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Old 12-01-2011, 05:20 PM   #16
modisney
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St. Pete vacation veteran of too many years to count now here. Love the beach and I'm a creature of habit. Check out St. Pete beach wave runners just south of the Sirata for the best value in wave runner rental and see Rick. They don't charge you for the gas. Book before 11 am for a discount, youll need a CC and driver's license. IMHO skip Crabby Bills. Haven't eaten there in years and it's walking distance for us when we're there. Right on Gulf Blvd. there are 2 great! places to eat, Mad Fish and Snappers. Again, great food! The same people own both. Another great place is Oyster Shucker's on Corey Ave. They have all you can eat crab legs on Tuesdays. agree with the poster who recommends John's Pass for some touristy but fun shopping. Fort DeSoto is nice as well. As you head down there you'll pass Billy's Stone Crab which is a good place to eat too. If you want to eat like a local and don't mind the lack of atmosphere, head south on Gulf Blvd. to Pass a Grill and try Sea Critters or the Wharf both are on Gulf Blvd. and next door to one another. Overlooking the beach down there is The Hurricane which has a rooftop bar for great sunset viewing while enjoying a beverage. Also, there's a cute little artsy/crafty gallery on Gulf Blvd. just pass "The Don" (the pink hotel), the Nancy Markoo Gallery which is nice. For touristy St. Pete souvenirs we prefer Beach Mart to Wings. In the Dolphin Village where the Publix is there's a Candy Kitchen which has fun candy. There are also a couple of fun stores there. Behind Dolphin Village there are sight seeing cruises etc. I can't remember if the Sirata has been included in the Tradewinds complex just up the beach but the Tradewinds has a big blow up water slide and some slides etc. out in the gulf that you buy tickets to use. If Sirata is included in Tradewinds now, you can get a discount. Parasailing is offered up and down the beach but we like the operator in front of the Dolphin Hotel (the orange hotel). There are a few cute shops along Corey Ave. as well for non touristy things. Plenty of ice cream stops along Gulf Blvd. Our favs are the Twist Cone, can't miss that one right on Gulf Blvd., and Uncle Andy's at "The Don". Dockside Dave's has a good grouper sandwich for lunch. If you want a bit of an up scale meal head north to Reddington to a place on Gulf Blvd. called Salt Rock Grill. It's awesome. A bit pricey but worth it. They do have some early specials. A fav lunch spot of ours is in Pasadena, 10 minute drive, called Ted Peters. World famous smoked fish and fantastic burgers. They're closed Mon. Or Tues., I forget which. They've been in business for 50 years. Also in Clearwater is the aquarium where the dolphin from the movie Dolphin Tale lives. It's convieiently located by Salt Rock Grill's sister restaurant, Island Way Grill. Another great place and they serve sushi If you're into aquariums, the Tampa Aquarium features lots of native Florida fish etc. Have a great time.
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Old 01-22-2012, 12:22 AM   #17
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If you haven't went already, I too loved the Tampa aquarium. One of my favorite place to eat was Silas Dent's, for the pretzel bread and prime rib! The beach was the best for me in the pass-a-grille area. Not very crowded, even on the 4th of July. I did the Shell Island cruise once when I was younger and loved all the shells I collected and the beach was awesome.
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Old 01-23-2012, 10:23 PM   #18
Sue M.
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Thanks for all the tips. We went in Aug, only there for a couple of nights pre WDW. Had a great time. Just relaxed. Walked around Corey Ave, had a dinner at an Italian restaurant a local recommended.
Sirata isn't in the Tradewinds, just next door. We saw the slide! But my dd is 26, lol, so not interested!
It was a nice relaxing time. Just what we needed after 2 weeks of packing up my mom's condo. Bought some pool noodles and floated around the gulf
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