The Weird Florida Beach Town That’s Actually Super Cool
The Weird Florida Beach Town That’s Actually Super Cool
Visit Florida
https://www.fodors.com/world/north-america/usa/florida/experiences/news/photos/venice-might-be-floridas-best-kept-and-quirkiest-secret
Venice Florida offers something rare: a place that’s genuinely weird, surprisingly cool, and refreshingly unpretentious.
The thing about Venice, Florida, is that you could easily pass through it on your way to somewhere else and not consider stopping. Most people seeking a picturesque pier and Gulf sunset views head north over to Clearwater Beach, and those wanting lots of shopping and authentic international food might head further south to Miami. Yet, although Venice might not sound like a hot spot for tourism, this weird little town that will be 100 years old in 2026, has what all the other popular beach towns have and many things they don’t, like hidden walkways for pedestrians and free parking throughout the city and its beaches. Venice also has a very interesting origin story, community culture, and prehistoric past that no other Florida beach town can compete with, which makes it kind of a cool place to visit.
Here’s what to do when you get to Venice, Florida.
PHOTO: Yolande Clark-Jackson
Stroll the Mediterranean Revival Downtown
Venice’s downtown defies modern Florida development trends because strict architectural codes preserve the city’s 1920s “Venice of America” Mediterranean revival character with pink stucco tile roofs and human-scaled storefront line of West Venice Avenue. It’s walkable and refreshingly free of corporate chains. You’ll find plenty of options for browsing and shopping for art, antiques, and unique fossil souvenirs.
Saturday mornings in downtown are for Farmers Markets with produce, baked goods, and prepared food. Evening strolls reveal locals on porches with live music drifting from patios.
PHOTO: Yolande Clark-Jackson
Discover the Town’s Weird Origin Story
Venice has one of the most bizarre origin stories that began in 1926 when the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers settled in the town and decided to develop it. Their first structure, a three-story hotel with an open concept garden at its center, was built in 90 days. It still stands but has been converted into a 90-bed assisted living facility. Take the walking tour to learn how this brotherhood developed over 200 residential and commercial properties in less than four years, as well as the other unique characters who passed through the town to help shape its quirky identity.
PHOTO: csfotoimages/iStock
Beware of Circus Spirits
Some of Venice’s quirky character can be traced back to an unexpected legacy from the 1960s. From 1968 to 1997, Venice served as the winter headquarters and training site for Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. The Legendary “Clown College” trained over 1,400 professional clowns in a converted supermarket. Today, locals whisper about phantom calliope music drifting from former circus grounds and costumed apparitions near old performer housing sites. The Venice Theatre, which was built next to the circus training facilities, has its own ghost stories. Some actors report mysterious footsteps and unexplained costume movements after hours. Whether you believe in ghosts or not, the circus heritage alone adds another wacky dimension to this small beach town.
PHOTO: Visit Sarasota County
Hunt for Megalodon Teeth
It’s not every day you tell someone that you traveled to “The Shark Tooth Capital of the World.” While in Venice, head over to Caspersen Beach, where fossilized black and grey shark teeth (that are sometimes worth hundreds of dollars on eBay) have washed up on the beach. All you’ll need is a basic scoop and a strainer to do a bit of prehistoric fossil hunting by the pier. Early morning low tide is the best time. Beyond fossil hunting, it’s also an excellent spot for “shelling.” You’ll find very original seashells along the white sand to bring home as souvenirs.
Sip Local After Shoreline Yoga
Venice’s wellness culture rivals expensive coastal towns without the same price tag. Visitors and residents can enjoy free yoga daily on Venice Beach. Check the community yoga Facebook page for the current schedule. After your shoreline stretch, make your way back to the center of town to experience a few of the independent coffee bars and smoothie spots. Abby’s on Miami serves expertly pulled espresso alongside house-made desserts, with breakfast dishes like eggs Benedict topped with fried green tomatoes. Venice Island Coffee is a family-owned and operated business that delivers tropical smoothies, fresh-squeezed juices, and oversized muffins baked daily, all served diner-style with generous portions. Café Venice brings Italian coffee traditions with perfectly foamy cappuccinos.
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Dine on Authentic International Food
With over 40 Italian restaurants packed into this small town, it’s clear that Venice takes its red sauce and spaghetti seriously. Italian-Americans and their descendants have a reputation for putting consistently good comfort food on the table for their families and communities, and this is definitely the case in Venice Beach, where there are plenty of options to choose from. Trattoria Da Mino is a family-owned business serving pizza, pasta, and Southern Italian food in historic downtown. But Venice’s Mediterranean delights extend beyond Italy. Bodrum, owned and operated by Turkish chef Ersen Irsel, brings Turkish fine dining to Florida’s Gulf Coast with smoky eggplant meze, perfectly charred lamb kebabs, and baklava dripping with honey and pistachios.
PHOTO: Venice Theatre
Catch Broadway-Quality Theater
In a town of just 23,000, you wouldn’t expect one of America’s most active community theaters, but Venice Theater has produced shows continuously since 1950, making it one amongst the largest and most respected community theaters in the United States. This season marks their 76th season, featuring everything from Broadway musicals like The Rocky Horror Show and The Sound of Music to diverse programming like tribute band performances of Taylor Swift. With ticket prices ranging from $27 to $35 dollars the quality consistently surprises visitors. Many productions feature semi-professional actors, and the intimate 417-seat main stage creates an engaging experience.
PHOTO: Visit Florida
Feast on Waterfront Seafood and Sunset Views
Sharky’s on the Pier at Caspersen Beach captures the classic Florida beach bar vibe. The bamboo is real and faded, and the thatched roofs are weathered. Enjoy the breeze off the water and reasonably priced fresh catches ($15-$25 entrees), while its upscale sibling on the second floor, Fins @ Sharks Steakhouse, offers outdoor balcony seating, more expansive views of the water, and a fine dining experience for those wanting to splurge.
The Crow’s Nest Marina epitomizes authentic Old Florida waterfront dining: weathered dock boards, mounted fish on the wall, locals trading fishing stories, and affordable plates featuring whatever boats brought in that morning. The Point has something for everyone with a diverse seafood menu, lawn dining, and beautiful pier views perfect for celebrations. You can also experience gorgeous views, casual dining, and live music at Pops Sunset Bar down the road from Nokomis Beach.
PHOTO: Sanibel sun, CC BY-SA 3.0]/Wikimedia Commons
Bike the Venetian Waterway
Take a day to enjoy the 10-mile paved scenic trail that connects downtown Venice to the beaches, parks, and canals. Bike (or walk) along the trail to observe wildlife like turtles, dolphins, nine-banded armadillos, herons, and possibly manatees on a stop at Shamrock Park, with the best time to see manatees during the cooler months of the year. You’ll find four trailheads, plenty of observation areas, places to picnic, restrooms, and seven free parking locations if you want to park and do only part of the trail. Pet-friendly with dog water and clean-up stations.
PHOTO: Kathy Cipolla
Sleep Near Everything
Venice’s location makes it easy to stay in any of the surrounding areas and still be less than fifteen minutes from four different beaches. Inn at the Beach has direct Venice Beach access with a heated pool, spa, and complimentary breakfast, plus one-and two-bedroom suites with full kitchens or kitchenettes for self-catering savings.
Choose either of the Inns on the Island that are within walking distance of downtown’s main streets.
Less than ten minutes from Venice’s Historic Downtown on Casey Key Road is Escape Resort and Marina. Sandwiched between a boat dock and Nokomis Beach, it marks the perfect spot for romantic getaways or soothing solo trips. The property offers a pool and an outdoor shower near the entrance to rinse off after a day at the beach. Ride a bike or grab a kayak provided by the property to explore the canal.
Here’s why Choice’s CEO is optimistic about economy
https://www.hotelinvestmenttoday.com/Financials/C-Corps/Here-s-why-Choice-s-CEO-is-optimistic-about-economy?
NORTH BETHESDA, Maryland — While Choice Hotels International focused on the strength of its international growth during its third-quarter earnings report, CEO Patrick Pacious also said he sees plenty of green shoots in its U.S. economy business that gives the company optimism for the future.
The bifurcation in hotel performance is a well-documented trend at this point and Choice, which indexes heavily in the economy segment in the U.S., reported a -3.2% U.S. RevPAR loss year-over-year in Q3. But Pacious, speaking during the company’s third-quarter earnings call on Monday, pointed to signs of recovery.
“As we look for signs as to when the cycle in the U.S. may turn positive for our business, two indicators are moving in the right direction,” he said. “First, our economy transient segment occupancy performance has begun to improve year-to-date and has shown year-over-year growth in each of the last two quarters, excluding the impact of the third quarter 2024 hurricane. This segment was also the first to recover after the last period of demand softening, followed by the midscale segment.”
Pacious also pointed to more positive occupancy numbers for the year with index across their entire U.S. portfolio up slightly year-to-date, a constructive early indicator that, in prior cycles, has preceded broader U.S. RevPAR growth. “As we look ahead, we’re optimistic about the next phase of the U.S. lodging cycle and its impact on new construction openings in the U.S.,” he said.
Green shoots for economy
Pacious said the occupancy trends can be an early indicator and are often something franchisees notice first.
“This is a cyclical business... The green shoots you look for are when occupancy stops dropping. That then gives owners confidence when they set prices,” he said. “That’s an early indicator that we’ve seen where the cycle starts to turn, and that’s, in fact, what we’re starting to see in our chain scales, in our segments and our brands. We’re pretty excited with what we’re actually seeing in the economy segment, which is the segment that usually leads you out of one of these typical downturns.”
Another positive Pacious pointed to was the overall trend for small and medium-sized business travel.
“There’s this question around this K-shaped recovery, but it’s missing the fact that you have a ton (75%) of people in this country who work for a small- or medium-sized business,” he said. “We’re seeing that surge in the SMB business in our hotels. It’s because of the types of travelers that… stay in our hotels: construction, utilities, medical staffing, which is traveling nurses and the like. There’s a pretty significant tailwind that we see from a business traveler’s perspective.”
That trend, coupled with the company's overall business travel mix trends, is good news for future Choice business, Pacious said.
“When you look at our business travel or mix, we used to be a 70-30 leisure business. We’re now 60-40, and that small business traveler is a much more resilient traveler because they have to travel for their jobs,” he said. “What we’re seeing, particularly with what AI is doing to the workforce, is more people who are in that sort of blue and gray travel segment. When you look at the job gains and you look at the small business formation that’s occurring, they’re in the segments that travel in our hotels.
“When we look at that overall total available market for small and medium businesses, it’s about $13 billion of travel on an annual basis. Our ability to capture more and more of that share is another positive that we’re looking forward to.”
Another demographic that gives Pacious room for optimism is the Golden Traveler segment, 60 years and older travelers who have the time and income to travel.
“About 30% of our business today is those folks who are 60 years old and older,” he said. “They’re sitting on tremendous wealth in their homes. They’re sitting on very attractive stock portfolios, and they’ve got discretionary income and the time to travel. We are seeing travelers on the road, and we expect to see more of them.
“We know that those are the folks who spend more in our hotels. They stay more often, and they book direct, which is all a real positive [for] the hotels themselves. So, we feel pretty good about how the setup is coming for 2026.”
Higher-revenue brands
Another theme that Pacious has been discussing in the last few years' worth of quarterly earnings calls is that most of the company’s pipeline, both internationally and in the U.S., is in higher-revenue brands.
“Ninety-eight percent of the rooms in our global pipeline are in higher revenue brands… and these hotels are expected to be 1.7 times more accretive than our current portfolio, driven by their RevPAR premium, higher effective royalty rates and larger average room counts,” he said. “This pipeline strength underscores our ability to continue to elevate our earnings per unit by adding accretive hotels to our platform.”
Pacious also discussed how quickly Choice can add conversion hotels to its system, meaning they are often never in the pipeline because they become an open hotel for the company in a short period. That ability can be even more crucial in the current environment, where there is little new supply growth.
“Our pipeline is important, not only for its size, but also for the quality of the hotels within it, and the velocity at which we can convert signings into openings,” he said. “In fact, the number of hotels that opened over the past year without ever appearing in our global pipeline accounted for approximately 1% of the systemwide unit growth.
“As we look into next year, just given the limited supply growth that’s been going on in the U.S., from a new construction perspective, I would expect that trend to continue well into 2026. That’s probably how we would think about the setup for the conversions coming out of the pipeline, and the net room growth in the U.S.”
Hyatt offsets flat third-quarter room revenue with loyalty momentum, growth in China
Hotel brand company maintains end-of-year timeline for Playa resorts selloff
Hyatt Hotels Corp. opened the Alila Shanghai in September. (Hyatt Hotels Corp.)
https://www.costar.com/article/1478634055/hyatt-offsets-flat-third-quarter-revpar-with-loyalty-momentum-growth-in-china
Hyatt Hotels Corp. reported an increase in net rooms growth and flat revenue per available room on its third-quarter earnings call.
"RevPAR was flat in the quarter, but we saw improved performance in the United States, which grew by 3% compared to last year, with select service delivering positive quarterly growth for the first time in 2025," CEO and President Mark Hoplamazian said on the call.
Executives provided updates on Hyatt's ongoing portfolio sales related to its acquisition of Playa Hotels & Resorts, which closed in June.
Within two weeks of the close of the $2.6 billion deal, Hyatt announced its intent to sell the entire Playa portfolio — 15 all-inclusive resorts — to Tortuga Resorts, a joint venture of KSL Capital Partners and Mexico City-based family office Rodina.
The resorts are located across Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Jamaica. Hyatt and Tortuga will have 50-year management agreements for 13 of the properties while the remaining two are under separate contractual agreements.
In September, Hyatt sold a resort in Playa Del Carmen to a third-party buyer for around $22 million. Hoplamazian said the net proceeds of the sale were used to repay a portion of the delayed draw term loan.
"This was one of two properties that were not subject to long-term management agreements with Tortuga Resorts," he continued. "We remain on track to close the real estate transaction with Tortuga for the remaining 14 hotels by the end of the year."
Hyatt had previously announced Tortuga planned to purchase the real estate of all 15 Playa properties, including the two not subject to Hyatt management agreements.
At the beginning of the quarter, Hyatt Regency Times Square opened and became Manhattan's first Hyatt Regency-branded hotel. Owned by Argent Ventures and managed by Highgate, the 795-room hotel underwent a multimillion-dollar renovation before reopening under its new brand.
In light of the damage sustained from Hurricane Melissa, Hyatt adjusted its full-year outlook for 2025.
"We've lowered our fourth-quarter outlook for Playa by $7 million at the midpoint of our range, as a result of Hurricane Melissa, while the full-year outlook remains unchanged after a strong third quarter. For modeling purposes, our outlook assumes that we will own Playa's real estate for the entirety of the fourth quarter," said Joan Bottarini, Hyatt’s chief financial officer.
Hyatt reported continued growth for its all-inclusive properties, which grew significantly across key metrics.
"Net package RevPAR growth at our all-inclusive properties grew 7.6% in the quarter, highlighting the continued strong demand for leisure travel," Bottarini said. "Pace for our all-inclusive hotels in the Americas, excluding Jamaica, is up over 8% in the fourth quarter and for the holiday festive period is up over 11%."
Last month, Hyatt announced a master franchise agreement with Shanghai-based Homeinns Hotel Group for the Hyatt Studios brand. As part of the deal, Homeinns will open 50 new Hyatt Studios hotels across China over the coming years.
When asked about Hyatt's growth in China as a whole, Hoplamazian said he feels good about the company's strategy so far.
"Some of the things that we have been known for in China continue to shine in ways that I think are notable," Hoplamazian said, pointing specifically to the recent opening of the Alila Shanghai. "We're running, maturely, more than 20% ahead of the brand that used to occupy that hotel."
Hyatt's loyalty program World of Hyatt has continued to growth throughout 2025. Hoplamazian said World of Hyatt surpassed 61 million members during the third quarter.
"World of Hyatt continues to be the fastest-growing major global hospitality loyalty program with membership having increased nearly 30% annually since 2017," Hoplamazian said. "Today, we have more than 40% more members per hotel compared to our closest competitor."
Hoplamazian also spoke briefly about Hyatt's expanded partnership with Chase. The deal is expected to drive bookings at Hyatt properties from Chase cardholders via Chase Travel and Chase Ultimate Rewards.
Hyatt officials expect the adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization contribution from their credit card deal and "similar third-party relationships" to more than double by 2027.
By the numbers
For the third quarter, Hyatt reported a 0.3% year-over-year growth in its comparable systemwide revenue per available room, according to the company's earnings release. Hyatt grew its net rooms by 12.1% — or 7% when excluding acquisitions — during the quarter.
Hyatt posted a net loss of $49 million and an adjusted net loss of $29 million. The company's adjusted EBITDA rose 5.6% year over year to $291 million, but when adjusting for assets sold in 2024, adjusted EBITDA was up 10.1%.
The pipeline of executed hotel management or franchise contracts was about 141,000 rooms last quarter, representing an increase of 4.4%, compared to the third quarter of 2024.
As of publication time, Hyatt's stock was trading at $146.37 a share, down 6.8% year to date. The New York Stock Exchange Composite was up 11.6% for the same period.
Expedia's bookings and revenue grow in third quarter
Longer stays and booking windows propel tech company to raise outlook
Expedia Group reported bookings and revenue growth in its third-quarter earnings call. (CoStar)
https://www.costar.com/article/309988406/expedias-bookings-and-revenue-grow-in-third-quarter?
Expedia Group raised its full-year outlook as well as its fourth-quarter projections in light of its third-quarter results exceeding expectations.
"The market was healthy in the quarter with an acceleration in the U.S. and continued strength in the rest of the world," CEO Ariane Gorin said on Expedia Group's recent earnings call. "We saw longer lengths of stay and longer booking windows, both signs of a stronger consumer."
Expedia grew hotel bookings by 12% and revenue by 9% in the third quarter. Both bookings and revenue were driven by the company's business-to-business activity, not business-to-consumer activity. B2B revenue grew 18% and B2B bookings had a 26% increase — the 17th consecutive quarter that B2B bookings saw a double-digit increase.
"In the third quarter, we grew booked room nights 11% and expanded our hotel share globally," Gorin said. "In the U.S., room nights were up high single digits, our fastest growth in over three years. Nights were up low double digits in India and high teens in the rest of the world, including over 20% in Asia."
Crediting recent initiatives like Expedia's flexible travel rewards program launched in October, Gorin said Hotels.com grew at its fastest pace in more than two years.
"That's really a function of the work we've done this year in relaunching the brand, adding product functionality and launching [the program], and it's really solidifying its value proposition as a hotel-only pure play," Gorin said.
She added that vacation-home booking platform VRBO grew room nights in the quarter and maintained or even grew market share in the U.S.
Expedia continued to invest in artificial intelligence across its internal and consumer-facing platforms.
"Since the beginning of the year, we've integrated AI into our products at key moments that matter — from AI filters to property Q&A, guest review summaries and our service agent, and these features are driving engagement and getting even more effective with time," Gorin said.
The company is also creating AI-powered tools for trip planning and searching and for advertising operations optimization. Gorin said AI is helping make ads more relevant and improving targeting and measurement.
"AI-driven search is transforming the way travelers discover and plan their trips," Gorin said. "We're moving fast and deliberately to ensure our brands show up wherever travelers are. We're making good progress on answer-engine optimization, even as traffic today remains small."
Scott Schenkel, chief financial officer of Expedia Group, was asked about how the government shutdown could affect the company's momentum through the end of the year. He said that while Expedia continues to observe how travel is affected by the shutdown, it's likely too late in the year to do much damage.
"As part of guidance, we always try and make sure that we are prepared for a dynamic environment and events like these," Schenkel said. "The market remains dynamic. And in the U.S., just to be clear, we haven't seen a change in trend yet. But we're watching very carefully, and this weekend will be a critical one as we head into that."
Looking ahead, Schenkel said Expedia Group is raising its fourth-quarter and full-year performance expectations. For the final quarter of 2025, the company projects bookings and revenue will grow by 6% to 8%. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization is forecast to increase by about two points.
"For the full year, we expect gross bookings to be up approximately 7% and revenue up approximately 6% to 7% and EBITDA margins to be up approximately 2 points versus last year," Schenkel said.
As of press time, Expedia's stock was trading at $256.41 per share, up 38.3% year to date. The NASDAQ Composite was up 18.2% for the same period.
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