The City of Venice is located on the coast in Southwest Florida about one hour south of Saint Petersburg. It was formerly known as Horse and Chaise, but settlers renamed it due to the many natural waterways.
Venice grew with the arrival of the railroad in 1925, but subsequently slowed with the 1929 stock market crash. The city gained a new life with an Army Air Base during WWII and the circus coming to town for its winter home in 1960.
Currently, the city of 25,000 features a lovely, historic downtown and many beautiful beaches. It is known as the “shark tooth capital of the world” and offers visitors many things to do, some of which I’ve listed below.
Enjoy the Beach
Of course, with Venice being on the Gulf Coast, any tourist would like its beaches. Caspersen is the most popular beach in Venice. Its sandy shore extends over 1.5 miles and is known for its shark teeth. There are parking facilities for the early birds, or it may also be reached by bike along the Venice Waterway Trail. It, however, is not dog friendly.
Since I am traveling with my Doberman, Annie, I visited South Brohard Beach and Paw Park. Parking and nice restrooms are located at Maxine Barritt Park which is adjacent to the beach and park.
To get to the beach, dogs and their owners must first enter the dog park which is separated into small and large dog sections. That said, all dogs going to the beach must go through the large dog section. This can be a little squirrely with dogs of all sizes on and off the leash. Once on the beach, dogs of all sizes are free to roam together between the signs that indicate the dog beach boundary.
Overall, the area is nice and I kept VANgo parked at Maxine Barritt Park with bathrooms and outdoor showers all day. We took several short walks on the paved path around the pond while admiring the birds, watched the sunset from one of the many benches, and later strolled down to the Venice Fishing Pier and Sharky’s.
Eat at Sharky’s on the Pier
Sharky’s on the Pier is the only beachfront restaurant and tiki bar in Venice, and the wildly popular restaurant caters to hundreds of guests daily. The restaurant specializes in fresh fish and live music. Enjoy the atmosphere over dinner or while strolling the 700-foot Venice Fishing Pier which is free to access and doesn’t require a fishing license.
Admire the Sunset
As with the benches at Maxine Barritt Park, the Venice Fishing Pier is also a nice place to watch the sunset while fishermen reel in their catch. Annie and I, along a few other vanlifers, spent our entire (though very slow paced) day in this area of Venice. We didn’t even make it to Venice’s historic district until the following day.
Another extremely popular place to watch the sunset in Venice is from North Venice Inlet. Hundreds of people pull up a chair to watch the hues of orange and pink fill the sky and boats come in and out of the waterway.
Or if you want to watch the sunset from a boat, reserve a two-hour tiki cruise with Low Tide Tours. Bring your own drinks and snacks, blast your play, and enjoy the scenery as you cruise by waterfront homes on the bay and end the evening admiring a golden glow.
Stroll the Historic District
The historic district in Venice is very nice. The small square with a parking area in the center features many boutiques, cafes and mermaid statues. While I’m not a big shopper, I had recently learned of a friend’s passing, so I stopped into some shops to purchase a gift for her family. I wound up with a porcelain frog because she liked them, but flamingos and tortoises were a more popular choice!
I recommend arriving to the square by 10 am as the parking fills up quickly. Cars were circling as Annie and I left VANgo to check out the nearby Venice Waterways Trail.
Go For a Bike Ride
The Venice Waterways Trail begins just a few blocks from the historic district at Venetian Waterways Park. The paved trail follows the canal for five miles one way from the old train depot all the way to Caspersen Beach. At the beginning, check out the murals and along the way, keep an eye out for the gopher tortoise.
As mentioned in my post, Things to Do in Sanibel Island, the gopher tortoise is both a threatened and keystone species. Venice and other municipalities are trying to protect them. With the many signs posted, I finally spotted one!
Heading the opposite way from the train depot is the Legacy Trail which is an 18.5 mile paved path that connects Sarasota with Venice along the former railway. It passes through Oscar Scherer State Park which offers an extensive trail system, a freshwater swimmig lake, and large campgrounds.
Take a Hike
While Florida hiking doesn’t compare to hiking in Colorado or other western states, I always like finding a place for Annie to stretch her legs. Oscar Scherer State Park with its 15 miles of trails is a good choice, though it requires a small fee. A few free places to hike in Venice include Deer Prairie Creek Preserve, Sleeping Turtle Preserve, and T Mabry Carlton, Jr. Memorial Reserve, with the latter not being dog friendly. All places are similar with soft and hard packed sand trails that pass beneath pines and through scrub that protect the Florida scrub-jay.
Check Out a Horse Show at Fox Lea Farms
For something different check out a horse show at Fox Lea Farms. They feature many disciplines from western to dressage to hunter jumper. At the hunter jumper shows they hold a big hunter derby class on Friday afternoon and a Grand Prix jumping class later that evening. The event draws a crowd. With a bar and food trucks on site, you make a night of it.
I competed here for three weeks one January and Friday was definitely the most fun day of the horse show!
Watch a Baseball Game
I always seem to end up in Florida before Spring Training begins, but if you visit Venice in February or March, you can catch action. Venice and CoolTodayPark host the Atlanta Braves! What a fun way to enjoy America’s pasttime.
While I tend to post about the outdoors, for those who prefer indoors don’t miss the Venice Theatre, Clyde Butcher Art Gallery, Ideal Classic Cars, or the variety of arts in the area. ETB
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- The History of Everglades City
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- Things to Do in Jupiter
- Naples Nature
Love the tortoise. Cool,that you saw one!
Glad I saw it! Helped with tortoise habitat signs everywhere!
I was disappointed not to see any wildlife, even a lizard, in my recent southwest road trip. You were lucky to spot the tortoise! Glad to learn a little about this town. Sunset is stunning.