Clearwater Beach

Best things to do in Clearwater Beach

1. 

   1

   1. Ybor City

   • Half a day
   • No booking needed
   • Couples
   • Adults
   • Rainy day

   A historic neighbourhood just north-east of downtown Tampa, founded in the 1880s by Vicente Martinez Ybor and other cigar manufacturers. Immigrants mainly from Cuba, Spain and Italy rolled hundreds of millions of cigars a year there for about 50 years.

   7,611 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Ybor City

2. 

   2

   2. Tarpon Springs and the Sponge Docks

   • Half a day
   • No booking needed
   • Couples
   • Families

   A city on the Tampa Bay coast with a large Greek American community. Its sponge industry began in the 1880s, and Greek immigrants arrived from the 1890s to work in it; sponge diving was introduced there in 1905.

   Check opening times for individual boat trips and museums before you go.

   6,288 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Tarpon Springs, Florida

3. 

   3

   3. Busch Gardens Tampa Bay

   • Most of a day
   • Tickets needed
   • Families
   • Active

   A 335-acre animal theme park in Tampa, landscaped and designed around an African theme. It opened on 31 March 1959 and typically draws more than 4 million visitors a year.

   Our sources do not say whether you must book ahead; check the operator's site before you go.

   5,520 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay

4. 

   4

   4. Dunedin

   • Half a day
   • No booking needed
   • Couples
   • Active
   • No car needed

   A city in Pinellas County named from the Gaelic for Edinburgh and proud of its Scottish roots, with an annual Highland Games. Its downtown has no large commercial signage or chain restaurants, and the 39-mile Pinellas Trail runs through it.

   5,320 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Dunedin, Florida

5. 

   5

   5. Fort De Soto Park

   • Half a day to a full day
   • No booking needed
   • Families
   • Couples
   • Active

   A county park south-south-west of St Petersburg made up of five offshore keys joined by bridges and causeways, reached by a toll road. It has beaches, two piers, trails, a kayak trail, military fort remnants with a museum exhibit, and a ferry to Egmont Key.

   Access is by toll road; check the county park page for current charges and any closures.

   3,190 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Fort De Soto Park

6. 

   6

   6. The Dalí Museum, St Petersburg

   • 2 to 3 hours
   • Check entry rules before you go
   • Couples
   • Adults
   • Rainy day

   A museum on the downtown St Petersburg waterfront dedicated to the work of Salvador Dalí. Its collection includes 96 oil paintings, over 100 watercolours and drawings, and 1,300 graphics, photographs and sculptures.

   Our sources do not say whether you must book ahead; check the operator's site before you go.

   2,755 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Salvador Dalí Museum

7. 

   7

   7. Honeymoon Island and Caladesi Island

   • Half a day to a full day
   • Check entry rules before you go
   • Families
   • Couples
   • Active

   Two neighbouring Gulf-coast state parks west of Dunedin. Honeymoon Island protects about 4.25 miles of shoreline, seagrass beds, mangroves and pine flatwoods; Caladesi Island lies across St Joseph Sound, north of Clearwater Beach.

   Our sources do not say how to reach Caladesi Island or whether you must book; check the Florida State Parks site.

   1,428 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Honeymoon Island State Park
   • Wikipedia, Caladesi Island State Park

8. 

   8

   8. St Pete Beach

   • Half a day
   • No booking needed
   • Families
   • Couples

   A coastal city in Pinellas County known as a tourist destination, formed from the towns of Pass-a-Grille, Belle Vista and St Petersburg Beach. It is part of the Tampa Bay area.

   1,265 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, St. Pete Beach, Florida

9. 

   9

   9. Henry B. Plant Museum

   • 1 to 2 hours
   • Check entry rules before you go
   • Couples
   • Rainy day

   A historic house museum in the south wing of Plant Hall on the University of Tampa campus. The building was the 511-room Tampa Bay Hotel, which opened in 1891; the exhibits cover Gilded Age tourism and the hotel's use in the Spanish-American War.

   Our sources do not say whether you must book ahead; check the operator's site before you go.

   972 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Henry B. Plant Museum

10. 

    10

    10. Clearwater Marine Aquarium

    • 2 to 3 hours
    • Check entry rules before you go
    • Families

    A non-profit aquarium in Clearwater dedicated to rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing sick and injured marine animals, alongside public education, conservation and research.

    Our sources do not say whether you must book ahead; check the operator's site before you go.

    909 readers a month

    Sources

    • Wikipedia, Clearwater Marine Aquarium

Just missed the list: St Pete Pier (11th; a landmark pleasure pier in downtown St Petersburg); Adventure Island (12th; a water park opposite Busch Gardens in Tampa)