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.

Literally doesn't get any better than a night on the Bay front. So beautiful and serene to be able…read moreto eat with your toes in the sand, right by the water and then run over to the awesome new park with the littles.

Closed for remodeling. Such a bust drove all the way here and nothing was open. Plus the red tide…read moremade area stink.

I think this place is swell. Top notch organization on all fronts. i strongly recommend a visi…read more check with the website Before hand. They have so many free activities and some really amazing events!

Love this park even more. Decided to come here at night, and it was a good choice. There are lights…read moreat night so you can walk which was perfect so we can walk our pup. We also went by the lounge chairs closer to the bay. It was so comfy at night to sit here. We fell asleep since it was so relaxing. The park is so cute with whimsical birds as part of the playground. A huge grassy area for walking was nice and comfy too. We brought a snack to eat at the tables and our pup had his dinner too. This was def a great choice! Parking was street parking and it was free.

Cute park to walk around, not very big so can walk it a few times if you'd like. If you have kids…read morethey have a playground. Was also nice to see that they have a fitness trail. No hoboes or homeless people when I went here, I would go again.

Very Florida walk. Dog was happy too. Lots of parking and some hidden trails…read more Although you can still hear the traffic noice it will remind you of all the Florida woods from childhood. Check it out

This is a nice community park featuring lap pool, walking trail, dog park, and a playground area…read moreand workout area in back behind the pool. The playground area has some lovely old oak trees. Arlington has some great activities for small children on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. In 2022 they also did a great Halloween trail and events including pumpkins in the pool and a Bark-o-Ween dog friendly event. There is good variety of trees and plants along the trail. The park borders a residential area and houses. There is a gym and updated bathrooms. There is a large stand of invasive Brazilian Pepper that needs removing from the park. More native plantings and no mow areas would be welcome. But overall this is a great park with a lot to offer for swimmers, walkers, dogs, children, nature lovers, and outdoor enthusiasts.

Everyone who works here is uptight and aggressive. From the woman (red hair) who checks people in…read moreto some of the lifeguards. The way they speak to people is rude and condescending.

The Ashton Trailhead of the Legacy Trail is a welcome addition to the area. This facility has a…read morerestroom building, shaded picnic tables, a bike repair station, a playground, various seating areas, a water bubbler (who knows what this is?), and parking. We enjoy playing at the playground and entering the Legacy Trail from this trailhead. The grounds are well maintained and it is nice to see people utilizing what is offered. My toddler is crazy about the playground equipment, especially the climbing equipment, and loves the really fun "zip line" feature. The playground has lots of shade which is appreciated and ground is covered in astro turf.

Love this park! It gets busy in the evenings and sometimes too crowded. However, what I especially…read morelove about this park is that my kids who are 9 years apart all have something they enjoy playing with there and a few items they can even play with all together. Bathrooms are always clean when they're unlocked in my experience.

Nice place Kids enjoyed burning off the much needed food…read moreintake from Oleary's. Nice layout. Love that shade option. Keep up the great work. Will return when in the area! Respectfully, Bryan Oklahoma City

Nice park with a half a mile walking loop that is close to the marina, lots of nice boats. There's…read morea restaurant located on the premises that I didn't get to try. Enjoyed the swing bench and watching the water while exploring Sarasota. There's a lot of art featured here also. The huge parking lot is three hours max I believe.

This is a cool oversized neighborhood park with a good climbing area, swings, walking path, pond…read morewith water fowl, and a strange path of busts of "independence" fighters like our countries own Thomas Jefferson who apart from working lots of slaves on his properties was surely a real humanitarian.

Has quickly become my favorite local park. Excellent neighborhood park. Very clean and looks well…read morecared for. Paved walking path throughout park. Both tennis and pickle courts. Large playground for younger kids. Exercise stations throughout park. Plenty of benches and a picnic area. Street parking. Dog friendly. Lots of waterfowl who tend to ignore pooches as long as the pooches ignore them. But don't act like you are going to feed them, you will draw a crowd! LOL The park is very well laid out with lots of natural flora and water. The old growth trees add a feeling of permanence. There is also a memorial garden with several busts of historically important individuals to the area. I love the diversity of the busts but was disappointed to not see any women represented. Either way its a charming spot. Another major plus for me is the noise level, or should I say lack of noise. This is definitely a peaceful park. No music blasting, no yelling (other than the occasional groan from the pickle courts or joyful shriek from the playground). There's even a dedicated dog park right across the street and you don't really even hear much noise from them either. It's very reflective of the neighborhood which seems to be a very peaceful, almost bohemian sort of vibe. My dog Chico and I enjoy our time there!

Nathan Benderson Park is beautiful, well maintained, and while there are few trees for shade,…read moreoffers great trails for walking, running, or biking. There is also a shaded playground for children, some tables and seating area, restrooms, and good parking. The water and park is also used for international rowing competitions. The trails continue around the lakes over to the Aquarium and UTC Mall. I was there at sunrise for my walking and it was beautiful.

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.