Amish Experience: Bridges To Understanding

Visit Pinecraft, the Amish and Mennonite Neighborhood!

Visit the only place in the world that the Amish and Mennonite communities come to vacation en masse and learn about their unique cultures with tour guides Kendra Cross or Lois Stimax.

On this experience, the goal is to create a “bridge of understanding” about these wonderfully unique and close-knit communities. You will learn about the history of their religious beliefs, values, and traditions and how they are practiced in daily life.

During the 90-minute tour, you will visit the Pinecraft community, where more than 500 Amish and Mennonite families live year-round and where more than 5,000 return as tourists each season from Ohio, Pennsylvania and Indiana to vacation.

In Pinecraft, enjoy the stops at Alma Sue’s Quilt Shop, The Carlisle Inn and Der Dutchman Amish Kitchen Cooking Restaurant for shopping and a pie shooter — a sample of their delicious pie!

Gain a new appreciation for and an understanding of the rich culture of Sarasota’s Amish and Mennonite communities on this Tripadvisor Certificate of Excellence-rated tour. Book your tickets online today!

Please note:

• This is a tour where you get off the vehicle, so you must be able to walk a short distance.
• During April there may be variations of the Amish Experience tour because typically most of our Amish tourists have returned home. In these cases, we may visit a local Amish furniture maker to learn more about carpentry and its importance to Amish culture.

All guests must be ages 10+.

Tour ticket includes FREE Parking!

THE REVIEWS ARE IN!

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Sarasota Trolley Tours are a fun learning experience for residents and a great activity to take visitors.
The Amish Experience Tour: Bridges to Understanding is an excellent way to understand the history and culture of the community. Kendra is a wonderful guide and narrator, informative and very personable. I highly recommend this tour option and several of the others on which I have participated. — Gwen C (Jan 2025)

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Informative.
This was our third tour with Discover Sarasota and they get better every time. We have always been aware of the large Amish presence in Sarasota but really knew very little about the Amish here or in our native Pennsylvania. Our guide, Lois, was extremely knowledgeable and informative. She comes from an Amish family and has a lot of first hand knowledge. We visited Pinecraft, which is a vacation destination for the Amish from up north. We saw the Carlisle Hotel, which is top rated. We also visited a quilting shop and der Dutchman Restaurant. Our tour went a little overtime which was fine, because Lois had lots of interesting information to relate. After the tour went went back to the restaurant and had a wonderful lunch. — Rob P (Jan 2025)

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Today was my second tour with Discover Sarasota Tours. Both experiences were great. I learned a lot and was entertained and inspired! You guys do a great job- all your staff are super and you are providing a great service to the city. I love Sarasota and learning its history through the various tours is a fun and educational experience! I have two more lined up to do!! Thank you!! — Anonymous (Dec 2024)

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AS ADVERTISED: A BRIDGE TO UNDERSTANDING ANOTHER CULTURE.
THIS WAS OUR SECOND TOUR WITH DISCOVERY. THE TOUR GUIDE WAS EXCELLENT AS SHE TRACED THE HERITAGE OF THE AMISH PEOPLE FROM THEIR ROOTS TO THE MODERN DAY. I LIKED THE FACT THAT WE HAD TIME TO STOP A SEVERAL VENUES AND SEE THE LIFESTYLE OF THE AMISH FIRST-HAND. IT WAS A FAST 90 MINUTES AND WE ENJOYED EACH MINUTE. — U4224PBjohns (Apr 2024)

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Enlightening
Kendra did a wonderful job. She was very knowledgeable about the [amish] and their beliefs. It was a beautiful day and we had a great time. — Richard D (Apr 2024)

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Great Tour Of The Sarasota Amish Neighborhood.
Kendra led us on an excellent tour of the Pinecraft neighborhood in Sarasota. She provides great insight into Amish life and there are serval stops interesting along the way. — Robert O (Apr 2024)

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An excellent tour 
Our tour guide, Kendra, made this very interesting tour exceptional. She is probably the most enjoyable tour guide we have had. We knew nothing about the Amish and have learned so much. We also have discarded any preconceived ideas we had and have acquired a great deal of respect for the Amish. We highly recommend this tour. — Jenniferstravels6 (Apr 2023)

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Amish Experience excellent 
Guide Kendra was so knowledgeable about the Amish culture and loved all her personal stories including her time with her Grandma under the Quilting Bee Blanket table. Very comfortable ride on the cool trolley. Plan to explore other tours from your company. — Sheila M (May 2022)

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Best tour ever! 
We have taken countless city and educational tours in the US and abroad, and we found this one to be absolutely riveting! Top marks for Kendra, the guide, who pours out her heart and soul while sharing her vast and also intimate knowledge of the Amish and Mennonite culture. Laughs and tears guaranteed ! — Sugarwood61 (Apr 2022)

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A “Must Do” Tour for your next visit to Sarasota!
Kendra was an absolutely amazing tour guide! We are from Ohio and have spent a lot of time in “Amish Country” in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Indiana and she still told us facts that we didn’t know. She has a real passion for wanting people to understand the Amish way of life. She mixed in personal stories of her own family which made it that much more personal. We were there at the end of season, so didn’t see too many Amish people, but it didn’t matter to us. Kendra kept us entertained and intrigued. We will definitely do this tour again in season and plan to take many more of the tours offered by Discover Sarasota Tours!!! — Dawn D (Apr 2022)