bashful

We will be staying two weeks in St. Pete's/Clearwater area next February. We are coming with friends who have never been to Florida before (we're Canadian). Our friends said to us recently "What do you do in Florida?". So I ask you, what should I tell her? Do you have any suggestions for us. We're in our 50's, will have a rental car and are open to any and all suggestions - be it activities, restaurants, sights etc.
Hope you can help.

GoTravel

Hmmn. What to do in Florida?

Shop
Eat
Drink
Play Golf
Watch Spring Training baseball
Fish
Swim
Magic Kingdom
MGM
EPCOT
Animal Kingdom
Universal
Islands of Adventure
Sea World
Busch Gardens
Dinner Theater
Happy Hour
Rent a boat
Snorkel
Dive
Play Tennis
Rollerblade
Play Vollyball
Shuffleboard(why does FL have so Many?)
Ride Bikes
Play Cards
Take a Gambling Cruise
Jai li
Racetrack
Daytona 500
Go to the Beach
Go see a movie
IMAX
Collect seashells
Bird watch
Attend a professional sporting event
Go to museums
Take a house and garden tour.

That is all I can think of.

birder

In the St. Pete/Clearwater area, I'd recommend the following:

-- enjoying the beach
-- going to Clearwater's Pier 60 festival at sunset, with neat vendors and street acts such as fire-juggling, etc. (the beach there is stunning but crowded)
-- go to the Pier on the other side of St. Pete, tour the free aquarium, and eat at Columbia restaurant (they have a gorgeous view of the bay)
-- enjoy at least one "natural" activity, such as hiking the nature trail at Honeymoon Island State Park (just north of Clearwater), renting a kayak or canoe (you can do a group sunset Margarita trip with the Mad Paddler group, they will rent the kayaks, www.madpaddlers.com), go bird watching at Ft. Desoto
-- take a cruise and go dolphin-watching
-- rent a fishing pole and surf fish
-- over in Tampa, visit the Henry Plant museum at the University of Tampa, it's pretty cool
-- Busch Gardens

birder

Oops, I forgot, you should definitely go to the "fruit winery" in South St. Pete. We haven't been but want to go. They have wines made from fruits, sweet and fun. Check out www.floridawine.com

canuckuphereathome

curious to know if there are other wineries in Florida and where they are?

birder

Yes, there are a number, in fact, there's one in Clearwater as well! Here's the website with info and links to each winery's web site.

http://www.florida-agriculture.com/c...eries_info.htm

Tandoori_Girl

birder, you are a brave woman. I've seen the signs to the winery in St. Pete and passed by a few times. Each time I wonder who would go. There is no "vineyard" there, just a building on a very busy street, not even in a citrus grove. Birder, please go so you can give us a valid recommendation -- I just can't bear to try it myself so I'm leaving it up to you

bashful, you've been given lots of great advice. The SP/Clrw. area has lots to do, as well as beautiful beaches to boot. If you like art, take in the Dali Museum and the SP Museum of Fine Arts in downtown. Things start hopping in Florida this time of year, to give the tourists plenty to do so be sure to check out the SP Times for suggestions.

Tandoori_Girl

I just found this web site while looking for something else. It looks fairly comprehensive.

http://www.baynews9.com/content/34/2.../31/37848.html

birder

TG - that is too funny, I didn't know there wasn't some sort of citrus grove or something with the winery! They must have it elsewhere and just have this location to sell from. Anyway, we'll go no matter what - the worst that can happen is it will be bad and we'll have wasted an hour or so and the wine tasting fee if there is any, usually only $1 or 2. We do like dessert wines so thought these sweet wines would be fun. I'll post after we go!

samber

We live in the area and what I would recommend would be: Go to Tampa to Channelside, take the trolley to Ybor City (historic area of shops and restaurants, eat at the Columbia restaurant for authentic Cuban food and an incredibly interesting historic building. Take the trolly back to Channelside and leave from the port at Channelside to go for an evening dinner cruise on the Starship Yacht--very, very nice with great food- 3 hours long includes a band with dancing (don't need to be dressed up).
Go to downtown Dunnedin for lunch and spend the afternoon shopping in a charming shopping area (within 5 minutes of downtown Clearwater), Go to Tarpon Springs to the Sponge docks for lunch (this is a Greek community with authentic restaurants, but is kind of touristy.
You can go to Johns Pass on Treasure Island to rent a boat or jet ski's or just walk the boardwalk and shop and eat.
If you want to drive go to Sarasota (1 hour south) to go to their wonderful shopping area St Armands Circle (saw Jerry Springer walking around last time we were there). Go to St Augustine (3 hours on east coast) another great trip-lots to do there, go to Mt Dora (about 1.5 hours-just past Orlando) and go antiquing in charming village of shops and restaurants.
Don't miss going to the top deck of the Hurricane restaurant in Pass a Grille for a sunset. Pass a Grille is located in south St Pete and is just after you pass the Don Cesar hotel, another nice place to stop. You sit outside with 360 view on the 3rd floor with any tropical drink you can think of. Hopefully this helps

birder

samber, I thought those were great suggestions, but do you really think Sarasota is 1 hour from Clearwater? My sister lives in South St. Pete, and my parents are in Bradenton by Cortez. It's an 45-60 minutes between their two places easily. Perhaps if you took 275 to I-75, you could hit Sarasota county within an hour, but that won't be close to the action.

I went to high school in Bradenton and only recently relocated back here, so I may be totally wrong on this. I just thought Sarasota took longer to get to.

bashful

thanks everyone for the suggestions - I will pass them on to my friends!

Ryn2691

Depends on season, but another cool "nature" thing to do is to participate in the programs sponsored by the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. There are tours, single-day volunteer opportunities, and the aquarium itself, which is a rescue facility; not fancy, but really interesting.

Go to www.CMAquarium.org and click on Education Programs.

newt

Make sure you go to Frenchy's in Clearwater for a grouper sandwich.

NorthwestMale

I just want this message on top so someone can see the information offered via response.

MomJC

Thanks Northwest Male for putting this msg on top. It contains such great info. We will be going to the Tampa area on May 19th for 4 days. We have 2 kids(3yrs & 21mos). Should we stay in Clearwater or Stpete? What's the difference btwn the 2 places? Thanks so much.

Tandoori_Girl

Hmmm. If your children are three years and 6 mos., I think you should be looking for a pool, for sure (some children that age hate the beach). And I think you should be thinking about what YOU want in a beach because your children won't care at that age. Do you want a beach with high-rises (Clwr. & SP) or would you prefer someplace with a lower-scale, and some residential (Treasure Island, Passe-a-Grille, Indian Rocks)? If you want a beach with activities that may entertain your 3 y.o., try Treasure Island. They have lots of kites on the beach and something's always going on there. The sand is very nice at Clwr. but I don't care for the shoreline with its many, many high-rise buildings. St. Pete Beach is also packed with hotels but not quite as overwhelming in scale. Clwr.'s hotels are a bit on the shabby side because of spring-breakers and many are scheduled for upcoming renovations.

Hope that's helpful.

MomJC

Thanks, T_G. My 2 sons are both toddler age and you are right, they like pool more than beach. They would like a bit of beach, like looking at activities and playing w/ some sand but not for our entire stay. I am looking for a location that is convenient to kids' sightseeing activities, fun things and shops where we can walk to them or short drive from our hotel. My hubby will be working for 2 days so I will be alone with the kids. We were thinking of Sheraton Sand Key or Marriott Vinoy, but Vinoy is not accessible to a beach? Any other thoughts that come to your mind? Thanks again for your advice.

Tandoori_Girl

I don't believe you can walk to anything from the Sheraton Sand Key (although Sand Key is lovely). It is mostly condos. The Vinoy is in downtown on the bay, and it has a great pool (maybe two). There are lots of shops near there but not so much for that age. In SPBeach, the Alden is a nicer resort for families, it's had better reviews than the Tradewinds, although I've been in some very nice rooms at the Tradewinds. Can you afford the Don CeSar Hotel? I'm trying to recall their kiddy pool, maybe there's a photo on the web site. There is an amusement center/game room at Treasure Island that the kids would surely love. Another place to check is the Best Western Sea Castle on TI (ask for gulf-side NOT bay-side room rates). There is so much to walk to at TI, lots of shops, restaurants, goofy golf, and my favorite, the Shake Shop. There is a trolley that runs from SPBeach to Clearwater for $1.50. That might be fun to take to John's Pass at Madiera Beach. Or to Clearwater for sunset on the pier.

I think your best choice would be TI or SPB.

Tandoori_Girl

If you decide to go with the Vinoy, the downtown pier is within walking distance. There is a modest aquarium on the 2nd floor (free) and the shops and space are good for kids. Also, not too far from the Vinoy but a long walk is Sunken Gardens and the Children's Museum, properties owned by the city so the fee is modest. Bay Walk is also within walking distance to the Vinoy, it is a shopping area with movies, restaurants, shops, ice cream. The waterfront near the Vinoy would be fun for them if even just to walk along. For two days, you would have plenty to do, and it is really charming.