What to do in Tampa

[craigandjessica]

We are flying in 2 days before our cruise and are looking for reasonably priced entertainment or things to do in Tampa. It is just myself and my DH on the trip. We would like to plan out things ahead of time so we know how much money we need to put back to bring along. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated

[SeaPA1]

When are you going to be here & what are your general interests? Looking for active or sit around/relaxing? Theme parks, roller coasters? Golf/beach?

 

Will you have a car available? Do you know where you are staying?

[craigandjessica]

Will fly in Nov28 and cruise out Nov 30th. Not sure what we want to do just looking for a bunch of ideas of what there is to do. We have looked at Busch gardens and don't want to have to rent clubs (or pay to bring them) for golf. We are staying right next to the airport on Hillsborough Lane. Would like to know any good bars, comedy spots, relaxing spots. Is it worth spending the money on a rental car or is taking a taxi affordable. We would like to go to a beach (weather doesn't matter, it will be negative here so whatever the weather there will feel warm to us:D) What is a good beach? Our hotel has a shuttle that will take you w/in 2 or 5 miles of the hotel but not sure how much they really do that. any suggestions of ideas would be great. We plan on going to the Floida Aquarium on the way back to the airport after the cruise since we will have 8 hours to kill. Any ideas of nightlife, daylife and approx. cost of the activities would be greatly appreciated.

[runner15km]

Rent a car and head over to Clearwater Beach for a day. This beach and not the water compares to many Caribbean beaches that I have been to. Soft white sandy beach.

For a bite to eat go to Frenchys. http://www.frenchysonline.com/

 

You can take a pirate boat ride and they also have a casino boat and sunset cruises.

[craigandjessica]

any website or link for the casino boat and sunset cruises

[SeaPA1]

If you want to go to the beach, I'd definitely suggest renting a car & driving to Clearwater. As runner said, the beach is very nice (the water itself varies as to clarity, but the sand is very pretty white). There is not really any beach in Tampa, other than a small municipal beach (Ben T Davis) that is not anything to write home about.

 

For getting around Tampa other than trying to get to Clearwater beach, a taxi is affordable & probably the best option since you don't know your way around. Add in the parking fees you'd pay in the entertainment areas & you'd come out cheaper using the taxi than renting a car.

 

For one evening, I would suggest the following: take a cab to Ybor City & have dinner at the Columbia Restaurant. It is a Tampa landmark restaurant (mainly Cuban food). After dinner make your way to Centro Ybor (an entertainment complex a couple of blocks away, easy walk); there are a number of bars there & a comedy club that usually draws pretty good talent.

 

Alternatively, you could go to the Channelside Entertainment complex, which is located beside the cruise port. There are some good restaurants & night clubs there (no comedy club), along with a movie theatre & an upscale bowling alley (the food in there is quite good, too). There is also a trolley that runs from there to Ybor City & back, fare is about $2 per person each way. The hotel shuttle might take you to either Ybor or Channelside, it would be the outer range of their shuttle area but in my experiences the shuttles will usually go a little extra for the hotel customers.

 

There are also some very good bars & restaurants clustered in the "SoHo" area (South Howard Avenue in south Tampa).

 

Of the 3 bar/entertainment areas, I would generally classify them like this:

 

*Ybor City - younger crowd (college or just out); more heavy drinking

*Channelside - more laid back, somewhat older; likely to see a lot of families with young children, especially into the early evening (say until 9 or so)

*SoHo - more of a "yuppy" crowd, with some empty nesters mixed in

[Capt_BJ]

if you head to Cleawater, consider driving a bit south on alt-19 and visit John's Pass Village

http://www.johnspass.com/

 

or slide north for a taste of Greek culture in Tarpon Springs

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarpon_Springs,_Florida

 

for a great dinner Columbia is always a good bet

 

but anytime I'm even CLOSE to Tampa I find time for Bern's

 

dinner PLUS a reservation for the dessert room is something I've done many times for going on 30 years now....dinner plus dessert is a FULL night of entertainment. ask for a kitchen tour and to visit the wine cellar....

 

http://www.bernssteakhouse.com/