al ringling museum mansion

This particular home of John and Mable Ringling is located in Sarasota, Florida. It is impressive and stunning. It is a long Mediterranean home built approximately 1920. I would say no expense was spared in terms of workmanship and choice of materials. Admission is free. The home is located at the water's edge. It is nestled on three side by lovely grounds and Mable's rose garden is nearby. The interior is opulent, to include the workmanship on the downstairs ceilings. Objects d' art are everywhere and represent a resplendent past in the early 20th century in the United States. There is a very long and very wide terrace at the rear of the house(which is quite breezy) facing the water. I understand the local community has worked tirelessly to raise money in both the exterior and interior of the home. Note the organ on the left of the main salon as you enter a dinning area. My friend's sister worked tirelessly to raise money for its restoration.

Visiting this mansion is incredible! The tour is wonderful and the owners seem to be concerned with the renovation being accurate. I look forward to seeing it progress.

This is a beautiful house that is in the restoration process. The guide is the owner and speaks very fondly of the place and it's contents. Well worth a ride to Baraboo!!

The new owner of the mansion took us on the tour of the Al Ringling Mansion. He was the perfect guide. We were there on a rainy day and he spent lots of time telling us about the Ringling family and the home. I would definitely recommend going as a family or on your own.

The mansion is beautiful and I am glad that we toured while the renovations are in progress. The gentleman who gave the tour was retired from the circus so he had a very insightful narrative of the Ringling family. There are many items in the mansion from the time the Ringlings lived there and items that the Ringling family feels should be shared with circus fans. I am so glad that they are restoring the house to it's original decor even including furniture used by the Ringlings.

Only starting tours this year and mansion far from done in renovation, but still one of the best I've seen. Joe, the owner, has really done his homework on the Ringling family history. Retired himself from the circus, he has a real passion for this mansions heritage. I walked away with an interest in the circus I didn't have before. You learn the character of all 5 Ringling brothers and their family, here stories of their lives and I definitely felt the presence of Al and Louise Ringling and their pleasure in the fact this beautiful home was almost demolished and is now being restored to it's former glory. Small $10 fee goes toward continuing the renovation.

Shelley's knowledge of Baraboo its haunted stories was interesting an entertaining. We took our kids and made a family event of it. Shelley tailored the tour to be G rated and the kids loved it.

Al Ringling's home. Currently being restored by three enthusiastic people. The guide gave a good historical narrative. the attached side show was well worth staying for.

We went to a night show of the haunts in the house. There was no air conditioning and my husband wasn't able to stay more than 15 minutes into the tour. No mention of a refund was made (although I admit he didn't ask). He was "let out" due to us being "locked in" but he observed many supposed hired help coming & going into the darkened mansion. He said there was a lot of "light shows" happening that we, as a tour group, were led to believe was spiritual "orbs" of the Ringling family. What a crock! and a rip off at $20 per person!

We visited the Al. Ringling Mansion on an "accidental" trip into Baraboo, Wisconsin. We missed a highway turn, but found our way to this treasure. The neatest thing about the mansion was its current owner and tour guide Joseph Colossa. He is a fourth-generation circus employee, and obviously loves the circus and its history. He and his wife (still under contract with the circus), and a friend from New York, bought this mansion a year ago and began to restore it to its original condition. Although they have a long way to go, they have made a good (and caring) start on the project. It is obvious that they are shooting for accurate and authentic in the reconstruction/ refurbishing of this old mansion. Our tour had only about 10 people in the group, so there were many opportunities for questions. Our guide Joseph seemed very knowledgeable about all aspects of the mansion, the circus, and the history of both.After the house tour, we had opportunity to visit Mr. Marvel's Wondertorium (attached to the mansion) which provided a look back at circus sideshows. Anyone more than 50 years old would enjoy this additional tour. (Most sideshows disappeared during the 1960s.) Younger adults and children would think of this more as a Ripley's Believe It or Not and maybe think it a bit lame. I enjoyed it because it brought back memories of an earlier day for me. When we were done with both tours, Joseph recommended that we take a short drive to see some of the abandoned circus train cars. They were in horrible condition, but with an imagination, one could see and hear them clicketty-clacking down the tracks full of circus animals and performers. We had a wonderful afternoon and eventually got back on the road we were supposed to be on!

On a whim a friend and I did the haunted mansion tour. It was so fun! The mansion itself is beautiful, but contacting the spirits, was so exciting. Look at Baraboo Tours and visit the Ringling mansion for a fun experience.

The owner gave us a tour of Al and Lou Ringling's mansion. The Elks club owned it for many years and now the new owner who worked for Ringling Bro's circus for a number of years, plans to bring it back to it's former glory and at the same time use as a bed and breakfast. They have quite a few of the original furnishings back in the house. It was quite interesting to hear about the family. As a child my family often took me to the Ringling Bro's circus.

24 carat gold leaf ceilings? Check! Tiffany light fixtures and stained glass windows? Check! Visit the Al Ringling Mansion in Baraboo, WI and see how circus royalty from the turn of the 19th. century lived. Recently opened to the public for tours, the Al Ringling Mansion is a masterpiece of construction and decorative arts. Tours include information on the home, furnishings and family history of Al Ringling, one of the 5 Ringling Brothers who started the Ringling Brothers Circus. The Mansion is one more "don't miss" attraction in Baraboo.

Staff was very friendly, they are trying to raise money to refurbish this property. We enjoyed the sideshow museum and demonstration.

This was a nice little tour - given to just my wife and I by one of the staff. There are no set times for tours. Just show up and you get a tour. The place is not ready yet. It is still being updated from its former use as an Elks club facility. Some of the original furniture is back, and some other furniture of the period as well. The tour was interesting and informative. We got to meet the new owner who used to work for Ringling (and his wife still does). They are going to make a 5 room B&B on the second floor. But that is years away (I believe).