vacation home in Florida? Forget living among the averagely wealthy in places like Palm Beach and Bal Harbour. The crème de la crème of super-rich A-listers head for Miami Beach's ultra-exclusive and reassuringly secluded islands where privacy and exclusivity keep them a world apart. Join us as we take a look at the lavish properties owned by celebrities including J-Lo, P Diddy, Oprah, and Cher on Star Island, Fisher Island, La Gorce and more...

First up is the aptly named Star Island. Dubbed Miami's Millionaire Row, it more than lives up to its glittering moniker. A veritable celebrity magnet, the manmade 86-acre isle, which was created in 1922, is linked to the mainland via just one bridge and features a guardhouse at the entrance for added security. Big names who have homes here or previously owned manses include Gloria Estefan, Shaquille O'Neal, Rosie O'Donnell, Jennifer Lopez and P Diddy.

Back in August 2020, Jennifer Lopez together with her then-fiancé Alex Rodriguez dropped a whopping $32.5 million (£24.6m) on a spectacular 14,762-square-foot (1,371 sq m) Mediterranean-style Star Island estate. The couple actually bagged a bargain, believe it or not, since the property was originally listed for $40 million (£30.3m).

Nestled on almost an acre of land – quite something, given the island's bijou size – the sprawling waterfront estate comprises a picture-perfect white stucco mansion and guesthouse. According to the listing on Realtor, the buildings surround an illuminated resort-style infinity pool and outdoor Jacuzzi, covered bar and cabana, 100-foot dock and lush tropical gardens.

The interiors are especially snazzy, with all sorts of high-end features, from stone floors and Venetian plaster to wonderfully ornate fireplaces, a catering-sized chef's kitchen, marble wet bar and climate-controlled wine cellar tucked away behind wrought-iron doors. There's even a grand library and elevator inside the property.

All in all, the estate boasts 10 bedrooms and 10-and-a-half bathrooms, including a glam master suite with a private sitting room and study. Following her breakup with A-Rod in April, J-Lo went on to rent a manse in Miami Beach's Bayshore neighbourhood after rekindling her romance with old squeeze Ben Affleck, so it's likely her baseball legend ex got the Star Island property, or they may decide to sell it and split the proceeds.

P Diddy, who dated J-Lo on and off from 1999 to 2001 and remains on friendly terms with the Hustlers star, snapped up a 19,545-square-foot (1,816 sq m) manse on the island back in 2003, splashing $14.5 million (£11m) on the nine-bedroom, 12-bathroom property, which belonged to Mariah Carey's former husband, record executive, Tommy Mottola.

P Diddy, real name Sean Combs, followed up on his bumper purchase in July by buying the estate next door from Gloria Estefan and her husband Emilio. They had worked with renowned Uruguayan architect Carlos Ott to design the gorgeous abode. Diddy parted with an astronomical $35 million (£26.5m) to bag the property, which sits on 1.3 acres, making it even bigger than J-Lo and A-Rod's sumptuous estate. 

The pristine Floridian-style main house is simply divine. It features five bedrooms and four-and-half bathrooms, along with several living rooms including a graceful piano room, a dining area and large kitchen and breakfast room, all of which are beautifully finished with elegant cornices, hardwood or marble flooring and more. To complement the finish, decoration is minimal for a relaxed, sophisticated vibe.

There's also a three-bedroom, three-bathroom guesthouse on the lot, which like the principal property exudes impeccable taste and attention to detail. Other major selling points, which no doubt appealed big-time to Diddy, include the state of the art entertainment system, stunning pool, Jacuzzi, gazebo and summer kitchen, as well as the private dock, which has an electric boat lift.

Fisher Island is so exclusive, it's only accessible by boat, preferably a luxury yacht, or helicopter, which works wonders keeping out the riff-raff. Consisting mainly of opulent mansions and swish apartment buildings, the 216-acre isle has the highest per capita income in America. Residents have to pay $250,000 (£189k) to join the island's club and stump up annual dues of $20,000 (£15k). Stars who have owned property here include Julia Roberts, Boris Becker, Andre Agassi, Oprah and Caroline Wozniacki and David Lee.

Oprah's real estate portfolio is formidable with homes in California, Hawaii and elsewhere, and the Queen of All Media once owned a sensational penthouse in Fisher Island too. The TV legend bought the property in the Villa Del Mare condo building in 1995 and sold it to the former chairman of Campbell's Soup in 2000 for $6.5 million (£4.9m).

No pictures exist online of the penthouse when Oprah owned it – these were the early days of the internet after all – but the property was put up for sale last year, offering a glimpse into its incredible interiors. Spanning 6,170 square feet (573 sq m), it wows with 20-foot arched ceilings and a wraparound terrace offering breathtaking views.

According to the listing with Luxe Living Realty, highlights include the expansive living room, dual-aspect dining room, which showcases the vistas to the max, the roomy master suite with twin ensuite bathrooms and dressing rooms, as well as an office, gym and three further bedrooms. The owner also has access to the condo building's superior amenities such as its pools and spas, plus the property came with ample parking space.

While he did gut-renovate the place, which wouldn't have been cheap, the penthouse's seller, Aston Martin Lagonda executive chairman Lawrence Stroll, almost certainly made a tidy profit on the sale. Having bought the property in 2014 for $13.5 million (£10.2m), he shifted it in November 2020 for $20 million (£15.1m). Oprah must be kicking herself she didn't hold on to the lucrative pad.

Fisher Island has attracted more than its fair share of tennis superstars thanks to its pro courts, which have been ranked the best in the East Coast region by Tennis magazine. Among them is the now-retired Danish player Caroline Wozniacki. The former world number one and her husband, ex NBA basketball alumnus David Lee, made a beeline for the island in 2018.

That year, the pair paid $13.5 million (£10.2m) for an 8,430-square-foot (783 sq m) condo in the 10-storey Palazzo Del Sol building, one of the most prestigious on the island. Accessed by a private elevator, the residence has a capacious open-plan layout with floor-to-ceiling windows that showcase the stunning views to a T.

In fact, the couple had a wall knocked down to let in more light, which has added immeasurably to the interior. Just off the main living area is a gourmet kitchen loaded with Gaggenau and Sub-Zero appliances, plus a chic dining area with a marble-topped table. There's even a billiards room in the condo.

The master suite has its own terrace – there are six in total – as well as his and hers dressing rooms and a spa bathroom decked out in copious marble. In the end, the condo proved too big for the couple, who opted to downsize to a smaller place on the island. They sold it fully furnished with The Jills Zeder Group in February for $16.25 million (£12.3m), $1.25 million (£946k) short of the asking price but a significant increase on what they paid for it in 2018. 

Another of Miami Beach's artificial islands, La Gorce was created in 1924 by the developer behind Fisher Island and is named after the explorer John Oliver La Gorce. Connected to the mainland by a small bridge, the 58-acre guarded community is known for its beguiling waterfront estates and lush vegetation. Famous residents past and present include Billy Joel, Ricky Martin, Cher, Matt Damon and Lil Wayne.

Cher added to her house collection purchased a villa on the island in 1993 and set about transforming it into an exotic retreat, drawing inspiration from Moorish and Venetian design. Eschewing the minimal aesthetic of her previous homes, the Goddess of Pop and Oscar-winning actress went all out packing the property with religious art, rich fabrics, carved wood and fancy “clutter”.

The star only held on to the 11,460-square-foot (1,064 sq m) six-bedroom, seven-and-a-half-bathroom manse for three years, selling it in 1996 for $4.35 million (£3.3m), but her inimitable stamp remains on the property, which from the exterior looks like a Moroccan riad morphed with a palazzo in Venice thanks to the horseshoe-arched windows and colonnade and other design elements.

Standout features aside from the lap pool and verdant gardens include the sweeping two-storey living room with its extra-high ceiling and mezzanine, the chef's kitchen, bar, office and master suite, which has a 300-square-foot (28 sq m) walk-in closet that was presumably put in by Cher, who is famed for her outrageous outfits, which must number in the thousands.

The icing on the cake is this covered porch area, which makes for the perfect spot to relax with a cocktail or two. The house has been let over the years to everyone from Janet Jackson to Julio Iglesias but last sold in December 2020 for a hefty $17 million (£12.9m), though the buyer, hospitality exec Keith Menin, bought it for $5 million (£3.8m) under the asking price. Since he said he was planning to undertake only a light renovation, it's likely Cher's signature touches will remain.

Matt Damon met his wife Luciana Bozán Barroso in 2003 while she was working as a bartender in South Beach. Following their wedding in 2005, the couple stayed in the area, snagging their dream home, a La Gorce island Mediterranean-style estate called Maravilla (Spanish for 'marvel' or 'wonder'), which set them back $10.3 million (£7.8m).

Providing ample space for the couple and their three daughters, the first of whom was born in 2006, the double-lot property encompasses more than an acre and includes a 12,075-square-foot (1,122 sq m) main house with seven bedrooms and ten bathrooms, a two-bedroom guesthouse, a resort-style pool and poolhouse, as well as 170 feet of water frontage.

The couple upgraded the 1935 property to reflect their taste, which is laid-back and unpretentious, though the main house has all the trappings of an A-list home such as a movie theatre, wine cellar and custom office, along with a gourmet chef's kitchen, cutting-edge security and a whole lot more besides.

The piece-de-resistance however has got to be the enticing elevated pool. In 2013, the family decamped to Pacific Palisades, opting for a manse a stone's throw away from Damon's best buddy Ben Affleck's place. After struggling to attract a buyer, the property was reduced in price from $20 million (£15.1m) to just under $19 million (£14.4m) but eventually sold at the end of 2014 for $15.38 million (£11.6m).

In 2010, Lil Wayne splurged $11.6 million (£8.8m) on an enormous contemporary manse on La Gorce island, but must have rued the day he closed the deal, since the property gave him nothing but problems. After the sale went through, the Young Money rapper wasted no time tricking out the 15,101-square-foot (1,403 sq m) pad.

Adding to the nine-bedroom, nine-and-a-half bathroom property's plethora of showy features, which include a lap pool and glass elevator, Weezy's additions included a rooftop skate park, fully equipped recording studio and most jaw-dropping of all, a shark lagoon. All this extra expense soon caught up with the hip hop artist and he narrowly escaped losing the home to bankruptcy.

Here's the shark lagoon in all its awesomeness. The star went on to mortgage the property to the hilt, compounding his debt issues, and in 2015 cops raided the manse, seizing the rapper's $30 million (£22.7m) art collection to pay off $2 million (£1.5m) he owed on a private jet. That same year, Lil Wayne fell victim to a swatting incident after police received a hoax call that four people had been shot in the pad, and swatters struck again in 2016 according to a report by TMZ.

Clearly desperate to get rid of the place, Weezy put the infamous property on the market in 2015 with an asking price of $18 million (£13.6m), but with willing buyers few and far between, the Grammy winner ended up having to slap on a generous discount, eventually selling the manse in 2017 at a loss-making $10 million (£7.6m), $1.6 million (£1.2m) less than what he paid for it in 2011.

After offloading the cursed La Gorce Island mansion, Lil Wayne tried his luck on the nearby Allison Island, settling on a $16.75 million (£12.7m) manse, having got to grips with his financial problems with a little help from Jay-Z. Like La Gorce, the 8.5-acre cigar-shaped isle was dredged in the 1920s, but is less celeb-heavy and best known for its luxe Aqua condo development and tranquil waterfront estates rather than the stars who live there.

Designed by Choeff Levy Fischman, the architectural firm behind the rapper's former home on La Gorce Island, the 10,472-square-foot (973 sq m) ultra-modern masterpiece is considerably more secluded with the entrance and much of the manse surrounded by a moat-like water feature, which adds to the feeling of security and protection.

Whereas the La Gorce Island home has a slightly dated look – it was completed in 2004 but has something of a 1980s vibe – Lil Wayne's Allison Island manse, which was built the year before he bought it, is far more up to date and infinitely more stylish, most definitely a major upgrade on his previous property.

Rocking seven bedrooms and 10 bathrooms, the house, which appears to float above the ground, has a wealth of attractive features including an inner atrium complete with living walls, hip indoor / outdoor living areas, two sleek kitchens, an elevator, home theatre and an infinity pool and cabana pool house.

Replete with a profusion of palm trees, the sublime 82-acre Palm Island perfectly reflects its name. Created in the 1920s, the artificial isle soon attracted the great and good, and not so great and good of society, including notorious gangster Al Capone, and was famed for its Latin Quarter nightclub, which was owned by Barbara Walters' father Lou and frequented by the likes of Frank Sinatra and Jane Russell.

Among the more recent celebs associated with the island is rapper and music industry bigwig Birdman. The Cash Money Records co-founder scooped up a humongous 20,000-square-foot (1,858 sq m) waterfront manse on the isle in 2012, paying former owner RockStar energy drink creator Russell Weiner $14.5 million (£10.9m) for the property.

The hip hop entrepreneur then pulled off the most blingtastic of makeovers, sinking millions into a dazzling refurb. Absolutely zero expense was spared pimping out the seven-bedroom, 13-bathroom property, which seriously impresses from the exterior with a resort-style pool, summer kitchen, volleyball court and 100 feet of water frontage.

It's the manse's interior though which is most mind-blowing. Stupidly luxurious, it stuns from the get-go with a palatial foyer that flows into a vast open-concept living area packed with mega-expensive furniture and artworks. Elsewhere, there's a marble-clad chef's kitchen, billiards room with a solid onyx bar, a movie theatre, two wine cellars, plus an additional pool.

Before the house was remodelled to go on the market for $33.9 million, Birdman's 3,500-square-foot (325 sq m) master suite was all-glamour. Decorated with leopard print wallpaper, crystal chandeliers and other ostentatious touches, the supersized space had an Alaskan king-size LED bed, glitzy sitting area, cavernous walk-in closets, his and her bathrooms and a private balcony.

The most extravagant feature though has got to be the $2 million (£1.5m) gold toilet the hip hop hitmaker installed. Prompted by alleged mortgage problems and damage from 2017's hurricane Irma, Birdman vacated the property and put it on the market for $20 million (£15.1m), but it ended up selling in 2020 for just $10.85 million (£8.2m), only for the new owner to give the manse a minimal overhaul and list it for an outrageous $33.9 million (£25.6m).

This group of four gated artificial islands were dredged in the early 1900s and developed during the 1920s. Their reputation as a magnet for celebrities came in the 1940s when a long list of legendary stars descended, including Tony Bennett, Carmen Miranda and Elizabeth Taylor, enticed by the islands' deluxe estates and tight security. More recent big-name residents have included Lenny Kravitz, Anna Kournikova and Enrique Iglesias.

Back in the late 1940s, Elizabeth Taylor sojourned on the heavenly island with her then-fiancé, William Pawley Jr. The Hollywood icon is pictured here with her beau relaxing around the pool of the waterfront manse, which was owned by his father William Pawley, who was the US ambassador to Brazil at the time.

The relationship wasn't to be however and the screen siren went on to marry hotel heir Conrad "Nicky" Hilton Jr instead in 1950. The first of her eight marriages (two of which were with the same man), it lasted just eight months. The property has been renovated over the years, but much of it looks just like it did when the young and up-and-coming actress stayed there with Pawley.

The pool, for instance, remains more or less unchanged, apart from the diving board, which is no longer there. All in all, the property extends over 0.81 acres and as well as the heated saltwater pool, it features a summer kitchen, a perfectly manicured garden and 150 feet of water frontage.

The main 8,082-square-foot (751 sq m) house, which is painted pastel pink, has seven bedrooms and nine bathrooms, along with a family room with vaulted ceilings, a chef's kitchen and more, while there's also a one-bedroom, one-bathroom guesthouse on the property. According to the listing on Realtor, it last sold in December 2020 for $19.95 million (£15.1m).

Arguably Miami Beach's most exclusive island, the 300-acre Indian Creek consists of just 41 waterfront lots, which are grouped along the island's periphery around a clubhouse and golf course. Guarded 24/7, the high-security 'Billionaire Bunker' is home to fabulously wealthy tycoons and A-list celebrities, which over the years have included Julio Iglesias, Beyoncé and Jay-Z, supermodel Adriana Lima, Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen and Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner.

Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen were seduced by the island's charms at the end of 2020, splashing $17 million (£12.8m) on a 1.84-acre lot with 200 feet of water frontage, which at the moment is graced with a Mediterranean-style home and guesthouse. Like the Elizabeth Taylor mansion, they are painted pastel pink.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback and his supermodel wife have chosen to demolish the existing structures and replace them with an environmentally conscious home more in keeping with their sustainably-minded lifestyle. While the construction work is carried out, the pair and their children are staying in a waterfront manse in Tampa.

Plans for the property are being kept under wraps, but there's a strong chance it will resemble the couple's eco-friendly manse in Brentwood, Los Angeles, which they built from scratch in 2009 and sold in 2014 to hip hop pioneer Dr Dre. Rather than the sort of minimal contemporary design that tends to characterise eco homes, the property looks more like an old French château.

Much of the huge home was built using reclaimed and antique materials, including the beams and stone in this cosy living room, and as is the case with the Brentwood manse, which has archways that open the rooms to the exterior, the new property is likely to have an indoor / outdoor design given the tropical climate.

Also late on in 2020, Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner spent a staggering $32.2 million (£24.3m) to secure an empty 1.8-acre Indian Creek plot, where they plan to build a home. No doubt impatient at the prospect of having to wait ages for their dream property to be built, the duo paid $24 million (£18.1m) in April for a palazzo-style manse on the opposite side of the island.

The 1.26-acre estate had been on the market for six months before Ivanka got hold of the deeds. The original listing photos are really quite something, from this shot of the exterior – showing a magnificent resort-style swimming pool, reflecting pools and lovely gardens – to the knockout interior pics.

Just check out the ravishing double-staircase and domed ceiling. The 8,510-square-foot (791 sq m) manse has spacious open-concept living and entertaining areas, a  screening room, wood-panelled office, gym and a chef's kitchen, along with six bedrooms and eight-and-a-half bathrooms brimming with expensive marble. 

The property may have been turnkey-ready when it went on the market, but it has since deteriorated, at least on the outside. The drained resort pool is now filled with dank green water and the patio appears to be only partially tiled. It will clearly be some time yet before the family are able to set up home there. In the meantime, Javanka are renting an apartment in nearby Surfside's Arte building.

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