Meet our fearless leader, Michele Knuese. Having been in the local vacation rental business for over 30 years, Wisconsin-born Knuese was perfectly poised to take the helm of Florida Vacation Connection in 1994. As owner and manager, Michele calls upon her decades… Read More
Longboat Key and its surrounding islands are a shopper’s paradise, and not just because the shopping is set in one. It’s the fact that so many of our retail options offer everything you need to put together an ensemble fit for… Read More
When circus maestro John Ringling settled in Sarasota with his wife, Mable, they decided they needed an art museum on the property to house their considerable collection. It took two years to build the Ringling Museum, which opened in 1927. Today, the museum’s… Read More
If you’re here in Sarasota in the fall and winter, you’ll want to take advantage of all that’s on offer. The area comes alive with festivals and events that highlight everything we get to enjoy here year round: fresh-caught seafood, great local music… Read More
You’ve probably heard about Sarasota’s wildlife scene—frolicking dolphins, osprey and egret, sandhill cranes plucking along the shore. . Our warm coastal waters are rich with manatee and all manner of fish, a dynamic ecosystem that many creatures call home. But there’s one… Read More
Longboat Key’s premier park is one of the most beloved places on the island, and not just because of the three—count ’em three—pickleball courts. No, these nine acres set right on the water are dedicated to sports and recreation of all kinds,… Read More
If you’re an angler, you’ve chosen well: Longboat Key and the Sarasota area host some of the best fishing in the Sunshine State. We’ve got offshore and deep sea in the Gulf, freshwater fishing from inland lakes, and the unique ecosystem provided… Read More
One of the great pleasures of being in the Longboat Key and Sarasota area for any amount of time is the year-round access to nature. Here, getting up close and personal with the flora and fauna is one of the main delights of… Read More
If you have your own sailboat while here in the Longboat Key and Sarasota area, lucky you. If not, no problem. There are schools, charters, cruises and many other means to gliding across the water available. Sailing in Sarasota is more than… Read More
One of the best reasons to spend the summer in Sarasota is to experience its Powerboat Grand Prix Festival, a major offshore race that takes place in the Gulf, held this year from June 23 to July 4. Now in its… Read More