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Top 10 Awesome Things To Do in Sarasota

Last Updated on February 29, 2024

One hour south of Tampa on Florida’s sparkling Gulf Coast, Sarasota, known for its sugary white beaches and rich, cultural amenities offers plenty to do for the Florida traveler.

Check out our top 10 favorite things to do in Sarasota.

Photo of a road in Myakka one of the Things to do in Sarasota
Sarasota’s Myakka River State Park

If you are looking for “authentic” Florida outdoor activities, Sarasota has a wide range of things to do for the entire family that are simple, uncomplicated – and easy on the budget.

Photo of Siesta Key Beach
Sarasota’s World Famous Siesta Key Beach 

Hike through a state park, kayak a Florida mangrove tunnel, experience the past at a local historic site, visit a “kitschy” old Florida attraction, collect ancient shark teeth, fish under evening stars, build a sandcastle or take a sea turtle walk.

Things to do in Sarasota

These are all things you can do in Sarasota that will create endless “keepsake” memories.

Myakka River State Park

Myakka River State Park Bridge
Myakka River State Park Canopy Walk

Sarasota is home to Myakka River State Park, one of Florida’s oldest and most scenic parks. This expansive piece of natural Florida east of Sarasota encompasses 37,000 acres of shady moss-covered oak trees, riverine forests, wetlands, and prairies with walking trails, birding vistas, and even a treetop canopy walk.

View from Myakka River State Park

Overlooking a tremendous vista, this treetop view provides a panoramic window to a world of bromeliads and lichens, birds, and wildlife.

Myakka River Tours
Source: Florida State Parks

And don’t miss an airboat ride on the Myakka River to spot alligators, the real “stars” of Myakka.

Myakka River State Park Address: 13208 State Rd. 72, Sarasota, FL 34241

\Keep Cool in the Mangroves

Mangroves with a kayak

A unique experience awaits kayak paddlers in Sarasota Bay. From a launch site in South Lido Park is a paddling trail through a series of small waterways. A canopy of mangroves forms a shady tunnel over what were once mosquito control ditches.

Mangrove Tunnels

The mangrove is a coastal plant species that are vital to the ecosystem. Exposed roots anchor the trees in shallow water and along shorelines. The root system provides cover serving as a nursery for fish, crustaceans, and mollusks.

It is said that 75% of game fish and 90% of commercial fish in South Florida depend on the mangrove habitat. And the tree canopy serves as a rookery for many species of birds.

Photo of a mangrove tunnel
Sarasota’s Lido Key Mangrove Tunnels

The shady tunnels provide a paddling experience that is cool even on a hot day, and the quiet and subdued light makes it almost surreal. In the mangroves, you feel you have entered a sacred Florida space.

Find Florida Shark Teeth

Photo of shark teeth in a hand
Shark teeth can be found along Venice and Casperson beaches

Long ago, Florida was submerged under an ocean filled with sharks – many, many sharks. Over time, as the water receded and the Florida peninsula emerged, the prehistoric sharks died and their skeletons disintegrated, but their fossilized teeth remained.

Photo of shark teeth in a hand

The city of Venice, in south Sarasota County, happens to be located along a fossil bed, and is considered the “Shark Tooth Capital of the World.”

Although you might find a fossilized shark’s tooth on any area beach, your best bet is to head to Venice’s Caspersen Beach.

Photo of Kitty Sala hunting for shark teeth one of the Things to do in Sarasota
Some beachcombers use the “Venice snowshovel” to find shark teeth

With your toes snuggled into the sand at the water’s edge, pick up a handful of sand and shells and sift through your fingers. Shark teeth generally range from 1/8 to 3 ½” long and are usually dark gray or black in color.

After you collect your bounty you can celebrate at Sharkey’s on the Pier Restaurant with a great Gulf view and a well-deserved, delicious fish sandwich.

Osprey’s Historic Spanish Point

Spanish point

See a slice of “old” Florida at Osprey’s Historic Spanish Point. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the outdoor/indoor museum includes a walking tour overlooking Sarasota Bay and features a range of exhibits from an archeological glimpse of prehistoric inhabitants to the homestead of hearty early 1800-era pioneers to turn of the 20th century boom times.

Photo of Historic Spanish Point Chapel
Historic Spanish Point is an indoor-outdoor museum (photo, Chapel)

You’ll also glimpse the pioneer era of the Webb family who made their home here in 1867. The legend goes that they named the point of land jutting into Little Sarasota Bay Spanish Point because a Spanish trader had advised them of the site.

Spanish point building interior

You’ll also learn about famous Sarasota resident Bertha Potter the widow of Potter Palmer, a Chicago socialite who later owned the property. Tour the packinghouse, chapel, graveyard, and restored residences and gardens for an enjoyable glimpse into Sarasota’s history.

Historic Spanish Point Campus Address: 401 N Tamiami Trail, Osprey, FL 34229

Sarasota’s Jungle Gardens

Photo of flamingos
Sarasota’s Jungle Gardens is a classic, old Florida attraction

For more than 75 years, Sarasota’s Jungle Gardens has been delighting families. The “throwback” attraction is home to native and exotic animals – parrots, macaws, snakes, lizards, alligators, and crocodiles – many of them donated or rescued.

Sarasota Jungle Gardens Sign
Source: Sarasota Jungle Gardens

You’ll be able to view the wildlife while you walk along lush, tropical garden walkways. Pink flamingos are a favorite with visitors as they feed, flutter, and pose up close amongst the floral beauty.

A flamingo in the playground at Sarasota Jungle Gardens

The tropical bird show is one of the most famous in all of Florida and generations of families keep coming back to enjoy this must-see original Florida attraction.

Jungle Gardens Address: 3701 Bay Shore Rd., Sarasota, FL 34234

Visit Sarasota’s Beaches

Sarasota Beach Bird

Sarasota’s beaches are renowned as some of the most famous in the world with miles of stunning, fine white sand. And there is nothing as simple or fun as building an old-fashioned sandcastle in the sugary sand – for kids or adults. Kick back, roll off your towel, and grab a tool for digging.

Use your imagination. Maybe a tall tower, or a castle with a moat? Or how about sculpting a Florida dolphin, manatee, or sea turtle?

Photo of a Sandcastle on the beach one of the Things to do in Sarasota
Sarasota’s white sugary sand makes stunning sandcastles

The beach offers plenty of construction materials – sand of course, and shells, coral, sea beans, sea glass, plant seeds, driftwood, and seaweed.

Where to go?

Sarasota Beach sunset

Also, try these less-discovered beaches:

  • Turtle Beach on Siesta Key’s south end where the shimmering blue water meets a gently sloping beach.
  • Ted Sperling Park, on the southernmost end of Lido Key where pine trees whisper in the breeze above sandy, sunflower-laden trails.
  • Longboat Key Beach.

There are 12 access points along the length of the island – the one at its north end (#100 Broadway Street) has a wooden boardwalk meandering through sea grapes, pines, and sea oats, leading to the setting sun.

Fish Under the Stars

Photo of a jetty in the water at Venice
The Venice Jetty is considered an excellent fishing spot

During the heat of the day, fish get a bit lethargic, but when the sun goes down, fish are more likely to bite.

Night fishing is fun and some popular spots for night fishing, especially on local bridges and docks, including the Venice Jetty, Casey Key’s Blackburn Point Swing Bridge, Siesta Key’s Point of Rocks, and New Pass Bridge connecting Lido and Longboat Keys.

Marie Selby Botanical Gardens

Photo of flowers at Selby Gardens

Marie Selby Botanical Gardens offers 45 acres of bayfront sanctuaries to explore via two campuses – The Downtown Sarasota Campus, and the Historic Spanish Point Campus. At the Downtown campus, visitors can see rainforest, desert, native Florida, and display garden areas plus stroll along a bayfront mangrove walkway.

Marie Selby Botanical Gardens

Less than 10 miles away, the Spanish Point campus features 30 acres situated along Little Sarasota Bay, where visitors can learn about the area’s native and pioneer history.

Marie Selby Botanical Gardens waterfall

They can also check out a well-preserved collection of native Florida plantings from the site’s nature trails and boardwalks.

Marie Selby Botanical Gardens Address: 1534 Mound St., Sarasota, FL 34236

Longboat Key Turtle Watch

Photo of turtle tracks on the beach one of the Things to do in Sarasota
Florida Sea Turtle tracks are found along the coastline

On the Gulf Coast, Longboat Key Turtle Watch hosts morning Saturday walks in the month of July.

Visitors meet on Longboat Key and stroll to the beach in search of mother sea turtle tracks. Florida’s sea turtles nest between May and October, coming ashore in the dark of the night to bury their eggs in the white sandy beaches.

Longboat Key Turtle Watch

On the tour, volunteers search for tracks that lead to freshly laid nests, and stake the nests for protection, while you share the wonderment of Florida’s magical beach nursery.

Camp at the Beach

Photo of Siesta Key Turtle Beach
Sarasota’s Turtle Beach Campground provides a rare opportunity to camp on the beach

Here’s a rare treat. Camp directly on the beach. On the south end of Siesta Key is a county-operated Turtle Beach Campground, a thin slice of paradise shaded under a row of shady pine trees for tent campers and RV’ers.

Swimming, beach walking, shelling, barbecuing, and also stargazing are the main attractions. Here visitors can scan the beach for large turtle tracks leading to nests where mother turtles have buried their eggs.

Be sure to call ahead for reservations.

No doubt, you will find delightful fun in Sarasota!

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