The Sarasota and Me Guide to Venice, Florida

People love Venice. They come for the spectacular Gulf views, the famous fishing pier, the shark teeth hiding in the sand and a downtown where you can spend the afternoon walking from shops to restaurants. Many return to the same places year after year. Just south of Sarasota, Venice has built a following all its own.

Venice is a little slower moving than Sarasota, and that’s part of its charm. Downtown is quaint, the beach is amazing and the whole place has a community feel. You can shop, have lunch, search for shark teeth and end the day watching the sunset over the Gulf.

Walk Around Downtown Venice

Downtown Venice is the kind of place where you park the car and walk around without much of a plan. There are quaint little shops, locally owned restaurants and plenty of places to stop for coffee or something sweet.

Centennial Park is right in the center of downtown. It has a gazebo, a splash pad for children and events throughout the year, including free concerts. Parking downtown is free, which is always a nice surprise in Florida.

Leave yourself time to explore more than one block. Downtown includes Venice Avenue as well as Miami, Tampa and Nokomis avenues, where you’ll find more locally owned shops and restaurants.

See what’s happening in downtown Venice.

Spend Time at Venice Beach

Venice Beach deserves more than a quick stop. It has a beautiful stretch of sand, clear Gulf views and the kind of sunsets people plan their evenings around.

The beach has free parking, lifeguards, restrooms, picnic areas and a concession stand. It’s also less than a mile from downtown, so you can shop or have lunch and still spend a good portion of the day near the water.

The sail-shaped beach pavilion has been a Venice landmark since the 1960s, and the Venice Fishing Pier can be seen farther down the shoreline. Keep an eye on the water, too. Dolphins and shorebirds are regularly spotted from the beach.

Learn more about Venice Beach.

Go Hunting in the Shark Tooth Capital of the World

Venice is known as the Shark Tooth Capital of the World—and people take shark-tooth hunting seriously here.

The teeth are fossils left behind from prehistoric sharks that once lived in the waters covering this part of Florida. Waves and storms gradually bring them out of the fossil layer beneath the Venice coastline and deposit them along the beaches.

Some people simply walk near the water and look for small, shiny black teeth mixed in with the shells. The more committed hunters use a screened scoop known locally as a “Venice snow shovel.” You can rent or buy one at Papa’s Bait Shop on the fishing pier.

Shark teeth can turn up on several Venice-area beaches, but Caspersen Beach is especially well known for them. Just don’t expect to bend down and immediately find a giant megalodon tooth. Most of the teeth found along the shoreline are small, and spotting them takes patience.

Venice celebrates its shark-tooth history beyond the beach, too. You’ll find fossils, jewelry and shark-tooth souvenirs in downtown shops, along with exhibits at the Venice Museum & Archives and the Venice Fossil Museum.

Learn more about shark-tooth hunting in Venice.

Venice Sharks Tooth Festival

Venice celebrates its title every spring with the Venice Sharks Tooth Festival. The free, two-day event fills Centennial Park with shark teeth and other prehistoric fossils, vendors, food, live music and activities for children.

The next festival is scheduled for April 10–11, 2027. If you’re fascinated by fossils—or just want to see how seriously Venice takes its shark teeth—this would be a fun weekend to visit.

See festival details and updates.

Walk Out on the Venice Fishing Pier

The Venice Fishing Pier is awesome. It stretches 700 feet over the Gulf, giving you a completely different view of the water than you get from the beach.

Walk to the end and you’ll pass people fishing, families looking into the water and visitors stopping every few feet to take another picture. You may spot dolphins, rays or fish swimming below. The pier is free, open 24 hours a day and no fishing license is required.

Papa’s Bait Shop is located partway down the pier. It sells bait, snacks and fishing supplies, along with the Venice snow shovels people use to search for shark teeth.

The pier is also one of the best-known photography locations in Venice. Take pictures from the top, but don’t miss the view from underneath it. The rows of pilings stretching toward the Gulf create one of those photographs that immediately says Florida.

Swimming isn’t permitted within 150 feet of the pier.

Learn more about the Venice Fishing Pier.

Go to Sharky’s on the Pier

Sharky’s on the Pier is a Venice landmark and one of the biggest draws on this part of the Gulf. It sits directly beside the fishing pier with waterfront tables, seafood, tropical drinks, live music and some of the best sunset views in Venice.

The atmosphere is fun and festive, and it feels like vacation from the moment you sit down with a frozen drink and look toward the Gulf. The food is good, the view is even better and there’s almost always something happening.

Sharky’s is extremely popular, especially during season. Expect a crowd, but don’t let that discourage you. People pack the place because it’s one of the Venice experiences they don’t want to miss.

Fins at Sharky’s is next door when you want a more upscale meal. It serves steak, seafood and sushi in a beautiful dining room overlooking the Gulf.

See the menu and current information for Sharky’s.

Let Your Dog Run at Brohard Paw Park

Brohard Paw Park is Sarasota County’s only official dog beach, and Stella never wants to leave.

Whether she’s racing through the sand with a poodle or playing in the waves with a retriever, she always finds someone to play with. Dogs love being able to run freely along the shoreline, chase each other into the Gulf and make an unbelievable mess of themselves.

A fenced dog play area leads to the beach, but the beach itself is open rather than enclosed. It’s a wonderful place for dogs that are comfortable off leash and will stay close to their people. If yours is likely to take off down the shoreline and introduce herself to everyone in Venice, plan accordingly.

Brohard Paw Park is normally open daily from 7 a.m. until dusk. Check its current status before leaving because weather, water conditions and beach work can sometimes affect access.

Sharky’s currently permits service dogs only, so don’t plan to take your dog there for lunch after the beach.

Check the current status of Brohard Paw Park.

Before You Go

Venice is a short drive from Sarasota, but I say that lightly. During season, traffic on I-75 can make it feel much farther away. Check the traffic before you leave and allow extra time.

Parking at Venice Beach and throughout downtown is free, although spaces can fill quickly during season.

If Sharky’s is part of the plan, expect it to be busy. If shark-tooth hunting matters most, give yourself enough time to visit one of the beaches south of the Venice Jetty, where teeth are most commonly found.

Beach access, restaurant policies and construction conditions can change. Confirm current details directly with each location before visiting.