Things to do in Sarasota When It’s Too Hot Outside
There are only two things to do in Sarasota when it gets hot. You can either fly to Wisconsin; and stay there through mid-October. Or you can remain in Florida and make the most out of the months when rising temperatures send tourists and spring breakers on a mad dash for the airport.
I choose the latter. For without Florida’s dependably hot summer weather many of our winter visitors (aka, “Snowbirds”) might opt to never leave.
It’s not as if we don’t have air conditioning (and plenty of it!) to keep you cool. It’s just that Sarasota with the heat turned up is a time to discover great joy in less traffic, faster trips around town, plenty of free parking at the beach, and fewer people clogging your favorite bars and bistros. Ironically, a major explosion of new residents in recent years has caused a corresponding explosion in the number of retail, restaurant and recreational amenities that are open year-round. Thus, fewer people with more places to go results in lighter crowds and easier social distancing.
Yet even as COVID continues to put a crimp in many of our favorite activities, there are plenty of ways to beat the heat while observing the protocols that keep you healthy.
One of the best ways, of course, is by planting your beach umbrella on one of Sarasota’s award-winning Gulf beaches, their cool white sands, turquoise waters, and gentle sea breezes all but guaranteed to keep you cool, calm, socially distanced and COVID-free.
We don’t recommend any one beach over another, because frankly every one of them is among the best in Florida. You probably already have a favorite anyway.
MOVIES
Happily, just as the weather begins to heat up again, many of the movie theaters shuttered by COVID are up and running again, with others expected to follow suit as safety protocols are instituted and more people become fully vaccinated.
Imagine yourself on the hottest summer day, your feet up on a recliner, a cold beverage in hand; and a great film playing in a plush, dark, air-conditioned theater. Throw in a good meal and you have the elevated dining-and–movie experience of CineBistro, Sarasota’s most unique cineplex. CineBistro is at the
Meanwhile, The Sarasota Film Society will reopen its Burns Court Cinema— in downtown Sarasota—on April 30. Its Lakewood Ranch Cinema—on Lakewood Ranch Main Street—has already reopened, with masks required except when eating and drinking. Both venues, especially Burns Court, specialize in independent, art and blockbuster films.
The AMC Sarasota 12 cineplex—adjacent to Costco and the Sarasota Square Mall—is open again, but with showings currently limited to Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Also reopening in early May are downtown Sarasota’s Regal Hollywood Cinemas.
MALLS & SHOPPING
University Town Center
Speaking of malls, the Mall at University Town Center is not only one of the newest upmarket malls in country, but also the most fashion-forward way to beat the heat. The centerpiece of a massive new shopping, restaurant, and entertainment district—situated near I-75 and University Parkway—it is also adjacent to Nathan Benderson Park, whose impressive new competitive rowing complex has become one of preferred venues for the sport’s signature events. On Memorial Day weekend, the park will host the NCAA Women’s National Rowing Championship. USRowing’s 2021 Youth Championship takes place June 10th– 13th.
St. Armands Circle
You can also shop ‘til you drop without breaking a sweat on St. Armands Circle, Sarasota’s legendary alfresco shopping district. Here you can keep cool while ducking in and out of some of the best stores and restaurants in the area. Just steps from the magnificently refurbished Lido Beach, who says you can’t enjoy sun, surf, and serious power shopping all in the same day?
MOTE MARINE LABORATORY & AQUARIUM
Just up the road from St. Armands—as it winds toward Longboat Key—be sure to visit City Island, home to Mote Marie Laboratory & Aquarium. For the public, Mote operates a seaside aquarium that exhibits hundreds of live undersea species—including sharks, sea turtles and manatees—while providing an educational glimpse into the laboratory’s main mission—ground-breaking scientific research to benefit our knowledge of the sea, its creatures, and their effect on the world.
While on City Island you may also want to check out the Sarasota Sailing Squadron, a community sailing club where you can learn to sail, make new friends, and enjoy a cool drink on the patio or in the clubhouse.
MUSEUMS & GARDENS
Sarasota’s two major art museums—on vintage, the other brand new–plus its magnificent botanical gardens are exceptional ways to stay cool when things get hot.
Marie Selby Botanical Gardens & Historic Spanish Point
Acclaimed for its impressive cultural landscape, Sarasota quite literally shows off a piece of that magnificent landscape at
Enjoy the cool breezes coming off Sarasota Bay, or find shade beneath one of the garden’s massive banyan trees. Still cooler is a meal inside at the Selby House Café.
Historic Spanish Point, Selby’s sister campus, is situated on Little Sarasota Bay in Osprey, a few miles south of Sarasota. The 30-acre museum and environmental complex was once the home of Bertha Honore Palmer, a businesswoman and socialite from Chicago, who is credited with laying down much of the vision for modern day Sarasota.
The Ringling
One of the finest jewels in Sarasota’s cultural crown is The Ringling, whose bayfront complex houses the John & Mable Ringling Museum of Art, The Circus Museum, Ca’ d’ Zan and the Historic Asolo Theater. This is a great way to beat the heat as you begin to absorb how the legacy of circus impresario John Ringling and his wife Mable factors so much in the history and growth Sarasota. With time out for a meal in the museum’s restaurant, you can easily spend a whole day strolling the grounds, visiting the exhibits, and touring Ca’ d’ Zan, the Venetian-style, bayfront mansion built for John and Mable in the mid-1920’s.
Sarasota Museum of Art
The Sarasota Museum of Art is what can happen when you completely gut, remodel and repurpose a large, abandoned structure in a city that relishes and supports the arts. Not just any abandoned structure, the building was designed in the Collegiate Gothic style, and built in 1927 as the home of Sarasota High School. When the school eventually moved to larger quarters, its original structure languished for years until a group of forward-thinking citizens banded together (with the support of the Ringling College of Art & Design) to raise money and resurrect this important piece of Sarasota history and architecture. That was in 2003. The result of their efforts reopened as a museum of contemporary art in 2019; and the results are clearly stunning.
Sarasota Classic Car Museum
If classic cars make you swoon, then beat the heat is by visiting the Sarasota Classic Car Museum, which bills itself as the second oldest continuously operating car museum in the country. Situated directly across from The Ringling and FSU Center for the Performing Arts on U.S. 41 (Tamiami Trail), the museum features over 75 vintage automobiles from the world’s foremost manufacturers—including Alfa Romeo, Bentley, Cadillac, Edsel, and Ferrari, just to name a few.
Sarasota Jungle Garden
Generations of young Sarasotans have visited Sarasota Jungle Gardens to see its 10 acres of tropical habitat that is home to 200 native and exotic animals, including birds of prey, several different species of parrots and macaws, primates, and small mammals. There are dozens of snakes, lizards, iguanas, alligators, crocodiles, and other reptiles – many of them rescued or donated – including Florida’s iconic pink flamingos. This is an ideal outing for kids and is close-in to downtown Sarasota.
ALSO WORTHY OF YOUR CONSIDERATION:
The places cited thus far are just a few suggestions for where to spend a hot summer day in Sarasota.
Also capable of taking your mind off the heat—though a little bit further away from downtown Sarasota—are:
- Ellenton Ice & Sports Complex People don’t generally associate ice skating with Florida, but many fans of the sport, including ice hockey and professional figure skaters—travel to Ellenton to perfect their techniques in this large indoor ice complex. Check the facility’s web site for details, public skate times and COVID safety requirements.
- Prime Outlets Ellenton Adjacent to the ice complex, this premium outlet center offers another alfresco retail shopping experience with stores to appeal to everyone. Keep cool beneath the covered walkways and by ducking in and out of 130 air-conditioned stores.
- Myakka River State Park An old Florida experience not to be missed, Myakka River State Park is at its best when the temperature climbs and the afternoon rains cool things off. The airboat tour of the park’s upper lake is an excellent way to cool off while viewing some of the park’s rather sizeable alligators, birds, and other assorted species.
- Crowley Museum & Nature Center You won’t complain about the heat when you learn how the pioneer families of Old Myakka lived before air conditioning. An old Florida homestead, complete with live farm animals, Crowley functions as a museum of pioneer life as it was once lived in its beautiful Old Myakka neighborhood.
Before you go….
COVID has upended the operations and daily routines of virtually every retail business and visitor attraction in Sarasota. Even though some restrictions are being eased as we move into the warmer months, many are still very much in effect. We’ve tried to do much of the investigating for you, but information related to COVID can still change very quickly. Before departing for any of these suggested locales, be sure to visit their web site—or phone ahead—to learn their current hours of operation and any other information pertinent to making your visit more enjoyable.
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