Clément Bardot, CC BY-SA 4.0
Tampa
Tampa is a city on the Gulf coast of Florida, on Tampa Bay, with a downtown riverwalk, the Ybor City district and Hyde Park.
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Where to stay, by what matters to you
- Places to stay with a level walk to the beach in Tampa
- Places to stay in Tampa that work without a car
- Quiet places to stay in Tampa: few bars nearby
- Within 30 minutes by car of Ybor City
- Within 30 minutes by car of ZooTampa at Lowry Park
- Within 30 minutes by car of Tampa International Airport
- Within 30 minutes by car of Busch Gardens Tampa Bay
- Within 30 minutes by car of St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport
- Within 30 minutes by car of Salvador Dalí Museum
- Within 30 minutes by car of Clearwater Beach
Best things to do in Tampa
The one thing not to miss
Anna Maria Island is the most-read place near Tampa: a Gulf barrier island about 7 miles long. Ybor City, Tampa's old cigar-making quarter, is the top sight in the city itself.
Anna Maria Island1. Anna Maria Island
A barrier island in Manatee County about 7 miles (11 km) long, with the Gulf of Mexico on its west and Tampa Bay at its northern end.
Check road and parking conditions before you go. We have not confirmed travel time from Tampa.
10,820 readers a month
Sources
2. Ybor City
A historic neighbourhood just northeast of downtown Tampa, founded in the 1880s by Vicente Martinez Ybor and other cigar makers. Immigrants from Cuba, Spain and Italy rolled hundreds of millions of cigars a year there for decades.
The area has bars and nightlife as well as history; check what is open in the daytime.
7,611 readers a month
Sources
3. A day trip to Tarpon Springs
A city in Pinellas County, part of the Tampa Bay area, with about 25,000 people at the 2020 census.
We have not yet confirmed which Tarpon Springs sights to recommend; check local tourism pages.
6,288 readers a month
ClaudiaTampa39 at en.wikipedia, Public domain 4. Busch Gardens Tampa Bay
A 335-acre animal theme park in Tampa with an African theme throughout. It opened on 31 March 1959 and draws more than 4 million visitors a year.
Check the official site for opening days and ticket options.
5,520 readers a month
This Photo was taken by Wolfgang Moroder. Feel free to use my photos, but please mention me as the author and send me a message. This image is not in the public domain. Please respect the copyright protection. It may only be used according to the rules mentioned here. This specifically excludes use in social media, if applicable terms of the licenses listed here are not appropriate. Please do not upload an updated image here without consultation with the Author. The author would like to make corrections only at his own source. This ensures that the changes are preserved.Please if you think that any changes should be required, please inform the author.Otherwise you can upload a new image with a new name. Please use one of the templates derivative or extract., CC BY-SA 3.0 5. Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota
The official art museum of the state of Florida, in Sarasota. It was established in 1927 as the legacy of John and Mable Ringling and has been governed by Florida State University since 2000.
Sarasota is a separate city from Tampa, so allow travel time. Check the official website for opening times and ticket details before you go.
3,350 readers a month
6. Fort De Soto Park
A Pinellas County park on five keys south-southwest of St. Petersburg, with beaches, two piers, picnic areas, hiking, bike and kayak trails, and old military fortifications with a museum exhibit. A ferry runs to Egmont Key State Park.
The park is reached by a toll road. Check the county site for fees and hours.
3,190 readers a month
Sources
7. Salvador Dalí Museum
An art museum on the downtown St. Petersburg waterfront dedicated to the work of the Spanish surrealist Salvador Dalí.
Check the official website for opening times and ticket details before you go.
2,755 readers a month
8. Clearwater Beach
A beach on a barrier island in the Gulf of Mexico, just west of the rest of Clearwater and reached over the Clearwater Memorial Causeway.
1,563 readers a month
Sources
9. St. Pete Beach
A coastal city in Pinellas County, formed from the towns of Pass-a-Grille, Belle Vista and St. Petersburg Beach. It is known as a tourist destination in the Tampa Bay area.
1,265 readers a month
10. ZooTampa at Lowry Park
A 63-acre non-profit zoo in Tampa and the state's centre for Florida wildlife conservation. Parents Magazine voted it the top family-friendly zoo in the US in 2009.
Check the official website for opening times and ticket details before you go.
1,062 readers a month
Just missed the list: Henry B. Plant Museum (11th; a Gilded Age museum in a former Tampa Bay Hotel); Bayshore Boulevard (12th; a waterfront road with a 4.5-mile sidewalk in South Tampa)
How we ranked these
By how many people read about each place on English Wikipedia in a typical month, measured October 2026. It is a popularity measure, not our opinion. Anna Maria Island leads with about 10,820 readers a month. Photos come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences; the author and licence are on each photo.
Research required. Area notes for this destination are not written yet. The top 10 above is sourced; the rest of this page is an outline.
Affiliate disclosure: Booking links on this site are partner links. Once our partnership is active we earn a commission if you book, at no extra cost to you. It does not change what we recommend. How this works.