Take a Day Trip to the Sarasota Jungle Gardens on Your Next Vacation

While booking your Anna Maria Island vacation rental, be sure to check out Sarasota Jungle Gardens. This is one of Sarasota’s most popular places for families to visit. Here, you and your kids will see everything from flamingos to reptiles. There are animal shows, a petting zoo, and plenty of opportunities for your kids to learn about animals while getting up close with them.

Sarasota Jungle Gardens is a family-owned and -operated business that has been handed down through several generations. This is actually one of Florida’s oldest continuously operated attractions, having been opened in 1939 by David Breed Lindsay. Lindsay was a newspaperman who bought 10 acres of land and began to turn it into a beautiful botanical garden. His pal and neighbor, Pearson Conrad, owned a nursery and helped plan many of the lakes and streams as well as contributing plants from the nursery.

flamingos

Exhibits

Sarasota Jungle Gardens is now home to over 200 exotic and native animals, ranging from macaws and parrots to snakes. Many of these animals have been donated to or rescued by the Gardens.

Exhibits are set within 10 acres of jungle terrain with long, winding trails and tropical flora and fauna. One of the most popular exhibits is the flamingos. People flock from all over the world to see these stunning creatures who are often keen on greeting guests. They love to strut around and impress children with their pink plumage.

You are welcome to hand-feed them, and yes, the flamingos will probably beg you for more.

The alligator feeding pool is truly exciting too. There are also other exhibits where you can see more gators, crocodiles, snakes, giant tortoises, and a whole bunch of other reptiles. The parrot and macaw exhibit has nine different types of these birds, including the green-winged macaw, yellow-naped Amazon parrot, and African gray parrot. Trust us, these birds all have lively personalities and love being the stars of the show!

Things to Do

This is definitely one of the best day trips near Anna Maria. Every day, there are reptile and bird shows that educate and entertain audiences. After each show, there is a question and answer segment so that you and your kids can get to know as much as possible about the animals you meet. You can also hold the animals being shown to you and get pictures taken! Pretty nifty, right?

The Jungle Bird Show is really fun since it features the exotic birds performing all kinds of cool tricks. They can ride bikes and go roller-skating! Not only are these birds highly intelligent, but they are also highly entertaining. After the show, you can hold or pet one and get some pics taken.

The Wildlife Wonder exhibit is totally wild. You and your kids can learn about all kinds of wildlife, ranging from hissing cockroaches to kookaburras. Each species gets featured in turns, so you are never quite sure who you are going to meet.

Plan Your Visit

While booking one of our Anna Maria Island pet-friendly rentals, be sure to plan your visit to the Jungle Gardens. Contact us with any questions you may have about booking your dream vacation!

Pricing

Ready to get your tickets? General admission is $17.99 per adult, $12.99 per child, and $16.99 for seniors. You can buy your tickets right from the website so that you get instant confirmation and see real-time availability. Keep in mind that it takes at least 4 hours to explore the park, so this is at least a half-day event, making it absolutely worth the price.

Directions

Our waterfront vacation rentals on Anna Maria Island are all nearby to the park! First, get onto Interstate 75. From there, take Exit 213 University Parkway West and turn left on US-41/N Tamiami Trail and go south for 2 miles. Turn right when you get to Myrtle Street and go 3 blocks west to the Gardens, where you need to turn right and go north on Bay Shore Road. 100 feet to your left will be the entrance to Sarasota Jungle Gardens.

When you are considering kid-friendly things to do in Sarasota, give Sarasota Jungle Gardens a shot. You and your kids can get up close with a wide (and wild!) array of native and exotic species for a reasonable price.