G.T. Bray Park
Park
144 acres2.6 mi of trail
26th Avenue West
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Richardson House · Photo: Ebyabe · CC BY-SA 3.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Bradenton
Bradenton has 10 miles of mapped trails, 0.7 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: G.T. Bray Park (2.6 mi), Perico Preserve (1.3 mi), Neal Preserve (0.5 mi). 6% of Bradenton’s land is conserved, about 549 acres. 73% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 66% of U.S. towns · #197 of 638 in Florida. What drives it
Conserved land
6%
549 acres · of 14.3 sq mi of land
Trails
10 mi
0.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
560 ac
9.8 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
73%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
14 mi
11 mi lanes · 3.5 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
5 beaches · 3 boat launches
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Bradenton have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Bradenton is ahead of 66% of U.S. towns, #197 of 638 in Florida. Trail miles hold the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Bradenton’s overall grade.
Conserved land6% of the land · typical FL town 3% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (10 mi) · FL 0.4 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land9.8 acres of park per 1,000 residents (560 acres) · FL 6 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home73% of residents within a half mile of a park · FL 70% · U.S. 72%B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 66%
LessMore
Florida towns of 2,500+ (638)Ahead of 69%
Water is 18% of Bradenton’s area (3 of 18 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 5%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B to B+. Trails and many small parks come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by volunteers, so coverage varies from town to town; the half mile is a straight line from each census block, so a river or highway in the way isn’t counted against it.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
The map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is G.T. Bray Park, with 2.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Perico Preserve
Nature preserve
162 acres1.3 mi of trail
Perico Loop
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Neal Preserve
Nature preserve
97 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Neal Preserve parking
All 9 parks & preserves
G.T. Bray Park144 acres · 2.6 mi of trail
DirectionsPerico Preserve162 acres · 1.3 mi of trail
DirectionsNeal Preserve97 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
DirectionsNorma Lloyd Park19 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
Bradenton Riverwalk12 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsLewis Park5 acres
DirectionsSteve Plath Park2 acres
28th Street Park1 acres
Manatee Mineral Springs Park1 acres
Who protects it
549 conserved acres
6% of Bradenton’s land. Water is left out: Bradenton has 14.3 square miles of land and 3.2 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Bradenton’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County363 ac
Town or city174 ac
Private owners9 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits2 ac
Local Conservation Area · 328 acLocal Park · 217 acPrivate Conservation · 2 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Perico Preserve Local Conservation Area | County | 163 | Open |
| G.T. Bray Park Local Park | Town or city | 138 | Open |
| Neal Preserve Local Conservation Area | County | 100 | Open |
| Pine Island Preserve Local Conservation Area | County | 66 | Open |
| Norma Lloyd Park Local Park | County | 19 | Open |
| Bradenton Waterfront Park Local Park | Town or city | 10 | Open |
| Palma Sola Causeway Park Local Park | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| East Bradenton Park Local Park | County | 8 | Open |
| Glazier Gates Park Local Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Lewis Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
25 places to go in Bradenton
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Bradenton
5 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Playgrounds in Bradenton
Toddler Playground at Lewis ParkIn Lewis Park
DirectionsPlus 12 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Dog parks in Bradenton
Large Dog ParkIn G.T. Bray Park
DirectionsSmall Dog ParkIn G.T. Bray Park
DirectionsScenic views in Bradenton
1 scenic view without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Picnic areas in Bradenton
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Trails & water
3 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 0.7 miUnpaved · 1.3 mi
Perico Loop1.2 mi
Perico Connector0.2 mi
26th Avenue West0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
14 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
11 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
3.5 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
48Tennis
26Pickleball
15Baseball
13Basketball
8Soccer
4Softball
2Skate park
2Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →7 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 2 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Manatee County Courthouse (Original)Building · listed 1976
About itBraden Castle Park Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1983
About itBradenton Carnegie LibraryBuilding · listed 1987
About itManatee County CourthouseBuilding · listed 1998
About itRichardson HouseBuilding · listed 2003
About itCurry Houses Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2015
About itBradenton Woman's ClubBuilding · listed 2019
About itWhen to get out
April is the best month for walking in Bradenton
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 10.6 | 11.2 | 11.9 | 12.8 | 13.5 | 13.9 | 13.7 | 13.1 | 12.3 | 11.5 | 10.7 | 10.4 |
| High (°F) | 72 | 74 | 78 | 82 | 87 | 90 | 91 | 91 | 90 | 85 | 79 | 74 |
| Rain (in) | 2.7 | 2.1 | 3.0 | 2.7 | 3.3 | 7.8 | 7.8 | 9.1 | 7.0 | 2.9 | 1.8 | 2.5 |
November is the driest month (1.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 91 °F). 9.1 inches fall in August, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 91 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Bradenton →
Next door
Bradenton and its neighbors
Bradenton has the most mapped trails of the 3 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bradenton | 6% | 0.7 | 10 | 73% | B+ |
| West Bradenton | 1% | under 0.1 | 2 | 35% | D |
| Ellenton | 2% | 0.1 | 7 | 79% | C+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Bradenton
Where can I hike in Bradenton?
The longest trail networks: G.T. Bray Park, 2.6 miles; Perico Preserve, 1.3 miles; Neal Preserve, 0.5 miles; Norma Lloyd Park, 0.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Bradenton is conserved land?
6% of its land, against a typical 3% for a Florida town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Bradenton’s trails?
G.T. Bray Park and Perico Preserve don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Bradenton?
14 miles of bike routes are on the map: 11 of painted or protected lanes and 3.5 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Bradenton?
11,405 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Bradenton or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 560 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Bradenton have?
Ahead of 66% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #197 of 638 in Florida. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Bradenton neighbors.
Share a tip
Sources
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →