In St. Petersburg, in the Tampa Bay area, you’ll find this beautiful park with many activities to enjoy. Here I show you how to get there, what to do and what to see…
We love it not only because of the crystal clear water and few or no waves at all, but also because it has an area for dogs so we can go for a day from Orlando without worrying about leaving them alone at home for too long. If you have a dog, in the area they also have a dog park before reaching the beach.
You have to pay 2 tolls to get here, once you’re in St. Petersburg, less than $1 between the 2, and then a fee for parking. Before, you used to pay when you were arriving at the park, but now you have options 2 options: you can pay using the app Flowbird (they charge an extra fee) or at different points with the machine on site, $5 per car.
Once in the park you have several spots with large parking lots. Each beach has restrooms, showers and even pavilions with picnic tables in case you want to have a family gathering or use the grill to cook something.
The park also has a camping area, you can rent bicycles or kayaks, fishing piers, a fort that you can visit, long trails for biking or walking/hiking, and even a store with snacks such as sandwiches or juices, souvenirs or in case you forgot something like sunscreen, towel or need a new shirt because your dog got it all dirty… oh… just me? ? okay.
Do you want to rent a kayak, canoe or a bike? (prices last time I checked at the beginning of 2023)
Kayaks/canoes:
1 hr: $23 for 1 person, $30 for 2
2 hrs: $29 1 person, $40 2 people
4 hrs: $39 1 person, $55 2 people
Bikes:
$8 per hour for a beach cruiser to $27 per hour for a fancy double train bike.
The most popular beach is North Beach which is at the end of the road. But for me, any area the beach is a beauty.
Once you enter to the park, you’ll see a huge USA flag, if you go to the right, that’s where you’ll find most of the beaches including the one for dogs. If you go to the left, at the end of the road you can find an excellent point to take photos of the famous bridge in the area Sunshine Skyway Bridge.
At the end of the afternoon, pay attention because you can see dolphins in the area. Spending a whole day at this park is really worth it. It is beautiful and has many activities for everyone.
There is also a ferry you can take to visit Egmont Key, I haven’t yet but it looks gorgeous. It’s 30 minutes on the ferry, $45 per adult, children 3-11 are $25 and children under 2 are free. Just remember, in that key there is nothing, with the ferry you can stay up to 3 hours and you have to bring food, enough water and whatever you need. Egmont Key is more for learning a little about the history of the place and enjoying the beach.
