This review is only based on the playground. It was fine but pretty average. With the size of the…read morepark, we were expecting the playground to be bigger. My 2.5 year old enjoyed himself, but was bored with the playground parts in about 10 minutes and just wanted to swing. Also, the playground parts are not shaded, so make sure to wear sunscreen.

Pretty beat park. The girls wanted to check it out vs what we have in Oklahoma city. It was less…read morethan a mile from our house. No complaints! Respectfully, Bryan Oklahoma City

Love bird key park. It's on the smaller size but that's what makes it so nice! There's a walkable…read morearea into the water, wide sidewalk, greenery, water fountains, parking lot, and a shaded large picnic table. So perfect for anyone looking to park and walk the bridge or to enjoy the scenery without being overcrowded.

Every time we visit Sarasota, we love to turn off the Ringling Bridge and park at Bird Key Park and…read morewalk around looking at the water, the birds, the trees, and the Ringling Bridge. There is a nice paved walkway to the bridge. The tourists and locals love to walk down there and just hang out under the bridge. The views are great!! There are benches along the way to rest. The park is well taken care of and very popular with ealkets and runners and fishermen.. The parking is along the waterfront with a lot of parking spaces. You can walk your dogs as long as you clean up after them. We usually go there in the morning and again in the evening. Beautiful photo ops also.

Watched July 3rd, 2026 fireworks here at Nathan Benderson Park. We parked by Foxtail Coffee for…read morefree, and walked over. They also had fees to park in parking lots starting at $30, but you still had to walk. The walk wasn't bad at all and luckily the rain finished and it wasn't as hot. We stayed at the part of the park before the bridge. It was a nice set up with a walking trail, grass, a few picnic tables, inside restrooms and a playground. Two or three food trucks. The other side of the park had more stuff along with the VIP area. Liked this side of the park since we could comfortably place our chairs down in the grass and be close enough to the bathrooms. The music was streamed from the other side. I didn't like it because it was orchestra and classical music the whole time. The fireworks were ok and you saw it on the distance not too far. But the music made it sleepy for me. This is just my reminder for next year. At least we had good parking, weather, seats, & clean restrooms. Line for them wasn't too bad.

its a lovely place to walk, although it needs better, more clear signage for its mile markers. It…read moreis 3.4 miles around the lake. But you dont know where the starting and ending points are. Shame there isnt more shade around the park. In hot days there is no escape from the sun.

Nice green space along the waterfront in a very urban setting. It was nice to see so many people…read moreenjoying it. Lots of fisherman, families and even saw a young couple having a picnic date. The facilities look to be pretty well maintained.

ive been going here for years, lovely place, need some visual work, but not a big deal, and lovely…read morepeople in the summer camp (id leave a heart but im on the pc)

This was such a great experience that I wasn't really expecting. This layout a former military…read morebase and a lot of of the cannons are still intact. I just kept walking around this place thinking how cool would be that they maybe need to film a Michael Bay film here or even a zombie movie. I'm not sure if they're old prison cells or just storage but the doors are removed, but you can walk in. They've done a great job as far as keeping the structural integrity in place as well as preserving history. They have a gift shop with some snacks and ice cream in it and I also snagged a really cool hat and T-shirt combo for just 25 bucks. I took a lot of cool pictures and videos and was sending them to my elderly mother and she loved all of it. Great overall experience

We went to dog park by Bay Pier at De Soto…read more The signs are clear. The ground around the bathrooms are little untidy. The beach is clean.

My baby loves the playground, she doesn't walk yet but she can crawl up the stairs and go down the…read moreslide without getting stuck. I really like coming to this park it's very nice and quiet.

This park is great for adults and kids offering a skate park and basketball court for the community…read moreand 2 playgrounds for the little to run around its nicely shaded and for a bonus they have a splash pad! This was my second visit and both visits have been wonderful and we always meet super nice people. They do have bathrooms are the recreation center to change after the splash pad and 1 vending machine. Overall I think they take very good care of this park and it's definitely a family friendly fun place to visit.

I love Payne Park…read more I do NOT like too many of the people that use it. Recently, the number of unsupervised kids that are riding their bikes, scooters, and electric do dads are inconsiderate with their use of the sidewalks, their total lack of attention to their surroundings and other people. These kids need more adult supervision and parents need to take more time teaching them manners. I also am taking exception to the growing number of pet owners that think THEIR dogs don't need to be properly trained, leashed, or picked up after. The 5 O'Clock group of owners that let their dogs off theie leads and let them just take over a section of the park is non-sense. Read the signs. That is not acceptable. On several occasions, while just walking I have been run up on by dogs showing their teeth. I stop, sayd nice doggy and then move on. But some day, if I do get bit by one of these unruly monsters, their entiled owners will owe me money they haven't even made yet. I would like to see more of a park police presence for a while to get the kids and dog owners back to being decent people. And to the people that are feeding the ducks and squirrels, STOP. Read the signs. You aren't doing the wildlife any favors by feeding them and you aren't doing the other people that use the park any favors either. Payne Park is beautiful; a great place to enjoy the out of doors and the wonderful weather in Sarasota. Kids and Pet owners don't have the right to ruin the experience for everyone else. Oh, and teenagers, we know you are smoking pot there. Move away from the popular walking areas. Your weed smell like skunk butt.

4 stars because the bathrooms are closed currently due to a leak . But other than that this is a…read moresuper cute place to go to and bring your toddler. This park has a variety of activities / slides , tjings to climb oh and there's a skate park on the other side. Plus the trails are nice walking here.