Mable Ringling Rose Garden at The Ringling — Attraction in Sarasota

We have been visiting the Ringling Museum since 1996. It underwent a massive renovation after the remake of the film Great Expectations. We moved here in the nineties and have learned much about the circus history in the area. The Ringling's mansion named Ca d'Zan sits on the Sarasota bay is magnificent, The collection of European art dates back to the 16th century. We love strolling the grounds, meandering through the Rose Garden, massive banyan trees, bamboo, annd all the shady trails. The Circus Museum was recently expanded. The historic Asolo Theatre was originally constructed in 1798 in Asolo, Italy.  It was dismantled and remained in boxes until the Ringling purchased them in 1949 and reassembled them at the museum. The Historic Asolo Theater had its debut Sarasota performance in 1952. There have been many additions to the campus include the McKay Visitor's Pavilion, the Kotler-Coville Glass Pavilion exhibiting studio glass art, the Johnson-Blalock Education Building housing The Ringling Art Library and Cuneo Conservation Lab, the Tibbals Learning Center complete with a miniature circus, the Searing Wing, which houses special exhibitions attached to the art museum, the Chao Center for Asian Art, and the Monda Gallery for Contemporary Art. It is such a trmendous museum in a small city. If you love art, achitecture, nature or history this is a must see when...

Poorly maintained grounds. Everything needed water. Several patches of dead and dying grass. The roses needed pruning to encourage new blooms. The only place that was actually being watered was the secret garden. The sprinklers were on at 10 AM, which prevented us from even walking through it. The only attractive garden in the whole place was being watered when the place was OPEN to visitors. Does that make any sense? Who waters a garden at 10 AM when it is getting hot out and it's just going to evaporate anyway? Plus makes it so visitors can't even enjoy it? Even on Mondays when it's free, I wouldn't waste my time visiting the...

Beautiful layout! Sculptures everywhere nestled within trees. Beautiful little water ponds filled with turtles and sea life. The gardens are so beautiful and kept up neatly, with a view beyond of the Sarasota Bay. The different layers of steps, crowned by a large bronze replica of Michelangelo’s David arrests your attention and commands your eyes to watch him! A beautiful and stunning vista mixture of nature and art. There is a large playground climbing thing for children right near the rose garden. I’m not sure that kids will enjoy the gardens, but it’s...