Is the Tampa area all sprawl?? (St. Petersburg, Clearwater: condo, hotels, houses)

[^Eagle^]

I use to always here that I had to check out St petersburge and it was made out to be the best part of the area so I headed there today to check it out and I found it to mostly be just condo's and sprawl with no real character.

Dont get me wrong the beach is nice and stretches for a long while but florida is full of beaches. I was looking for a "hub" or a "spot" where everyone would be with authentic little shops and clusters of bars and clubs like every other beach town I have ever been to but despite driving up and down the entire peninsula I never found anything like that.

Even treasure island which I heard was this great place only really had a couple small bars and there wasnt any kind of "scene" really.

Just wondering where in Tampa or St Pete I should go to in order to get more of a feel for the character or entertainment hubs in the area. I hear downtown Tampa has some good hubs like in ybor city.

Right now my impression is just a lot of sprawl with no identity.

[ferret111]

Where in St. Pete did you go? There are plenty of shops along 4th and 9th Streets North approaching Downtown, as well as along Central Avenue. Not to mention, there's literally square miles' worth of normal homes.

The beach is mostly the same, except for St. Pete Beach, especially the Downtown St. Pete Beach area.

[^Eagle^]

Originally Posted by ferret111

Where in St. Pete did you go? There are plenty of shops along 4th and 9th Streets North approaching Downtown, as well as along Central Avenue. Not to mention, there's literally square miles' worth of normal homes.

The beach is mostly the same, except for St. Pete Beach, especially the Downtown St. Pete Beach area.

I drove up and down the peninsula 2-3 times stopping whereever I felt it might be a place to stop. I never really found a "hub" or area where everyone was at.

Im not looking for residential area's or houses. I was looking for the "scene/place to go" or some "character" to give the area an identity and define it. I never found it.

I was right along the road that runs paralel to the beach. I didn't really go inland because i thought most of the action would be at the beach. I didnt find any real action. Just lots of ordinary places like Exxon, cvs, the dollar store and lots of hotels along the beach. Every once in a while there was a small bar with a tiny outside area but nothing on the beach, those were few and far between and across the street out of view of the beach. One had a guy playing guitar but only 20 people could fit out there. lol.

Anyone else who has something for me to put into my gps and check out would be great. My friend said to check out ebor in Tampa so maybe I will do that.

[gypsychic]

Originally Posted by ^Eagle^

I drove up and down the peninsula 2-3 times stopping whereever I felt it might be a place to stop. I never really found a "hub" or area where everyone was at.

Im not looking for residential area's or houses. I was looking for the "scene/place to go" or some "character" to give the area an identity and define it. I never found it.

I was right along the road that runs paralel to the beach. I didn't really go inland because i thought most of the action would be at the beach. I didnt find any real action. Just lots of ordinary places like Exxon, cvs, the dollar store and lots of hotels along the beach. Every once in a while there was a small bar with a tiny outside area but nothing on the beach, those were few and far between and across the street out of view of the beach. One had a guy playing guitar but only 20 people could fit out there. lol.

Anyone else who has something for me to put into my gps and check out would be great. My friend said to check out ebor in Tampa so maybe I will do that.

You'll find a lot more of that in Tampa, such as Ybor.

Or drive south to Sarasota, and check out downtown, St. Armand's Circle and Siesta Key Village- these are all great hubs, with shops, restaurants, bars, cafes, etc.

[^Eagle^]

Originally Posted by gypsychic

You'll find a lot more of that in Tampa, such as Ybor.

Or drive south to Sarasota, and check out downtown, St. Armand's Circle and Siesta Key Village- these are all great hubs, with shops, restaurants, bars, cafes, etc.

Damn I almost origionally picked sarasota over daytona. If I had I bet Id never be in this mess. Sarasota seems to be an up and coming place that is being developed and planned in a very cool way.

Anyways

Some call it ebor and others call it ybor but Im headin to check it out tonight. Anything else I should check out like south tampa or anything?? Also if anyone has a good location to put into my gps for ybor that will help me out a lot!

[tampaguy03]

In Tampa check out Hyde Park areas like SoHo(South howard Avenue from Kenedy Blvd to Bayshore Blvd), and Hyde Park Village...also Davis Islands(Main Street area)...Ybor City's 7th Avenue(as well as 8th and 9th avenues from 13th to 22nd streets).

In St. Pete check out downtown areas around Central Avenue, Beach Drive and from 3rd Ave South to 5th Ave North...on the beaches you will want to check out the beach towns like Pass-a-Grille(8th Street), Indian SHores and Indian Rocks beaches. St. Pete beach has a main street area known as Corey Avenue.

Clearwater Beach has a very happeneing scene, from the Palm Pavilion and Frenchys on the North End to Shepards and Jimmy Guanas on the South End.

Other areas in Pinellas County are places like Gulfport, Safety Harbour, Dunedin.

[thethinktank]

Hey Eagle,
I second TampaGuy's advice. I was in a similar position to you about a year and a half ago, using these City Data forums to find a location that fits my needs. I want culture, personality, indie restaurants, cool bars and a refreshing local color in a very walkable neighborhood. You absolutely must check out SoHo and Hyde Park. I've visited four times now (which isn't easy, I'm currently in Iowa) and am moving south on May 15th.

I enjoy Ybor, but couldn't live there comfortably. If I was single, I'd live there and not worry, but I'm not sure I'd be comfortable with my girlfriend walking around Ybor at night. It's a very cool, cultured and fun neighborhood, but not somewhere I'd want to live. Meanwhile, I'd feel pretty comfortable walking around the southern part of Hyde Park at 2:00 a.m. stone drunk while wearing a suit made out of $20 bills. It's safe, clean, friendly and progressive.

[^Eagle^]

Damn I could have used you guys advice earlier! lol.

I went back out. I hit Ybor but only saw one street. It was pretty impressive as the street went on for a good mile, was lined with lights and had several clubs and bars. This is the kind of thing that I like. It was not that packed though and many places were empty or next to empty. Maybe that is because of the holiday.

There were a lot of people around though and it was by far one of the most impressive areas I've seen in Florida to date when it comes to a night life district or hub.

Instead of hanging out there all night I decided to see what other nightlife is out there despite the locals telling me that the street i was on was my best bet.

I remembered hyde park and found some location in hyde park to put into my gps but I saw no activity. Someone said channelside so I went there and I saw a couple places where people were at but thats all there seemed to be. I did a point of interest search on south tampa and drove there remembering about that -- but again no dice.

Then I decided to go back to saint petersburge because my friend told me they have some districts, close off streets and let people drink in the streets and all this crazy stuff.

Drove around there for the rest of the night and it was a literal ghost town. I found nothing at all. If there's a scene there I have absolutely no idea how I am missing it.

I guess I will have to compare orlando and tampa based on what I know and I wish I could have found more spots. Ybor is definately cool and Im sure Id have fun there. It is the walkable type of stuff that I like, but like the earlier poster said it did feel just a little bit too sketchy for me.

[tampaguy03]

Originally Posted by ^Eagle^

Damn I could have used you guys advice earlier! lol.

I went back out. I hit Ybor but only saw one street. It was pretty impressive as the street went on for a good mile, was lined with lights and had several clubs and bars. This is the kind of thing that I like. It was not that packed though and many places were empty or next to empty. Maybe that is because of the holiday.

There were a lot of people around though and it was by far one of the most impressive areas I've seen in Florida to date when it comes to a night life district or hub.

Instead of hanging out there all night I decided to see what other nightlife is out there despite the locals telling me that the street i was on was my best bet.

I remembered hyde park and found some location in hyde park to put into my gps but I saw no activity. Someone said channelside so I went there and I saw a couple places where people were at but thats all there seemed to be. I did a point of interest search on south tampa and drove there remembering about that -- but again no dice.

Then I decided to go back to saint petersburge because my friend told me they have some districts, close off streets and let people drink in the streets and all this crazy stuff.

Drove around there for the rest of the night and it was a literal ghost town. I found nothing at all. If there's a scene there I have absolutely no idea how I am missing it.

I guess I will have to compare orlando and tampa based on what I know and I wish I could have found more spots. Ybor is definately cool and Im sure Id have fun there. It is the walkable type of stuff that I like, but like the earlier poster said it did feel just a little bit too sketchy for me.

Eagle - you need to get out of the car and explore. Ditch the gps, and just explore via foot/bike(rent a bike at City Bikes in downtown Tampa).....For example, Ybor is more than just 7th Avenue...on all the side streets and even 5th through Palm Avenues there are restaurants(example - El Puerto on 5th and 17th-YUM; Laughing Cat on 8th and 15th-YUM again), shops, galleries, and a bar/cafe/live music venues for anyone and everyone on that area.

In South Tampa, check out Chez Bryce, Yeomans Pub or Estellas on Davis Island Blvd....In SoHo area MacDintons, Lime, Ceviche, CORK...and then walk around..check out Wine Exchange or BT's in Hyde Park Village, there are lots of little neighborhoods in south Tampa area(mine is Bayside West, and I walk to places like Green Iguana, Westshore Pizza, Wooden Door, Galley, CDB's, Jasmine Thai, etc....Westshore Blvd around Euclid and El Prado)....the area around MacDill abd Bay to Bay Blvd(palma ceia)....

In St. Petersburg, park at the BayWalk garage off 2nd Street and 2nd Ave North and walk around...Central Avenue, Beach Drive, along the Bayfront from Mahaffey/Dali area to Rennasaince Vinoy...

Check out weekly rags like Creative Loafing and the TBT(both on line and in newspaper stands) for events and stuff.

Some other links:
http://tampa.creativeloafing.com/gyr...ent?oid=418775

In-Town Tampa Guide & Map

Downtown St. Petersburg Guide/Map

[lavender]

I think you must have totally missed downtown st pete, its the most downtown situation in the bay area, try looking at that again