Sarasota and Siesta Key Things to Do

Sarasota and Siesta Key Things We Love to do:

Our favorite place is Siesta Key.  We are lucky that we get to go often because we live nearby.  The beach is gorgeous and the sand stays cool even when it is blistering hot out.  The water is clear and teal most days.  Some of our favorite memories are just going to the beach as a family or meeting friends there.  Sometimes we can hang out at the beach for hours while other days we go for a walk.  There is a handicap access walkway which makes it easier to get to water.  The ocean is pretty far from the parking lot on Siesta Key. 

There are a lot of great places to eat and things to do near Siesta Key and this article will feature some of our favorite places. 

Top Things to Do in the Area:

1. If you are looking for gorgeous sunset cruise checkout Sunsets n Sandbars!  We enjoyed a beautiful evening with Jay the captain and his lovely wife cruising from Siesta Key along the Intercostal, Sarasota Bay and watching the best sunset off of Lido Key.

2. Mote Marine is s a great aquarium that does a lot to advance marine science worldwide.  Great things to do on a rainy day!

3. Selby Gardens are botanical gardens right on the bayfront.  We love Selby and consider it a hidden gem in our area.

4. The Ringling Home and Museum has a huge collection of art, and museum collectibles and you can tour their beautiful home, the Ca' d'Zan.

5. Are you looking for shark teeth?  The best place for this is Manasota Beach just 20 minutes south of Siesta Key.

6. If shells are your thing, check out Turtle Beach.  We have so many pretty shells from here!

7. On a rainy day visit the UTC mall which has an indoor playground for the kiddos.

8. Myakka State Park has one of the few elevated canopy walks in the world!  It's worth a trip to climb up and see the view.

9. Siesta Key Village is a great place to go for a walk and a drink after a day at the beach.

10. St Armand's Circle is near Lido Beach and Longboat and also has great shopping, food, and drink options.  We like to sit at the Columbia, enjoy some warm bread while we drink sangria and people watch.

11. Checkout Sunsets and Sandbars for a special cruise along the bay.  This is the perfect activity to make you feel like you are on vacation or for a special occassion celebration.

Our Top Three Places to Stay in Sarasota:

1.  If you are on a budget, this is the place for you!  There is a fantastic Sarasota County campground on the south end of the key where we have stayed.  You can have an RV delivered to the Turtle Beach Campground and the campground is directly on the beach.  It's a very natural beach with a ton of shells and there is even a playground for the little ones.  You can find out more about this campground here: https://www.sarasotacountyparks.com/parks-and-facilities/discover-a-park/destination-parks/turtle-beach-campground 

2.  Another one of our favorite places to stay when we are not on the budget is the Ritz Carlton Sarasota.  We stayed here for the first time when we were debating whether we should move here and we fell in love with this property.  It's centrally located in Sarasota and has a complimentary shuttle that takes you to the Ritz Beach Club. The Ritz has one of our favorite restaurants Jack Dusty's.  The bread comes in a can and is deliciously sweet.  The ceviche is always good and the steaks there are perfectly prepared!

3.  I spent a girls weekend at these adorable bungalows on Siesta Key that were both walking distance to the beach and to the strip.  The Tropical Breeze resort had studios, one, two and three bedroom units and a pool.  It was not fancy but it was super clean and convenient to places to eat, bars and to the beach.  

Our Top  Places to Eat in Sarasota

We love to eat out.  When we first moved to Sarasota we made it a point to get to know local places to eat.  Picking just five is going to be tough but I will include other places we enjoy as well.  Sarasota has a great food scene even though its a relatively small town.

1.  Hands down my favorite place to eat at the bar or a table is Connor's.  My husband and I will often go there for a bit of a fancier dinner.  It's a great place for a date night.  When it's just us, we eat at the bar and chit-chat with the staff.  They also have what we call "fancy lunch".  It's a pretty reasonably priced lunch menu and our girls have enjoyed the couple of times we have taken them for "fancy lunch" here.  Try the Old Fashioned if you drink and the steaks are always fabulous.

2. Owens Fish Camp - This is a local favorite!! The wait is always terrible and they do not take reservations but the food makes it worth the wait.  I highly recommend going at least once to Owens Fish Camp.  The original Sarasota location has a ton of character and you can eat any of the seafood.  You will not be disappointed.

3. For a casual bite, Geckos are a family favorite!! They have a monthly menu that the chefs put together and I have tried a few of them that have been amazing.  My favorite thing here is the Poke Tuna Bowl and my husband enjoys their burgers.

4. My favorite Indian food is Tandoor.  They are located near UTC.  I love their Butter Paneer with veggies but I have had several of their dishes and they are the best.

5. Food+Beer has several locations in town and is great bar food.  We typically go to Gulf Gate Food+Beer and enjoy their yummy brussell sprout appetizer with parmesan and bacon, their chicken nuggets are freshly breaded and delicious, we also love their burgers.  You really cannot go wrong with this place, their drinks are amazing too!

Honorable Mention:  For great views the Old Salty Dog, Marina Jack's (Walking Distance from the Ritz), Michael's on East, and so many others.