Sarasota Bayfront Park

Just a beautiful bayside park that provides space, relaxation and gorgeous views of the huge marina and the water. Lots of parking makes things easy to pull up, take a walk, relax and watch the world go by or dream of the best color to choose for the yacht purchased with your lottery winnings. A true winner in the park category!

Really, a very nice park on the bay. Clean. Plenty of benches. Great views. The water is right there lapping up against the park. Water is clean and beautiful. There are restrooms, and places to eat. O’Leary’s Tiki Bar is great… right on the water and very chill and casual.

Ah! Why don’t more people talk about the super neat statue here of the couple kissing from that famous photograph?! I loved it! Also this is a great place to go on a stroll or run by the water.

Cute green space on the bay — great for a run or walk or to just hang out, and for checking out the boats at Marina Jack’s. It’s also the location of the massive «Unconditional Surrender» statue where a lot of couples like to pose smooching (I posed with my dog, much to my husband’s amusement).
The park is dog-​friendly (on-​leash), and while it’s not a functional beach for people, really, my dog happily got into the water and rolled in the sand a bit here.

For the love of outdoors, if you are not going to a Sarasota beach, you should at least take advantage of being by the water. Sarasota Bayfront Park is a great place for that. This park is quite scenic, has activities such as kayaking and boating. You can also park your boat, and eat at O’Leary’s Tiki Bar and Grill. Don’t worry, you can take your dog too. They are super dog friendly. You can also stroll through the park, take in a picnic, or sit at the various swinging chairs.
If you are looking to take a boat tour out, this is also a place you can catch one. Lastly, if you choose that O’Leary’s Tiki Bar and Grill is not your thing, you may want to try Marina Jack’s. They too have food and drinks, and taking in the sun right on the water.
There’s a good size parking lot without you having to pay for parking. That’s a good deal too. Across the street is Downtown Sarasota Main street, and you can walk across the street, and go shopping.
One last thing about Sarasota Bayfront Park is that you will see the Unconditional Love Statue. Remember the image of the sailor kissing his girlfriend after he was gone from the war. There’s a life size status of it here. Make sure to take a picture.

Perfect park for a break for the adults and a great place for kids to have fun and play in the water or go on a swing.

Such a serene environment. Great for walking around. They have a lot of water activities you can do. The cutest thing is these bench swings overlooking the water. It’s romantic and family friendly.

This park is so fun when you want to hang out with a friend, ride your bike, walk your dog, and go on a photography excursion. Close to downtown Sarasota, it’s easy to walk from a yummy restaurant to watch a gorgeous sunset. The art shows here are really interesting too… And who can miss coming to see the huge sculptures?

This is a beautiful park for strolling, enjoying the sunset, sitting by the bay, accessing the marina, or playing at the playground/​splash park. There’s plenty of parking even if you don’t get one of the circle spaces.
(currently closed) The playground is covered, has a small child section as well as a section for older kids. The splash park is running during the day, but you must be watch small children and keep them away from the edge as there are large steps that go down to the water. That’s the only reason I’m giving this beautiful park four stars instead of five. Parents should be responsible at all times, but it’s riskier with the way this park is set.
You can grab something to eat at the tiki bar nearby or walk over to Marina Jacks on the other side. Neither have great food, but the views are nice.

Love this place!!! Very scenic, really beautiful view, lively, some nice restaurants around, really cool kids playground and picnic area. Come here all the time, even though we live an hour away. Recommend to stop by if in town

beautiful scenery, great place to people-​watch!!!

This is a great park with one exception: Each May they erect a dozen or more very large Marxist-​Socialist-​Diversity cloth murals throughout the park. Then each school day they bus in small children as an end-​of-​year field trip to indoctrinate them with this left wing propaganda.
Just once it would be nice to see a celebratory mural of our Founding Fathers or the US Military, but that has never happened and I’m afraid it never will happen.
It’s politically correct and far left as usual in Sarasota. No tolerance for real diversity – only far-​left dribble is sanctioned here.

Very disappointed they closed the splash park on Easter Sunday. All the little kids showing up with their suits & towels only to be denied entry was heartbreaking. It was so hot in the play ground area, they could’ve really used it.

oh Island park. I don’t go that often but it’s a nice place to hang out if you have a dog and kids. It’s always very calm and on occasion there will be a wedding going on. There is a water fountain playground and a regular playground in the center if the parents just want to sit and relax and let the kids run off some energy. The only thing I would advice is to bring a few grocery bags with you just incase your dog desides to take a number 2.
My only complaint is that on occasion the trashcans will overflow and you have to complain to one of the resturaunts before they do anything about it. Thankfully that doesn’t happen to often.

I’m happy to see that others appreciate this wonderful park too! It’s a great place to stroll with your dog or a date or by yourself. Excellent view of the bay and I love to look at all the beautiful docked boats and daydream of living on one. Perfect location as you can walk across the road and you’re in downtown Sarasota.

I just moved to MI from Sarasota and I REALLY miss Bayfront Park. It’s a wonderful/​calmer diversion from Main St. Great views and place to walk around, relax and people watch. They usually have art sculptures to check out as well. Nice for a first date walk after coffee or drinks, day or night.

I can officially call myself a dumbass for this visit. This park is on the water and it was 40 some-​odd degrees out. The wind kicked my ass. I did enjoy my walk through and the scenery that accompanied it. By the time I made it back to my car I was ready to get the heat started. Of all the days.

***siiiiigh***
I just got back from a week visiting my family in Sarasota, and I’m filled with warm, fuzzy feelings.
In recent years, a stroll around Island Park has become a requirement every time I’m with the fam. The park’s loop trail goes along the water and has loads of benches (stationary ones and the swinging kinds — wheeee!). There’s free parking, lots of grass for doggies to bounce around, a great park and fountain for the kids to play at, gorgeous banyan trees with tons of shade …
***siiiiigh***
I usually grab a drink and/​or some eats at O’Leary’s — sometimes even catch some music out on the covered tiki bar patio. You can sign up for fishing trips or dinner cruises, rent water gear, etc. If you just want to stroll, that’s cool, too — the bay is beautiful, and it’s fun to check out all the fancypants yachts along the marina (and to see the little houseboats farther out). Bring a date or your dog or your mom or a book … Island Park is your oyster.
***siiiiigh***

I’ve been walking to Bayfront Park for over a year from my downtown Sarasota home with my pooch… I just moved to Siesta Key and must say I miss this hot spot.
It isn’t just that the scenery is amazing and the strolls enjoyable, but it is the people that bring this park to life. I visit occassionally now and still get hugs from the «boat people» who have grown to know me and chats from the guy on his million dollar yacht.
A great place to take a date for sunset, walk your dog, let your dog run free (leash law totally not enforced!), chat with locals and visitors alike…
Oh, how could i forget… a hot spot for kids. In the summer there is a small fountain, splash park and a big jungle gym for kids. They all seem to be having a blast when I walk by.
BAYFRONT PARK — Best stroll in Sarasota.

This is one of my favorite places in Sarasota. It’s a very calm serene place to wander around and enjoy the beauty of your surroundings. If you are feeling more physical then you can Rollerblade or run around the trail — they have the mileage marked on it, but be careful — if you get out of control you might end up in the water as there are no safety barriers between the sidewalk and the bay :)
At 4^th of July this place is packed for the fireworks show.