St. Pete's/Clearwater Beach Advice?

[TinkOhio]

We're hoping that any St. Petes/ Clearwater Beach veterans would help us out with some advice. We are trying to take a long day trip to the beach from our place on WDW property and really want to see the Gulf. We are hoping to make this a long day trip.

1. Which beach would you choose and why? We would like to go somewhere with beautiful beaches, family-type seafood places, cute shops and perhaps putt-putt or other small activities. What we don't want is something too city-ish with large "strips" of dirty, touristy areas.

2. What is the best way to get there from WDW?

3. Can you recommend some fun outdoor, beachy places to grab a meal?

4. Can you recommend anything fun to do besides hang out on the sand and swim? We have a DS 16 and a DD 9.

Any help is greatly appreciated! TIA

 

[medicgirl911]

We called to make reservations for 5 days at St. Petes yesterday, we are going to a condo on the beach for 5 days after Disney. Anyway the manager was telling us that the Clearwater area is undergoing a lot of renovations/construction along the beachfront right now, he said it is much more beautiful near St. Petes area. Anyway I have never been there, just what some booking person was telling us!

 

[swilshire]

I was there in November and I agree that there is a lot of construction on Clearwater beach. The noise was always in the background when I walked the beach. Clearwater Beach is still my favorite over St Pete, because the sands are so soft and there is a nice public area with restrooms and a playground.

Can't remember the name of the large public park between the two, but I also went there once and enjoyed it.

As for getting there, just follow I-4 all the way to Tampa and then follow the signs to the beaches. Avoid rush hour in Tampa as the traffic can be a pain. You should be going against the traffic both ways going for the day.

Sheila

 

[Amity 3]

Frenchy's Rockaway Grill is literally on the beach. it's a laid-back pub/restaurant in Clearwater. Islandway Grill is a nice place for dinner, fusion style of a menu.

Sand Key and Clearwater have the best sand, but it's constantly under construction... Gulf to Bay Blvd. is all the way down to St. Pete Beach. parking is ten bucks or non-existent. we only go to the area to eat and shop anymore, unless we're staying in a condo or hotel.

Fort DeSoto is the only beach we head to in the St. Pete area, 11,000 acres of unspoiled Florida and plenty of beachfront.

we spend more time on the Bradenton/Sarasota beaches.

 

[jeffreyml]

We prefer the St Petes/ Madeira Beach area to Clearwater. There is a great area in Madeia Beach clalled John's Passhttp://www.johnspass.com that has lots of stores and also a boardwark with some attached restuaraunts and boat/ jet ski rentals as well as a Pirate Cruise, Dolphin cruise and fishing trips. There are numerous seafood places in the area that are fun for the family, 3-4 mini golf spots and just about whatever else you could think of.

There is a nice public beach in St Petes, very large and close to everything. We've stayed at WDW world and headed to the beach for a day numerous times. The worse part is finding a public shower to clean all the sand off before you head back home.

We tried the Clearwater area for a couple days last August and stayed at the Sheraton Sand Key(Beautiful hotel) and found the dining choices not up the standards that we liked further south. We did try Frenchy's on the beach and were not impressed. Maybee it was the time we went but the place smelled like stale beer and it was more like a spring break heaven than a family restauraunt. The shells we found on the beach were much nicer than we had found anywhere else.


Here is a link to some other places and things to do from a condo we usually rent in the area:
http://www.caplestone.com/condo/condoactivities.html

Restuaraunts
http://www.caplestone.com/condoeats.html

 

[MeMom]

John's Pass is were we like to go. Lots of shops side by side and some places to eat.

 

[jen54321]

We love the Pass-a-Grille area. It is literally at the end of Gulf Blvd towards the St. Pete end (not Clearwater). We've always found Clearwater too noisy and busy. The sand is softer at Clearwater because it is not as shelly at St. Pete. We like picking through the shells at St. Pete - although I don't think it would be considered good shelling.

Pass-a-Grille has a nice beach front with a take out type restaurant on the beach. Or you could try the Hurricane - nice restaurant and roof top spot to watch the sunset.

On the other side of pass-a-grille is the pier where you can watch people fishing and if lucky watch the dolphins swimming in the bay. It is a quaint beach town. It is close to St. Pete - and the restaurants in that area. A bit further up Gulf Blvd there are great mini-golf spots. John's Pass is a nice area to visit as well. The links jeffreyml gave you are quite good.

Getting to the area is quite easy. I am doing this from memory as we don't use directions anymore - best to get specific directions before heading out. Take the I-4 W from WDW. Merge onto the I-275 S. It takes about 90 mins to an hour and once in the area there are numerous exits to take to the beaches; Treasure Island, St. Petersburg Beach, etc. (Sorry I can't remember specifics but I hope it helps)

Cheers,
Jen

 

[jeffreyml]

We have visited the Pass-A-Grille area a few times. We love to eat at Sea Crittershttp://www.seacritterscafe.com/. We were there in August and they had a terrific Seafoood boil meal. It's a nice little restauraunt on the North side of Pass-a-Grille. They also have a drink that comes in a fish bowl called Knock-Out-Punch. One of those and you feel no pain from the sun. They will also give the kids bread scraps to feed the Sea-Critters in the waterway, we saw plenty of dolphins jumping around when we were there.

 

[Amity 3]

John's Pass is nice, but a lot of the stores are just tourist traps selling the same t-shirts and junk.

this is a good resource: http://www.floridasbeach.com/

 

[mommy2boysaz]

I, too, was thinking of heading to one of these places for a couple of days after our Disney trip. I wasn't sure if the weather would be suitable for a beach trip, though? We would be there Nov. 30- Dec. 2. If it isn't warm enough for actually swimming and/or laying on the beach, I think we'll skip it. Anyone know the normal temps for that time of year?

Thanks,
Britte

 

[Amity 3]

I, too, was thinking of heading to one of these places for a couple of days after our Disney trip. I wasn't sure if the weather would be suitable for a beach trip, though? We would be there Nov. 30- Dec. 2. If it isn't warm enough for actually swimming and/or laying on the beach, I think we'll skip it. Anyone know the normal temps for that time of year?

Thanks,
Britte

it varies, usually around 75-80 and the Gulf is low 70's.

we host the Outback Bowl game and there's a Beach Bash Day for the teams and the public a couple of days after Christmas at Clearwater Beach. check the forecast before you go, but there should be no problem with a nice beach day.

 

[Maria395712]

I am thinking about going here my self
maria

 

[taylor1293]

Unless you like traffic, construction, and crowds, you should avoid Clearwater beach.

Someone else mentioned Fort Desoto, it's beautiful there, and a perfect place for a day trip!

http://www.pinellascounty.org/park/05_Ft_DeSoto.htm

 

[f7prez]

We are also big fans of Fort DeSoto. We like the beach for the beach, not the high rise hotels, shops and traffic.

Caladesi Island is the best.

You can find usefull info and photos of the entire region here:
http://www.americasno1beach.com/

 

[TinkOhio]

Thanks so much for all the help!