Things To Do in Tampa Bay Area | Florida Travel
There are plenty of things to do in Tampa. We believe there is something special about the Gulf of Mexico and there are plenty ofMy husband and I lived in Panama City Florida for a period of time, so the Gulf holds a special place in our hearts. I had never been further south though. I was excited to explore the things to do in the Tampa Bay Area with my family and create memories through our adventures together.
We spent a total of two weeks in the Tampa Bay Area and we are in love! We explored areas as south as Bradenton and as North as Tarpon Springs. Our adventures are all outside, because we were not about to be inside when it was gorgeous weather! There are so many outdoor activities in Tampa.
It was consistently 75 degrees and sunny the two weeks of February we were down there. For us native New Englanders, it was summer in February! Are you looking for things to do in the Tampa Bay Area in the sunshine state of Florida? Our family discovered hiking trails, marinas, beaches, and more!
Anna Maria Island
Anna Maria Island is home to beautiful beach mansions, great restaurants, beautiful beaches, and the best ice cream. As you are traveling over the bridge from Bradenton, if you go straight until you hit the water, you will run into Holmes Beach’s free parking.
There are clean bathrooms here, gift shop, ice cream shop, and a small restaurant. If you plan on parking here, be sure to get there super early, the lot fills up quickly. If you arrive and the lot is full, there is free parallel parking on side streets.
Anna Maria Island’s sand is unique. The sand has lots of broken up shells and sand dollars in it. There were areas of powdery white sand, but most of it was chunky. Our kids loved searching for shells here!
On the bay side of Anna Maria Island there is a beautiful recently built pier with a restaurant at the end of it. It was super fun to grab ice cream at Two Scoops across the street (which was the best ice cream in town in my opinion) and walk down the pier to listen to the bands playing at the end of the pier.
EG Simmons State Park
This park came recommended to us as something to do in the Tampa Bay Area by an RV salesman. Of all places! There was a small fee to get into the park and had many different things to offer. There were several playgrounds and picnic areas.
We saw lots of people fishing all along the water. The state park does have fishing docks and piers as well. My favorite part was the sandy beach that had Tampa’s skyline out in the distance. There were signs along the beach cautioning swimmers about burrowing stingrays, but we didn’t see any.
Bradenton Riverwalk
This riverwalk was such a great find for us located on the Manatee River. We love riding our bikes, and the Bradenton Riverwalk has a great bike path. You can even bike across the bridge into Palmetto. The riverwalk has a playground and a seasonal splash pad in the middle of it.
As you walk along the path you will run into a skate park, a sand volleyball court, and a workout area. My son’s absolute favorite part about this riverwalk is that the Tropicana train tracks go right through it.
When the train comes by you will see the train bridge come down over the water. It is loud, but awesome! An absolute must see as you create your bucket list for things to do in the Tampa Bay Area.
Emerson Point Preserve
Emerson Point Preserve feels like you left Florida and entered into a rainforest. There is so much lush greenery, palmettos, palm trees, and big live oaks with Spanish moss. There are several walking paths, some of which you can ride your bike on.
One of the coolest parts of this preserve is that there is a Amerindian Mound that you can walk up (on a boardwalk). There are lots of educational plaques that you can learn all about the natives that once lived on the land.
There is a boat launch area that you can take kayaks and explore the area by water. This is an amazing find, a beautiful outdoor activities in Tampa!
St. Pete’s Beach
St. Pete’s Beach was such a contrast to Anna Maria Island. This area is where a lot of big hotels are. It was very crowded and the parking lots were $3.75/hour when we visited. There were public bathrooms at the parking lot that were fairly clean.
We noticed that the sand on the beach was very similar to Anna Maria Island. Lots of broken shells and sand dollars, but with a bit of the powdery soft white sand as well.
Driving around St. Pete’s Beach was very slow. There was a lot of traffic with small roads. St. Pete’s Beach had many shops and restaurants as well.
Fort De Soto Park
Fort De Soto Park has over 1000 acres of pristine beaches, beautiful wildlife, and vegetation that is hard to beat. This was one of our favorite things to do in the Tampa Bay area.
There is also the Fort that was built in 1898 during the Spanish American War. There are lots of educational signs tell of the history of the area, we learned a lot.
Getting into the park is free but to park anywhere it is $5 for the whole day. There is a paved path that goes into the park that is great to walk or ride your bike on. You will find that there are so many stops along the way to explore. There are several nature trails that are packed crushed stone that take you into the wilderness.
This park should be at the top of your list for outdoor activities in Tampa!
In the park there are two main beaches, East Beach and North Beach. We found that East Beach was great for finding creatures. This beach is on the bay and had lots of seaweed. We found sea urchins galore, snails, crabs, and horseshoe crabs. North Beach was off the gulf and was a typical Florida beach with white sand and great shells. This beach was much more conducive for swimming and we found lots of sand dollars here. There is an extremely big parking lot. Be sure to park as close to the far side as you can. It can be a long walk if you don’t.
Fort De Soto Park has a large dog park and beach. There were many fenced in areas for our furry friends to run around and play. Construction was being done on a 500 ft pier that will be located in this area as well.
John Chestnut Park
John Chestnut is a park located in Tarpon Springs (?). It is free to visit and most areas are free to park in. There are lots of boardwalks wandering through heavily wooded areas with beautiful live oaks covered in Spanish moss, palm trees, and palmettos.
Many birds are located in this park and if you bring bird seed they will eat it right out of your hand! As you walk around the ponds on some of the nature trails you will see alligators bathing in the sun.
This is a great place to go kayaking, boating, and fishing. There is a boat launch area in the park. To park in this lot there is a fee.
Honeymoon Island State Park
Honeymoon Island State Park is a great way to see what Florida looked like before it was highly populated. There is a great paved bike path that goes through the park but some of the paths are not paved. There was also a beautiful beach on the island that you could go swimming in.
The Osprey Trail was beautiful but some sandy areas made it hard to ride bikes through. There were many osprey nests located on the trail and we saw lots of osprey flying around. At the end of the trail there was an even bigger nests that had bald eagle chicks in it! The bald eagle was sitting on the tree branch guarding it.
There were so many animals to see at Honeymoon Island State Park like gopher tortoises, egrets, and rattlesnakes! Worth the $8 investment for sure for amazing outdoor activities in Tampa. A perfect thing to do in the Tampa Bay Area!
Clearwater Beach
Clearwater Beach is a very popular place to be. Parking is difficult to come by. There was no free parking that we found. Many lots fill up by mid morning, especially on beautiful days.
There is a really fun main street that has lots of restaurants, pubs, ice cream shops, gift shops, and more. There is a beautiful marina that you can watch boats come and go.
The beach itself was beautiful. The sand was similar to other beaches discussed in this post. Lots of broken up shells and sand dollars. At this beach we found sea sponges washed up on shore. We also saw a big manatee breach about 20 ft from the shore!
Final Thoughts
The population is pretty dense here and it is not hard to see why. There are countless things to do in Tampa Bay Area. Not only are there plenty of beaches but there are lots of ponds, rivers, and bays to kayak or paddle board through.
Although Tampa Bay area doesn’t have any big elevation change, there are still plenty of places to hike. As you go into the wilderness you will spot a plethora of different birds, alligators, and other types of wildlife. I was floored by how many state and county parks there are in this area.
If you are an outdoor lover, there are so many things to do in the Tampa Bay Area. This is not just for the big hotel staying beach lovers. We love being outside and there was plenty of outdoor activities in Tampa for us.
More Resources:
Fort De Soto Park Campground Review
