Samantha & Eduardo
Things To Do
Anna Maria Island Beach
Beautiful Beach at the north end of the Island. Less people at the beach but also harder to find parking. No amenities on beach provided.
Coquina Beach
Public Beach on the south end of the Anna Maria Island. Lifeguards amenities like picnic tables, showers, bathrooms. Please be aware no open alcohol on the beach nor Glas bottles allowed.
Holmes Beach
Public Beach at the end of Manatee Ave (Middle of the island) Lifeguards amenities like picnic tables, showers, bathrooms. Please be aware no open alcohol on the beach nor Glas bottles allowed.
Shore Longboat Key - Restaurant
Wonderful waterfront restaurant. Great for seafood and fine dining. Pricing $$$
Star Fish Company
Best local seafood in Bradenton. Waterfront eating in the old Cortez fishing village. Bring some time and be prepared to sit outside. This is a cash only place, so be sure to bring cash, otherwise they have an ATM.
Duffy's Tavern, Bar, and Grill
Local family owner burger bar. Probably the best burgers on the Island. I always get the double bacon cheese and a lemonade. This is also a cash only place, but they also do have an ATM if needed.
Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium
Mote is a local aquarium and research center that rescue animals like sea turtles, seahorses, eels and more. It is a great spot for kids and has extremely cute otters, many types of sharks, a stingray touch tank, and even our county’s mascot, a manatee.
Owen's Fish Camp
Owens Fishcamp is a little farther away in downtown Sarasota. Wonderful Old Floridian style food/seafood. Bring patience since they don’t take reservations and the wait can be up to 3 hours. We like to go to O’Leary’s tiki bar (sit in the sand right on the Sarasota Bay and drink delicious drinks) while waiting, but make sure to run over to Owens fishcamp as soon as you get the text message for your table. They will give your table away after 10min of waiting.
Mary Selby Botanical Gardens Event Venues
For everyone that loves to see beautiful gardens and plants and flowers. The botanical garden will allow you to oversee the Sarasota bay.
Siegfried's Restaurant and German Biergarten
Most authentic and best German food in the area.
Paradise Boat Tours
There are many local dolphin tour companies around, but the bride and groom had an excellent experience on this boat tour. You are guaranteed to see dolphins or your money back, plus there is ample other wildlife to see along the way. Early or late time slots are recommended to avoid the sun.
Big Cat Habitat Gulf Coast Sanctuary
Animal sanctuary for big cats & other wild species. They also have a petting zoo.
The Mall at University Town Center
A mall everyone knows what that is I guess. - Eduardo This mall is great and has many delicious restaurants inside the mall and outside of the mall in the Center. It has indoor and outdoor shops, Crumbl cookies, Jenny’s Ice Cream, and a SUPER TARGET! - Sam
Ellenton Premium Outlets
Outlet shopping. Almost all big brands are here.
Robinson Preserve
A natural park wonderful for a bike tour. Right next door is the de Soto memorial with a treehouse adventure for kids.
Daiquiri Deck Anna Maria Island
This is the father of the bride’s all-time favorite place to go while he is in town. It is located on historic bridge street, which is a great place to walk around and shop, get ice cream or sweets, and visit the pier at the end of the street. Daiquiri Deck has a rooftop section, great seafood and TONS of flavors of daiquiris to try. The groom, mother of the bride and father of the bride all go for the Purple Haze flavor, which is a sweet grape, while the bride goes for the Frose, a more sour option.
De Soto National Memorial
Nod to the famed explorer’s landing site with living history camp, exhibits, shore & natural trails
Busch Gardens Tampa Bay
Amusement park and zoo combined with some of the best roller coaster and drop tower in the state. Ride the iron gwazi!