Make Tampa Bay your next getaway
Sparkling waves on the Gulf of Mexico, thrilling sports, and family-friendly adventure await with Tampa Bay vacation rentals. Make your way through the beautiful bayfront cities of Tampa, Sarasota, St. Petersburg, Clearwater, and Bradenton—or never leave the comfort of the beach. Find the perfect home base for your vacation with pet-friendly vacation homes, gulf-view condo rentals, or beach house rentals.
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Explore our Tampa Bay, FL, vacation rentals
Grab a Tampa Bay beach rental and soak up the sunshine. Visitors to the Tampa Bay area find its mid-size city charm and lack of high-brow some of its most endearing qualities, while also taking advantage of attractions typically seen only in larger cities. Families traveling with kids will love the aquariums, zoos, and amusement parks, and adults looking for a child-free getaway have plenty of options for shopping, dining, and nightlife.
Tampa Bay is home to the professional football, baseball, and hockey teams the Buccaneers, the Rays, and the Lightning, so be sure to catch a game during your stay. The area is also a favorite for its access to waterways and the Gulf of Mexico, for anglers and beachgoers alike. In downtown Tampa, you’ll find the Tampa Museum of Art, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, the Florida Aquarium, and Ybor City’s incredible Latin American eateries.
Things to do in Tampa Bay
If getting out in the sun, surf, or sand is on your vacation checklist, Tampa Bay is the perfect destination.
- Soak up some rays and work on that tan at Clearwater Beach, one of Tampa's renowned white sand beaches. Or watch a stunning pastel-colored sunset as you browse vendors and nightly entertainment at Sunsets at Pier 60, a 20-year-running daily festival of local art, music, and entertainment on Clearwater’s Pier 60.
- Enjoy a hot dog and beer while cheering on the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, or watch a puck whiz by at downtown Tampa’s Amalie Arena, home to the Tampa Bay Lightning. If you come during the autumn months, make sure to include a stop through Raymond James Stadium for a Tampa Bay Buccaneers football game. The Tampa Bay area is also home to spring training for teams including the Yankees and the Phillies.
- Don't miss Fort De Soto Park, just south of St. Pete with five interconnected keys teeming with wildlife and gorgeous beaches. With miles of bicycle and kayak-friendly coastal salt marsh habitat, Robinson Nature Preserve in Bradenton is a great destination for exploring the region’s native flora and fauna and will appeal to both families seeking low-key fun and couples looking for a leisurely excursion they can take together.
- Downtown Tampa has no shortage of things to see, including the historic Ybor City district, Ybor City State Park, and Hyde Park Village’s incredible shopping offerings.
- With the Gulf of Mexico at your fingertips, head out for a fishing excursion with a charter tour or a day at Skyway Fishing Pier State Park.
- The Tampa Bay area is home to fantastic attractions for all interests, ranging from the area’s 44 golf courses to the largest collection of Salvador Dali works in the United States at St. Petersburg's Dali Museum.
- Kayak through lush mangrove swamps or take a guided nature walk among saw palmetto and live oak trees at Caladesi Island State Park on the north end of Clearwater Beach, just 27 miles from downtown Tampa. Or head 69 miles south of downtown Tampa to find alligators, cranes, over 100 other species, and 37,000 acres of native cypress swamp in Myakka River State Park. Enjoy a game of frisbee on the beach with your pup on Davis Island Dog Beach.
- Tampa Bay makes for the perfect family vacation destination. Delight in one adventure after another between ZooTampa at Lowry Park, Croc Encounters, Busch Gardens at Tampa Bay, Adventure Island, Water Works Park, and more amusement parks.
Is Tampa worth going to?
With access to the Gulf of Mexico and fish-abundant waterways, 44 nearby golf courses, a myriad of family-friendly amusement parks, aquariums, and zoos, and Tampa Bay’s exhilarating sports culture in baseball, hockey, football, and soccer, the Tampa Bay area has an adventure for everyone, no matter their field of interest.
Day trips from Tampa Bay
Because Tampa Bay comprises an area of over 60 miles from Tampa on the northern boundary to Sarasota on the southern end, many great day trips are accessible within an easy car ride going any direction. Venture 67 miles south of downtown Tampa to find Siesta Key Beach, which, thanks to its unique powder-like sand, was once voted the number one “Best Sand Beach in America” by the Travel Channel. Here, couples can take a romantic evening stroll framed by a magnificent sunset, and families will love hunting together for seashells deposited by the tides.
With over 130 stores featuring everything from tobacco shops to clothiers and restaurants, St. Armand’s Key—an island only 65 miles from downtown Tampa in Sarasota Bay—is a shopping paradise that will undoubtedly win the heart of anyone in your group seeking eclectic shopping and dining options.
If your group is more interested in art and cultural fare, look no further than the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, which sits just 58 miles south of downtown Tampa in Sarasota. Feast your eyes on over 21 galleries of beautiful European paintings or inhale the intoxicating perfume of hundreds of gorgeous roses in the museum’s garden quarters.
Whether you’re coming for beachside relaxation or nightlife excitement in an area with great shopping, dining, and entertainment offerings, a stay in one of our Tampa Bay vacation rentals gives you access to it all.
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