Step Back in Time
- sahpmailbox
- 8 hours ago
- 10 min read
Discover Sarasota’s Historic Hotels
When most people think of Sarasota, Florida, they picture white-sand beaches, turquoise waters, and a thriving arts scene. But tucked between the palm-lined streets and sun-drenched coastlines lies another side of Sarasota — one rich with history, charm, and timeless elegance. The city’s legacy as a tourist destination is connected to the many buildings that have welcomed visitors for more than 100 years — some still hosting guests, some repurposed, and some sadly only a memory. Let’s take a peek at the past and explore just a few of Sarasota’s former beloved historic hotel landmarks.
Orange Blossom Hotel: Neoclassical Elegance with a Storied Past
1330 Main Street, Sarasota, FL
In the heart of downtown at the prominent corner of Main Street and Palm Avenue you’ll find a lovely neo-Classical style building with grand symmetry and classical detailing. Designed by architect Francis Palmer Smith and completed in 1926 for the American National Bank, this historic building was one of the three earliest skyscrapers in the city. It is the only existing one to retain its historic detail and appearance.(!)
In the mid-1930s the building was repurposed into the Orange Blossom Hotel, and quickly gained a reputation for offering refined accommodations in downtown Sarasota. With its architectural distinction and central location near the city’s theaters, shops, and waterfront, the hotel attracted winter visitors seeking both comfort and convenience. It was considered “one of the finest hotels in the area during its prime, offering all the modern conveniences and an atmosphere of refinement and comfort.” 1📑 Its lounge, the Aztec Room, was a popular nightspot and when Cecil B. DeMille and his stars came to film the "Greatest Show on Earth" in Sarasota, several of the actors stayed there. 2📑
Though it no longer operates as a hotel, the building has been thoughtfully converted into luxury condominium residences with ground-level retail, while preserving many of its original architectural features. Today, Orange Blossom Tower stands as a lasting example of Sarasota’s early urban sophistication and remains one of downtown’s architecturally-significant landmarks.
Hotel Sarasota: From Rooming House to Skyscraper
1341 Main Street, Sarasota, FL
Continue right across the street, and you’ll find a property with a lodging history that dates back to the 1890s, when a former livery stable was converted into a two-story building. It operated as The Inn, and served as a rooming house for fishermen and travelers until the 1920s, when the structure was relocated [to present-day Fruitville Road], making way for Sarasota’s first skyscraper: Hotel Sarasota.
3📑 [Note: I’ve also seen it written as both Hotel Sara Sota and The Sarasota Hotel, so I turned to newspaper archives for verification…and found an article from October 2, 1927 calling it Hotel Sarasota].
Completed in 1925, Hotel Sarasota was a seven-story building that became an anchor of downtown. According to the 1927–28 Apartment and Hotel Guide, it was “ideally located in the heart of the business district, overlooking Sarasota Bay...Centrally located to all golf courses and bathing beaches.” The hotel was described as modern, fireproof, and popular among both transient guests and long-term visitors. It was a “middle-class hostelry with room prices ranging from $2.50 for a single to $6 for a double with bath.”4📑
By the late 1960s, Hotel Sarasota had declined, outpaced by the growing popularity of beachfront resorts. It was sold in 1970, with plans to convert it into apartments, but those plans were scrapped after the building failed to meet city codes. Vacated in 1971, it stood empty until it was sold again in 1974 and converted into offices. 5📑Today, it survives as the Palm Tower, with Clasico Italian Chophouse on the ground floor and various executive suites above.
Mira Mar Hotel: A Legacy on Palm Avenue
44 - 71 S. Palm Avenue, Sarasota, FL
The Mira Mar Plaza was constructed in the 1920s — at the start of ‘Florida Fever’ tourist boom — as part of the larger Mira Mar complex, one of Sarasota’s earliest and most ambitious downtown developments. With its Mediterranean Revival architecture, arched windows, and red tile roof, the structure reflects the style and optimism of Sarasota’s land boom era. The Mira Mar, meaning sea view, signaled to the world that this piece of paradise had risen to ‘resort status’. 6📑
The Mira Mar Apartments went up in record time — 60 days of around-the-clock construction — and was known thereafter as the "60-day wonder.” 7📑 It was the largest apartment building that Sarasota had yet seen, with a hotel and auditorium constructed on site shortly after. The apartments rested on 18 ground floor commercial stores which lined the ten foot sidewalk. [This charming sidewalk is one of my absolute favorite blocks in town to walk!]
The Mira Mar Hotel was Sarasota's premier hotel for the next 20 years, but by the 1950s it could no longer compete with the new beach front hotels. A slow decline set in, and the hotel was closed by the early 1980s, and was demolished in 1982. 8📑
The apartment building is the oldest part of the complex, and remains today. It continues to anchor the historic heart of downtown and stands as one of the few surviving architectural remnants of Sarasota’s roaring twenties. Just days ago, the city of Sarasota and all who value historic preservation received exciting news when Commissioners voted unanimously to preserve the historic Mira Mar Apartments. To quote an email announcement from Sarasota Alliance for Historic Preservation: “This landmark decision allows the developer, Seaward Development, to construct a sensitive and innovative high-rise residential building that will provide the financial foundation to restore and preserve one of Sarasota’s most cherished historic structures.”
To learn more about the project, check out SaveTheMiraMar.com or @SaveTheMiraMar on instagram.
Sarasota Terrace Hotel: Modern Luxury with a View
101 S Washington Boulevard, Sarasota, FL
Built by Charles Ringling in 1925 on the site of the number one green of the Old Gillespie Golf Course, this building was originally known as the Ringling Terrace Hotel. It later became known as the Sarasota Terrace Hotel.9📑 After passing through several ownerships it was purchased by Arthur Allyn to house the Chicago White Sox baseball team during spring training. After weathering the Great Depression, hurricanes and the wars that followed, the hotel finally closed its doors. The building was purchased by Sarasota County in 1972, and became the Sarasota County Administration Center after extensive remodeling.
The Sarasota Terrace Hotel, originally known as the Ringling Terrace Hotel, was constructed in 1925 by Charles Ringling. It was the first in a series of buildings that would make Ringling's Courthouse Subdivision an extension of downtown. The hotel was built on the site of the Number One green on the old Gillespie Golf Course. At 11 stories, 125 rooms, and a construction cost of nearly $750,000, the Sarasota Terrace Hotel was touted as one of the finest in Florida.
According to the 1928 Sarasota Visitor's Guide, the Sarasota Terrace Hotel was the city's leading tourist and commercial hotel. With its fireproof construction and private bath in each room, it provided both safety and comfort. Reviews stated that “the Sarasota Terrace Hotel has wonderful views of beautiful Sarasota Bay, the Gulf of Mexico and the glorious sunsets - from the Roof Garden - indescribable. Near enough to be convenient, far enough out to be pleasant.” The daily rates ranged from $3 to $5 for a single and up to $8 for a double. Also, while you dined, there was music by the Sarasota Terrace Orchestra.
I recently obtained a vintage travel brochure for Sarasota Terrace Hotel — likely from the early 1950s — highlighting the dining room, lobby, and bedroom, while stating “All of Florida’s outdoor sports are available to Terrace guests. Sunbathing on the Terrace Roof; golfing, riding, boating, fishing, hunting, beach bathing.”10📑
For the next three decades, the Sarasota Terrace Hotel remained a downtown fixture. Renamed the New Terrace Hotel in the late 1950s, it was purchased in 1962 by Arthur C. Allyn, Jr., then owner of the Chicago White Sox. Allyn invested in a major renovation, and during spring training seasons, White Sox players stayed at the hotel, and played at Payne Park just across the street. In the mid-1960s, motel wings were added, and it became the Sarasota Motor Hotel. The hotel closed in 1972, but was repurposed as the Sarasota County Administration Center until 1995. Today, it is known as the Terrace Administration Building, a nod to preserving its name and legacy.11📑
Bay Island Hotel: A Lost Island Retreat
Norsota Way, Sarasota, FL
Located on Bay Island, nestled between Sarasota and Siesta Key, the Bay Island Hotel once offered a secluded retreat with beautiful bay views. Fun fact: Bay Island was originally connected to the main body of Siesta Key, but in 1911, E.M. Arbogast, a developer from West Virginia, started to build the Bay Island Hotel to cater to the tourist trade. To separate his property from the rest of the island, he had a 35-foot-wide canal dug. A humpback bridge on Siesta Drive spans the canal, connecting Bay Island to the rest of Siesta Key.12📑
The hotel opened in 1912 with rooms for $2.50 per night, and initially was only accessible by boat. The Higel Bridge to Bay Island (today’s north bridge) would not be built until 1917.13📑 Bay Island Hotel was described as follows: “The hotel is three stories and has 65 rooms. The first floor holds the offices and the dining room. Private bathrooms are provided on the second floor and every room provides views of the Bay and Gulf…None of the pleasant home comfort has been sacrificed for the more modernistic decorations while at the same time every modern facility has been preserved.”14📑
The utilities were perfect for the time and boats were always available for guests to enjoy the fantastic fishing. Featuring Florida cuisine, the menu consisted of local oysters, stone crabs, clams, and a variety of fish with fresh fruits and vegetables. Its extraordinary amenities, clever marketing as a “home-hotel,” and superb management ensured 40 years of success.15📑
I was lucky to add a vintage Bay Island Hotel travel brochure to my collection. A rate card insert shows rooms ranged from $5.50 to $21.00 depending on pre-season or season, single or double, and without or with meal plan. There are no dates shown, but I’m guessing probably late 40s or early 50s.
The resort-style hotel was a favorite for those seeking a quieter, more intimate Sarasota experience. It remained a popular tourist destination until its doors closed in the early 1950s. Today, Bay Island is an exclusive waterfront neighborhood with an eclectic mix of multimillion-dollar mansions and cozy cottages on some of the best boating water around.
While searching newspaper archives, I found an article from The Sarasota Times dated May 9, 1912 talking about Bay Island Hotel’s successful first year. The last two lines — written 113 years ago — caught my attention today:
“Siesta location is the best island location on the West Coast; and, with the nearness of deep water, will become very valuable property. With its natural growth of tropical plants; large cedar, oak and palmetto trees; being in the center of the fishing grounds, clams, oysters and stone crabs; Gulf beach, shelling and bathing; high and dry; free from frost; clear air; Siesta is destined to become one of the best tourist towns on the west coast of Florida.”16📑
It’s pretty neat but not at all surprising that even way back then our little piece of paradise was already recognized to be a treasured escape.
Azure Tides Hotel: Beachfront Mid-Century Modernism
1330 Benjamin Franklin Drive, Sarasota, FL
The Azure Tides Hotel, located directly on Lido Beach, was a low-rise, modernist-style hotel popular in the mid-20th century. Known for its direct beach access and stylish turquoise color palette, it catered to tourists looking for sun, sand, and sea.
I was lucky to also find a vintage travel brochure for Azure Tides from 1956. The front showcases a dreamy image of a sparkling pool next to a three-story building directly on the beach. Inside boasts, “AZURE TIDES on the Gulf of Mexico offers the finest features of a hotel plus the privacy, convenience,and doorside parking of a luxury court. Our 90 units comprise hotel rooms, efficiency apartments, and penthouses, each with air conditioning, telephone, and dressing room. TV available. We have 200 feet of private snow-white beach, a heated pool, a beautiful lawn and beachfront playground.” An insert lists the 1956-1957 Schedule of Rates — with rooms as low as $8/day or $70/week, and a deluxe 2-room suite topping off at $52/day and $364/week.17📑 (Oh to wish for those prices again!)
Azure Tides was emblematic of Sarasota’s beachfront charm and embodies an era fondly remembered by longtime locals and returning visitors alike. The hotel was demolished in 2001 to make way for The Ritz-Carlton Beach Club. The public fought to keep the beloved tiki bar open, and Lido Key Tiki Bar is located directly on the beach behind The Beach Club. A Sarasota landmark, the rustic, open-air tropical Florida beach bar features beer, wine and mixed drinks at the edge of the Gulf of Mexico.18📑 Unfortunately, the Tiki Bar has not yet reopened after Hurricanes Helene and Milton.
Of course, these are just a few of Sarasota’s many storied hotels. Countless other beloved landmarks — some long vanished — once dotted the streets and shorelines, each with its own role in shaping Sarasota’s character. While walking Sarasota, I often find myself wishing for a time-machine. Researching for this article really has me wishing I could take a trip to 1920s Sarasota and stay a while.
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