Neighborhoods

by Laura Spinale

Created: 16 Apr 2008 Updated: 08 May 2008

What are you in the mood for today? Among your choices: Moussaka in Tarpon Springs, a Renoir at St. Petersburg's Museum of Fine Arts, open mic night in Gulfport Art Village.

Want more? Learn what gives each community its small-town charm or big-city glitter, and follow the red-dotted path on each map for fab walking tours.

Downtown St. Petersburg

St. Petersburg
Downtown St. Pete has gone chic. Start your tour on and around Beach Drive. Stay at the Renaissance Vinoy, an early 20th-century grand hotel. Meander through Straub Park, soaking up water views, then buzz into the Museum of Fine Arts. Browsers will enjoy the five-story Pier shopping center. Dislike malls? Spend your time in the myriad antiques stores and galleries lining Beach Drive.

St. Pete Beach
Your tour of St. Pete Beach starts with the Loews Don CeSar. Its pink-painted Moorish/Mediterranean architecture has, for the last seven decades or so, drawn a host of notables. Those to whom the sea calls enjoy the beach’s bounty of fishing and snorkeling charters. You’ll also find scads of gift and clothing shops.

The Hurricane Restaurant in Pass-a-Grille is especially popular for watching sunsets.

Pass-a-Grille
Pass-a-Grille sits on the southernmost tip of St. Pete Beach and offers four miles of beach. Charters are available for snorkeling trips to Shell Key barrier island. Landlubbers enjoy strolling Eighth Avenue and visiting galleries, boutiques and restaurants. The Hurricane, on Gulf Way, is the region’s premier quaffing spot. Admire Gulf views, and nosh on entrées ranging from fried grouper to New York strip steak.

Clearwater/Clearwater Beach
Clearwater Beach is the region’s quintessential shore town. Part of the City of Clearwater, it features souvenir shops, pizzerias and beach bars. While the surf here is a little more active than on other area shores, the beach vibe is decidedly family friendly. Pier 60 offers nightly Sunset Festivals. Starting two hours before the Big Dip, vendors serve up everything from henna tattoos to up-market jewelry. Street performers enliven the evening: Contortionists, dog acts and fire-eaters all perform here.

Tarpon Springs
Greek, Greek, Greek. That’s this town’s history and overall vibe. When natural sponge beds were discovered offshore, Greek sponge divers flocked to the area at the turn of the last century.

Tarpon Springs

Start your visit near the waterfront. On Dodecanese Avenue, you’ll find the Tarpon Springs Aquarium (pet the baby sharks and stingrays), the Sponge-O-Rama (a kitsch theater and museum dedicated to the region’s sponging industry) and the Sponge Factory, among the largest of the roughly 12 gazillion souvenir shops selling natural sponges. (The olive oil soap the Greek ladies use, which is also sold at most gift shops, is terrific.)

You’ll find a plethora of Greek restaurants on this strip. The fried calamari at Hella’s is a personal fave. Downtown, on Tarpon Avenue, check out the antiques stores. At the Court of Two Sisters, more than 30 dealers sell antiques and collectibles.

[1] 2 NEXT >>

Email this page

Small-town gems

Belleair overlooks Clearwater Harbor. With home styles ranging from cottages to mansions, it’s a draw for architecture buffs. Make sure to check out the grandfather oaks.
Belleair Beach is a residential hamlet consisting of roughly 55 homes and no businesses. Beachgoers will find four public beach-access points.
Indian Shores is home to the Suncoast Seabird Sanctuary, one of the largest not-for-profit bird hospitals in the United States. (Its goal is to re-introduce injured birds into the wild.) Tours are available.
At only one square mile, Kenneth City is the smallest incorporated community in Pinellas County, hence the hometown feel.
In Largo, you’ll find Pinewood Cultural Park, home to Heritage Village, the Florida Botanical Gardens and the Gulf Coast Museum of Art. Heritage Village is a perennial favorite. This 21-acre, open-air museum features 28 historical structures, including a restored school, church, railroad depot, store and log cabin. The 182-acre Florida Botanical Gardens, meanwhile, serves up wetlands, rose beds and a tropical walk.
You can’t visit Madeira Beach without a stop at the nautically themed John’s Pass Village & Boardwalk. An outdoor shopping and dining venue, it boasts more than 100 stores and restaurants, many sporting tin roofs and featuring water views. Spot dolphins and other Florida fauna on a water sightseeing tour.
North Redington Beach is a barrier island, primarily residential, but popular with visitors for its mile-long stretch of white sand and the Doubletree Beach Resort Tampa Bay.
Oldsmar is named for Ranson Eli Oldsmar, inventor of the Oldsmobile and REO cars.
Ozona is a tiny hamlet nestled along Clearwater Harbor. You’ll find lots of Old Florida here – cottages shaded by ancient oaks dripping with Spanish moss. Molly Goodhead’s Raw Bar is an area local favorite. Sit outside and try the crab cakes, complemented by a Greek salad. The atmosphere is beyond casual.