Manatee River

De Soto National Memorial, in Manatee County 5 miles (8.0 km) west of Bradenton, Florida, commemorates the 1539 landing of Hernando de Soto and the first extensive organized exploration by Europeans of what is now the southern United States. The memorial includes 26 acres (11 ha), where the Manatee River joins Tampa Bay. It has 3,000 feet (910 m) of coastline; eighty percent of the area is mangrove swamp.

Palma Sola Botanical Park is a botanical garden located at 9800 17th Avenue N.W. Bradenton, Florida, United States. The park showcases collections of rare palms, fruits, and flowering trees, as well as three lakes, a butterfly garden, gazebo, and pavilion. It is open daily without charge.

Emerson Point Preserve is a 365-acre (1.48 km2) preserve in Manatee County, Florida, located west of Palmetto and at the western end of Snead Island.

The Portavant Mound (also known as the Portavant Mound Site or Snead Island Temple Mound or Portavant Indian Mound) is an archaeological site on Snead Island within the Emerson Point Preserve, just west of Palmetto, Florida. On December 23, 1994, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. The Portavant Mound (or Snead Island Temple Mound) is one of fifteen or more "temple mounds" produced by the Safety Harbor culture (900–1725) found in the vicinity of Tampa Bay. The mound is four meters high, measures 45 m by 75 m at the base, and has a flat top that is 24 m by 46 m. Unlike other "temple mounds" around the Tampa Bay area, the Portavant Mound does not have a ramp to the top of the mound. There is a lower (one m high) platform, about 30 m by 30 m, that abuts the main mound. The Portavant Mound was made from soil mixed with debris from middens. Several other mounds, also consisting of soil mixed with midden debris, are near the "temple mound".The Portavant Mound site has been the target of a stabilization project to protect the mounds from damage from river erosion, looting, foot traffic, and exotic vegetation.

Palma Sola is an unincorporated area of Manatee County, Florida, United States. The botanical garden in Bradenton, Florida is known as the Palma Sola Botanical Garden.

Perico Island is a small island just west of the Palma Sola area in Manatee County. It is a residential community with a hotel, marina, and several natural preserve areas.

Rattlesnake Key is a key (island) in a part of Tampa Bay in Manatee County, Florida.

Snead Island is a small island to the west of Palmetto, Florida. The island is primarily residential, although there are two private dry boat storage facilities or boatworks located on the island. Remnants of a former palm tree nursery also are located on the island. The island is located on two bays and a river, to the north and northeast is Terra Ceia Bay, to the west is Tampa Bay, and to the south is the Manatee River. On the western end of Snead Island is Emerson Point Preserve, a 365 acres (1.48 km2) preserve operated by Manatee County. The preserve includes several Native American mounds designated as the Portavant Mound Site, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The land from which the preserve was made, previously had been owned by the Horton family.

Neal Preserve is a 120-acre (49 ha) preserve in Manatee County, Florida abutting the southern portion of State Road 64 near the western approach of Anna Maria Island Bridge. The preserve contains one-half-mile (0.80 km) of shell and boardwalk trails and a 20-foot (6.1 m) tall observation tower.

West Bradenton is a census-designated place (CDP) in Manatee County, Florida, United States. The population was 4,444 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Bradenton–Sarasota–Venice Metropolitan Statistical Area.