Miami's 'Billionaire Bunker' is a high-security island that has a 13-person police force for its 42 residents. A real-estate agent got me past the guardhouse - here's what the exclusive community looks like

Fortunately, my name was on a list of expected guests, so I didn't have a problem getting in.

The village of 34 residents is protected by a private, 13-man police force, according to my tour guide, Nelson Gonzalez, a luxury realtor and the senior vice president of EWM Realty International.

The force even patrols the perimeter of the island from the water.

We drove across the bridge and I was dropped off in the driveway of one of the island's opulent mansions, which I was planning to tour.

I was able to take a tour and photograph the home because it's for sale, but I wasn't allowed to take photos of any other houses on the island.

Read more: I got a tour of the only home for sale on Miami's 'Billionaire Bunker,' a private island that hedge-fund billionaires and celebs call home. Here's a look inside the $24 million mansion.

Although the $24 million home is the only one on the market, houses in the village have been known to sell without being officially listed.

And it was the second time the home broke that record, after selling for $47 million back in 2012, as Business Insider's Lina Batarags previously reported.

The Indian Creek Golf Course is one of the prime golf courses in Florida, according to Top 100 Golf Courses.

"This is not one of the most accessible venues for the visiting golfer, so you'll need to befriend a member to tee it up on the classical William S. Flynn-designed course here at Indian Creek, which dates back to the 1930s," the website reads.

Gonzalez told me the island is high-security and the residents are very concerned with privacy. I spotted one of the private police cars patrolling the island about two minutes into my tour.

Most of the village's homes sit behind gates, partially shrouded from view by palm trees and other lush foliage.

Supermodel Adriana Lima, former Sears CEO Eddie Lampert, and car dealership tycoon Norman Braman are just a few of the wealthy individuals who have owned homes on the island.

In 2017, the singer was asking $150 million for four contiguous vacant lots he owns on the island. Together, the properties would offer 800 feet of water frontage.

His home is "quite small compared to the houses of the area," according to Getty.

Icahn paid $7.5 million for his 14,000-square-foot Indian Creek vacation home back in 1997, according to Forbes.

Shula and his wife have reportedly lived in a sprawling white house on the island for more than 20 years.

"The Indian Creek Country Club is Miami-Dade County's most exclusive, and controversial, private society," Gus Garcia-Roberts wrote in the Miami New Times in 2011.

The club house's facilities include a swimming pool, fitness center, massage and steam room, locker rooms, bridge room, and a marina. It was built in 1929 by architect Maurice Fatio, who designed many of the most famous estates in Palm Beach.

Florida is one of the only places in North America where Banyan trees can be found, but the tree is actually native to tropical Asia.

While I'd expected a degree of security on the private island, I didn't expect it to be quite at that level, from the 13-person private police force to being screened at the guarded gatehouse and not being able to set foot outside the car or take photos of the homes.

The island is really small: The driving tour took at most 20 minutes, and that was moving slowly with frequent stops.

The most telling detail of my short time on the island is that I don't remember seeing a single civilian on the streets or in the yards — but I saw at least two members of the police force. So, while the level of security is definitely, and understandably, a draw to wealthy residents, I found it to be a bit of a deserted island.