Sarasota drew its first large group of settlers the 1880s when the town was heavily promoted in Scotland as a tropical paradise. Unhappily for those first settlers, when they arrived they found little more than a muddy frontier camp. Most left, but among those who stayed was John Hamilton Gillespie, a Scottish aristocrat and member of the Queen’s Bodyguard for Scotland. Gillespie, named the town's first mayor in 1902, is thought to have built the nation's first golf course.

Today Sarasota is known for its beaches, dining and culture. Known as part of Florida's Cultural Coast, Sarasota has a professional symphony, ballet and opera, as well as a dozen theaters and 30 art galleries. The John & Mable Ringling Museum of Art houses the art collection that these two art lovers built up over their lives, including works by Peter Paul Reubens and other masters of 17th-century Italian and Flemish art. Sarasota's Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, recognized for its award-winning architecture and astounding acoustics, seats 1,700 people.

Myakka River State Park, on nearly 29,000 acres, and Oscar Scherer State Park are the area's destinations for bird-watching, biking, walking or camping. The Park offers guided boat and train tours with information of the area's wildlife and history.