Avid travel fan - especially near large bodies of water. I love to "live like a local" in the places I visit. My years in restaurant management taught me to be hyper-aware of contagion. As a result, most of the COVID-19 related precautions recommended these days are things I have been doing for decades. Your health and mine are extremely important to me.

Offering my home for your use while I am away, I will usually be reachable by phone and also have friends nearby. While you will have the entire place to yourself, be aware that the space will not be completely depersonalized. There will, however, be closet and cupboard space and the refrigerator will be mostly, if not completely, empty.
The furnishings are not child friendly, but it is an inviting space for 1 or 2 adults. NO smokers, please!

This is an upscale coastal neighborhood where the average property value is over a million dollars, and 40% of the residences are winter homes.

If you are a daily walker, there are a variety of different and interesting routes you can take: tree-lined streets past historic homes and new waterfront mansions; streetside along Ben Franklin Drive, past parks and condos overlooking the Gulf of Mexico; or the length of the island along the water's edge.

Lido has a park at each end of the island, and another mid-island. The southern park is a great picnic spot (wooden tables and trees providing shade) and has a wonderful view of boats entering and exiting Sarasota Bay. The mid-island park (closest to my place) has a swimming pool. The hotel next to it (right by the beach access at the end of my street) has nice restrooms (no need to go back to the condo) and a beach bar!

GETTING AROUND

Beyond the beach or St Armands Circle without a car: On demand service will pick you up and take you to/from the transit center in town by Whole Foods for a nominal fee until 10 pm. Buses from there to/from areas around town (including the airport) are available until around 6pm. At other times, Lyft or Uber are affordable alternative options.

*No cramped bed/sit (studio/bachelor): This is a full one bedroom apartment with separate living room, kitchen, and bedroom w/ensuite bath.
*No pull-out or fold-down beds to fight: Comfortable stationary queen size bed.
*No noisy wall unit A/C: "Whole house" forced air cooling.
*No teeny tiny refrigerator: Full size side-by-side w/ in-the-door FILTERED water and ice.
*No coin operated laundry hassles: In-unit full size stacked washer/dryer.
*No parking quandaries: Assigned COVERED parking (Condo rules restrict trucks, RVs, and motorcycles).
*No lengthy treks: Convenient mid-island location means you won't have far to walk to any point on Lido Key or to St. Armands. The beach is straight up the street 1-1/2 blocks (beach towels, beach chairs, and styrofoam cooler provided).