The conference will be held on the campus of the New College of Florida, the honors college of the Florida state system. The college, located on Sarasota Bay, is adjacent to the Sarasota-Bradenton Airport (code SRQ) and about 4 miles north of downtown Sarasota. The area contains a number of hotels and motels, as well as restaurants. Blocks of rooms have been reserved at conference rates at the following:
Sarasota Hotel & Marina
(formerly the Sarasota Cay Club)
7150 North Tamiami Trail
(941) 355-2781
$89/night
(book by Feb 1st) |
Hilton Garden Inn
8270 North Tamiami Trail
(941) 552-1100
$139/night
(book by Feb 1st) |
Both of these hotels have a restaurant, fitness center, pool, and free shuttle service to and from the Sarasota Airport. The Hilton is less than half a mile from the New College campus, while the Cay Club (2 miles north of the College) will run free shuttle service to and from New College for conference participants. Among other amenities, the Cay Club has a dinner theatre and waterside tiki bar, while the Hilton has a spa and free internet access. Please note, the links above are for information only; in order to get the conference rate, you must make your reservation by phone.
Please note: If you are interested in sharing a hotel room with another conference attendee, please email New College's events coordinator, Greg Hite, at events @ ncf.edu.
You are of course free to make your own housing arrangements; guidebooks and online resources such as www.4sarasota.com provide many alternatives to those listed above. March is high season in Sarasota, however, so early booking is recommended.
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Sarasota is noted for its beautiful public beaches, theater, art and music. Average temperatures in March are a pleasant high of 77F/25C and a low of 57F/14C. The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, next door to New College, will offer tours arranged for conference participants. A few further local attractions are listed below; as above, guidebooks and online resources will quickly supplement this list.
