Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

[Priceless]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

A Thursday meet and greet between games should be very doable. I'll do some research on a good meeting spot.

I am reserving a spot in the Firestick Grill in the Forum. I checked with the sales manager down there and everyone can get in regardless of where you're sitting.

If you want a spot, post here or email me. I have a while before the final # has to be set.

 

[Siouxfaninseattle]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

I am reserving a spot in the Firestick Grill in the Forum. I checked with the sales manager down there and everyone can get in regardless of where you're sitting.

If you want a spot, post here or email me. I have a while before the final # has to be set.

There will be 4 of us. We may need a big table!

 

[huskyfan]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

check out Ybor City - lots of fun bars and restaurants. the Columbia is the bomb. gazpacho bloody marys and the 1905 salad. Cuban bread. also a very good history of cigar rolling museum. Tampa also has a fine history museum right near the Forum. drive along Bayshore to see the lovely homes. DeSoto State Park has great beaches, the Sunshine Skyway bridge is worth a drive across. be absolutely sure to try the Cuban food. delicious!

 

[walrus]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

no kidding....

wow. now why aren't those passes universal?
i had a rental there a while ago and the rental company had a minimum per day charge. which was dumb.

Each car rental company is different on those, some are reasonable, some are outrageous .

 

[alfablue]

I am reserving a spot in the Firestick Grill in the Forum. I checked with the sales manager down there and everyone can get in regardless of where you're sitting.

If you want a spot, post here or email me. I have a while before the final # has to be set.

Two or four of us. Probably not too long, though.

 

[Jaws]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

There is also a horse track in town for those who like to play the ponies. Meet and greet sounds ok.

 

[jmh]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

I plan to go to the Rays' home opener vs the Yankees. Per the team website "Rays tickets will go on sale to the general public exclusively through raysbaseball.com on Saturday, February 25, at 10 a.m. ET, subject to availability."

Note: If you don't want to take your chances with the general public onsale, the Rays are having an "early access presale" that is currently available to (as far as I can tell) anyone who wants to buy tickets. The catch is that all the prices are jacked up $15 (for cheap seats) or $20 (for expensive seats) from their normal prices, meaning the cheapest tickets are $34 plus fees rather than their standard $19 plus fees. This presale ends on Saturday at 9am ET, i.e. an hour before the normal onsale begins.

http://tampabay.rays.mlb.com/ticketing/singlegame.jsp?c_id=tb&y=2012

 

[amherstblackbear]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

Thanks, jmh

If I were a Yankee fan, I'd be all over this. Makes good sense for anyone who definitely wants in.

I'll probably wait until 8am or so, and if it looks like there's not much of anything left, I'll pay the premium. If there's still a lot available, I'll be ready to go at 9:59

 

[amherstblackbear]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

I am reserving a spot in the Firestick Grill in the Forum. I checked with the sales manager down there and everyone can get in regardless of where you're sitting.

If you want a spot, post here or email me. I have a while before the final # has to be set.

My father and I are interested. You can add a couple more to the party.

Unless by some miracle Maine is in. In which case, I'm sure the big guy will want to be wherever the Maine party is.

 

[theprofromdover]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

Where are people staying? We're staying at the Hampton inn Ybor City. Should be less than a mile to the arena. Trolley runs right by there, not sure if you could walk it or not?

We're staying at the Sheraton Tampa Riverwalk.

 

[BassAle]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

We're staying at the Sheraton Tampa Riverwalk.

Great hotel, stayed there on a business trip once. I had a huge room with great furnishings. -- the one thing I really remember is all the graffiti down on the river from crew teams from a bunch of different universities that I could see from my balcony. You can take a trolley to Ybor City, I don't remember there being much nightlife around the hotel.

 

[mehcky]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

check out Ybor City - lots of fun bars and restaurants. the Columbia is the bomb. gazpacho bloody marys and the 1905 salad. Cuban bread. also a very good history of cigar rolling museum. Tampa also has a fine history museum right near the Forum. drive along Bayshore to see the lovely homes. DeSoto State Park has great beaches, the Sunshine Skyway bridge is worth a drive across. be absolutely sure to try the Cuban food. delicious!

If your heading to the Skyway....Keep heading south and hit Siesta Key beach in Sarasota..Ranked #1 beach in the US (http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20110526/ARTICLE/110529580).. Yes I live in Sarasota...but there's a reason I moved here The sand is white and feels like talcom powder under your feet.. Places to eat..Columbia is very good..also check out Burns steak house (Pricey). The Tampa Times Forum has undergone major improvements and could be the best Hockey venue in the NHL but its also one of the coldest. Ybor can be pretty shady at night.. It can get very crowded on Saturday nights. Next to the forum is Channelside which has a really cool Bowling restaurant..an IMax theatre and some good places to eat. Rays opening day tickets are tough especially with the yankees in town and its a 3:00 game which means parking will be hard to find. You will however get to experience first hand why its hard to get fans to the Trop if your coming from Tampa. Be careful parking anywhere south of the stadium..as it is not in a nice area.

 

[walrus]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

If your heading to the Skyway....Keep heading south and hit Siesta Key beach in Sarasota..Ranked #1 beach in the US (http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20110526/ARTICLE/110529580).. Yes I live in Sarasota...but there's a reason I moved here .

How long would it take to get from Ybor to Sarasota and Siesta Beach?, What about to Tropicana Field?

 

[mehcky]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

How long would it take to get from Ybor to Sarasota and Siesta Beach?, What about to Tropicana Field?

It takes me about 45 Minutes to get to the Tampa Forum and I'm maybe 5 minutes from the beach.. You will go straight down 75 though so you'll miss the skyway. Tropicana will take you about 3 days Seriously it depends on traffic, getting out of Tampa to 75 is kind of a pain..then you have to cross the howard franklin bridge which can back up if there's traffic in St Pete. I would leave by 1pm at the latest since you also need to find parking. There is very little to do outside the trop however.. There is Fergs sports bar which will be packed..There may be more setup than normal cause of it being the opener.

 

[jmh]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

It takes me about 45 Minutes to get to the Tampa Forum and I'm maybe 5 minutes from the beach.. You will go straight down 75 though so you'll miss the skyway. Tropicana will take you about 3 days Seriously it depends on traffic, getting out of Tampa to 75 is kind of a pain..then you have to cross the howard franklin bridge which can back up if there's traffic in St Pete. I would leave by 1pm at the latest since you also need to find parking. There is very little to do outside the trop however.. There is Fergs sports bar which will be packed..There may be more setup than normal cause of it being the opener.

Should we expect to hit traffic even though it's a midafternoon game? I was figuring it's a time of day that's off-peak for non-game traffic, but I don't know how much traffic Tampa generally has in off-peak hours either. (FWIW, my friends and I are staying at the Hilton Garden Inn in Ybor City. I know some folks are saying it's shady, but we're all city dwellers so I'm sure we'll manage. If there's a Hilton there, it can't be THAT bad.)

 

[mehcky]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

There will be ball park traffic and the infrastructure just really doesn't do well for sellouts..
Ybor is hard to describe..its physically a dirty area (although very historic) Think of a poor mans Bourbon Street. Its right up against low income housing but there is a lot of police presence. Stay in a group would be my best advise. If anyone doesnt have hotels yet and are renting a car..I suggest looking at any of the hotels just east of 75 in Brandon. The cross town expressway is right there and its a quick and easy commute to the Arena. Outside of Ybor, there is very little nightlife in the city of Tampa itself.

Some other places you may want to check out..
MOSI - Science Museum but has an IMAX theatre where your surrounded by the screen (Its similar to the one in Boston)

The Original Hooters is on rte 60 in Clearwater

Aside from Siesta key, Clearwater beach is very nice

There are several FSL teams (High A ball) that play in the area at the spring training stadiums (Yankees in Tampa, Phillies in Clearwater, Blue Jays in Dunedin) Yankees play across the street from Raymond James Stadium (Bucs) The Phi8llies stadium is VERY nice.

Tons of "adult entertainment" I think with the new Mayor these may be less "friendly" than in the past but I'm not sure.. The most Famous is Mons Venus

Lowrie park zoo is nice but if you want to see animals..you might as well go to Busch gardens and get to ride roller coasters also

Ill post more as they pop in my head

 

[jmh]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

Thanks mehcky, it's great to get pointers from someone who lives in the area. If they ever have the FF in NYC I'll be happy to return the favor.

 

[mehcky]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

Correction.... To get to Trop from Tampa is 275..not 75.. unless you are crossing on the Gandy bridge..then its a two lane road and pack a lunch..

No problem jmh...happy to help

 

[pgb-ohio]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

Aside from Siesta key, Clearwater beach is very nice.

We're considering checking out Clearwater Beach and the shore communities on down toward St. Pete. Which specific locales are especially desirable? Any restaurant recommendations? Thanks in advance for whatever help you're able to give.

 

[mehcky]

Re: Things to do in Tampa (Preferably Before You're Dead)

Clearwater beach is the most touristy (is that a word?) and will have the most "attractions" of any of the gulf coast beaches...There a Pirate ship tour (http://www.captainmemo.com/) ..a speedboat tour (http://www.seascreamer.com/) Dolphins swim behind it and jump in its wake. Ive never been on the pirate one but the sea screamer is a blast.. There is a really good Pizza place here called Post Corner Pizza..I always go there anytime I'm in the area. South of Clearwater The sand gets darker (thus hotter on your feet) and there tends to be a lot of condos and retirement places. If you go North to Dunedin there is a ferry which can take you to Honeymoon Island if you want to get away from people. The causeway to Dunedin beach is where they filmed Summer Rental (bad John Candy movie). If your headed that way, be sure to head into downtown Dunedin..its filled with eclectic shops and restaurants..I highly recommend Kellys Chick a boom restaurant (http://www.kellyschicaboom.com/kellys_home.html) There is also a bunch of pubs and bars in this area. Clearwater beach is very easy to get to from The airport (get on 60 west until you hit water) but its a hike from the arena.