Tampa - it's my kinda town ...
Written: Oct 18 '03
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Product Rating:
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Pros: An underrated treasure on Florida's Gulf Coast
Cons: None really
The Bottom Line: A historic, vibrant, colourful Metropolis on the West Coast of Florida.
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| AlanCrax's Full Review: Tampa |
Think of Florida and you will no doubt think of sun, sea, sand and shrimp. Think of a destination in Florida and you will no doubt pick Orlando, Miami, Clearwater or maybe even Sarasota. I would like to welcome you to my favourite place in the sunshine state – Tampa.
You may have passed through this city on the interstate (I4/I275) on your way from DisneyWorld to St Pete Beach and never given it another thought. You might have visited on a day trip to its major theme park, Busch Gardens (see below) with a Florida Combination admission ticket (linked with SeaWorld and Cypress Gardens). Tampa is however off the tourist trail, having a metropolitan aura and previously a somewhat dubious reputation. That has all changed over the last ten years or so.
Tampa is steeped in history. It lies in the natural harbour of Tampa Bay - a large sheltered inlet from the Gulf of Mexico on the West side of the state. Florida was settled originally by the Spanish (Ponce de Leon searching for his fountain of youth etc) but over the centuries it changed hands several times. Tampa has a strong link with the UK. In the eighteenth century, it was under the purview of the Marquis of Downshire whose ancestral home was Hillsborough Castle in Belfast. He named the river running though the city and the county after it.
The harbour came into prominence again in the mid 1880s as a gathering point for the US army and fleet in the Spanish – American War. It was the headquarters from which the railroad developments opened up the western side of Florida. It also saw a burgeoning cigar industry built upon refugees from Cuba.
Today Tampa is the second largest metropolitan area in Florida. It has a large British expatriate population and even boasts its own foxhounds. It is a very easy place to get around by public transport – indeed the East/West and Uptown/Downtown Connector services are free. It can be a bit confusing though to drive.
British Airways (as well as a couple of the American carriers) flies direct to Tampa International Airport from Gatwick. Climate is typical of Florida – hot, sticky and sometimes wet through the Summer; warm and dry in the Winter. Best months for a visit are probably October, November, April, May and June.
Below I have tried to give a taste of what to see and do, spending ten half days in this underestimated paradise. Join me in a glass of Ybor Gold lager, the distinctive local brew. It’s available in bottles in most supermarkets but for a real treat try it on draft in an ice chilled tumbler at the Avanzare Bar at the Hyatt Regency Hotel.
1. BUSCH GARDENS
Tampa’s world famous attraction. It is a wild life park linked with a theme park and fun fair. It boasts some of the wildest rollercoaster rides in the world. It also features a working brewery (Anhauser Busch) which is proud of its Clydesdale horses. Tours of the “Serengeti Plains” are made by monorail and there are plenty of opportunities of getting up close with the animals. There is also a children’s play area ‘Land of Dragons’. It can be very busy ‘in season’. It gets hot and sticky in the summer.
If you’ve got time for more, there is the sister water park – Adventure Island - just across the street. If you know Wet’n’Wild, then you’ll know what to expect.
Eat at: Busch Gardens. There are the usual “snackeries”. The restaurant in the Colonial House is of reasonable standard and price.
2. DOWNTOWN / HENRY PLANT MUSEUM
The heart of Tampa is built on a grid system. Most roads are now one way and junctions are controlled by traffic lights. Some streets have been pedestrianised and landscaped. Green historical signs (rather like our Blue plaques) abound recalling such worthies as Teddy Roosevelt and his Rough Riders and a car rally in 1907 to promote the development of roads in the state. Downtown is bounded to the north by I275; to the south by the Channelside district; to the west by the Hillsborough River.
Take a look at the Tampa Theatre on Franklin Street. It is a cinema built in 1926 and brilliantly restored to its former glory. Also try the Tampa Bay History Centre opposite the Convention Centre. It currently has an exhibition of the Everglades – and admission is free.
Think of the development of Florida and two men should spring to mind. Henry Morrison Flagler pushed the railroad down the east coast and over the Keys to Key West, opening up Miami on the way. Henry B Plant developed the west coast line which had its main terminal in Tampa. He built the Tampa Bay hotel which became a famous landmark with its gilded minarets and for its luxury and opulence. The hotel fell into disrepair after his death but was taken over by the city and incorporated into the University of Tampa. It now houses a museum to the man, his ambitions and achievements. Open Tuesday to Sunday, this is a ‘must see’ attraction.
3. MOSI
Not far from Busch Gardens in the north of the city on East Fowler Avenue is the Museum of Science and Industry. Its eye catching dome incorporates an IMAX cinema. There are a whole range of hands-on experiences for the whole family – children and adults alike. It is possible to experience the full force of the weather in the hurricane room. There are also floors devoted to biology, space flight and Florida’s environment. There is even a butterfly chamber. A planetarium offers night viewing of the sky. There are also exhibitions of extra interest – on one visit we were treated to a demonstration of the art of paperweight making.
4. CHANNELSIDE
The area around the docks for many years was a run down area of the city. Over the last ten years there has been major development and rebuilding work. This started with Harbour Island, an upmarket gated community of condominiums and waterside mansions and is now one of the prime areas to live. (I have a vested interest here!!) It has its own sports centre, marina, hotel, mall and office block.
Across the channel, redevelopment of Tampa Port Authority has seen an increasing number of visiting cruise ships. A huge new Marriott hotel opened about two years ago. The area also boasts the Tampa Bay Ice Palace (now renamed the St Pete Times Forum) which is home to Lightning, the local ice hockey team. This is where you will catch the major concerts (in our time we have seen Tina Turner, The Who, The Moody Blues – and just missed Fleetwood Mac and Bruce Springstein)
Channelside has its own Mall featuring boutiques, restaurants and a cinema. Although still under development it is aiming to capture some of the cruise line visitors. It is home to Florida Aquarium (see below) which is worth a visit in its own right.
The latest attraction is the TECO streetcar line which runs from the Marriott Hotel, along Channelside to Ybor City. The cars are replicas of the trams which ran in Tampa at the turn of the century and feature polished oak bench seats and polished brass fittings. This is a ‘not for profit’ operation and one way fares are $ 1.25 per person.
Eat at: Jackson’s Bistro, Harbour Island. Great atmosphere particularly at sunset; good food, excellent wine list.
5. YBOR CITY
This is another district of Tampa that is undergoing a burgeoning renaissance. The architecture is Olde Worlde; the graceful Spanish style houses have iron balconies and pillars that date back to the nineteenth and early twentieth century. Ybor City was the centre of Floridian cigar manufacturing, set up and worked by early immigrants from Cuba. It is also home to the Ybor Gold micro brewery. A new Spanish influenced Mall (Centro Ybor) opened in 2000.
There are parks, museums, guided and self guided walks. Ybor City also comes alive at night in its bars, nightclubs and street activities.
Eat at: The Columbia Restaurant. Spanish, Cuban sandwiches, steak, seafood. The original Cuban American establishment dates back to 1902. With its lavish décor, verandas, wrought iron gates, hand painted tiles and flamenco floor show it is of international renown.
6. FLORIDA AQUARIUM
Another one of a kind, Florida Aquarium was opened in 1995 and cost over $80 million dollars to construct. It is housed in a huge blue dome. Exhibits feature many of the local flora and fauna of Florida including, fish, birds and alligators. They also present a wide range of educational behind the scenes tours and hands on experiences. They even have their own catamaran which provides excursions out into Tampa Bay.
Eat at: On board the “Starship” – a 180 foot yacht which offers lunches and dinner sightseeing cruises into the Bay.
7. A SCENIC DRIVE
You can easily take a leisurely day over this circular route around Tampa Bay. Starting from downtown Tampa take the Crosstown Expressway to Brandon. Join the I75 southbound (signposted Naples). At Ellenton you will find the huge discount “Prime Outlets” mall with over 130 stores including Nike and Saks Fifth Avenue. Well worth a stop but you will need a fat wallet as you stock up on all those essentials you need to bring home with you!
Views of quiet beaches can be seen along the east bank of Tampa Bay, stretching from Gibsonton to Gulf City. Turn west onto I275. This leads through the mangrove islands of Terra Ceira and then onto the breathtaking (toll) Sunshine Skyway Bridge. If there is a stretch of water, the Floridians will throw a bridge over it. This is by far the longest, stretching some thirteen miles over the mouth of Tampa Bay and terminating in the southern outskirts of St Petersburg. Even more remarkable, this new bridge replaced the span demolished by an oil tanker in 1981.
Continue on into St Pete. Take the short (2 mile) I375 downtown and spend an hour of so exploring The Pier. A trolley service runs along it from the car parks. There is the usual range of souvenir shops and cafes and from the end you can just see the skyscrapers of downtown Tampa in the far distance. This is where you will appreciate the vastness of Tampa Bay.
Heading northwards you will come to one of three majestic crossings of Old Tampa Bay between St Pete’s and Tampa itself (Courtney Campbell Causeway; Howard Frankland Bridge; Gandy Bridge): all three lane highways and all reaching seven or eight miles out into open water. The Tampa cityscape beckons at the far end.
Eat at: (slightly off the beaten track this one). The Hurricane, Passe-a-Grille Beach, St Pete’s. Head west until you see the great pink creation of the Don Cesar Hotel and then turn left. Serves popular American food (their onion rings are to die for; their peel’n’eat shrimp divine). The ideal place to watch the sun sink into the Gulf of Mexico.
8. THE BAYSHORE AND HYDE PARK
Be sure to stroll along Bayshore Boulevard, said to be the longest pavement in the world – an unbroken road measuring some seven miles in length running along the west bank of Hillsborough Bay. This is where you will find the strollers, joggers and cyclists taking their constitutional. The peninsula ends at McDill Airforce Base but this is the district for high value property. On the landward side are huge mansions set back in their own grounds and twenty storey high residential blocks. Just off the shoreline is the district of Bayshore Beautiful, an area of narrow avenues with densely overhanging oak trees and festooned Spanish moss. Many of the smaller Florida houses are now being demolished and rebuilt as luxury homesteads.
At the same time take a look at Old Hyde Park. This is another area of historic housing dating back to the late Victorian and early twentieth century. The Village (on the junction of Swann and Snow Avenue) has a collection of about 60 shops, boutiques and restaurants to tempt the avid shopping and diner.
Eat at: The Colonnade Restaurant, Bayshore Boulevard. Seafood and steak. You’ll probably need to book as this one is extremely popular with the natives.
9. LOWERY PARK ZOO
On West Sligh Avenue, Lowery Park is a treasure well known to Tampa residents, less so to tourists. It is one of the top three ‘middle sized zoos’ in the States and has over 40 acres of open-air natural habitat displays. It boasts a Manatee reservation, aviaries and children’s petting zoo. There are daily Birds of Prey shows.
Whilst in this part of town take a trip onto Dale Mabry Highway and visit the Raymond James Stadium. This is the home of the ‘Bucs’ (Tampa Bay Buccaneers NFL team). They aren’t doing at all badly this season – they beat Green Bay Packers 21-7 while we were there.
Eat at: Shula’s Steak House (at Wyndham Westshore Hotel). No, this isn’t an émigré from the Archers! Dan Shula was the manager of the Miami Dolphins for many years and led them to an unequalled 100% season in 1973.
10. A TRIP TO THE MALL
Just about every city in every state is building Malls on every area of open ground. It seems that they are going increasingly upmarket or the large stores are coming downwards (you can now find branches of Macy’s, Bloomingdales and Niemann Marcus). The new development in Tampa is the International Mall, adjacent to the airport. It opened last year and is showing signs of bedding in.
Our favourite is Westshore Plaza, just off Kennedy Boulevard. This is anchored by Sears, JC Penney, Saks of Fifth Avenue and Burdines. It also features a fourteen screen cinema, restaurants and the usual array of specialty stores and boutiques.
Eat at: Oystercatcher, Hyatt Regency Westshore. Superb fresh sea food (stone crab claws when in season), well presented. Sip cocktails in the lounge or on the boardwalk while the sun sinks into Old Tampa Bay.
POST SCRIPT.
I take criticism to heart. I felt somewhat humbled by the muted response to my first taster of Tampa (a review of Jackson’s Bistro, Harbour Island rather than of the city itself). So I have asked for it to be deleted and I have come back here to Jackson’s to write this new effort. Dinner tonight is sesame seared tuna with wasabi paste, Filet Mignon with Lobster Tail, Key Lime Pie.
You know, in retrospect, sitting here on the veranda with a Bombay Sapphire in hand under a clear starry sky on a balmy November night looking out over the Hillsborough River towards downtown Tampa, I wasn’t wrong. This restaurant really is in the heart of the action. I can see the gaily illuminated trees along the Harbour Island bridge, the skyscraper towers of the SouthTrust, Verizon, and SunTrust Bank (with its red, white and blue stripes at its apex) buildings, the modern halls of the Convention Centre, Ice Palace stadium and the Aquarium. There are two ocean going yachts moored along side and on the opposite bank I can see one of the cruise ships making ready for its trip to the Caribbean. This is also a place of history. A plaque just over my shoulder commemorates the landing of Spaniard Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca (Physican and Explorer) in 1528.
One day - I have promised myself - I shall buy only a one way ticket and leave the shores of the frozen and bleak north east of England and make this town my home for good. Proxam likes his beer - I have recently introduced him to Ybor Gold. Funnily enough that was the first review I posted on the pages of Epinions myself about two years ago. I'm happy to add this review to his anniversary w/o.
If you still don’t believe me about this place you'll have to come and look for yourself. You can get more information from Tampa Bay Online (www.tbo.com)
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Families
Best Time to Travel Here: Anytime
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Epinions.com ID:
AlanCrax
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Member: Alan Craxford
Location: Tyne and Wear, UK
Reviews written: 212
Trusted by: 37 members
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