Things to do in Sarasota
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Ringling Museum Complex
Who doesn't love the circus? Well...people who are afraid of clowns. But a little coulrophobia isn't necessarily a deal-breaker at the Ringling Museum Complex. On the grounds of the 66-acre complex are three separate museums, all included in your admission and each one a worthy attraction on its own. Railroad, real-estate and circus baron John Ringling and his wife Mabel put down roots here, building a Venetian Gothic waterfront mansion called Ca d'Zan. You can wander the ground floor at your own pace, or take a guided tour - totally worth it - which grants you access to the upstairs bedrooms. Also on the grounds, the John & Mabel Museum of Art is an excellent art museum …
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Cà d'Zan
Said to mean 'House of John' in Venetian dialect, Cà d'Zan (1924-26) was the grand winter home of the Ringlings. Fronting Sarasota Bay, it's a spectacular combination of Italian and French Renaissance, baroque, Venetian Gothic and modern architecture. The lavish house has a ballroom, dining room, and taproom (with vaulted ceilings and stained-glass panels); the ballroom and playroom had their ceilings painted by Willy Pogany, a set designer for the Ziegfeld Follies.
There's a catwalk around the 30ft-high court, or living room, with very fine tapestries throughout. In fact, the whole stupendous place is filled with eclectic and opulent decorative arts and furnishings. It …
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John & Mable Ringling Museum of Art
This enormous and imposing Venetian Gothic and Italian Renaissance building (finished in 1929) boasts a first-rate collection of 17th-century, late-medieval, baroque and Renaissance French, Dutch and Spanish paintings and tapestries. Art works span 500 years, while the art museum library has a whopping 60,000 books spanning all art periods. The sculpture garden contains bronze replicas of ancient Greek and Roman figures.
You'll also find rotating modern exhibits and the Asolo Theater, a horseshoe-shaped, 300-seat theater that was originally built in the castle of Asolo, Italy, in 1798. After being dismantled in 1930 to make way for a movie theater, the theater was eventua…
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Beaches
The area's excellent powdery, white-sand beaches are located on the barrier islands west of town. Parking is generally a snap; there are public lots, and public transport from the mainland. Lido Key, just west of St Armand's Circle, is divided into North and South Lido Beaches, the latter of which is huge and also shaded for picnicking. Siesta Key Beach, an absolutely deservedly famous strip of sand, accommodates 800 cars in its parking lot.
Head south on Midnight Pass Rd to the end of Siesta Key for the quieter Turtle Beach. Crescent Beach, perfectly fine, is wedged in between those two. Longboat Key, north of St Armand's Circle, also has lovely beaches with lots of acce…
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Pelican Man's Bird Sanctuary
Dale Shields is the Pelican Man, and his sanctuary rehabilitates injured wildlife; it's on City Island, just east of the Mote, on the south side of Ken Thompson Pkwy. Although all injured animals are helped, pelicans are their primary customers (90% of all injured pelicans are hurt by fishing line). Since its humble beginnings in 1985 when Shields' first pelican rehabbed in a bathtub, the sanctuary now rehabilitates upwards of 6000 animals annually.
Still, some animals cannot be released; about 250 birds including hawks, gulls, egrets, owls, storks and pelicans and other indigenous wildlife now live here permanently.
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PAL Sailor Circus
Sarasota even celebrates its circus heritage in its school system. The PAL Sailor Circus is a truly unique circus experience – you don’t have to worry about animal or human cruelty here – its troop is comprised entirely of Sarasota County students. The kids take ‘circus’ as an extracurricular school activity, and learn high-flying, tumbling and clowning, which they then perform under the big top. It’s a wonderful experience that also supports positive after-school activities for children. Look for it tucked under the big blue-and-white circus tent east off S Tamiami Trail.
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Sarasota Bay Explorers
Sarasota Bay Explorers operates Sea Life Encounter Cruises that depart from the Mote Aquarium daily at 11am, 1:30pm and 4pm. The 1¾-hour hands-on ecotours cost $26/22 per adult/child. While trawling under the supervision of marine biologists, you’ll pick up and touch sponges, sea horses, puffers and cowfish. You’ll also inspect rookeries and stop on an uninhabited island for a short nature walk. Maybe you’ll even see manatees and dolphins; you never know what ocean mysteries will rear their heads. Guided three-hour kayak tours from the Mote cost $55/45 per adult/child.
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Ringling Museum Complex
Really, don’t miss the 66-acre winter estate of railroad, real-estate and circus baron John Ringling and his wife, Mable. This excellent museum complex, with exotic plantings and a rose garden, is easily worth at least a half-day of your holiday. Avid art collectors, over the years they amassed an exceptional collection of works by Rubens, Hals, Van Dyck and others. Ringling began work on a fine art museum in the early 1920s, which was donated to the state after his death in 1936. You can also tour Ringling’s home, Cà d’Zan, and the enormous Circus Museum.
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Marina Jack’s Restaurant
There are great panoramic views of the marina, downtown and Sarasota Bay at nearly every table here, thanks to theater-style seating and a location at the tip of Island Park. The restaurant is divided in half – one side is an alfresco raw bar with covered patio seating, the other is an indoor dining room. The menu features lots of seafood, including Caribbean lobster tail (the house specialty), and chicken and steak staples. It has long been one of the top restaurants in the city.
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Marie Selby Botanical Gardens
This 9-acre, indoor–outdoor botanical oasis specializes in orchids (more than 6000 of them) but also has quite a selection of other botanicals. There’s a hibiscus garden, cacti and succulent garden, a tropical house, bromeliad display, bamboo pavilion, koi pond, butterfly and waterfall gardens and tropical food gardens, where everything’s edible. There’s also a mangrove walkway. All in all, it’s a great place to sit quietly and soak in the peaceful ambience.
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Classic Car Museum
This sexy museum, with hundreds of exotic and curvaceous cars, appeals to nostalgic travelers. Among the Rolls, you’ll find a 1905 Rapid Depot Wagon, an ’81 DeLorean, a 1932 Auburn speedster, a tiny 1958 Metropolitan, and that most sought-after transporter, a 1976 Plymouth Voyager Van. A small music room contains romantic radios, turntables and other ancient noisemakers. You can’t miss it as you drive north on US 41 – look for the Flintstones’ car outside.
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Ophelia’s on the Bay
Sarasota’s winner for most romantic restaurant in town, Ophelia is perfectly situated on the southern tip of Siesta Key, overlooking a sweep of sparkling water and mangrove trees. Dine outside on a dockside patio, and savor the scent of the perfumed gardens around you. The food is as delicious as the surroundings. Ophelia’s serves world-flavor-influenced haute couture North American cuisine, and has a lengthy wine and bubbly list.
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St Armand’s Circle
St Armand’s Circle – yes, they misspelled St Amand’s name for posterity – is a fancy shopping center, surrounded by a traffic circle and packed with posh shops and cafés, that serves as the area’s social hub. John Ringling bought land on St Armand’s Key from Charles St Amand with the intention of developing it into exactly what it is today: an upscale shopping center surrounded by posh residences.
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Circus Museum
This fascinating place contains the wild Barlow Animated Miniature Circus, original and elaborately carved circus wagons, the cannon used to blast the Flying Zacchinis into low orbit, sequined costumes, calliopes and dozens of rare circus posters. Circus fans will be pleased to know that the spirit of the circus is still alive and kicking in Sarasota, though it's no longer the winter home of Ringling Bros Circus.
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Morton’s Gourmet Market
Purveyors of upscale picnic food (although they also have outdoor tables), this place has excellent sandwiches, pastries, salads and hot-food items. About 15 blocks south of downtown in the Southside Village area, Morton’s is one of a few upscale places here and is frequented by neighborhood gourmands. Osprey Ave runs parallel to the Tamiami Trail, so this place is really on the way to Siesta Key from downtown.
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Sarasota Baywalk
These shell paths and boardwalks circle a series of ponds surrounded by red, black and white mangroves. Though interesting, the lagoons were manmade and excavated by the Sarasota Bay Natural Estuary Program to different depths to attract different animals. The Baywalk is on City Island and is adjacent to the Mote, next to the bridge between Lido and Longboat Keys.
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Hemingway's
In addition to a couple of tiny balcony tables overlooking the action on St Armand's Key, Hemingway's also has lots of indoor seating. Good for families as well as couples, these well-served and well-prepared dishes range from salads and grilled chicken sandwiches to surf-and-turf specials. Nothing's going to knock your sandals off, but it's a pretty good place.
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Patrick’s
For all-American diner grub, you can’t beat Patrick’s. There are sports on the TV, super-sized burgers, sizzling steaks and potatoes cooked in all manner of styles. The atmosphere is just the right mix of low-key and downtown swank, the kind of spot where Sarasota’s suit set comes after work for dirty martinis and networking. Patrick’s stays open late.
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Michael’s on East
Within the Midtown Plaza, Michael’s serves exceptionally creative cuisine in elegant digs. The menu changes seasonally but patrons are loyal to Michael’s throughout the year. To experience Michael’s deservedly award-winning cuisine while still hanging on to your wallet, come for a fancy lunchtime sandwich or partake of the lighter bar menu.
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Blasé Café & Martini Bar
This little Siesta Key place tucked into the Village Corner plaza (with outdoor tables basically in a parking lot) draws loyal locals because of great breakfasts, big casual lunches and much more gourmet dinners. (Think along the lines of pitch-perfect tuna.) Afterwards, hang out at the martini bar, which has live music on the weekends.
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Gator Club
Sarasota’s most unique nightclub, the Gator offers live music seven nights a week – everything from Motown and salsa to reggae and alternative dance tunes. The vibe is comfortable and posh, reminiscent of an old upper-crust New York cigar club – think exposed brick walls, leaded glass mirrors and antique brass fixtures.
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Coasters
On the way to or from Siesta Key, Coasters is popular for its casual waterfront location, salads, sandwiches, wraps and two-for-one drinks. With a modicum of luck, you’ll see dolphins frolicking in a waterway right near your table. This is a great place to catch the sunset and watch pleasure boats cruising by.
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Cad’zan Bar
Inside the Ritz-Carlton, this swanky lounge serves the best chocolate martini in Sarasota – it’s liquid dessert that gives you a buzz, and don’t be surprised to find yourself licking the glass after the last heavenly sip. The atmosphere is old-world elegant, complete with jazz and dancing.
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Artisan’s World Marketplace
Artisan’s World Marketplace is a nonprofit organization providing a retail outlet for artisans worldwide who live below the poverty level. For every $1200 worth of goods sold here, an artist in a developing country can work for one year and support a family of four.
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Zoria
Arguably the most exciting culinary hot spot in Sarasota, Zoria appeals to sophisticated palates with eclectic dishes highlighting antelope, duck and (of course) seafood. No time for an involved meal? Hang at the bar and enjoy a lively menu of dressed-up favorites.
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