Parks & Recreation

City Parks & Trails

The green space you can reach without a car: downtown waterfronts, a riverwalk, and the rail trail that now runs from Sarasota to Venice.

The Legacy Trail

Sarasota, Sarasota County

A paved rail-trail running roughly 23 miles from downtown Sarasota south to Venice.

The Legacy Trail runs about 23 miles on the old Seaboard Air Line Railroad corridor, from Payne Park in downtown Sarasota south to Venice. It is paved the whole way, and it is the single best piece of recreational infrastructure in either county.

It got that way recently. In November 2018 Sarasota County voters approved a $65 million bond to extend the trail 7.5 miles north along the rail corridor into downtown Sarasota, with a connector toward North Port; that extension opened in 2022, and overpasses at Clark and Bee Ridge Roads were finished by FDOT in 2025, taking two of the worst road crossings out of the ride.

For a buyer this is a genuine differentiator between communities that back onto it and communities that do not. Trail access is worth asking about by name, because "near the Legacy Trail" is used loosely in listings and the difference between a connector path and a two-mile drive is the difference between using it daily and never using it.

About 23 miles, Sarasota to Venice
Paved, on the former Seaboard Air Line corridor
2018 bond funded the 7.5-mile northern extension, opened 2022
Clark and Bee Ridge overpasses completed 2025

Checked against Sarasota County Parks, Friends of the Legacy Trail and TrailLink on October 4, 2026.

The Bay Park

Sarasota, Sarasota County

A 53-acre bayfront park under development on Sarasota Bay, next to the Van Wezel.

53 acres on Sarasota Bay
Next to the Van Wezel
Phased construction
Downtown Sarasota

Bayfront Park

Sarasota, Sarasota County

Sarasota’s downtown waterfront green space along Sarasota Bay, next to Marina Jack.

On Sarasota Bay
Beside Marina Jack
Walking distance from Main Street

Riverwalk Bradenton

Bradenton, Manatee County

A 1.5-mile linear park along the Manatee River in downtown Bradenton, with a splash pad and skate park.

1.5 miles along the Manatee River
Splash pad
Skate park
Downtown Bradenton

Payne Park

Sarasota, Sarasota County

A centrally located Sarasota park with a skate park, dog park, and the Legacy Trail’s northern terminus.

Skate park
Dog park
Northern terminus of the Legacy Trail
Central Sarasota

City Parks & Trails FAQ

What city parks & trails are there in Sarasota and Manatee County?+

5 that this site covers: The Legacy Trail, The Bay Park, Bayfront Park, Riverwalk Bradenton, Payne Park. They are split across both counties, and the practical distance between any two of them is larger than a map suggests, because this market runs about fifty miles north to south. If one of them is the reason you want to live somewhere in particular, that is worth saying out loud early rather than discovering the drive afterwards.

Does being near a park affect what a home costs here?+

Less directly than waterfront or golf, and more than people expect. A preserve or a state park next door is a permanent boundary on development, which is worth something no listing quantifies: it is the difference between a protected view and a view that lasts until the next rezoning. Trail access behaves differently again, closer to a walkability premium. This site keeps the county sale figures on the community pages, so you can compare what homes actually sold for near one of these against the wider area rather than taking anyone word for it.

Browse another way

State & National Parks4 Nature Preserves3 Sports & Event Venues4

All Parks & Recreation

Browse Communities

Looking for a home near one of these?

Tell me which one and I will send the communities genuinely close to it, with the county sale figures so you can see what being near it actually costs.

Or call or text (941) 350-0224.

What are you trying to accomplish?