Updated October 28, 2026
Ten easy plans for two, from dinner on the sand at sunset to a Broadway tour in Sarasota. Each one links to the venue, with addresses and where to park.
Plan around the sunset. Clocks fall back on Sunday, Nov. 1, and from then through December the sun sets before 5:50 p.m. That makes early dinner and a later show an easy pairing this time of year.
| Date | Sunset |
|---|---|
| Sat, Oct 31 | 6:46 p.m. |
| Sun, Nov 1 (clocks fall back) | 5:46 p.m. |
| Sun, Nov 15 | 5:38 p.m. |
| Tue, Dec 1 | 5:35 p.m. |
| Tue, Dec 15 | 5:37 p.m. |
| Thu, Dec 31 | 5:46 p.m. |
| Fri, Jan 15 | 5:57 p.m. |
| Mon, Feb 1 | 6:11 p.m. |
Calculated for downtown Bradenton; the beaches are within a minute of these times.
01 · Anna Maria Island · Bradenton Beach
The classic. Get a table facing the Gulf and time it so you sit down about 30 minutes before sunset. BeachHouse Waterfront Restaurant (200 Gulf Dr N, Bradenton Beach) has tables right on the sand, and The Sandbar (100 Spring Ave, Anna Maria) is the north-end favorite for sunsets. Both are busy on winter weekends, so check each restaurant’s site for reservations or waitlists.
02 · Downtown Bradenton · Free walk
Park once and make a night of it. The Bradenton Riverwalk runs 1.5 miles along the Manatee River, and the stretch near the DeSoto Bridge is prettiest at dusk. Walk a block inland to Old Main Street for dinner. Parking is easy in the free City Centre garage; see downtown parking on our sister site.
03 · Manatee Performing Arts Center
The Manatee Performing Arts Center (502 3rd Ave W) is Bradenton’s own stage, a short walk from Old Main Street restaurants. Musicals run most of the year. See what’s playing on our coming-up calendar.
04 · Sarasota · 20–30 minutes south
For touring Broadway shows and headliners, the purple seashell-shaped Van Wezel sits right on Sarasota Bay (777 N Tamiami Trail). Asolo Repertory Theatre, Florida’s largest professional repertory theater, is on the same road a few miles north at 5555 N Tamiami Trail, next to The Ringling. Both are on the Bradenton side of Sarasota, so the drive is shorter than you might think.
05 · Downtown Sarasota
McCurdy’s Comedy Theatre (1923 Ringling Blvd) brings touring headliners on weekends. Have dinner on Main Street first; our downtown Sarasota guide has the details. More clubs are on our comedy page.
06 · Cortez Road · Lakewood Ranch · Sarasota
Regal Oakmont (4801 Cortez Rd W) has reserved recliners and is the closest theater to the beaches. Lakewood Ranch Cinemas on Main Street is a nonprofit six-screen theater that serves beer and wine, with restaurants steps away. Compare all five theaters on our movies page.
07 · Burns Court, Sarasota
Burns Court Cinema (506 Burns Ln) shows independent and foreign films in a small historic district a block off Main Street. Good for a quieter night out.
08 · Longboat Key
Mar Vista Dockside (760 Broadway St, Longboat Key) serves dinner under buttonwood trees on Sarasota Bay. It’s at the north tip of Longboat Key, about 10 minutes south of Bradenton Beach over the Longboat Pass bridge.
09 · Bradenton · just south of downtown
The Village of the Arts is a neighborhood of galleries and studios in restored cottages just south of downtown. Its Art Walk is the first Friday and Saturday of every month (the Village lists 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.), and the evening to circle is the Festival of the Skeletons, its Día de los Muertos celebration, on Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, from 6 to 9 p.m. (free).
10 · The Bishop · The Ringling
The Bishop Museum of Science and Nature downtown has a 50-foot dome planetarium, and The Ringling hosts evening events through the season. Our museums page has hours and links; check each museum’s calendar for after-hours dates.
Watch the sunset over the Gulf with dinner at the BeachHouse in Bradenton Beach or The Sandbar on Anna Maria, or walk the Bradenton Riverwalk at dusk and have dinner on Old Main Street before a show at the Manatee Performing Arts Center.
Clocks fall back on Sunday, November 1, 2026, so sunset moves from about 6:46 p.m. on Oct. 31 to about 5:46 p.m. on Nov. 1. Through December it stays between about 5:35 and 5:46 p.m., the earliest of the year.
Regal Oakmont on Cortez Road has reserved recliners and is the closest theater to Anna Maria Island. Lakewood Ranch Cinemas on Main Street serves beer and wine, and Regal Hollywood in downtown Sarasota has recliners.
McCurdy’s Comedy Theatre at 1923 Ringling Blvd in Sarasota has touring headliners on weekends and open mics midweek. It is about 25 minutes from downtown Bradenton.