Tell me about St Pete

We will be in St Pete (Florida) the end of the month (May 29 - June 1) and are looking for low-key activities to do, places to eat, must-see places. We have already planned to hit Busch Gardens one day (since they do a complimentary one-day pass for military peeps & family), the beach and the Dali museum. Mostly, we’re looking for dining and historical stuff. Let me know what you recommend.

If you’ve read my posts, you know that I have 2 kids (8 yo boy/15 yo girl) and a husband, and we’re all pretty much nerds. We enjoy historical, scientific, and unusual things. We enjoy trying new things, and are not in the least bit intimidated by other cultures, despite being very much the Southern genteel family :smiley:

While we’d like to keep the costs low, we will consider any expense if it is truly worthwhile. Outdoorsy stuff is preferred – we are looking to “get our tan on” and enjoy the sun after what seems to have been a very long, cold winter followed by an equally long, cold spring.

Any dopers that might like to meet up for dinner on the beach or whatnot, speak up, if we can, we will.

The Florida Aquarium and Lowry Park Zoo are two great destinations. They are both in Tampa though. Don’t know if you’ll want to drive over the bridge. As for St. Pete, The Pier is always fun to visit. And I know you’ve alread mentioned the Dali museum but I just want to strongly second it.

John’s Pass, between Madeira Beach and Treasure Island, is a neat little boardwalk with several things to do. However, it’s not so much cultural as it is “Hot Damn! Jet Skis!”. Get a boat and take a slow ride up the intracoastal waterway and squeal at the dolphins.

I used to take folks to Egmont Key. Spanish fort ruins in the water to snorkle around, and a cool little island overall.

Have a nice time!

Use a lot of sunscreen on the first days, or you will be toasty after day one. My daughter just got back from a beach weekend and got burnt on her face and shoulders a bit, in spite of sunscreen, because her friend put it on improperly (missed spots) and they didn’t reapply often enough. This is a common mistake. I’d actually recommend going to the beach in the morning and evening and spend midday at museums or just chilling in your room. The sun is strongest from noon until about four pm.

Best food at John’s Pass is at a little place called Waltz at the very end of the street across from the boardwalk. Locals eat there or Dockside Dave’s up Gulf Boulevard a bit.

The Ringling Museum in Sarasota is supposed to be very nice, but with your limited days you might not get down there.

Where in St. Pete are you staying?

The FL Aquarium isn’t that great IMO. Small, crowded, pricey for what you get.

John’s Pass is very touristy, but fun to wander around…as is the Pier. Baywalk is usually a good time - there’s a movie theatre and a bunch of restaurants.

You can’t beat Ft Desoto Park. It has a 6-mile trail for biking, canoeing and kayaking on the Bayway, boat launching, nature trails and a giant camping/picnicing area with grills. Easily spend the day there.
Sawgrass Lake Park is also nice to just walk around and enjoy the weather.

I highly second Tampa’s Lowry Park Zoo. It’s my personal favourite. Lots of animals, rarely crowded…and a giant area devoted entirely to kids.

All wonderful ideas, thanks everyone. Snorkling sounds divine – maybe I will look into a group to take us to do that? Ideas appreciated.

We will be staying at the La Quinta on 34th & 50th. It looks nice-ish and was unbelievably inexpensive. If it turns out to be funky, oh well, we live and learn. We’re up for stuff within walking distance and this place is supposed to be 4 miles from St Pete Beach and the Dali museum.

The zoo is a definite possibility. We will be going to Busch Gardens on Friday (figure it will be less crowded on a Friday) and then Saturday will be our “let’s get into stuff” day. We figured we would hit museums and whatnot during the heat of the day and the beach in the morning and evening. We all will be working on our base tans before we go, as we have seen what others have done on their Florida beach vacations. Luckily, we all tend to only burn the first day and after that, turn a lovely golden bronze (Cherokee are like that).

I appreciate all the input and we will definitely be checking out the Baywalk.

Just looked that up on the La Quinta site. 34th Street is also called US 19 there, which is the main north/south artery in Pinellas County and used to be the way you’d drive from St Petersburg to Tallahassee. It’s not a small street, and I’d not recommend a walk to anywhere from there (not that it’s not safe, just it’s a hell of a long walk). There are some good Vietnamese restaurants in that area, although I know them by sight more than name. Also a fantastic Italian market about 28 blocks south and then to the left (it’s between 22nd Avenue and 23rd, around 30th street (Mazzaro’s Market).

You’re also not far from Biff Burger, which has Classic Cars on Friday nights and Bikes on Saturdays, if you’re into either of those sorts of things.

There’s not that much history associated with this area, at least not that I’m aware of, although in St Pete is where Pánfilo de Narváez first came ashore back in 1528. Pánfilo de Narváez is considered one of the worst explorers of all time (okay, hyperbole), but his story is pretty interesting.

A more detailed description of this expedition can be found here or here.

34th and 50th isn’t far from either downtown or the beach (strictly speaking, nowhere is far from the beach; at its widest point, Pinellas County is only 15 miles from the Bay to the Gulf), but we don’t walk anywhere. You’re gonna have to drive.

I strongly third/fourth the Dalí Museum, and echo Lionne’s disappointment in the Florida Aquarium. If you’ve been to the one in Chattanooga, you’ll think the Florida Aquarium is tiny.

As far as beaches, we have a 35-mile strip of barrier islands on the west coast of the county that is basically all beach from top to bottom. The big destination beaches are St Pete Beach and Clearwater Beach. There are several beach towns in and around these two with differing attitudes and atmospheres. I prefer Pass-a-Grille (down at the very bottom), Ft DeSoto Park (which has a lovely beach and a Flickr photo pool), Egmont Key, and Caladesi and Honeymoon Islands.

When you go to the beach, bring more sunscreen than you think you need and a lot of water. Apply it often. Don’t go between 12 and 4. And don’t miss the sunset.

For restaurants, pretty much whatever cuisine you like, you can find it here. (Well, I’ve not yet found a Tibetan BBQ, but most of the others are covered.) If you have a specific one in mind, post it and I’ll bet at least one of us can tell you a good restaurant for it.

Again, thanks to those who have replied. It’s funny that so many are pushing the Dali museum – it was actually one of the selling points for St Pete vs other beaches. One of my friends suggested St Pete and said “I know this will sway you – the Dali museum is there, too” and it didn’t just sway me, my husband and daughter both said “yep, let’s go there!” My son is still a bit too young to really care much about Dali, but I am sure he will love the museum, he loves the surreal as much as the rest of us do!

As for dining, we are really looking for suggestions for good, fresh seafood – being as how we live in TN, we don’t get much fresh seafood here. But honestly, anything that is out of the ordinary (believe me, we get more than our share of steakhouses and chain dining in TN!) is appreciated.

I was really hoping to hear that walking would be a good option, but I guess that is not to be. Oh well.

I find it funny that there is an aquarium that close to the ocean. We have planned on doing that pirate ship thing (Captain Memo) if anyone has anything to say about it, please let me know. Of course, dorks that we are, it has been bandied about that we “should all dress as ninjas when we go on the cruise!” Dear Og, it’s a family of dorks. Keep the suggestions coming, please and thank you!

My father in law lives in Fort Myers; when he needs to see his doctor at the St. Pete VA, they put him up at that same La Quinta; I think its pretty decent. My father in law likes it because there is a Denny’s with an early bird special next door.

You’ve gotta see Fort Desoto, especially if you like history. Fantastic beach, great biking/walking trails; canoes and kayaks for rent and a not too bad snack bar: clean restrooms but typically touristy overpriced though. I double and triple all the advice re sunscreen. Too much is not enough. Also, on the road to Fort Desoto you will pass Bill’s Crab House and that is a very reasonable very good sea food place. Get there early and you can score a free boat ride amongst the mangroves. Steer clear of the St Pete Fine Art Museum; they were remodeling the last time I was there. They charged full price and better than half the building was closed off. I don’t think they are finished with the remodel yet.
Enjoy!

You’re less than 2 hours from Orlando, which means you can use your military pass to go to SeaWorld, too. And we’re way cooler than St. Pete.

We will be in Orlando next year in March – my daughter’s high school band marches at WDW every other year, so we wanted something a little different. More laid back – hence only 1 day at Busch Gardens.

Walking IS an option, just not from the hotel you’re staying at. If you head downtown and park, you can walk from the Dali to different restaurants and shops in minutes.

I’m going to add the Museum of Fine Arts to the recommendations. They just added on a multi-million dollar wing and have a huge exhibit of rarely seen art going on right now, in addition to sacred art from China, Tibet, and India. They also added a cafe with the new wing, which has an awesome view of the bay and all the sailboats, a great Mediterranean-inspired menu, and they serve pretty good wine and beer.

The Holocaust Museum is a great option, too. 4th largest in the US, it’s a very moving exhibit. That’s downtown also, but if you get tired of walking there’s a trolley called the Looper that costs a quarter and runs to all the museums downtown.

ETA: Just caught Louis’s post. No, they’ve finished building the new wing so there’s no worries. And admission’s not that much in the first place, I think students are $6 and adults maybe $8? Definitely one of the more affordable museums.

You want cheap options – if you like browsing used bookstores, Haslam’s is the biggest in the Tampa Bay area.

Another vote for the Dali Museum. There was one particular docent that worked there that was especially knowledgable about the paintings, and she was really great to tag along behind. (Don’t recall her name, but think maybe a smaller version of Conchata Ferrell.)

Another place that I like is the Sunken Gardens.

I retract my statement; thanks for the updated info. That Museum is a good one and we will be sure to check out the current exhibit.

Out near Busch Gardens is the Museum of Science and Industry. Slightly pricey but loads of fun. One of the current exhibits is the science of illusion - mosi does magic.