Sarasota Vacations - Florida

Sarasota>>>  52 miles (83 km) south of Tampa, 150 miles (240 km) south west Orlando

Sarasota Vacation Highlights

Sarasota is home to the FSU (Florida State University) Ringling Center for the Cultural Arts, a 60-acre site where the circus legend John Ringling and his wife built their home on a truly grand scale and collected magnificent works of art. 

The grounds include the historic Asolo Theater, a 19th-century Italian playhouse that was  moved to Sarasota in the 1950s and is now the focal point for University's Center for the Performing Arts.

Recent restoration works have been completed on the Ringlings' 30-room palatial winter residence Ca'd'Zan which was built in 1925.

Modeled after a Venetian palace, the house had its own dock where Mrs Ringling was able to moor her private gondola!

Anyone with a love of circus will appreciate the Ringling Museum of the Circus with its circus memorabilia.

The John and Mabel Ringling Museum of Art is Florida's official art museum, is filled with over 500 years of European and American art. It features one of the most important collections of grand 17th-century baroque paintings in the world.

There are also collections of decorative arts, traveling exhibits and an old-master collection. 

The beaches at Siesta Key, North and South Lido and Turtle Beach are not the only other local attractions in the area.  Historic Spanish Point is a museum and archaeological site covering 31 acres of walking trails through Native American burial mounds and 1867 pioneer homesteads. For a change of pace, lovers of exotic automobiles will enjoy the Classic Car Museum.

The Marie Selby Botanical Gardens is a must-see for serious lovers of orchids. It houses over 20,000 exotic plants, of which more than 6,000 are orchids. 

The Myakka River State Park is a 47 sq mile wildlife preserve of dense woodlands. It is the largest state park and provides great bird and alligator watching, 40 miles (64 km) of boardwalks, trails and touring options. 

  Photos courtesy of Sarasota Convention & Visitors Bureau

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