Tampa, FL Road Trips

Tampa is on the north shore of Tampa Bay in West Central Florida. Saint Petersburg lies west of the bay, while Bradenton is on the southern shore. The downtown business center of the city is on the north shore of Hillsborough Bay (a small bay within Tampa Bay which is bordered by the eastern shore of Tampa Bay and the small peninsula of South Tampa) and Ybor City lies just to the east. MacDill Air Force Base is on the southern tip of South Tampa, while the city also extends to the north all the way to New Tampa. Tampa is divided into five main districts fanning out from Downtown in the south-center between the Hillsborough River and Ybor Channel. West Tampa, once a separate city, lies across the Hillsborough River to the west of Downtown. South Tampa, a large residential area, extends south along the Interbay Peninsula. Historic Ybor City (sometimes considered a part of Downtown) lies on the northeast side of downtown. East Tampa, the historically African-American side of the city, lies north of Ybor City. North Tampa forms the urban/suburban sprawl north of Busch Boulevard. The northernmost extremity of North Tampa, known as New Tampa due to its having been annexed to the city in 1988, is very suburban and somewhat isolated from the rest of Tampa. Within Tampa proper, there are six official "historical districts" (Hampton Terrace, Hyde Park, Seminole Heights, Tampa Heights, Historic West Tampa, Ybor City) and at least 86 named neighborhoods. The Tampa Bay area was visited by many Spanish explorers, beginning with Panfilo de Narvaez in 1528.

1 Channel District. The Channel District has many shops, restaurants, and is one of the beginnings of the Tampa River Walk. Formerly home to a shopping center named Channelside Bay Plaza, this area is now completely remodeled and opened in late 2018 as Sparkman Wharf, with many take away eateries and a beer garden, along with a lively lawn beside the waterfront. The area also serves as a major cruise hub with five lines embarking or stopping in Tampa. The Florida Aquarium is also here (see entry below). (updated Jan 2019) 2 Florida Aquarium, 701 Channelside Drive (Channelside district, just east of downtown), ☏ +1 813 273-4000. Daily 9:30AM-5PM. Fabulous aquarium following a drop of rain from a swamp through Florida's aquifer, to its rivers and out into the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Ocean. Restaurant, gift shop, children's play area, touch tank, interactive dive experiences, and eco-tours of Tampa Bay. The aquarium also has a great outdoor water play area (included with admission), so on hotter days bring swim attire and towels for the kids - bathrooms are located adjacent for changing. There is a fee for parking at the main lot, but on busier days/times only members are allowed to use it - others will be directed to the parking garages nearby. Adults $28.95, ages 3-12 $23.95, discount if bought online. (updated Jan 2018) 3 Tampa Museum of Art, 120 W. Gasparilla Plaza (downtown Tampa on the Hillsborough river), ☏ +1 813 274-8130 (main), +1 813 421-8380 (tickets). M-Th 11AM – 7PM; F 11AM – 8PM; Sa Su 11AM – 5PM.

Walking tour of Ybor City — Every Saturday at 10:30AM, the Ybor City State Museum offers a 60-minute walking tour of Ybor City highlighting the cigar industry's impact on the area, historic cottages/businesses, and tours of the YC State Museum & YC Cigar Museum. The $6 cost includes both museum entrance fees. Longer tours are available by appointment Tu-Th for $12. If possible, stop by the 100-year-old Columbia Restaurant at the end of the tour for a tasty Cuban lunch. Cruise ships, Port of Tampa. Gasparilla Pirate Festival. An annual event consisting of several parades, live entertainment, and fireworks. The event is also known as the Mardi Gras of Tampa, and normally takes place on the last two Saturdays in January. 1 Adventure Island. Water park adjoining Busch Gardens, combined or single admission with the main park is available. (updated Dec 2021), 2 Sky Zone Tampa. Trampoline Park. (updated Dec 2021) - in Tampa. Sant'Yago Knight Parade. An illuminated nighttime parade that takes place one Saturday in February in Ybor City. Several film festivals take place at the Tampa Theatre several times a year. Read the Tampa Bay Times -- Tampa has some sort of event going on nearly every weekend, especially in the spring and early summer. Art festivals, a terrific Renaissance festival, street festivals -- take advantage of the great weather and enjoy our city. Surprisingly, ice skating is a popular activity in the Tampa Bay area. The Tampa Bay Skating Academy in nearby Oldsmar has two NHL-sized ice surfaces.

1 Bo's Ice Cream, 7101 N Florida Avenue. Very close to Lowry Park Zoo at Florida & Sligh. Amazing local soft-serve, shakes and banana splits. 2 Carmine's Restaurant, 1802 E 7th Ave. Ybor City neighborhood. Cuban, Spanish, and Italian. 3 Cappy's Pizza, 4910 North Florida Avenue, ☏ +1 813 238-1516. Between MLK and Hillsborough on Florida Avenue. Great local pizza joint, family friendly. 4 Hattrick's, 107 S Franklin Street, ☏ +1 813 225-4228. Daily 11AM-3AM. In downtown Tampa, chow down on wings, mozzarella sticks and other dishes while watching the Tampa Bay Lightning play against their rivals. (updated May 2015) 5 The Jerk Hut, 1241 E Fowler Ave, ☏ +1 813 497-8241. Don't be put off by the name - "jerk" is a Jamaican term for slow-roasting meats. The Jerk Hut serves theirs with an addictive sweet red sauce. Also, curries and oxtail stew. 6 Mel's Hot Dogs, 4136 E Busch Blvd, ☏ +1 813 985-8000. A tacky little restaurant near Busch Gardens. Good hot dogs and bizarre hot dog related memorabilia. 7 La Teresita, 3246 W Columbus Dr, ☏ +1 813-879-9704. Inexpensive Cuban diner with good food and interesting characters. A true Tampa institution. (updated Nov 2018) 8 Westshore Pizza, 4802 W Bay Ct Ave, ☏ +1 813 832-5331. Numerous other locations throughout Tampa Bay. A local chain with good, cheap eats including pizza and cheesesteaks. 9 Xtreme Juice Smoothies, 619 S. Dale Mabry Hwy, ☏ +1 813 879-6033. South Tampa's best smoothies. A local smoothie shop that offers buy one get one free on Sundays. 10 Bahama Breeze, 3045 N. Rocky Point Drive E, ☏ +1 813 289-7922.

1 Cigar City Brewing, 3924 West Spruce Street, ☏ +1 813 348-6363. West Tampa section of Tampa. Very popular craft brewery with a tasting room. Ybor City is a historic area of Tampa which now hosts the region's best known bar and nightclub district. It is a nationally known arts, bar and dining district and you could take several days visiting all of the bars and places to eat here. Certain parts to the extreme west and east sections of this neighborhood can be dangerous after midnight, but if you stay in the main areas it's well lit and there are plenty of police around. You can find any type of bar here, from punk rock/metal, hip-hop, house, blues, indie, country, or dive. 2 Tampa Bay Brewing Company, 1600 E. 8th Avenue, ☏ +1 813 247-1422. Ybor City section of Tampa. Good variety of well made beers. Seminole Heights is one of the most dynamic historic areas of Tampa. Just north of Downtown, it is filled with beautiful craftsmen and Mediterranean Revival homes. Seminole Heights is centered on two primary north/south thoroughfares, Florida Avenue and Nebraska Avenue. Florida Ave is more developed with a higher concentration of bars and restaurants, while Nebraska remains slightly grittier but definitely up and coming. Florida Ave, north of Hillsborough Ave. 3 Chop Chop Shop, 6605 N Florida Ave. (updated Jun 2021) 4 Rooster & the Till, 6500 N Florida Ave. (updated Jun 2021) 5 82 West Distillery, 6430 N Florida Ave. (updated Jun 2021) 6 Trip's Diner, 6414 N Florida Ave. (updated Jun 2021) 7 Angry Chair Brewing, 6401 N. Florida Ave.

1 Gram's Place (Hostel), 3109 N Ola Ave, ☏ +1 813 221-0596. Clean, quiet, restful, music-themed "Bed & Beat" rooms and a simulated railroad depot and sleeper car, over-sized in ground Jacuzzi and BYOB bar in courtyards. Dorms $23+, private rooms $50+. 2 Ramada Tampa Airport Westshore, 1200 N West Shore Boulevard, ☏ +1 813 282-3636, toll-free: +1-800-449-4343, fax: +1 813 282-0055. 3 Suburban Extended Stay Hotel Airport, 6902 W. Hillsborough Ave, ☏ +1 813 886-7799, fax: +1 813 243-9833. 4 Comfort Suites At Fairgrounds-Casino, 4506 Oak Fair Boulevard, ☏ +1 813 868-7770. 5 Courtyard Tampa Brandon, 10152 Palm River Rd (Rt 60 & Falkenburg Rd), ☏ +1 813 661-9559, fax: +1 813 661-4583. 6 Courtyard Tampa Westshore/Airport, 3805 West Cypress St, ☏ +1 813 874-0555, fax: +1 813 870-0685. 7 DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Hotel Tampa Bay, 3050 North Rocky Point Drive West, ☏ +1 813 888-8800. 8 Embassy Suites by Hilton Tampa USF Near Busch Gardens, 3705 Spectrum Blvd, ☏ +1 813 875-1555. 9 Embassy Suites by Hilton Tampa Airport Westshore, 555 N. Westshore Blvd, ☏ +1 813 977-7066. 10 Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott Tampa East/Fairgrounds-Casino, 6720 Lakeview Center Drive, ☏ +1 813 626-3000. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: noon. $79-159. 11 Hampton Inn & Suites Tampa/Ybor City/Downtown, 1301 East 7th Avenue, ☏ +1 813 247-6700. Rooms and suites with free internet, flat screen TV, and large work space. Hotel provides, free hot breakfast, pool and fitness center. $85-140. 12 Hilton Tampa Airport Westshore, 2225 North Lois Ave, ☏ +1 813 877-6688.

1 Tampa International Airport (TPA IATA), 4100 George J Bean Pkwy (8 mi (13 km) West/NW of downtown, on the Tampa side of Old Tampa Bay, via Exit 39 from I-275 at its jct of SR-60 (cross over bay from Clearwater). From St Petersburg it is 21.5 mi (34.6 km) north/NE across the bay via I-275.), ☏ +1 813 870-8700. The airport is built with a central terminal, accessible by ground transportation, where passengers check in for flights and reclaim checked luggage (arrivals). The central terminal is then connected to (4) airside satellite terminals by SkyConnect trains to access flights. Non-stop service is available from most major U.S. cities (and from Puerto Rico); intrastate flights from other parts of the state (w/ Silver Airways, Southwest, Southern Airways Express & Spirit); and international flights from the Bahamas, Canada, Cuba, Great Britain, Germany, Mexico, Panama and Switzerland with the following: Airside A: JetBlue, Silver Airways, Spirit, United/United Express Airside C: Alaska Airlines, Breeze Airways, Southwest, Sun Country Airside E: Air Canada, Delta/Delta Connection, Frontier Airside F: American Airlines/American Eagle, British Airways, Cayman Airways, Copa Airlines, Edelweiss, Lufthansa, Norwegian, Swift Air, Westjet, international arrivals Car rental is located in a separate 2 Rental Car Center located along Airport Service Rd, next to the economy parking buildings. It is accessible from the main terminal by the frequent SkyConnect train.

Car rentals are the most convenient form of transportation for visitors, with local companies offering better prices but national chains offering more convenience vis-a-vis return policies and times. The main freeways in Tampa are Interstate 275, Interstate 4, the Veterans Expressway (toll FL 589), and the Lee Roy Selmon Crosstown Expressway (toll FL 618). Some of the main east-west roads through town are Kennedy Boulevard (SR 60), Gandy Boulevard (SR 694), Hillsborough Avenue (US 92) and Fowler Avenue (SR 582), while some of the north-south roads are Dale Mabry Highway (US 92) and Florida/Nebraska Avenue (US 41). Traffic is especially bad during the rush hours: from about 7:30AM to 9:30AM and 3:30PM to 7:30PM. During these times, try especially to avoid I-275 between I-4 and SR 60 (by the airport) as this section runs by downtown and is being rebuilt. Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority (HART) provides extensive bus service throughout Hillsborough County. There are four types of routes offered: "local", "Commuter Express", "MetroRapid" (Bus Rapid Transit), and trolleys (see below). Local routes are ones which have many stops in a small region. Commuter Express lines are long-distance lines namely providing service from suburbs into Tampa. Only local to local & commuter express to local transfers are allowed. Fares are $1.75 for local routes and $2.75 for commuter express lines. Four small routes (83, 87, 88, & 89) have a 50¢ fare with no transfers.

Be aware while in Suitcase City, the part of town surrounding Busch Gardens, USF and University Square Mall. Hitchhiking is also prevalent in this area, but do not stop! However, few tourists or visitors would find their way to this area of the city or have much a reason to be walking about in it; driving through is perfectly safe.