Service Club Park

Located in the city of Venice, Service Club Park has a small, wide, and rarely crowded beach situated in front of the Gulf of Mexico.  Service Club Park has beautiful white sand and is an awesome destination for beachcombing for fossils such as Large Megalodon shark’s teeth. Service Club Park is a well-known destination for scuba diving and is filled with many divers and snorkelers.  Service Club Park is also a great spot for swimming, fishing, picnicking, and watching dolphins and shorebirds. 

Service Club Park offers many amenities including restrooms, showers, picnic tables, volleyball courts, boardwalks, and a playground. If you are looking for additional amenities, you can walk 10 minutes south to Venice Fishing Pier – a 700-feet-long that is a great place for fishing and photography.

There are many fun activities at Service Club Park including swimming, fishing, wildlife watching, birdwatching, picnicking, photography, and beach walking. 

Getting to Service Club Park is very easy – after you get off of U.S. 41 Bypass North, drive west to 1190 Harbor Drive South Venice to reach the beach’s paid parking lot that is within walking distance to the beach. In addition to this, there are free street parking spots on nearby roads. 

If you are looking for attractions near Service Club Park, you can drive 30 minutes to Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium that is home to sea creatures including jellyfish, great white sharks, captive killer whales, rockfishes, African penguins, and the Pacific Sea nettles. Marie Selby Botanical Gardens are spread across 15 acres and feature preserved collections of more than 20,000 plants including orchids, bromeliads, banyans, bamboo, wildflowers, a butterfly garden, a koi pond, and an edible garden. The historical Sarasota Opera House has been the performance stage for many world-renowned artists including Elvis Presley, Will Rogers, Charlton Heston, and Dorothy Lamour. Another great attraction near Service Club Park is St. Armands Circle which is well-regarded for its shopping centers, boutiques, ancient shops, and restaurants.

If you get hungry, there are many restaurants within a 10-minute drive of Service Club Park. Turtle Beach Grill is a tropical American bar-restaurant featuring live music from Thursdays to Sundays on the patio deck and has outdoor as well as indoor seating. The vegetarian-friendly Turtles on the Little Sarasota Bay is an American Caribbean restaurant with a diverse seafood-focused menu and happy-hour deals. Another good restaurant near Service Club Park is the waterfront Ophelia’s on the Bay – it was mentioned in ‘The 100 Most Scenic Restaurants in the US’ list by Business Insider. 

If you are looking for a hotel near Service Club Park, there are many hotels within a 20-minute drive. Spread across 440 acres, The Resort at Longboat Key Club is a 4-Star beachfront hotel featuring a golf course, spa, gym, an oceanside pool, six restaurants, 20 tennis courts, and bike and water sports equipment rentals. The 3-Star pet-friendly hotel Lido Beach Resort has a pool, bar, gym, convenience store, and two restaurants with one on the roof. If you are looking for affordable hotels near Service Club Park, the 3-Star Sandcastle Resort at Lido Beach offers a lounge, pool, gift shop, and restaurant – and Holiday Inn Sarasota - Lido Beach welcomes pets and has a poolside bar, restaurant, and fitness center.