St Petersburg, shortened to St Pete, is situated on Florida’s gulf coast and is part of the greater Tampa Bay municipal area. St Pete is surrounded by water on three sides: the Gulf of Mexico to the west and Tampa Bay to the south and east making this peninsula a very boat friendly destination. I visited St Pete in January, their off season. Located in central Florida, St Pete is far enough north to get some nasty weather during winter. While the weather wasn’t what I, as a northerner, consider to be cold, the strong winter winds and storms prevented any boat tours during my visit. I was told that spring and fall are generally pleasant weather seasons and are considered the high-season for tourists.
Accessing the city is fairly easy. While St Pete / Clearwater share a small airport, neighboring Tampa’s airport serves as a regional hub with direct flights to all of the major US airports. Tampa’s airport is situated next to the Tampa bay bridge, a 10 mile long bridge that connects St Pete to Tampa. Hoping in a rental car and crossing the bridge takes all of 10 minutes, depending on the traffic. While St Pete does have a municipal bus service, the city is definitely more navigable by car and I would recommend renting one when visiting.
St Pete possesses a small, beach-side metropolitan feel. Bar and restaurant options dot the major roads from the coast to the bay. St Pete’s art community claims the famed Salvador Dali. The surrealist painter lived in St Pete after immigrating to the United States. The Dali, arguably St Pete’s most famous museum, hosts the largest collection of Dali paintings in the United States. It houses some of Dali’s most technically challenging pieces, such as Gala Contemplating the Mediterranean Sea, a giant pixel piece that changes from a portrait of Dali’s wife to a image of Abraham Lincoln depending on the perspective of the viewer.
For the naturalists, St Pete’s attractions include The Sunken Gardens and Boyd Hill Nature Preserve. The Sunken Gardens are planted in a dry lake bed located right off the downtown core. Tropical flowers and spring into bushels of color within the Sunken Gardens. Boyd Hill Nature Preserve rest on the shores of Lake Maggiore, a brackish water lake located in southeast St Pete. Gators, birds, and a raptor rescue facility draw the crowds to Boyd Hill’s trails and paths.
The gulf side beaches exist on a series of highway linked keys. Crossing to the keys in the neighboring town of St Petersburg Beach requires a toll for the bridge crossing. Parking is extremely limited on the beach and public parking lots charge per minute. The beaches themselves are strikingly beautiful and clean. The gulf’s turbulent waters are blue green and stretch as far as the eyes can see. White sand beaches up and down the coast are remarkably clear of trash, given the density of human visitors sunning themselves upon the gulf.
St Pete provides the perfect combination of culture, nature, and nightlife to attract a variety of interests. It’s accessibility and affordability compared to other southern Florida destinations makes St Pete an attractive proposition to the weekend vacationer looking for an affordable warm-weather getaway.