Venice Florida

[Orchidflower]

Haven't had time to read this entire thread, so if this has been said please forgive me. From reading about Sarasota on city-data.com, I have gleaned that Venice has little there and rolls up the sidewalk very early. In short, nothing to do there after the sun goes down...if that is your thing. Hope this helps.

[Razor]

Originally Posted by Orchidflower

Haven't had time to read this entire thread, so if this has been said please forgive me. From reading about Sarasota on city-data.com, I have gleaned that Venice has little there and rolls up the sidewalk very early. In short, nothing to do there after the sun goes down...if that is your thing. Hope this helps.

Sounds perfect for me. My party days ended in the late 70s. Now I'm more of a morning person.

[jakefl]

Is Venice a party town 24 hours a day..No, but are there a lot of things to do in Venice after the sun goes down..Yes.
Sarasota and Venice compliment each other very well and they are only a few miles apart.

[calmloki]

Thanks to Moemg and LGFNB and all others - snow flakes again this morning - nothing sticking, but still. The camera from the Crow's Nest is showing a bunch of people in T-shirts and shorts so we are looking forward to it.
Anyone know what a pack of smokes goes for down there? my honey is a puffer and would like to know if she should pack some of her internet purchase stash or not. I'm claiming they are a quarter /pack based on proximity to the growing regions. Ok - she says Or tax/pack is $1.18/pack and Fla tx is $.34. If she smokes really, really heavily in Florida just think of the money we can save! (that's an ex-smoker talking).

Grateful for all suggestions for places and things to see. No one thinks the Weeki Wachee mermaids are a national treasure equivalent to the Grand Canyon?

Other than sit down fish restaurants - local delicacies - R.C. cola? Moonpies? sweet tea? I'm a diners and dives kinda guy.

[Moemg]

This place is ahoot if you like Banjo music and motorcycles !

Snookhaven Restaurant & Family Park

[lazygood4nothinbum]

fifteen years ago when i was even dumber than i am now, i used to buy my cigarettes from the seminoles in south florida. they have land up by tampa as well so you might find cheap smokes there.

Seminole Tribe of Florida: Tribal Enterprises - Tampa Reservation

as for noncancerous things to do:

Welcome to Yoder's Amish Restaurant of Sarasota, Florida!

The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art-Sarasota-Bradenton-Tampa-Florida

Marie Selby Botanical Gardens

looking at a map of area, i'm not sure but it might be just a few extra miles and maybe an extra 20 minutes or so to head to st. pete from tampa airport and then to sarasota rather than going around tampa to the east to get to i-75. anyone correct me please if i am wrong.

if that is the case i recommend taking the scenic route i've described. very nice. you'll love it.

ps. since you will be in venice anyway, if you have the time, you might also consider another 45 minute drive south to port charlotte and punta gorda, ground zero for bubble deflation.

[calmloki]

Cool - Lazy, is the route you describe one that Moemg described part of?

"If you decide to go to Sarasota from Venice drive on route 41 slow going but the drive past the marina as you enter Sarasota is worth it. Beautiful views and some real interesting art work. One last suggestion if you get a chance drive thru Casey Key".

Liking the entertainment suggestions!

Pretty sure that i visited my maternal grandparents in St Petersburg or St Augustine - i keep remembering some old old fort that is made of concretions, but also remember white sand and flat water - not very oceanlike by NW pacific standards. that was back in '59, so sitting and smoking a pipe with my Grandfather (his with tobacco, mine without) and getting ice cream factor largest in my memories.

[lazygood4nothinbum]

just reviewed quickly calm, don't think so. moemg describes driving through some keys or cays around venice area as well as the ride from venice to st. armands circle on longboat key. i'm talking about your drive down from the airport to venice.

tampa airport sits on the top of tampa bay so you can either go around it to the east or over it to the west. this one part is a little confusing to describe as you will take i-275 from the airport. it either goes north (or east) towards i-4 & then i-4 east (actually northeast) to i-75 south or you can go west (or south) on i-275 which is the more scenic route. hope that is not too confusing. i'm not sure but i think i-275 is labeled south although it really goes west at first. and i think it is labeled north though it really goes east at first or something like that. confused yet? check out google and you'll see what i mean.

in any case, just get out of the airport and take i-275 toward st petersburg and not towards orlando. it will take you over tampa bay instead of around it. you go through st. pete and then over the bay again onto the very beautiful skyway bridge. then it will put you onto i-75 south to venice. assuming you drive during the day, before you go onto the skyway bridge you'll see a turnoff for a public park and really long pier, the remains of the previous bridge where you can park 1/3rd the way into the bay.

the fort you are remembering sounds like st. augustine which claims to be the oldest city in the country. the water off both florida coasts are pretty flat as the atlantic shelf extends quite a bit offshore. but don't let it fool you. just like the great lakes, shallow water can get pretty mean in a storm.

[megacorp-firee]

Originally Posted by Moemg

This place is ahoot if you like Banjo music and motorcycles !

Snookhaven Restaurant & Family Park

? are you saying it's sorta like the movie Deliverance?

[fisherman]

We are on our second week of vacation in Englewood Fl which is about 10 miles from Venice. The fishing here is fantastic, the sunsets terrific, and the town has good outdoor activities and plently of resturants. If you like golf there are plently of opportunities also. We will be back for at least two more weeks this fall. I could definitely live here and the curent housing market is definitely a buyers market if you can get insurance.

On a fishing trip last week in the bay I caught over 40 fish in two hours! The sea turtles and dolphins where fun to watch also.

ER is GREAT!!!

[Razor]

Originally Posted by fisherman

We are on our second week of vacation in Englewood Fl which is about 10 miles from Venice. The fishing here is fantastic, the sunsets terrific, and the town has good outdoor activities and plently of resturants. If you like golf there are plently of opportunities also. We will be back for at least two more weeks this fall. I could definitely live here and the curent housing market is definitely a buyers market if you can get insurance.

On a fishing trip last week in the bay I caught over 40 fish in two hours! The sea turtles and dolphins where fun to watch also.

ER is GREAT!!!

Does Englewood have any benifits over Venice?

[fisherman]

That is hard to answer for me. They are really two cities right beside each other and I have not spent enoght time here yet to compare and contrast them. Since Englewood is only a few miles from Venice it might be worth a look but my objective was to say that the area is very nice with lots of gated communites.

Of to the beach for now but I will try to look over the pamplets we have and compare the two cities this evening.

[Razor]

Originally Posted by fisherman

That is hard to answer for me. They are really two cities right beside each other and I have not spent enoght time here yet to compare and contrast them. Since Englewood is only a few miles from Venice it might be worth a look but my objective was to say that the area is very nice with lots of gated communites.

Of to the beach for now but I will try to look over the pamplets we have and compare the two cities this evening.

Thanks.

[Moemg]

Venice has a lot more charm than Englewood and it's closer to Sarasota . Better shopping ,better restaurants , more nightlife and closer to airports and better medical facilities . You can find nice homes anywhere . They put gated communities in the boonies but you need to be sure the medical facilities have kept pace with the building boom .

[Razor]

Originally Posted by Moemg

Venice has a lot more charm than Englewood and it's closer to Sarasota . Better shopping ,better restaurants , more nightlife and closer to airports and better medical facilities . You can find nice homes anywhere . They put gated communities in the boonies but you need to be sure the medical facilities have kept pace with the building boom .

I don't think I would like a gated community. Which has the better beaches, parks, ambience and would make one feel at home?

[Moemg]

Originally Posted by Razor

I don't think I would like a gated community. Which has the better beaches, parks, ambience and would make one feel at home?

Englewood used to be a little less expensive than Venice . It was also more beachy . When you visit them you'll see which you like better .

[fisherman]

We are staying at Oyster Creek Golf and Country Club which is a gated community about 2 miles from the beach. There are three other beaches within four miles. Boca Grand Island is is 10-15 miles away and very nice.

The shopping is better at Venice and the population of Englewood is about 50K according to the map.

We are not to the point of considering a permanent move here but I would surely look at this area in general when/if that time comes. The gated community is nice if it is a second home. I am not sure if I would like it for a permanent residence but having the facilities and pool would be very nice.

We have also visited Estero about 70 miles south and it is very nice along with Ft Myers. There are a lot of choices in this area and the winters are great!

[socca]

I've lived in Sarasota since Feb. 07. Some thoughts:
+ you've got college students over in New College, and you've got loads of retirees (55+), but the 30-55 age range is under-represented. Depending upon your viewpoint, this is either a good or bad thing.
+ you've got many Cadillacs, Mercedes, and Jaguars, and lots of beat-up junkers, but relatively few 'middle class' cars. It seems that we have a large number of rich retirees and the people who serve them. However, I've heard that Naples is far worse, but I haven't been down there yet.
+ Sarasota and vicinity is great place to grow old. There's a well-developed infrastructure to help the elderly here. However, I'm only 45 so this isn't much of an attraction at this point.
+ the summer is hot and humid, but really my first summer here wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Actually, the summers in Wash DC were worse due to the terrible air quality there. Here, the air quality is quite fine because we get the steady winds off the Gulf. The summer showers and thunderstorms are quite nice.
+ Florida in general seems to be turning into one vast subdivision/parking lot/strip mall. If you like wilderness/nature, you may want to consider other places to live.

[calmloki]

An inch of rain in an hour? Now that's hospitality for an Oregon boy! Meeting lots of really friendly folks, mostly from New York

[calmloki]

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