Downtown Sarasota is the civic and cultural center of Sarasota, home to the Sarasota Opera, Florida Studio Theatre, an arts cinema and more. It’s also home to some of the city’s best shops, restaurants and galleries. And it’s beautifully situated on Sarasota Bay, with a popular park where children cool off in a splash park and people and pooches stroll past docked yachts and charter boats or stop by a lively tiki bar.