Garden of Eden at the Ringling Museum of Art

In addition to the pretty city center, which I have already reported on here, Sarasota also offers some cultural highlights. In the early 1920s, John Ringling, co-owner of the Ringling-Brothers & Barnum-and-Bailey circus company, was also attracted by the charm of the place and built the Venetian Palazzo Cà d’Zan a few miles outside of Sarasota on the Gulf Coast.

Today’s Ringling Museum of Art is a huge complex that includes art exhibitions, a historic theater, a circus museum, the palazzo, and a huge garden.

We made a short stop at the Ringling Museum on the way from Sarasota to St. Petersburg. We were interested in the complex itself and less in the art museum in particular (although it is certainly worth a visit). We were all the more pleased when we learned that the visit to the garden is free of charge.

The walk leads past various beautifully landscaped themed gardens to the palazzo, which is enthroned imposingly on the Gulf Coast and then via the art museum back to the parking lot. You can discover the beautifully landscaped Mable’s Rose Garden with some award-winning rose species. The Secret Garden next to the palazzo attracts visitors with beautiful plants and statues, and next to the palazzo it has a beautiful waterfront and plaza area. There is just as much to discover around the ponds and the Millenium Tree Trail and you can easily spend a few hours in the gardens.

Super nice facility, the visit of which is also worthwhile for “passers-by” with little time.