Plan the perfect getaway with this list of 9 fun things to do in Sarasota Florida. Sarasota is the perfect vacation destination for those looking to enjoy beautiful beaches, world-class art, and some of the best Southern cuisine.
Wow was this past weekend was a whirlwind! On Friday I flew out to Sarasota, Florida for a weekend of fun with Visit Sarasota and some other awesome bloggers.I had heard good things about Sarasota before this trip, but I didn’t really know what made it special. The answer, it turns out, is a whole lot. Guys, I fell in love with Sarasota on this trip. There is so much natural beauty and so many fun things to do! I want to plan a winter vacation there with Josh when Omaha is freezing cold and Sarasota is still nice and warm!
I had heard good things about Sarasota before this trip, but I didn’t really know what made it special. The answer, it turns out, is a whole lot. Guys, I fell in love with Sarasota on this trip. There is so much natural beauty and so many fun things to do! I want to plan a winter vacation there with Josh when Omaha is freezing cold and Sarasota is still nice and warm!
9 fun things to do in Sarasota Florida
Siesta Key Beach
As soon as we got to Florida you know we had to check out a beach! And what a beach it was! Siesta Key Beach was just rated by Trip Advisor as the #1 beach in the country! I’ve never seen a beach stretch this long before meeting water. And it’s all natural! The ocean has warm water and calm waves. The absolute best part of this beach is the sand. It’s made almost entirely of quartz which means it doesn’t conduct heat. You can walk on the sand all day and will never burn your feet! It’s incredible.
What I would give to have a view like in the back of my house.
A cute little Florida bird.
I love the banyan trees all over Sarasota. I haven’t seen these since Hawaii!
Siesta Key Oyster Bar
We went to Siesta Key Oyster Bar for dinner our first night. It was the coolest cross between dive bar and upscale farm-to-table eatery and is a pretty famous place in Sarasota.
I’m in love with the decor. It’s definitely a place you want to pull up a chair, order a few rounds, and enjoy the live music and fun atmosphere.
And the food! If you’re a seafood fan, this would be the place to get it. Tara ordered the oysters and said they were great. As it is, I’m not a seafood fan, so I stayed in my wheelhouse and got the Dark N’Stormy BBQ chicken. It was superb.
Meaney’s Mini Donuts
After dinner we decided mini donuts from Meaney’s were in order. I mean, how could we see this stand and pass them up?
Tara modeling our Bavarian cream donuts. In case you’re wondering, yes, they were as incredible as they look!
Sarasota Farmers Market
The next morning started off bright and early as we headed to the Sarasota Farmers Market. First off: holy puppies! I was in heaven stopping to pet all.the.dogs. We perused the different tents and I could not get over how fresh and colorful everything was. There was a guacamole tent sampling some of the best guacamole I’ve ever tasted. If I could have found a way to get it back to Omaha without spoiling I would have bought a case!
I’ll take this whole table please.
There were so many interesting fruits and veggies you just don’t see back home!
Yoder’s Restaurant & Amish Village
After breakfast, we all headed to Yoder’s Restaurant & Amish Village. Yoder’s is celebrating 40 years of bringing delicious Amish food to the Sarasota community. That’s a pretty big reason to celebrate! They have a restaurant, a deli market, a produce market, and a gift shop. We got to taste our way through them all.
That’s Brian Emrich, the grandson of the original founders. He opened a bag of deep fried peanuts for us to try. You eat the shell!
Kelly showed us all the handmade Amish goods in the gift shop. This basket was made by an 11 year old Amish boy!
The coolest part of the tour was definitely the kitchen. We got to see how Yoder’s award-winning pies are made! This device that looks like a torture weapon is actually how Yoder’s makes their crust so perfect.
All the cream fillings.
Check out these perfect pies. That pumpkin one in the back has my name all over it!
We didn’t just come to Yoder’s to watch the professionals make pies. We were also participating in a pie making contest!
The four contestants: Me, Tara, Mary, and Leanette.
It was all smiles before the contest started.
But once the games began, it was every woman for herself. We had to make our best Yoder’s peanut butter pie in three minutes using the ingredients from the box. There were lots of extras meant to trip us up. (Here’s a fun video of me learning to make it back in the kitchen.) The audience then voted for the prettiest looking pie.
My final creation. I was pretty proud of my work and threw some pecans on top for good measure.
In the end I took second place. If Leanette hadn’t out-campaigned me, I think I would have stolen the show. 😉 I mean who doesn’t love pecans?
We all had a blast at the pie making contest and worked up quite an appetite. For lunch we went back to Yoder’s restaurant and I ordered the smoked chicken with Amish noodles and chicken stuffing.
As good as the meal was, the real star of the show was the pie. Check out this piece of ooey gooey pecan pie deliciousness. I love traveling with bloggers because everyone shares their food. Leanette let me try a piece of her pumpkin pie and I about died and went to heaven. I’m going to do my best to try and get the recipe for you guys because Yoder’s currently doesn’t ship and it is the absolute best pumpkin pie. My family used to order pumpkin pies from the Amish in Pennsylvania and it was made in a similar vein. Less spicy than traditional pumpkin pies and way more creamy. Ah, it’s so good!
The Ringling Museum
After our pie-filled morning we headed over to The Ringling Museum. The Ringling used to be the home of John Ringling, one of the five brothers who created The Greatest Show on Earth.
Today The Ringling includes the Circus Museum, the Museum of Art, the Historic Asolo Theater, the Ca’ d’Zan mansion, an education center, and The Bayfront Gardens. You could truly spend days in here and not get bored. There is so much to do and see and learn. You can buy a membership there to get to attend all the shows and performances the theater brings in, and if I lived in Sarasota I absolutely would.
The cannon they used to shoot circus performers out of!
The grounds are expansive and exquisitely maintained.
The mansion John Ringling used to spend his winters in.
I wouldn’t mind having this view from my backyard. 😉
We toured the inside of the mansion and it felt like we were stepping back in time. True opulence.
My favorite part of The Ringling had to be The John & Mable Ringling Museum of Art.
Check out this Peter Paul Ruben. It took my breath away.
And the courtyard has to be one of the most beautiful courtyards I’ve ever seen.
Salute
An afternoon of art and culture left us feeling a little fancy come dinner time. We enjoyed a true Italian dining experience at Salute and I savored every bite. There are a ton of good restaurants in Sarasota, but this is one of my favorites.
We started dinner off with a few appetizers: a brie and fig flatbread, caprese salad, and a burrata and arugula dish that was out of this world.
For my main entree I had three cheese and spinach agnolotti. Salute makes their pastas in-house and it was absolute perfection. This is one of those places I absolutely need to visit again.
The Blue Rooster
Sunday was our last day in Sarasota and while I was sad to leave I was super excited for brunch at The Blue Rooster. It’s a traditional southern brunch with a big side of gospel music. The singers raised the roof and knew how to get a Sunday morning started off right!
Shopping at St. Armands Circle
Before heading to the airport, I was excited to get a few hours to explore St. Armands Circle. This is the place to go for shopping in Sarasota with everything from fashion to home decor to macarons to spices.
I love Lilly.
Fresh fudge anyone?
How cute are these mugs? I have a serious mug collection problem and was so tempted to bring these home.
Josh would have had a field day in this store.
One day I will own a beach house and it will be filled with decorations like this and be my happy place. <3
And that was my trip to Sarasota, Florida! It was a fantastic time with good people in an absolutely beautiful location. There was so much fun stuff to do and insane amounts of delicious food. The beach will always have my heart. What I love about Sarasota is that there’s so much for everyone. It’s family friendly, there’s a lot of culture for the older crowd, and it would be the perfect place to take a group of girlfriends or couples for a week-long vacation. Now I just need to get planning! 😀
Questions of the Day: Have you been to Sarasota before? What’s your favorite kind of pie? What was the highlight of your weekend?
A big thanks to Visit Sarasota for covering my traveling, lodging, and expenses on this trip!
Wow that place is amazing! I’ve never been the places like this! Thanks for sharing these lovely pictures!
xx
cvetybaby.com
What an awesome, fun cacation!! Looks like you had a ball! Congrats on the pie win!!!
Wow. It looks like you had an amazing weekend! The photos are beautiful 🙂
Yay for Sarasota! I was there for a med school interview a couple years back, and I got to explore it a little bit! <3 I went to Siesta Key Beach as well and it's just as gorgeous as I remember! :]! I wish I'd checked out the farmer's market too! All that food looks amazing! :]
Those mini donuts look out of this world! Hope you had a great weekend … it looks like you did!
Sarasota is an amazing area! So much to do, yet so quite and quaint. Yoders is the bomb! Glad you have fun! Have a great week 🙂
Your trip looks absolutely amazing! Beautiful good and delicious food!!
It looks like you guys had a busy, but fun vacation! I’ve never been to Sarasota either, but now I want to for sure!
Sarasota looks amazing!
Looks like an amzing trip! I’ve lived in FL for 5 years, and still haven’t made it out to Siesta Key Beach – that needs to change soon!
Green Fashionista
Oh I have never been to Sarasota but it looks great! Looks like a fun trip.
I’m not a huge pie person. Does chocolate chip cookie pie count?
Sarasota looks beautiful!! You’ve done such a great job showcasing it. That is where my Grandpa wintered the past 7 or so years….I’m sure he’s been to that Yoder’s restaurant. 🙂 Great job on those pies too! YUM!
I haven’t had the chance to venture over to Sarasota yet, but it definitely looks like I’ll have to! Ringling Museum looks amazing- I never knew for sure what they have there, even though I worked for FSU (who owns Ringling) for 3 years, and paid some of the bills coming through! — Dorrie @ Rt 1 US 1
Looks like you had a great time Erin! I’ve never been there before, but it looks beautiful!
Sarah
Midwest Darling
Wow beautiful pictures! It does look amazing there.
You definitely hit up all my favs! Isn’t Sarasota so beautiful?!?!?! So where you took pictures at the Ringling Mansion…..like two mansions down is where I got married at the Powel Crosley Estate. It is so beautiful there!
I love all of the photos! I stopped there once, but only for a day and didn’t get to really explore. Looks like you had a ton of fun!
Looks like an amazing trip! What a wonderful opportunity! Thanks for sharing your travel adventures!
Looks like an amazing trip! I had no idea the #1 beach was in Sarasota!
xo Jen
Skirt The Rules
What great photos. That looks like a super cool vacation. I so want to go to that museum. Very nice.
Wow, that looks so fun & beautiful!! What a trip! You take awesome pictures too.
And that food? YUMMMMMO! And congrats on the pie win!
I’ve been fortunate enough to do a lot of traveling, but I’ve never been to Florida. It’s on my bucket list! You just ignited my wanderlust with this post. Such beautiful pictures and great suggestions!
I love seeing your photos! It was so nice meeting you and spending the weekend exploring Sarasota together. I’m jealous you got to check out St. Armand’s Circle some more. Hopefully next time I will too. Let me know if you’re ever in Florida again 🙂
Sounds like such a fun trip! I haven’t been but will always go anywhere beachside if I get the chance. That shopping area and the farmer’s market both looked amazing! My favorite pie is key lime or coconut cream. Mmm.
I live in Sarasota. Glad you enjoyed it! It’s a really great place with surprisingly lots to do for a small city!
What great photos from Florida! Everything looks so good, especially the food. Pecan pie is my favorite.
http://www.racheldinh.com
Looks like you had an amazing time!! What great photos!
xo, Jessica || The Petite Diaries
Loved all of your photos! Makes me want to visit Sarasota now!
Beautiful pics, Sarasota looks amazing!
http://bellemelange.net/blog
Those photos are awesome! That beach looks gorgeous. I made it this year, which in super excited about. Those pies look amazing! It looks like a fun trip!
Looks like a fun trip! I would like to try those mini doughnuts now please haha!
http://www.amemoryofus.com
oh my gosh! I love love love everything about this post-mostly because, I live in Sarasota! It is a little weird seeing my “little” town on a blog haha. I have lived here since 1997, left for college and then returned. I know each place you are talking about. The Blue Rooster is my FAV for Sunday brunch…their bloody mary’s are amazing!
As far as Yoder’s pie, when it is February and strawberry season-the strawberry pie is a MUST..in the fall, the pumpkin pie is essential and every other time of the year, the chocolate peanut butter or banana cream!
If you are ever back in the area, definitely try Walt’s Fish Market-doesn’t look like much but, some of the best food around and, libby’s is another GREAT brunch place!
Happy Monday!
so pretty! Loved seeing your pics on Facebook!
Wow, what gorgeous pics of your time traveling around Sarasota!.
Particularly loved the one of the the John & Mable Ringling Museum of Art – architecture is my thing!
Wow… such amazing pictures!!! We have visited FL on numerous occasions. Actually, we adopted my daughter from Miami too. So, we are pretty connected to the state and yet somehow we have NEVER visited Sarasota. Well… after reading this I think we’ll have to change that 🙂
Two words: JEALOUS! and YUM!
Wow, looks like an amazing trip! I have a friend that was raised there and lives elsewhere in Florida…I really would love to visit here. Your pictures are wonderful..thanks for sharing!!
Valerie
Fashion And Travel
wow! you guys did so many fun things! looks like an amazing weekend!
kelseybang.com
Those bavarian cream donuts! Are they for real? They look so delicious, my mouth is watering! Sarasota sounds like a fun place to visit!
I hear great things about Sarasota, and after seeing your photos of the beach, I see why it’s so popular. I also can’t say “No” to Farmer’s Markets and Pecan Pie!
I loved reading this post, since I’ve spent so much time in Sarasota vacationing over the years. It looks like you had a blast and got to do some really fun stuff!
I will need to check out some of these spots in a few months when I go back 🙂
Jackie
Something About That
I’m glad you enjoyed visiting my home! 😉 I live about 20 minutes outside of Sarasota, but I do love Sarasota. All of the places you visited are beautiful!
What a whirlwind is right. So fun. I have never been there. Congrats on the 2nd place! What great photos to recap it all.
Amazing photos!
xo
http://www.thenewpersonalassistant.com/
We were so close this weekend! I was in St. Pete which is about 30 minutes north of Sarasota. I loved seeing all of your pictures. Yoder’s is a classic! My cousin used to work there.
what a fun time! those donuts are to die for.
Holy vacation, lady!! I’m hoping it was a good thing I wasn’t able to get together Thursday night?? Extra time to pack maybe?? I swear I’m never busy and then when we try to get together I am haha.
That pie making contest looked so fun!! I don’t think I’ve ever made a pie before…maybe a thin mint pie with graham cracker crust but not one with real crust and fancy filling and everything!!
Such a fun weekend, lady! Sarasota is lovely!
-Ashley
Le Stylo Rouge
The farmers market looks great!
Such summer-y photos… makes me miss the season already! Great post! <3
http://scienceofadornment.blogspot.com
Looks like sooo much fun! Love living through the photos!
xoxo
http://www.look-brooke.com/
Haven’t been to Sarasota in YEARS – but your trip makes me want to go!
My only question is, though, does Yoder’s have shoo fly pie? As someone who grew up in Amish country, that’s the hallmark of a TRUE Amish pie shop!
I love visiting Sarasota! My mom grew up there so it has an even greater appeal. The beaches are GORGEOUS there and when I was younger, my family would visit every memorial day and I would come home with bags of shark teeth that had washed up on shore (sounds weird, but it was so fun as a kid). I love all of the sand dollars you can find, too!