I'm going to Tampa with my husband in March. We've got the Busch Gardens thing going, but does anyone have good restaurants, shops, activities to suggest? We've never been there and will only be there for 5 days.

Thanks!

It really depends on what interests you, but I live in Tampa so might be able to help you out. Where are you staying first off? I recommend visiting Clearwater Beach first and foremost..Sand Key is just south from Clearwater Beach and is also a must see. Frenchy's Rock-a-way Grill is a cool lil' restaurant on Clearwater that I recommend. As for other places to visit- there are some museums downtown (performing arts, etc.) Channelside is a very cool district with nice bars and restaurants (highly recommend Grille 29!) Though it's gone downhill a lot and can be scary at night, Ybor City is worth seeing. It's fairly historic and has lots of neat shops, restaurants, bars, etc. As for shopping..there are a few malls worth checking out..Internaional Mall (the biggest, with more up-scale stores...there are also lots of nice restaurants in this area: ex: Bamboo Club) Westshore Plaza and Citrus Park. You should have plenty to do for 5 days Let me know if you want any other info.

If you like surrealism, the Dali Museum in St. Pete is great.

Try Bern's in Tampa (South Howard St.) for dinner -- a famous steak house.

www.bernssteakhouse.com

Ybor City is worth a visit -- check out a guide book or online site for options there.

Enjoy!

We'll be staying in St. Petersburg - at La Quinta and renting a car. We're pretty open to anything. I appreciate the restaurant suggestions and we'll definitely head to Ybor City. Thank you!!

What types of things do you like to do? There's lots of wonderful wildlife areas in the Tampa/St. Pete region. One neat thing to do is go to Honeymoon Island State Park and take the Ferry over to Caladesi Island State Park. It's a fun little boat ride and over on Caladesi, they've got hiking trails and a gorgeous beach. Ft. DeSoto at the south end of St. Pete is truly stunning, fabulous beaches, wildlife, and more. I could give you other recommendations if you are interested in wildlife. Do you want to try kayaking? Do you like museums? Do you like upscale shopping or outlet shopping (or both)?

One thing I would recommend is The Pier in St. Pete. It's pretty cool looking, on the first floor you can try "fruit wines" - wines made from oranges, kiwis, etc. Free samples. I recommend Columbia restaurant, it's wonderful Spanish cuisine with good service. Plus, if you go at the Pier location, you have a wonderful view. If you go to the Ybor City location (downtown Tampa), check out their website first b/c they have flamenco dancing on certain nights and that would be quite fun.

Birder is spot on about Ft. DeSoto. It's a lovely place. It is a State Park so don't expect to walk to restaurants from the area. Take a picnic and enjoy the beauty. I think Florida does a wonderful job with its state parks.

I'm assuming you are staying in St. Petersburg and not St. Pete Beach. If you're in St. Pete over the weekend, try brunch at the Vinoy Hotel (make reservations_....a little pricey but fun. 4th Street Shrimp Store (on 4th St. in St. Pete) has good fried seafood. The Int'l Museum has a Monet exhibit through the end of April. I haven't gotten there yet but understand it's pretty good. The Dali Museum is excellent (even if you aren't into his art). Lots of good galleries, etc. starting to pop up in St. Pete - especially near the BayWalk. Depending on when you are here, baseball spring training may be full swing....St. Pete, Clearwater, Tampa, and Dunedin all have teams. If it's not on the weekend, you may be able to just walk up and get tickets. St. Pete Pier has special memories....my husband and I decided to move here while sitting at the outdoor bar watching the planes take off at the local airport. You can take "segway tours" of downtown St. Pete from the Pier. Make sure you get some time at the beaches. The Don Cesare Hotel will rent cabannas for the day even if you aren't a guest. Indian Rocks Beach is a favorite. Good restaurants on the beach include Keegans (Indian Rocks)and Guppys (Indian Rocks). A day to Tarpon Springs is great for good greek food. Dunedin (north of Clearwater)has a nice "downtown" area - small shops and good restaurants....Ybor City in Tampa can get a little dicey at night but a lot of our friends like it. Charley's in Tampa is a better steak than Bern's....Bern's has great atmosphere. If you do go there, get a tour of the kitchen and wine cellar. They have one of the largest wine cellars in the US. All food is fresh (they grow it themselves). You'll have plenty to do in 5 days. My husband's son is coming for two days and I'm having a hard time trying to decide how to fit it all in.

I couldn't agree with you more about Ybor, champ21e. In 8 years I've been there perhaps 3 times and that was 2 times too many. (The 3rd time was the flamenco room at Columbia.)

I'd completely forgotten about the Monet exhibit. Now I've got one more thing on my "to do" list before moving. Thanks.

Hello Roundy. You've got lots of good advice here. Let me clarify that "Monet's London" exhibit is in the Museum of Fine Arts in downtown St. Pete, not too far from the Dali Museum. The St. pete International Museum is also in St. Pete and it has a Princess Diana exhibit (that's the one I'd see if I were you, that and the Dali -- the Monet's London is not his water lillies, just London).

A fun restaurant in SP is the Chattaway, an outdoor burger place. It's been around for years, very Florida. For a special night of seafood, I'm partial now to the Island Way Grill in Clearwater Beach. Bern's is a good idea. If you go to Ybor, it is a bit raunchy and wild on weekend nights. But a day trip is a good idea. There is a small historical museum that details the cigar factories that moved to the city in the 1880s. And the role Ybor City played in efforts for Cuban independence. Go to lunch at Carmine's or the Tropicana to feel the immigrant influence. You might also like a visit to the Tampa Bay Hotel/Henry B. Plant Museum, an old Victorian behemoth in downtown.

For shopping, downtown St. pete has the Bay Walk shops and shops on Central. For upscale shopping, go to Tampa's international Plaza (include lunch in their terrific courtyard). There's a designer discount mall in Ellenton (across the Sunshine Skyway bridge, then north on 75).

Spring training is also a great idea. you can see the Yankees or the Devil Rays (but the Yankees Stadium is the best!). Seats are cheap.

Have a great time.

Wondering about the St. Barts restaurant in Tampa...does anyone have any comments about it? It was recommended to me, but I have no details and don't want to drive from Clearwater Beach if it's not special in some way.

thanks to all who responded here-i'm going to St. Pete Beach in march and the info here will help me plan. Roundy17-if you're planning on going to Spring Training, if its the Yankees. plan on mega bucks. the games are all sold out. we're hoping to get tickets while we're there, but so far, they're going for >$100 a ticket on ebay and ticket agencies.

Cherie, St. Barts in Tampa is one of my favorites. It is low-key but pricey, island-style restaurant, intimate. It has a small bar nextdoor which usually has music. But if you're in Clearwater and don't want to drive the 20-30 minutes then you might want to check out the Island Way Grill which is more upscale but in a similar price-range. Seafood with pizzaz.

Oops. I forgot that Yankees tickets were sold out this year. Last year they were flooded with tickets. There are so many games in spring training (daily). I'd wager that, as usual, toward the end of March, you could go to Legends Field and get any number of tickets from those who want to sell who are standing out front. No sure thing but definitely better than shelling out the big bucks.

That would be only for the less-popular games. Don't expect this when they play Boston.

Thanks, Tandoori Girl. We don't mind the drive for a good place. It's just that we were going to make the drive for Berns already. Now it's just a matter of whether to make it just for one of those 2 restaurants (and which one!), or for both. And by the way, we've already got reservations at Island Way Grill for another night, actually partly based on your recommendations from earlier posts!
Thanks again.

I really like St Barts too...well enough that we've done it for our anniversary two years running, but I'm not sure I'd drive all the way in from Clearwater Beach to do it. That is a hard drive in March as traffic begins to get intense then, and it is complicated by that awful bridge construction between Clearwater and Clearwater Beach.

Island Way is great, and rather than come in for St Barts, you might try Salt Rock Grill, sister to Island Way, out there instead, or even the new 6 Tables at the Peninsula Inn in Gulfport. They've got another restaurant there as well we've been anxious to try but have lacked the time to do it.

Eww, that doesn't sound great, that traffic. I don't know that we will want to do that drive twice in five nights. I'd love to try the Six Tables restaurant, but we're trying to pack light for a change and it looks like a jacket is appropriate for men there... Is Columbia in Clearwater Beach any good, or is that just mediocre?

Enjoy yourselves. Hopefully the traffic and construction will not spoil your visit. It's always better at the beaches, even when the interstate is flowing. Have a ball!

Clearwater Beach is awesome. You guys should definitely visit there. The atmosphere is awesome, I'm sure you'll have a great time. Parking isn't that bad so you shouldn't worry. Water wasn't that great when I was there, but we still had a great time.

Theres also a great restaurant in Clearwater Beach. It's right across the street from the beach. It smells like delicious fish when you pass by it. The ribs are delicious there. Haha, sorry I forget what it's called but it's a two-storey restaurant..and looks very "beat-up" but its food is great.